Holes
 

Let’s start out by saying that there’s more than one kind of hole. At one end of the spectrum a hole can be a position where you are hoping that a promising young player can step up. At the other extreme, it can be a position where you have nothing but a gaping wound in your roster, an abyss through which the Mongol horde is about to pour.

The Colts don’t have many holes in their starting lineup. We’re depending on rookies at Safety and one Linebacker spot. A starter at the other Linebacking position is uncertain.

CJ Allen is widely expected to step into one Linebacking spot, and the other slot will come down to a battle between Akeem Davis-Gaither, Jaylon Carlies, and the rookie Bryce the butcher. None of those guys are ever going to get confused with Darius Leonard, but they might all offer improvement over the dumpster fire we saw from Zaire franklin.

Wide Receiver 2 is also a question. MPJ’s departure left a void of 80 catches, and the plan to spread the load among Pierce, Downs, and Warren seems tenuous to me. So, we’re left to ask who among Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, Ashton Dulin, Laquon Treadwell, or Deion Burks is ready to step up? Is there a possibility of a further free agent signing or a trade before the start of the season? Is another AJ Brown lurking in the weeds?

Finally, we come to Defensive End, the position at which the wailing and gnashing of teeth is loudest. You can argue that Gabe Jacas should have been the guy, but reading his analyses, he sounds like Kwity Paye 2.0. Strong, tough, but not explosive or agile. So, we’re left with Arden Key, Tuimoloau, Forrest Gumbs, Caden Curry and a handful of spear carriers. I could be wrong, but the situation doesn’t seem particularly dire. You might not have a Reggie White among them, but if Deforest Buckner returns to form and we see normal years from Ward and Gardner, Lou Anarumo should be able to scheme somewhere north of 50 sacks.

Are there other areas that might be problematic? Sure, but I wouldn’t describe the need for a backup Quarterback as a hole.

I will agree that Edge is the prime area of concern. Are we better or worse than last year at Edge? I would say that we are approximately the same, with more potential to be better. By the way, in the words of Bill Parcells, "potential means, that you haven't done it yet".

As far as 50 sacks goes, I don't see that happening, unless Latu just goes ballistic, and somebody from this group proves to be a better pass rusher than Kwity Paye.

Deion Burks was projected as a late Day 2 guy (getting him at 254 was insane value), he has the potential to come in and take the WR3 role. Downs is going to have to step up as WR2, and Pierce as WR1. I think Tyler Warren will alleviate some of the pressure on the receiving corps, if things go well he's going to have a big year.

I think Warren is going to kind of be a WR2/TE and that is ok, Downs being a bigger part of the offense is great, but he has had availability issues. Burks, I think, helps with that a lot. I do think Dulin can be a decent part of it, but we are going to miss Pittman. He is a solid possession receiver and was clutch. I hate that there is no way I can root for him as a Steeler.

Over the first 9 games, last year, when Buckner was healthy, they recorded 26 sacks. In the final 6 games, they notched 6.

If Buckner can reestablish himself as a threat inside Tackle, they have a couple of advantages over last season. First, with two pro bowl quality Corners, there’s a greater opportunity for coverage sacks. Second, Anarumo can begin to run some exotic blitz schemes, confident that the back end of the D won’t collapse.

Also, in obvious passing situations, when you bring in extra pass rushers, I have a lot more confidence in Key, Curry and Gumbs than i did in Paye, Lewis and Ebukam.

I am concerned about the d line with the only alpha coming off neck surgery. The rest seem to be just guys, with Latu a step above. Having said that if both of our corners remain healthy (and it will be a miracle if Ward can manage that) they can make a huge difference in this defense. Before Ward got hurt last year he alone made a huge difference. Latu is just milliseconds away from making plays and just a tad more coverage might do wonders. I don't know enough about our new guys (and hope you are correct) but Paye, Lewis ad Ebukam won't be missed.

Anyone concerned about the lack of depth in our running back room? JT was healthy last year, first year in a long time. Behind him are Goodson, Gibbons and McGowan, none of whom are either good at pass blocking or are the type to get you those two difficult yards you need (meaning JT isnt getting a rest). I would like to see us pick up a veteran for depth.

o


I'm concerned about the fact that the Colts started the 2025 season with an NFL-best record of 8-2, and finished it in a big ball of mediocrity at 8-9 ...... since the initial retirement of Philip Rivers in January of 2021, it's been like the movie Groundhog Day ...... no matter how the movie starts, it always winds up the same in the end.

It's gotten to the point in which the Colts could start a season with a record of 9-0, and I won't believe that they won't finish with a record of 9-8 until I literally see the number 10 in the W column with my own lying eyes.

o

Man, I hope you're right. One thing that the national sports media doesn't realize is, a bone headed WR, who shall remain nameless, cost us two TD's and a win in the Rams game. The injury to Schrader and the subsequent signing of Badgley was disastrous. The injuries in the secondary decimated the pass defense. As well as your accurate assessment of the loss of Buck.

