Indianapolis Colts: Ryan Grigson Must Be Wise With This Year’s Free Agency

We are roughly five days away from the start of the 2015 NFL free agency period, and there has been a great deal of buzz among teams and fans alike in the football world.

The Indianapolis Colts, with More than $40 million in cap-space this year, are looking to be big-spenders and make an impact.

If there’s anything that Colts fans know, it’s that this team has many, many needs that need to be addressed in the coming months.

Offensive line, safety and defensive line among others.

With the release of defensive lineman Ricky-Jean Francois and safety LaRon Landry earlier this month, both positions have become severely depleted.

The same defense that had gotten blown out by New England Patriots 45-7 in the AFC Championship back in January.

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As free agency approaches, a lot of speculation about whom the Colts should go after has arisen.

We’ve heard the likes of Cowboys running-back DeMarco Murray, Patriots safety Devin McCourty, 49ers guard Mike Iupati, and Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh in the mix to wear the horseshoe this coming season.

For die-hard fans like myself, you can only wish that the salary cap did not exist in the NFL and your favorite team could just nab all of these players.

But in reality, there is a cap and teams must act very wisely as to which players they wish to pursue while also making sure that they don’t jeopardize their team’s future financial situations in the process.

One thing to know about free agency: it’s all about overpaying. But, that doesn’t necessarily mean that a team has to overpay to the point where it puts pressure on themselves in future seasons.

This is where general manager Ryan Grigson needs to be smart with his spending.

One thing that Grigson must avoid at all costs is overpaying for mediocre talent. One instance that I can think of in this situation is the four-year, $24 million contract that Landry signed back in the 2013 free agency period.

If you’re going to be a big spender, it is always wise to be a big spender on above-average talent. One player that comes to mind in a situation like this is Suh.

I am all for Suh wearing the horseshoe next season. What I am not all for however, is the large contract that Suh will command.

It has recently been reported that Suh will be looking to break the bank with a contract that could include anywhere from $16 million to $18 million per year, and exceed $60 million in guaranteed money.

While I like the image of Suh on the Colts‘ defensive line, I think that the contract he will demand will be just too much, especially with Andrew Luck and T.Y. Hilton looking to receive their big paydays sometime soon.

A large contract for one player could possibly make retaining Luck and Hilton, along with others from the 2012 draft class, a little more difficult.

Suh is very appealing to a team that lacks an elite defensive line, but this free agency class is full of high-impact players that cost about half what Suh will command.

Two players that I think of are Iupati and McCourty.

January 19, 2014; Denver, CO, USA; Denver Broncos wide receiver Demaryius Thomas (88) catches a pass against the defense of New England Patriots free safety Devin McCourty (32) in the first half of the 2013 AFC Championship football game at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

Iupati will probably command around $8 million a year, or somewhere in that range. McCourty could be in the $8 million to $9 million per year range.

Those are two impact players that you can get to address big holes the team has. Both together would cost the same as Suh. Two for the price of one.

Not only does signing McCourty fill a major hole at safety left by the release of Landry, but you also take away from your enemy. That enemy that is New England.

Iupati would add a major boost to the offensive line that, aside from Anthony Castonzo and Jack Mewhort, could surely use an upgrade. The addition of Iupati would not only improve the running game, but give Luck more time in the pocket in the passing game.

As stated earlier, I really like the idea of Suh playing for the Colts next season, but he will just cost too much money in the long run, and I would much rather have two players like Iupati and McCourty that can make a significant impact and will cost about half the money of what Suh would cost.

At the end of they day though, none of us make the decisions for this team. Grigson has shown us that he is wise and isn’t afraid of making moves to better this team.

He has the chance to hit a homerun in this year’s free agency while also being smart about the future. He can’t afford another free agency blunder this year.

Whatever occurs within the next week will be very interesting.

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