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In the aftermath of the Colts’ collapse in the final two weeks of the season to fall out of the AFC playoff picture, it was clear that team owner Jim Irsay was particularly displeased.
Quarterback Carson Wentz‘s poor late performance was apparently a big part of the issue.
Then on Super Bowl Sunday, ESPN’s Chris Mortensen reported that the Colts were likely to trade or release Wentz by March 18. That’s when Wentz’s full $22 million base salary will be guaranteed and he’ll receive a $6.29 million roster bonus. But if Wentz is released before then, the Colts would owe Wentz $15 million in base salary but would not owe him the other $13.29 million.
So as Indianapolis General Manager Chris Ballard stepped on the podium at the NFL Scouting Combine on Tuesday, he was peppered with questions about the quarterback. And from the start, Ballard admitted he didn’t really have the answers.
“I know I’m going to get a lot of questions about Carson right now, and I don’t have a direct answer for you,” Ballard said. “We’re working through it. Jim — Mr. Irsay — Frank [Reich], and I will sit down over the next 10 days and figure out where it’s going. But ultimately, we’ll do what’s best for the team, for the Colts — both in the short-term and in the long-term.”
Ballard noted that the Colts won’t let what they gave up for Wentz be a factor in their decision, nor will the current quarterback market in free agency and the draft — which doesn’t appear all that promising. And when Ballard was asked if he, Irsay, and Reich are all in agreement on what to do at QB, he didn’t say yes.
“There’s good discussion going on,” Ballard said. “You can have a good relationship and disagree. You can have a great relationship and not always agree with what one person said. But ultimately, when we make the final decision, we walk out all three of us together with whatever that decision is.”
As of now, Wentz is still on the roster and would presumably be the team’s starting quarterback. Ballard said he met with Wentz for an hour in his office on Tuesday, adding that a lot of the criticism the QB has taken is fair.
“It was good. It was really good,” Ballard said of the meeting. “I always ask it with the criticism I get — is some of it’s deserved. But always ask, is the criticism fair? Is it fair? I’ll take it in if it’s fair. If it’s not fair, then what am I doing? I’m not wasting my headspace on that. But if the criticism’s fair, then we’ve got to be able to look internally and accept that and grow from it.
“And, look, I’m not saying all of your [criticism isn’t fair] — most of it is pretty fair. And it’ll be interesting to see how he grows from this. I think he will.”
The question is whether or not that growth will happen with the Colts.