The injuries to Daniel Jones, were just the straw that broke the camels back.

I bet you still pick us to go 13-3-1

o


Race, the Colts could trot a high school varsity team out there and I would still pick them to go 13-3-1 or 12-4-1.

o

o


There’s a key competition brewing heading into Colts Camp at WR-2.



Colts Training Camp Battle Early Preview ...... Wide Receiver

(By Luke Schultheis)

https://www.stampedeblue.com/indiana...-wide-receiver



This off-season has marked a stark contrast to years past, because there are a number of starting positions up for grabs regarding the Indianapolis Colts ...... whereas typically there’s usually only been one or two under GM Chris Ballard, who’s admittedly wanted more open competition throughout his entire roster.

The Colts didn’t make a ton of external noise this off-season, as their biggest moves were re-signing both starting quarterback Daniel Jones and lead wide receiver Alec Pierce to lucrative multi-year deals, as well as trading a pair of longtime veteran pillars to other NFL teams: Michael Pittman Jr. (the Pittsburgh Steelers) and Zaire Franklin (the Green Bay Packers.)

However, there was one under-the-radar veteran pickup at wide receiver, which it’s worth highlighting here, the Colts starting outside WR-2 position opposite Pierce is currently up-for-grabs.


The Favorite: Nick Westbrook-Ikhine


The 29-year-old former Indiana University standout was signed to a modest 1-Year, $1.402M deal, as he looks to rebound from a quiet sole season with the Miami Dolphins in 2025.

Specifically, Westbrook-Ikhine caught just 11 receptions for 89 total receiving starts during 15 games (3 starts) this past season for the Dolphins before being released in mid-February of this year.

However, the 6,2”, 211-pound wideout is just a year removed from a breakout 2024 season for the Colts’ rival Tennessee Titans, in which he recorded 32 receptions for 497 total receiving yards and 9 TD receptions in 17 games (9 starts.) That earned him a short-lived 2-year, $6.5 Million contract from Miami back in mid-March of 2025 before his recent off-season release.

Like the man he’ll be helping to replace, Michael Pittman Jr, Westbrook-Ikhine is a pretty big-bodied wideout himself with reliable hands who’s a consistent red-zone threat, and he's a willing run-blocker along the outside.


The Challenger: Ashton Dulin


Similarly to Westbrook-Ikhine, Dulin is another former undrafted free-agent, only he was originally signed by the Colts back in the 2019 off-season coming out of Division-II Malone University.

Since then, Dulin has worked his way onto the Colts’ active 53-man roster as a core special-teams player, where he continues to add a lot of versatility and value to the club as a gunner, a speed demon, and a kick returner.

However, he’s only continued to improve and get better, as he’s even worked his way onto the field with the Colts 1st-team offense as a rotational wide-out in more recent years ...... even making 2 starts each of the past 2 seasons for the Horseshoe. This past season he had 5 receptions for 106 total receiving yards (21.2 YPR) in 12 games.



The Outlook:


It’ll be interesting to see if one of Westbrook-Ikhine or Dulin can win the starting outside WR-2 outright by separating from the other, or whether this will ultimately end up being more of a "wide receiver-by-committee" approach throughout 2026 with rookie 7th-round diminutive speedster Deion Burks even getting some deep looks or wide receiver screen/gadget opportunities situationally.

Make no mistake about it, Pittman Jr leaves some big shoes to fill for the Colts' wide receiver room next season. Even though Pittman Jr‘s receiving production no longer matched his increasingly large salary cap hit (which is why he was traded to Pittsburgh), he still did a lot of the little things that helped the Colts offense out there.

As the initial front-runner heading into Colts camp, Westbrook-Ikhine, from a playing style perspective, can help do some of the little things that Pittman Jr did so well that didn’t show up in the box score ...... albeit at a discounted and likely lesser rate.

Meanwhile, Dulin’s been here long enough to not exactly bet against him ...... he's only continuing to stick and improve.

The Colts will likely also be looking to both slot wideout Josh Downs and 2nd-year tight end Tyler Warren to replace the lost receiving production from Pittman Jr, with bigger roles from each this upcoming campaign.

o

9tds on 32rec in 2024... that's one of those goofy stat lines. Almost every third catch was a TD.

Reminds me of Donte Moncrief in '15 or '16 when every fourth catch was a TD.

Either way, him or Dulin (assuming they don't bring another vet in to compete), "WR2" won't be target #2 with Downs and Warren there.

If you're referencing Pierce, then it was actually 7 tds on 32 receptions.

I think he is talking about NWI.

Goodson is in Atlanta. I think D.J. Giddens can at least be a serviceable backup, if not more. I honestly don't know much about McGowan.