INDIANAPOLIS – Julian Blackmon is back with the Indianapolis Colts.
More to the point, he never actually left.
The veteran safety officially signed a one-year contract Tuesday with the team that selected him in the third round of the 2020 draft. It’s worth a maximum of $7.7 million with approximately $3.2 million in guarantees.
Re-upping with the Colts might have been on Blackmon’s wish list – he’s grown tight with Kenny Moore II, Zaire Franklin, Michael Pittman Jr. and others over the past four years – but his first opportunity to test his value on the free-agent market didn’t unfold as expected.
He visited Buffalo and San Francisco, but it was not a receptive market for veteran safeties.
Timing is everything, and the timing simply wasn’t right.
“Everybody knows how free agency went this year for safeties,’’ Blackmon said.
Former New York Giants standout Xavier McKinney cashed in, relocating to Green Bay with a four-year, $67 million contract.
But Seattle released Jamal Adams and Quandre Diggs. Denver parted ways with Justin Simmons. Ditto, Chicago and Eddie Jackson. Each has been selected to at least one Pro Bowl. Adams and Jackson have an All-Pro on his resume.
Normally, Blackmon would have been an attractive talent on the open market. He’s 25 and coming off his best season: a team-high four interceptions to go along with 88 tackles and eight passes defended.
But not this offseason. Blackmon compared it with the tepid market running backs faced last offseason.
“It just kind of shows you that you have to always be prepared for anything,’’ he said. “It’s one of those things where you can never really truly say that you’ve got it, especially when there’s so much talent in the NFL.
“For me, it was one of those things where I just try to take it for what it was, which this was a unique situation, especially going into my first free agency.
“Luckily, I had the right people in my corner to navigate that for me.’’
Blackmon insisted frustration never really set in. He learned early in the process how the business side of things might unfold.
“You can’t take it, try to internalize it and take it personally,’’ he said. “More, you just have to understand the business side of things.
“For me, I was just trying to stay even, be where my feet are.’’
And that proved to be in Indy, with the Colts.
“This was home,’’ Blackmon said, “and this is the place where it started and it is the perfect place I want to finish if I can.’’
While Blackmon had hoped for the financial security a multi-year deal would have provided, he realizes the one-year contract with the Colts might be the best consolation prize. The overall familiarity – with teammates, with Gus Bradley’s defensive scheme, with everything – should prove beneficial when he faces the open market after 2024.
“This is the place that made the most sense for the next step,’’ he said. “It’s a one-year deal. For me, I feel like my value is worth more than one year, but unfortunately, we all saw how the market went.
“It was what I was dealt. I’m happy with how it ended.’’
Blackmon has started 46 of 50 games since 2020 and missed the final two games last season with a shoulder injury. His injury history also includes a torn ACL in his final season at Utah and a torn Achilles in 2021 that limited him to six games.
“I feel really good,’’ he insisted.
Blackmon was considered one of general manager Chris Ballard’s key free agents to re-sign this offseason. While he considered his options, Ballard either re-signed or extended a slew of Colts, most notably Pittman, Moore, Franklin, Grover Stewart, Tyquan Lewis and Rigoberto Sanchez.
Blackmon and Moore were in constant contact.
Man, what it would be like for us to come back?
It was the same with Pittman.
Hey, when are you signing back? When are you coming back?
“We all see what it can be if we all just stick together,’’ Blackmon said. “I think it’s one of those things where we see further than just right now.
“Long term we can be a team that competes for what everybody else here wants, which is a championship.’’
You can follow Mike Chappell on Twitter at @mchappell51.