Indianapolis

Colts

On April 20th, Colts general manager Chris Ballard said Pierce was looking at a three-month recovery after undergoing surgery on his ankle. The Colts’ exact training camp start and end dates have not yet been announced, but last year, it ran from July 23rd to August 14th. Returning partway through camp would technically put him a little bit behind schedule. Pierce signed a four-year, $114 million contract, so we know the team certainly hopes to increase his involvement this season. However, while Pierce rehabs post-op, WR Josh Downs and TE Tyler Warren continue to get into football shape while honing their craft. Pierce will still have time to get ready for the season if he returns in early August, but he’ll be cutting it closer than he ideally would.

The need is clearly there with second-round pick Jaylahn Tuimoloau, Micheal Clemons and Arden Key competing for the role next to Laiatu Latu at the moment. Boyd also mentions Cameron Jordan, Jadeveon Clowney and Leonard Floyd among others as possibilities. The veteran edge rusher and wideout markets are still unfolding ahead of training camp.

Walley tore his ACL last August in training camp after a promising offseason that seemed to have him as a possibility to start right away. It looks like he’ll be full-go in training camp and should have a decent shot at starting. The 80th overall pick in the draft in 2025, Walley’s absence was a big part of the reason the Colts dealt for Sauce Gardner at midseason last year, and it sounds like he could replace Kenny Moore in the slot for the Colts in 2026.

Broadly speaking: This is good news, but there’s many steps of the rehab process still to come. Colts GM Chris Ballard said in April that Jones is “shooting for Week 1.” That implied a little bit of a question mark. If Jones does start Week 1, he will be hard to trust in fantasy leagues, as the Achilles is likely to hinder him for quite a bit as a runner. That question doesn’t have to be answered for quite a few months, though, and it seems like Jones has been ahead of expectations of his recovery for some time.

According to the Indy Star’s Joel A. Erickson, Jones did everything in individual drills. That’s a good sign for Jones, who is a little under seven months removed from the torn Achilles tendon he suffered in Week 14. He still has two months until training camp, putting him well on track to be ready by Week 1. The next step will be participating in team drills. For now, Riley Leonard and Anthony Richardson will get some extra reps in practice, though it doesn’t look like either player will be needed in Jones’ place to start the year.

GM Chris Ballard has emphasized lately he “still thinks Richardson has something to offer.” We can certainly see the logic behind the Colts not doing another team a favor by letting Richardson become a free agent, but if there’s no market here, it seems likely that Richardson will likely just be the team’s third quarterback this season behind Daniel Jones and Riley Leonard. Richardson has been evenly splitting second-team reps with Leonard during the Colts’ offseason program.

Abdullah will be 33 at the start of next season and spent all of last season with the Colts after being waived by the 49ers during training camp. The veteran running back will have to compete for a spot on the Jaguars’ 53-man roster, but could have some value as a return man. Abdullah returned 19 kicks for 563 yards for the Colts last season, and is the active leader in career kick returns and kick return yards at 4,346. We wouldn’t expect him to have much, if any, value as a running back even if he does crack the Week 1 roster.

With starting QB Daniel Jones (Achilles) rehabbing his season-ending injury from last year, presumed QB2 Riley Leonard will receive extra snaps this spring. When asked today if Richardson will be allowed to compete with Leonard for the QB2 role, Steichen “quickly sidestepped the topic,” prompting multiple follow-up questions from reporters. Steichen also “did not give a direct answer” when asked if Richardson has any limitations in his previously injured eye. A reporter followed up on the latter issue, but Steichen “simply repeated that the QB is ‘cleared to play.’” This doesn’t give us a whole lot to go on, but we expect reporters to follow up with Steichen and potentially Richardson on the matter. Boyd notably reported in February that Richardson had regained full vision in his right eye. We hope the initial reporting is indeed true.

Steichen notes, though, that “the team will be cautious” with Jones. A little over two weeks ago, we learned that Jones was dropping back and throwing the football. It sounds like that process is going well, and his rehab continues. We do not yet know if he will be able to play early in the season. Colts QB Riley Leonard is penciled in as Jones’ backup. It is unclear whether QB Anthony Richardson will be allowed to compete for the No. 2 role. The Athletic’s James Boyd believes “questions still remain about his recovery from a right eye injury.”

Bullock, 25, joined the Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent last year, appearing in two games as a defender and playing extensively on special teams. Bullock briefly spent time with the Colts this offseason, but they waived him yesterday. The Buccaneers were evidently eager to bring him back.