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Colts: Re-Signing Tight End Jack Doyle Should be a Top Priority

By Kyle Nishida

Sep 11, 2016; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck (12) celebrates throwing a touchdown pass to tight end Jack Doyle (84) in the second half against the Detroit Lions at Lucas Oil Stadium. The Lions won 39-35. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 11, 2016; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck (12) celebrates throwing a touchdown pass to tight end Jack Doyle (84) in the second half against the Detroit Lions at Lucas Oil Stadium. The Lions won 39-35. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports /
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At the start of the 2016 season, retaining tight end Jack Doyle was probably not very high on the Indianapolis Colts‘ to-do list. However, it should be now after the season he just had.

Out of all the Colts’ receiving targets, most people probably would not have expected Doyle to be the team’s second-best passing option. However, that is exactly what he was in 2016.

The 26-year-old tight end caught 59 passes on 75 targets for 584 receiving yards and five touchdowns. Only receiver T.Y. Hilton had more targets, receptions and receiving yards than him. Meanwhile, he finished fourth on the team in receiving touchdowns.

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This year, Doyle’s fourth season as a pro, was by far his best season. Obviously, he set a new career-high in every receiving category , but more importantly, he prove was capable of being an every-down tight end.

Prior to this season, Doyle was know for his blocking ability both at tight end and in the backfield. With Coby Fleener moving on to New Orleans, he got an expanded role in the Colts’ offense. As a result, his production skyrocketed as a took advantage of the extra playing time.

In fact, he had more receptions this season than Fleener had in any of his four seasons and more than teammate Dwayne Allen in any of his five seasons.

The Colts now face a dilemma with Doyle because he is set to become a free agent this summer. The team would be crazy to let him go. He just had a solid season, and he can be moved around in the team’s offensive scheme. In fact, Indianapolis want their tight end to be versatile.

Last offseason, the Colts’ opted to keep Allen and let Fleener. They made that choice because Allen was more versatile than Fleener, who was primarily a pass-catching tight end.

Doyle is probably more versatile than Allen and is probably the better receiver of the two. For all these reasons, the Colts need to re-sign Doyle before he can start talking to other teams.

It will be interesting to see how much money Doyle wants this offseason. The tight end with the best contract right now is Jimmy Graham, who is making $10 million per year on average. Doyle is not worth that, and the Colts do not want pay him more money than Allen ($7.3 million per year).

Indianapolis has nearly $60 million in cap space to use this offseason. They will most likely use most of it on the defensive side of the ball. However, they should not let that defensive focus affect their negotiations with Doyle.

Doyle was the team’s second-best receiver and did not miss a game this season. He proved he is key part to the offense, and the team needs to be willing give its star player Andrew Luck all the help he needs.

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Hopefully, the Colts realize re-signing Jack Doyle is a no-brainer. He was one of their best players in 2016 and has been one of their most reliable players over the last four seasons. Losing him would undoubtedly hurt the offense in 2017.

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