If any of the horsemen, all of whom are between the ages of 25 and 26, contribute as a scoring threat, the Colts may have found the missing piece to one of football’s most electrifying offenses.
Which Colts tight end on his rookie contract is poised to make the biggest leap in 2024?
Kylen Granson will have a key contract year in 2025, when he becomes an unrestricted free agent. Granson was selected by the Colts in the fourth round of the 2021 NFL Draft. He has averaged more over two catches each game over the last two seasons. Granson had 30 receptions in 15 games and scored his only career touchdown in a Week 2 triumph over the AFC South rival Houston Texans.
During the 2022 NFL Draft, the Colts took a risk on tight ends, selecting Jelani Woods in the third round and Drew Ogletree in the sixth. Woods understands that if he reclaims his starting job during training camp, he has the potential to become the offense’s defining element. He scored three touchdowns as a rookie, but hamstring issues forced him to miss the entire 2023 season. Woods’ enormous 6-foot-7 stature makes him an ideal downfield weapon and red zone magnet for quarterback Anthony Richardson.
From one big man to another. pic.twitter.com/WrousbCvl2
— Indianapolis Colts (@Colts) May 31, 2024
Ogletree tore his ACL during his first training camp, forcing him to miss the rest of his rookie season. Ogletree will need to make his way back up the depth chart somewhere in the next six weeks. Will Mallory was picked in the fifth round of the 2023 NFL Draft and has 18 receptions for 207 yards in 12 games. He is presently ranked fourth in the Colts’ 2024 depth chart.
Richardson’s growth during his second season has the potential to rescue the Colts from a three-year postseason absence and put them back in the mix of AFC contenders vying to dethrone the unquestioned Super Bowl champions. The Kansas City Chiefs have won 11 successive seasons, six consecutive conference championships, and three Super Bowl triumphs in the last five years. From 2018 to 2022, Kansas City hosted the AFC championship game for five consecutive seasons, an NFL record.
But how difficult is it to remain successful as an NFL team? To put this remarkable record in context, just eight NFL clubs now have three consecutive winning seasons. The Colts have won one playoff game in the last nine seasons, a 21-7 away triumph over the Texans in the 2018 wild card round.
Indianapolis needs an explosive offense to stay competitive in the AFC. In 2023, the Colts averaged 23.3 points per game, which tied for eighth highest in the league. Head coach Shane Steichen coordinated fantastic game plans without his most elusive playmakers in the backfield, both of whom dominate the gridiron when healthy and in control of the ball. If any of the horsemen, all of whom are between the ages of 25 and 26, develop as scoring threats, the Colts may have found the missing piece to one of football’s most electrifying offenses.
What. A. Play.
Massive play to Kylen Granson!#Colts#ForTheShoe#Titans#INDvsTEN pic.twitter.com/C2uvbIg40i
— Chris Shepherd (@NFLscheme) December 3, 2023
