The one certainty in the 2026 NFL Draft is that Fernando Mendoza will be selected first overall by the Raiders and most people think Ty Simpson will be the second quarterback off the board, but a lot is up in the air at the position from there.
Colt Payton is one of the quarterbacks vying for a shot in the league and Tom Pelissero of NFL Media reports that he is visiting the Colts on Monday.
Payton was only a one-year starter at North Dakota State, but saw action as a runner throughout his time in college and ran for 13 scores during the 2023 season. He was 161-of-224 for 2,719 yards, 16 touchdowns and four interceptions in 2025 and also ran for 777 and 13 more touchdowns.
Daniel Jones is back as the starter for the Colts with Riley Leonard and Anthony Richardson also on the roster. The Colts have been trying to trade Richardson and doing so would open a spot for a third quarterback in Indianapolis.
The Colts are trying to move cornerback Kenny Moore.
Indianapolis and Moore have mutually agreed to seek a trade, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter.
Moore, 30, is entering the last year of his contract and is set to make $9.49 million in base salary for 2026. Trading him would save Indianapolis $7.06 million against the cap.
Moore entered the league as an undrafted free agent back in 2017 with the Patriots, but did not make the club’s 53-man roster. He was claimed off waivers by the Colts and has been with the club ever since.
In 2025, Moore appeared in 14 games with seven starts, recording six passes defensed, an interception, and two forced fumbles. Moore has played a total of 132 games with 111 starts since 2017, picking off 21 passes with 68 passes defensed.
Having won the CFP National Championship with Indiana in January, running back Kaelon Black has a busy pre-draft schedule.
Black has several teams on his list for pre-draft, top 30 visits, including the Jets, Broncos, Panthers, Colts, Texans, Dolphins, Packers, Vikings, Patriots, and Raiders, a source with knowledge of the situation tells PFT.
He may also meet with the Bengals.
Black played under head coach Curt Cignetti at James Madison for two years before transferring to follow Cignetti to Indiana in 2024.
He rushed for 251 yards for Indiana in 2024 before becoming one of the Hoosiers’ two 1,000-yard backs in 2025, finishing the season with 1,040 yards and 10 touchdowns. He also caught four passes for 36 yards.
Former Louisville wide receiver Chris Bell is set for a busy week.
Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports that Bell is visiting with the Jets on Tuesday. He’ll then head to Indianapolis for a meeting with the Colts and a Combine medical recheck.
Bell tore his ACL in a November game last year, which is why he’ll be heading for another medical check this week. He had 72 catches for 917 yards and six touchdowns before his injury and 151 catches for 2,166 yards and 12 touchdowns over his entire run with the Cardinals.
Rapoport adds that Bell is also slated to meet with the Raiders and Cowboys ahead of the draft later this month.
Former Colts quarterback Andrew Luck has rejected a claim that the team’s General Manager Chris Ballard influenced his retirement decision ahead of the 2019 season.
Word of Luck’s retirement surfaced during a preseason game that August and Luck explained the decision as a result of the effect that numerous injuries had on his physical and mental health. During an episode of his podcast On My Soul, former Colts tight end Eric Ebron suggested there was more to it than that.
Ebron said Ballard, who he described as someone who “gets on everyone’s nerves,” told Luck “you’re either playing this year or we’re moving on.” Luck was dealing with an ankle injury at the time and, per Ebron, felt he was “not going to be ready” and made the choice to retire given the way Ballard laid things out.
In an email to Mike Chappell of Fox 59, Luck said that was not the way things unfolded.
“Chris and I had a wonderful partnership, especially through my decision to retire, and we remain close,’’ Luck wrote. “Any notion of internal pressures that influenced my decision are without merit.’’
The Colts have played one playoff game since Luck retired and have struggled to find a long-term answer at quarterback over that time. They hope it will be Daniel Jones after signing him to a new deal this offseason and having that bet pay off would help put the Luck discourse to rest once and for all.
