Colts’ riskiest moves in the 2024 NFL season

The Indianapolis Colts feel like a team being put to sleep heading into the 2024 NFL season. Many NFL fans stopped paying attention to the Colts after Anthony Richardson went down with a season-ending injury early this year. But that didn’t stop Indy from having a successful season. Without their rookie QB, the Colts finished with a 9-8 record and trailed the AFC South champion Houston Texans by just one game. Indy’s 2024 opponents can overlook the Colts at their peril.

The Colts have kept their foot on the gas pedal this offseason, adding a ton of talent that could take the team to the next level in 2024. For starters, they’ve retained some of their best players. They re-signed Michael Pittman Jr, Zaire Franklin, Kenny Moore II and Grover Stewart to multi-year contract extensions. Indy clearly wants to keep their core intact going forward.

Indy’s free choice was largely about retaining their own players. However, that hasn’t stopped them from adding depth at a number of positions. Their biggest addition was QB Joe Flacco, who will become a mentor and backup to Anthony Richardson. Flacco was a hero in 2023, joining the Cleveland Browns and leading them to a playoff berth. He won the NFL Comeback Player of the Year award. The Colts also signed defensive tackle Raekwon Davis to a one-year deal to provide some depth at center.

The 2024 NFL Draft brought even more talent to the Colts. Indy spent their first-round pick on UCLA edge rusher Laiatu Latu. They also brought in another offensive weapon in second-round wide receiver Adonai Mitchell from Texas. The rest of their selections focused primarily on the offensive line and defense.

These moves put Indy in a position to compete in a suddenly dangerous AFC South. However, a few of their offseason moves are quite risky. Below, let’s examine two of the Colts’ riskiest moves this offseason and discuss how they could impact the team’s 2024 season.

Joe Flacco is a risky backup QB at 39 years old

On the one hand, Joe Flacco is the perfect mentor for Anthony Richardson. He is a veteran NFL QB who proved he can still master the game in 2023. Flacco should become a valuable part of Richardson’s development, essentially serving as another member of the coaching staff during practices, in the film room and in other locations. the sidelines on Sunday. If this works, it really could work.

On the other hand, this could blow up in Indy’s face. Richardson already has an injury history in the NFL and he has made it clear that he will not change his playing style due to injuries. That’s fine if you believe his injury was simply a freak occurrence. However, if you attribute the injury even partially to his playing style, you might start to worry.

If Richardson were to miss an extended period, Joe Flacco would return to action. Flacco proved in 2023 that he can be a competent QB, but that’s a tough task as a 39-year-old in a brand new system. There is absolutely no guarantee that Flacco can repeat last year’s magic in Indy.

Laiatu Latu could have an incredibly short NFL career

Latu was a polarizing draft prospect due to his unique injury history.

He suffered a neck injury during the 2020 season in Washington and missed the entire season. Latu also missed the entire 2021 season after UW doctors would not clear him to play due to his neck injury. The UW medical staff even recommended that Latu medically retire. Latu later revealed that he had undergone neck fusion surgery.

That wasn’t good enough for Latu. He transferred from UW to UCLA and put together two absolutely monster seasons to end his collegiate career. During his senior season, Latu won the Lombardi Award, given to the nation’s top college lineman. He also led the FBS with 21.5 tackles for loss and recorded 13 sacks, two interceptions and 49 tackles in just 12 games.

If we just look at talent, Latu is comparable to TJ Watt in terms of talent. He is a phenomenal athlete and a smart edge rusher.

The elephant in the room, however, is his injury history. His neck injury in 2020 almost ended his football career. It’s common knowledge that his NFL career could be shorter than most as another neck injury could put him out of the league for good.

All of this leaves the Colts with an interesting dilemma. Are you trying to manage Latu’s photos to maintain his health? Do you ignore the injury history and treat him like any other player? It’s easy to see that both choices have obvious disadvantages.

Ultimately, Colts fans won’t care about Latu’s injury history if he stays healthy and continues to put up monster numbers. The only question is how long he can keep that up.