Hey there Colts’ fans! Here are my newest thoughts on the happenings down at the old Colts’ Corral. It has been a wild and turbulent month, considering how far we are from any meaningful football or fantasy football activities!

In a real-world sense, there was no bigger news than the sudden passing of team owner Jim Irsay on May 21. He was just a young teen when his dad bought the Baltimore Colts in 1972, and he started as a ball boy hanging out in the locker room, then eventually became a scout and one of the youngest GMs ever under his father. He was known outside of the state mostly for his eccentricities, his pop culture collectibles and his open struggles with substance abuse. And while those stories were all true and made him seem like a caricature of a stereotypical guy raised with a silver spoon in his mouth, it belied an immense passion for and knowledge of football, and an even greater passion for taking care of people in his personal sphere and in his community. All his former players and coaches comment on his generosity, compassion, empathy and genuine love for everyone that he touched in his roller coaster life.His enthusiasm and unparalleled commitment to his franchise and the Indianapolis community will not be forgotten for sure. Rest in peace, Mr. Irsay.

The team control will now be split between his three daughters who have all been raised within the franchise’s operations – much like he also had been by his father, the late Robert Irsay. All three girls will be co-owners, with the eldest Carly Irsay-Gordon taking over her father’s role as principal owner and CEO, primarily in charge of the football side of things. She took over as owner in 2014 after Jim Irsay was suspended for a while, and has been deeply involved with the operations of the team for many years in preparation for her role managing the football operations eventually. She is very well-versed in the operations of the team on and off the field; she has donned headsets during the game for years, participated in many team meetings and all practices, and has attended the owners’ meetings since 2004. At only 44 years old, she is far and away the youngest team owner in the NFL with all others being at least 60 already. She will be assisted by 42-year old Casey Foyt (yes, she is married to A.J. Foyt’s grandson) as an owner and executive vice-president. Casey has focused on marketing and community relations for the team for many years, and will primarily focus on those same roles going forward. She was one of the players in initially getting the NFL to play in London years ago. Youngest sister Kalen Jackson (37) now also becomes owner and the chief brand officer, as well as president of the Indianapolis Colts Foundation. In addition to her many roles guiding external opportunities for the team to be present in the community, she also chairs the NFL’s Employee Benefits Committee. They just finished their combined press conference announcing their roles as owners as I write this, and they all said everyone knows that some things have not been good enough in the recent past… but also that they have great confidence in both HC Shane Steichen and GM Chris Ballard to get them where they need to be. The dreaded vote of confidence?!?

While there is a lot of change off the field, there was equally large news on the field this week as the first OTA practices began with a shocking announcement. Potential franchise QB Anthony Richardson has been shut down for the remainder of the offseason workouts (which conclude this week) because of an aggravation of the AC joint in his throwing shoulder – the same injury that cost him most of his rookie season in 2023. According to HC Shane Steichen, Richardson will be present for the Colts' mandatory veteran minicamp this week, but inactive, and is expected to make a return some timeduring training camp which starts on July 22. This is at least a big red flag, and for sure cements QB Daniel Jones as the de facto #1 option under center without reservation until Richardson can even get back onto the field. Even with full clearance at the start of camp, I would be surprised to see much of Richardson in the preseason, therefore telling me that the starting job is Jones to lose for the opener. If you are having very early drafts, I would target Danny Dimes as a late #2 or a good #3 option for your team with Richardson right now being no more than a last-round flyer as a #3.

The team has signed all of their rookie draft choices except second round DE JT Tuimoloau out of Ohio State. I am not too worried about it because a lot of Ohio State players are late to sign because of the rules surrounding signing rookies before their school year is done, and the Buckeyes end later than most. I don’t expect a problem here. Over the last month or so, they have re-signed veteran TE Mo Alie-Cox in a bit of a surprise, although his veteran presence in the locker room will be good especially for first round pick TE Tyler Warren. They also released high-priced veteran PK Matt Gay and have replaced him with a solid young guy in PK Spencer Shrader, who has kicked well in a few stops already (including Indianapolis); Shrader was added back in March on a 3-year deal, and I predicted at that time that Gay would be gone. The only other signing in the last couple of months has been journeyman LB Joe Bachie who has kicked around on and off several teams practice squads and active rosters for 6 seasons. They did reclaim former 2022 Colts 5^th round pick DT Eric Johnson off of waivers from the Patriots, who had snatched him from us off the waiver wire last season. So…new real exciting news here.

That is all from the Crossroads of America for this month. Veteran minicamp is this week (June 10-12), and then the team will be off for a month or so until training camp starts in earnest in late July. Hopefully Richardson will be healthy and ready to assert himself as worthy of the pick with which he was taken – otherwise, this team will be led by Danny Dimes and there will be some tough questions for the new ownership and the veteran coach and GM combo to assess.

Have a great summer!

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