INDIANAPOLIS – The NFL Combine will conclude early this week down at Lucas Oil Stadium. Today's news looks at Ryan Grigson's offseason outlook and whether or not the Colts could move back into the first round.
Take a look below at the top pieces fromMonday, February 24th.**Colts’ Grigson working to balance present, future**By: Conrad Brunner, 1070thefan.comYes, the Colts have a nice chunk of money to spend this offseason but Ryan Grigson always has an eye on the future.
The Colts have a fifth-year option for Andrew Luck, which means the monster contract will come a year later. Six quarterbacks currently have deals that exceed $100 million in total value; four have average salaries of at least $20 million. Even with projections of a relatively flat salary cap over the next few years, Luck can expect to be at or near the top of the pay scale for his position.
So while the Colts have plenty of cap space in 2014 (between $33 and $37 milion, based on various reports), don't expect Grigson to feel obligated to spend it all.
"It's not hard to tighten your belt when you're looking at what we're looking at (down the road)," Grigson said Friday at the NFL Scouting Combine. "In future years, we have some key, key young talent – not to even give you names; you know who they are – that we're going to have to re-sign.
"So we have to be very prudent and fiscally sound in how we move forward. We still have a plan in place and if there's a chance for us to get better at any position, we're going to try to get better, if it makes sense from a fiscal standpoint for the club."
**Will Colts try to move into the 1st round**By: Mike Wells, ESPN.com
The 2014 NFL Draft falls two weeks later this year and for the Colts, that means even more speculation about moving into the first round.
Mike Wells: General manager Ryan Grigson said, "Don't rule out anything," when asked about that possibility last week. But I'm not sure they do it because of the depth in this year's draft.
"I think just good scouting 101, draft common sense, you would assume there are going to be players in those mid-rounds that's going to be heavy with talent that maybe in other drafts you wouldn't have been able to get," Grigson said. "You'd have to take them a couple rounds higher. I'm excited and I think a lot of other general managers and coaches are excited as well, because I think this is going to be a deep draft class."
The Colts have picks in the second, third, fifth, sixth and seventh rounds in the May draft.
