NFL.com on Monday released its annual top free agents ranking, and two Colts players – wide receiver Alec Pierce (No. 5) and quarterback Daniel Jones (No. 8) – are squarely in the top 10.
On Tuesday, general manager Chris Ballard said he's "hopeful" the Colts can sign Pierce and Jones to new contracts before either could potentially hit the open market in mid-March.
"We've had great discussions about both of them," Ballard said. "We'll continue to work this week and see if we can get something done. It's been very positive. When both sides are driven to get it done, it usually works out in the right way."
The first deadline to get something done is next week: The Colts have until 4 p.m. on Tuesday, March 3 to decide if they'll use the franchise or transition tag on either Pierce or Jones (they cannot tag both). Ballard, though, said the Colts aren't planning on tagging Pierce or Jones at this point.
"It's a tool we have," Ballard said. "It's not what we want to do, though."
The bigger deadline is noon E.T. on Monday, March 9, after which agents for Pierce and Jones – if they have not inked new contracts with the Colts – could enter negotiations with the NFL's 31 other teams. In simpler terms, they'd hit the open market.
Ballard, again, emphasized he's hopeful the Colts can work things out with both players before that point.
"We're driven, they're driven, the agents have been great to work with," Ballard said. "We just gotta keep working through it."
Jones, who signed with the Colts as a free agent last March, completed 68 percent of his passes for 3,101 yards with 19 touchdowns, eight interceptions and a passer rating of 100.2 over 13 starts in 2025 (he also added five rushing touchdowns). Over the first 10 games of the season, the Colts led the NFL in EPA per play (+.171), success rate (42.6 percent), scoring drive rate (57.6 percent), point differential (+115) and points per game (31.7).
"The way he works and the way he goes about his business and his preparation is phenomenal," head coach Shane Steichen said. "And what he was able to do before the injury was awesome for us. Obviously, a very talented player, sees the game well, can get us in and out of the right plays, which was huge. We're in talks now with him, and hopefully something will work out here soon."
Jones said in January he expects to be ready for the start of training camp after sustaining a season-ending torn Achilles' in a Dec. 7 game against the Jacksonville Jaguars. Ballard declined to put a firm timetable on when Jones could begin participating in practice, but said the 28-year-old quarterback is "on track."
"I think with the Achilles', it's the three-month mark when you're kind of past the danger zone," Ballard said. "... He's pretty diligent in everything he does. He works. You almost got to bring him back a little bit. But no, we feel good about where he's at and where he's going."
Pierce, meanwhile, led the NFL in yards per reception (21.3) for the second consecutive season and had his first career 1,000-yard season. With his 1,003 yards on 47 receptions, Pierce became just the third player in the last 30 seasons to have 1,000 yards on 50 or fewer receptions, joining the Los Angeles Chargers' Mike Williams (2019) and the Philadelphia Eagles' DeSean Jackson (2012).
While Pierce over the last few years has grown as a route runner in the short and intermediate areas of the field, his ability to win vertically outside the numbers made him a highly valuable piece of the Colts' offense – which, again, was the league's most ruthless group over the first 10 games of last season.
"Alec Pierce, I've always believed in (him)," Ballard said. "He's excellent. He's a really freaking good player and he's still young. He's 25 years old."
The final question here is if the Colts can make the financials of new contracts for Pierce and Jones work – with Ballard pointing to Colts director of football administration Mike Bleum as doing an "unbelievable" job managing the team's cap space.
"Whatever challenges we have, we'll work through them as we get these contracts done," Ballard said.
