ClutchPoints
Despite missing the playoffs by just a few games, the Indianapolis Colts’ 2024 campaign could not have gone much worse. General manager Chris Ballard has already admitted that he is eyeing major changes to the Colts’ current roster during the 2025 NFL offseason, whether via trade or free agency.
Few teams went through as much turbulence as the Colts did in 2024. Head coach Shane Steichen bailed on Anthony Richardson just eight games into the year, only to give him the job back after two weeks. Considering the instability, it is almost a miracle Indianapolis ended the season just one game below .500.
Ballard and Steichen have already committed to Richardson for at least one more year, but not without stipulations. Ballard admitted that he would bring in a veteran quarterback to compete with Richardson without mentioning any specific names. The Colts will likely pursue that route in free agency but could also hunt an offseason trade.
Quarterback aside, the Colts have more than one other hole to fill in the 2025 NFL offseason. A lot of their immediate success is dependent on Richardson’s growth, but Ballard is committed to building the team around him. He will need to make several other moves on both sides of the ball to make that happen.
The Colts’ defense ranked near the middle of the pack in most areas but particularly struggled to generate pass rush success in 2024. Indianapolis managed just 36 sacks on the year, the eighth-fewest in the NFL. Star defensive tackle DeForest Buckner consistently ranked among the league’s best interior defensive linemen, but the team could not get enough production out of defensive ends Kwity Paye and Dayo Odeyingbo.
While Paye will return in 2025, Odeyingbo will hit free agency. The former second-round pick has given Ballard no reason to believe he should bring him back, even for a discounted price. Odeyingbo generated just 19 total quarterback pressures in 2024, resulting in three sacks.
With edge rushers among his top priorities, Ballard’s options will be much richer in the trade market than free agency. Cincinnati Bengals captain Sam Hubbard, who will enter the final year of his $40 million contract in 2025, should be his top priority.
Hubbard has taken a clear step back to Trey Hendrickson over the past few years, recording just two sacks in 2024. However, while his speed has clearly diminished, he has recorded six or more sacks in all but two of his years with the Bengals.
The Colts would no longer need him to be a game-changing edge rusher but rather a supplementary force alongside Paye and Buckner. His veteran voice in the locker room would go a long way for a team lacking leadership.
Aside from the pass rush, the Colts’ need for support at linebacker will be their second biggest defensive priority. In 2024, four players — Zaire Franklin, E.J. Speed, Nick Cross and Jaylon Jones — topped 100 tackles, yet Indianapolis still...
