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INDIANAPOLIS – For the first time in more than a decade, the Colts have used their franchise tag, and that’s good news for supporting Anthony Richardson.
Of course, now the real business begins between the Colts and Michael Pittman Jr.
In using the non-exclusive franchise tag on Pittman Jr., which the Colts announced on Tuesday afternoon, Indianapolis now has MPJ on a one-year contract, at a value of $21.8 million for the 2024 season. Pittman Jr. can negotiate with other teams when free agency begins next week, but a team would have to give up the absurd price of two first-round picks if they wanted to sign MPJ. The Colts can match any offer to retain their top wideout.
This means though Pittman Jr. will not officially hit free agency, when it begins on Wednesday, March 13th.
Between now and mid-July, the Colts now have a lengthy window to try and get a long-term deal done with Pittman Jr., before he plays his 5th NFL season.
Seeing how MPJ handles being tagged will be interesting to watch, if a long-term deal doesn’t get done in the next few weeks.
Will MPJ compete in the team’s spring voluntary offseason program, which will be an important time for Richardson to get back to throwing?
If a long-term deal is not agreed upon between MPJ and the Colts, would the wideout entertain the idea of sitting out of training camp at all, desiring more long-term contractual guarantees past the 2024 season?
Those hypotheticals could arise in the coming weeks/months.
For now though, the Colts have their top wideout under contract for 2024.
That’s an important first step in an off-season that largely needs to be about supporting Richardson.
This move gives Richardson a definite option to build with this fall (and, potentially, moving forward). It means the Colts will return virtually all of their pass catchers from last season.
Skimping at the skill positions is a dangerous game to play with a young quarterback, and that’s why this sort of move makes sense for the Colts.
Tagging Pittman Jr., and not yet committing a multi-year contract for him, also give the Colts some flexibility to maneuver a bit this offseason, before locking in their top wideout later this offseason. If the Colts wait until early May to try and get a long-term deal done with MPJ, it would allow for the bulk of the offseason to be complete, giving them wiggle room if something bigger arises. Yet it would still give Pittman Jr. the long-term deal/guarantees before the spring voluntary off-season work begins, which is an on-field time period that would benefit Richardson.
By no means should it eliminate the Colts from addressing wideout in a potentially substantial manner at some point in the coming offseason/years (and Chris Ballard is a fan of this year’s wideout draft class), but it does give you a reliable player, and someone Shane Steichen is a fan of having around Richardson in those formative early years.
Pittman, 26, was a second-round pick of the Colts in the 2020 NFL Draft.
This is the first time the Colts have used the tag since Pat McAfee in 2013.
The NFL’s free agency for 2024 starts on March 13th.
Here’s a list of the unrestricted free agents for the Colts.
