The Colts are headed into an NFL Scouting Combine that is quite a bit different from the previous three. After years of endless quarterback questions -- about possible trades and possible releases and players coming up through the draft -- they finally feel like they have the swing they wanted to take at the most important position.

Now, it's about filling out the rest of the team. The Colts aren't endless on needs following a 9-8 season in which Anthony Richardson only played four games, but they do have a host of in-house free agents as well as some key spots in need of an upgrade.

The combine is one of the first stages of setting the agenda for the offseason, from the draft to free agency to franchise tags and in-house moves.

The list of needs will shift dramatically when the Colts start addressing their own free agents, but here are their top five needs on the roster they are currently slated to play with in 2024:

Wide receiver

If Michael Pittman Jr. were to walk as currently slated, the Colts would lose their leading receiver for the past three seasons. Given how they've performed as a passing game in the rare moments without him, such as a road game against the Falcons last season, it's fair to say their group would plummet to the bottom of the league. They'd be left with a young and ascending slot receiver in Josh Downs, an unproven second-round pick in Alec Pierce and nothing else.

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Signing Pittman, either to an extension or via the franchise tag, will move this need down significantly. It's likely not the only move to be made here. The Colts played Pittman, Pierce and Downs for almost every available receiver snap last season, as D.J. Montgomery came in fourth at just 10.8%. They need a backup slot receiver and a backup outside receiver at minimum, and ideally, they'll add someone who can factor in on the outside to provide some of the underneath routes that Pierce doesn't.

Safety

At his end-of-season press conference, general manager Chris Ballard made it clear that he was impressed by Julian Blackmon's play and not much else at the safety position this season. With Blackmon a free agent, a huge void forms at a critical position in a passing league, one that two third-year players in Nick Cross and Rodney Thomas II haven't proven they can fill.

Signing back Blackmon, who led the Colts with four interceptions and eight pass breakups, will take care of a chunk of this need. The Colts still need to settle on someone at free safety. They gave Cross a chance late in the season after benching him for a year and a half at strong safety and saw mixed results. The same took place with Thomas, who has his inverse skill set with some developed ball skills but not the same aggressive play. If one were to come through, the Colts could conceivably have the versatility to be strong here, but it's also a spot where they could find a more sure asset.

Cornerback

Here comes the first need that will remain a major need regardless of what the Colts do in-house. They can bring back nickel cornerback Kenny Moore II, who bounced back to Pro Bowl levels after a down 2022. They could roll back three starters, then, with JuJu Brents and Jaylon Jones as second-year players, but that is still well short of the bodies needed to hold up at this position.

Brents comes with durability concerns after wrist, hamstring and quad injuries cost him eight games as a rookie. Jones surprised for a seventh-round pick but showed some rawness in coverage and tackling late in the season. Their other cornerback under contract is Dallis Flowers, who is coming off an Achilles tear.

So whether the Colts want to upgrade an outside spot, switch up the nickel or just create depth, they have some key moves to make at their weakest position in 2023.

Tight end

Here is the first position that doesn't have an in-house free agent to sign back, underscoring the need that has formed. The Colts tried to move on from Jack Doyle's retirement with two draft picks in 2022, Jelani Woods and Drew Ogletree. Both are left with just as many questions as answers after Woods missed a full year to hamstring issues and Ogletree is on the commissioner's exempt list after being charged with domestic battery.

The Colts patched this position group together well last year, and they do have Kylen Granson and Mo Alie-Cox in contract years and an improving Will Mallory. But nobody has stepped up as a surefire starter, much less a No. 1 option. They could bet on young players again, or they could take a swing on either a veteran or a more talented option in the draft such as Georgia's Brock Bowers.

Defensive tackle

This is a position that could move from a weakness to a strength with one re-signing. Grover Stewart is a free agent after a season that showed his value more than any, when the Colts allowed 3.7 yards per carry in 11 games with him and 4.7 yards per carry in six games without him, when he was suspended for using performance-enhancing drugs.

If the Colts re-sign Stewart, who is 30 but has an extremely durable track record, they'll get back to having the most unblockable interior in the game with him and DeForest Buckner. Add in Dayo Odeyingbo's ability to play this spot on passing downs, and it would be one of their stronger positions. But it hinges on that nose tackle spot, as the Colts have nothing in the pipelines behind Stewart, plus no quality depth if Buckner were to finally miss a game due to injury.

Contact Nate Atkins at natkins@indystar.com. Follow him on Twitter @NateAtkins_.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Colts: Here are Indianapolis' top 5 needs entering the NFL combine