Dynasty Capsule: Indianapolis Colts

As part of the premium content package, we’re again unveiling dynasty capsules for every team in the NFL leading up to free agency and the NFL Draft. This year, we’re again going to do a follow-up on all the teams after all the free agency and NFL Draft movement to assess the impact of any players teams have gained or lost. Since these capsules are always done as a simple snapshot in time, we figured that was the best way to tackle the off-season and provide ultimate value for our subscribers. All in all, we’ll have close to 500 player profiles found in these capsules over the off-season.

The Indianapolis Colts truly are a feast or famine team without much in between when it comes to dynasty assets. Some of the most coveted dynasty players don Colts jerseys, but they are also home to many less ballyhooed players better left on the waiver wire.

Quarterbacks

Andrew Luck

Luck is the unanimous pick for the number one quarterback by our own DLF rankers and has been selected as the first quarterback in every DLF mock dating back to September 2014. Last season, he had career highs in completion percentage, passing yards, yards per attempt and touchdown passes. There is no quarterback you would rather have on your dynasty squad than him. The question is whether or not you want to pay the high price in drafting or trading for him.

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Matt Hasselbeck

The Colts recently re-signed their backup quarterback to a one-year, $3 million contract. He is a quality backup but is not considered a dynasty asset this late in his career.

Running Backs

Trent Richardson

Many Colts fans thought they had a steal when General Manager Ryan Grigson traded for Richardson during the 2013 season, but it turned out the Cleveland Browns’ front office where the pickpockets. After enjoying a productive rookie year, Richardson has plummeted to the bottom of the depth charts dynasty leagues. He is a plodder who has difficulty finding the right lanes and makes decisions too slowly for the NFL game. He had career lows in nearly every important statistical category last season. The one thing he does excel at is protecting the football, having only lost two fumbles in 727 career regular season touches. Odds are high he won’t be on the Colts roster in 2015, especially after missing the playoffs due to a team imposed suspension that voided guarantees on his 2015 salary, but there is still a chance that he once again finds the greatness he had in college. I have him ranked as the running back 39 with our consensus rankings having him at 42. He’s worth a roster spot, but should be no more than your RB4.

Ahmad Bradshaw

A former stud fantasy running back, Bradshaw is unlikely to be re-signed by the Colts. He has missed time in each of the last four seasons and was recently arrested for marijuana possession. There is a chance he does not find offers from any NFL teams. Outside of Marianas Trench deep leagues he should be on the waiver wire.

Dan Herron

The player known as “Boom” is turning more into the type of player Richardson was expected to be than Richardson has ever been while in the NFL. While he is not an exciting homerun hitter like Jamaal Charles or LeSean McCoy, Herron is a steady back who grinds out yardage and efficiently catches passes out of the backfield. He was the number 20 scoring running back from weeks 12-17 while having the least amount of carries in the top 25. There is nothing exceptional about his game, but he is difficult to bring down and moves the sticks. He is currently the favorite to lead the team in carries in 2015 if he is brought back as an exclusive rights free agent. There have been rumors that the Colts have interest in signing several free agent running backs, including Frank Gore and DeMarco Murray, but until that happens, Herron is the guy to own in Indy. The DLF rankers have him all the way down at 61, but I think he is far better than that ranking. There is the huge risk that a top flight back is brought in this off-season, but his price is low enough to take that risk on at this point.

Vick Ballard

Ballard has had only 14 regular season touches since the beginning of the 2013 season. Injuries have plagued the former fifth-rounder. There are higher upside players to add at the end of your roster.

Zurlon Tipton

A wildly unimpressive rookie free agent out of Central Michigan, Tipton did not impress in his first year in the league. His odds of remaining on the Colts roster beyond August are low, and he should remain on the waiver wire in your league.

Jeff Demps

Demps is nothing more than a return man who should be left on the waiver wire in all formats.

Wide Receiver

T.Y. Hilton

Over his first three seasons, Hilton has finished as the WR28, WR19 and WR11, respectively. He has increased his receiving yardage by more than 200 yards in consecutive seasons and averaged over six touchdowns in his three years. The only thing keeping Hilton from being considered an elite fantasy receiver is his lack of red zone efficiency, where he has only been targeted twice within the 5-yard line and nine times within the 10-yard line in his career. His 5’9” height will keep him from ever becoming a real redzone threat. However, he is a big play receiver and a target hog with over 120 targets in each of the last two seasons. Currently ranked as our number 14 receiver, he is a high end WR2 who could move into the WR1 discussion if he can up his touchdown totals.

Donte Moncrief

With the exception of week 13, Moncrief had a fairly pedestrian rookie season if you only look at his fantasy statistics. However, when you take into account that he was a rookie sharing playing time with Reggie Wayne and Hakeem Nicks in an offense often featuring two tight end sets, the picture is less bleak. With Nicks unlikely to be re-signed and Wayne likely not playing a major role in the offense if given a new contract, the door is wide open for Moncrief to assume a starting role and more than double his snap count from 2014. Currently, there are only 21 receivers being drafted ahead of him in DLF mock drafts. I think that is a bit too high for him, but the consensus ranking at 34 is much more in line with what we can expect from him. I would not draft him at his current ADP, but if he slips into the WR3 range in startups, he is a high upside pick worth selecting.

Duron Carter

After a tumultuous college career seeing him attend four schools and missing all but his freshman season, Carter when undrafted in the 2013 NFL Draft. After failing to make it onto an NFL roster as a UDFA he signed with the CFL’s Montreal Alouettes, finishing with 909 and 1,030 receiving yards in his two seasons with the team. He signed a three-year contract with the Colts in February and is going to be in competition for the third wide receiver spot going into the 2015 season. Carter is truly an unknown at this point. He has the potential to be a very good NFL receiver, but his inability to truly dominate in the CFL makes him a questionable player to be an impact in 2015. Until we see him on the field, he is no higher than a WR5/6, but he should be rostered in most leagues.

Reggie Wayne

The once dominant receiver has finally shown the signs of what 14 years of wear and tear in the NFL can do to a player. He is no longer the player that he once was. Currently not under contract, there is a chance he is offered another contract with the Colts but at a much smaller role. I don’t expect to see him starting for an NFL team again, and I wouldn’t view him as more than a WR7 anymore.

Griff Whalen

He hasn’t done much in his first two seasons in the league. He is better left on the waiver wire but should be monitored through the rest of the off-season.

Kadron Boone, Ryan Lankford and Josh Lenz

The odds are stacked against any of these three making it through training camp. While Whalen will likely still be with the Colts and at least worth monitoring, these three can remain completely off your radar.

Tight End

Coby Fleener

Through his first two and a half seasons, I was a huge Fleener apologist. I knew he was going to break out at some point and move into the top 10 dynasty tight end discussion. When I finally admitted I could be wrong, Fleener ironically put up respectable numbers. However, he remained wildly inconsistent and continued to drop far too many catchable passes. He is a talented player, but he still does not put together consistent scoring on a week-to-week basis. He is a high upside TE2, but I don’t see him becoming anything more than that unless the next player ends up leaving town.

Dwayne Allen

While Fleener gets more targets, receptions and yardage, Allen scores the touchdowns. If you’ve owned either of these tight ends you know how maddening it can be to see one gain yardage and the other get redzone targets. Neither of these players will become TE1s until they aren’t on the same team. If you’re in a non-PPR league, you definitely want Allen on your team over Fleener, but both are currently no higher than TE2s in any scoring system.

Jack Doyle and Eric Swoope

Both players are firmly off the fantasy radar in spite of Doyle’s fluky two touchdown receptions last season.

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