Can Colts WRs Michael Pittman Jr., Alec Pierce take the next step?
https://www.indystar.com/story/sport...p/70311438007/
Quote:
INDIANAPOLIS — The Colts have shuffled the deck at the wide receiver position this offseason, using one draft pick to replace another in the slot and signing a handful of veterans to compete for the right to fill out the roster.
The top two spots remain the same.
If new Indianapolis head coach Shane Steichen is going to deploy the explosive, vertical passing game he’s talked about, the one-two punch of Michael Pittman Jr. and Alec Pierce are going to have to do the bulk of the heavy lifting.
“I like Pittman. … I think he’s a good, solid receiver, he’s been doing it for a good chunk here in Indy,” Steichen said at the owner’s meetings in late March. “And then Pierce … I think he’s going to develop as a pass-catcher. He’s got the deep ball, he can be a vertical threat. I like both of those guys.”
The pair of second-round picks still have something to prove in the NFL.
In three seasons, Pittman Jr. has already proven plenty, repeatedly showing he can be a high-volume, possession target as a starter, piling up 88 catches in 2021 and 99 in 2022, despite the Colts’ ugly play at the quarterback position.
But Pittman Jr. is headed into the final year of his rookie deal, and he’d undoubtedly like to prove that he’s a No. 1 receiver, capable of carrying an offense and commanding the big-money second contract that comes with that status.
Pittman Jr.’s deferred most of the contract questions to his agent in his interviews this season, allowing only that he knows what it takes to land a big-money deal.
“I think that happens naturally with performance,” Pittman Jr. said.
Pittman Jr.’s performance has come close.
Far and away the team’s top target in 2021, Pittman Jr. averaged 12.3 yards per catch and made a handful of big, contested catches downfield — using his size, long arms and leaping ability to out-jump defensive backs — early in the season, but the big plays trickled off, and although he caught 99 passes a year ago, he averaged just 9.3 yards per catch.
Even the fact that he came so close to 100 catches is something that gnaws at Pittman Jr.
“I had a ton of missed opportunities,” Pittman Jr. said. “There (are) things that I could’ve done to get that last catch. That’s not on anybody else, that’s on me. One more catch? That’s on me.”
Pittman Jr. takes his goals seriously.
The veteran wide receiver doesn’t just write his goals down. He puts them through revisions.
“I do a draft, and I probably go through like three different cuts,” Pittman Jr. said. “The main goals are always the same: Super Bowl, AFC Champ, All-Pro, Pro Bowl. From there, I make my goals, and I make my targets each day that I think are going to help me get to that goal.”
Pierce’s next step is simpler.
The Cincinnati product turned in a rookie season full of peaks and valleys, hitting enough high points to convince the Colts they were right on track with his potential. Pierce caught 41 passes for 593 yards and two touchdowns, and there were clear highs in his season — a 10-catch performance against Denver and a deep-ball touchdown to beat Jacksonville among them.
Playing in an offense that averaged just 9.7 yards per completion, Pierce averaged a team-best 14.5 yards per catch, the kind of numbers that should fit well in the vertical passing game Steichen wants to build.
“We definitely want to be able to stretch the field vertically, create explosives,” Pierce said. “That’s something I think that reflects my game, that’s where my strengths are.”
But now that Pierce has proven he can get deep, he has to prove he has the consistency to be a starter rather than just a home-run threat. As exciting as Pierce can be, a lot of his highlights happened early in the season, before he thumped into the rookie wall.
A wall Pierce didn’t even realize he’d hit.
“Taking care of my body, it’s a long season, and just being able to stay strong, keep playing your best ball towards the end of the year,” Pierce said. “I don’t know if I necessarily felt it, but I think looking back on the film, I did feel like I just wasn’t moving as good as I was early in the season.”
ADVERTISING
Pierce also believes he could have done a better job of getting open, giving quarterbacks a chance to put the ball out in front of him and let him run.
“I definitely needed to work more on my route-running at the top of routes, creating separation,” Pierce said.
Pittman Jr. and Pierce, to their credit, are talking only about the parts of the game they want to improve.
But the biggest question about their impact this season might have little to do with them. Any evaluation of Pittman Jr. and Pierce comes with a caveat; the Colts’ quarterback situation has been a mess the past two seasons, making it difficult for any wide receiver to put his full talents on display.
Indianapolis used the No. 4 pick on Florida quarterback Anthony Richardson to put an end to that quarterback carousel.
Richardson remains raw and even though the Colts’ decision-makers have hinted they’d like to play the rookie as early as possible, there could be uncertainty on the Indianapolis quarterbacking front early in the 2023 season as the rookie goes through growing pains.
Another inconsistent season at quarterback, or a season built around the running game, might make it difficult for Pittman Jr. and Pierce to put their full talents on display again, a situation that has become all too familiar for Colts receivers.
Not that the quarterback situation is anything the two receivers can control.
Whoever’s under center, Pittman Jr. and Pierce figure to be the team’s top two targets on the outside.
And it’s up to them to make the most of that role.
|
|
06-12-2023, 10:21 AM
Linear Mode
