INDIANAPOLIS – To this point, there’s been a definite hometown flavor to Chris Ballard’s roster rebuilding.
Michael Pittman Jr., who always was a part of the future, endorsed that offseason personnel plan, but had trouble keeping up.
“I’m not the GM, so I don’t make those decisions,’’ he said last week. “It’s always nice to see guys that you know coming back. Like, we see these guys every day. We see these guys sometimes more than we see our own families, right?
“You just develop those relationships with guys.’’
How many guys?
“We’ve signed, like I’d have to count, five? Five of our own, right?’’ Pittman said, running through the list in his mind. “I hope I’m not missing somebody.’’
He was.
It was six. Or maybe seven.
It was last Wednesday, a week into the NFL’s new year. That’s the time on the league calendar when player relocation is at its most frenetic pace.
But not with the Colts. Of the 11 personnel moves they’ve made thus far, nine involved extending relationships with familiar faces.
Pittman was the headliner as the franchise presented the slew of players it had either re-signed or extended. The Colts replaced the franchise tag it had affixed to their leading receiver with a three-year, $70 million contract.
The supporting cast last week included defensive tackle Grover Stewart (three years, $39 million), cornerback Kenny Moore II (three years, $30 million), defensive lineman Tyquan Lewis (two years, $12 million) and punter Rigoberto Sanchez (three years, $7.5 million).
And it included linebacker Zaire Franklin, who signed a three-year, $31.25 million extension to reflect his ascension from core special teams standout to defensive cornerstone.
“I understand sometimes re-signing your own is not as sexy as people want it to be,’’ he said. “But if you look at it objectively, you’ll see Kenny is the best nickel corner in the NFL, period. Grover, if not the best, (is) one of the top nose tackles in the league. Pittman Jr., (one of the) top No. 1 receivers in the league.
“Obviously, myself included.’’
Franklin smiled at the last reference, but had made his point.
“These are top players together and I think it means a lot for us to maintain and keep that in-house,’’ he said. “That being said, it’s time for us to go get it now.
“I mean, I guess the expectation has to be a division title, period.’’
The Colts were a few plays away from capturing their first AFC South championship since 2014. When they couldn’t complete their week 18 comeback against Houston at Lucas Oil Stadium – a failed fourth-and-1 at the Texans 15-yard line with 1:06 remaining led to a 23-19 loss – they were left with a 9-8 record and had to look on as the Texans celebrated the division title.
“There were a couple of games last year we let slip away,’’ Moore said.
The Texans to close the season. Jacksonville to open it. Consecutive error-filled home losses to Cleveland and New Orleans. Overtime against the Los Angeles Rams.
The Colts were that close to winning the AFC South during a season that saw rookie quarterback Anthony Richardson miss the final 12 games with a shoulder injury and running back Jonathan Taylor’s availability and effectiveness limited by his prolonged rehab from offseason ankle surgery and contract squabble.
Ballard’s view for the immediate future is undeniable entering his eighth season as GM.
“Look, we should legitimately be competing for the division and playoffs,’’ he said in January. “That’s our expectations. That’s really our expectation every year, but I think that is really possible here going forward.’’
A big part of that equation involved retaining as many of his own as possible. It was a unique offseason as the Colts had to deal with several front-line players on expiring contracts.
Another avenue was adding from the outside.
Ballard reinforced the defensive line by signing former Miami tackle Raekwon Davis to a two-year, $14 million contract and filled the void created when backup quarterback Gardner Minshew II signed with Las Vegas by agreeing with veteran Joe Flacco on a one-year deal worth as much as $8.7 million with incentives.
The Colts pursued Minnesota edge rusher Danielle Hunter, who was lured to Houston by a two-year, $49 million deal that included $48 million in guarantees. They also had/have an interest in Kansas City cornerback L’Jarius Sneed, who remains with the Chiefs on the one-year, $19.8 million franchise tag.
When neither of those high-profile options panned out – no one should dismiss the possibility of a Sneed acquisition at some point – Ballard moved hard on his own. He recently re-signed five more Colts to one-year deals: center/guard Danny Pinter, defensive tackle Taven Bryan, running back Trey Sermon, safety/linebacker Ronnie Harrison Jr., and defensive end Genard Avery.
“It’s wonderful to see because we all know we’re in our primes,’’ Lewis said. “We just have to take that next step.
“I feel like it’s demanded of us as players, too.’’
Stewart, a 2017 fourth-round draft pick, is one of the longest-tenured Colts. Only center Ryan Kelly (round 1, 2016) and longsnapper Luke Rhodes (free agent in ’16) have been around longer.
“Hey man, it’s a blessing,’’ Stewart said. “It’s a blessing.’’
He believes he’s part of a franchise on the rise.
“I think we’re going up, man,’’ he said. “We’ve got a young team. Like getting AR, we’re going to do some great things this season.’’
You can follow Mike Chappell on Twitter at @mchappell51.