Most essential Colts, No. 3: Michael Pittman Jr. is the ultimate safety net
In a salary-cap league like the NFL, finding building blocks is essential. As teams churn and burn the roster through the draft and bargain signings in free agency, it helps to find the players who are either a cut above the rest or can perform a task few others can. They relieve the pressure on everyone.
Over the next few weeks, we'll be ranking the 15 most essential players to the Colts' success in 2024. It's a subjective process, weighing factors such as ability, positional value within a scheme, age, leadership and durability.
To make it simpler, we're asking the following two questions about these players:
1. How difficult would he be to replace for more than a month?
2. What does the Colts' 2024 ceiling become if this player hits his?
With the return of Anthony Richardson from shoulder surgery, the Colts’ outlook is on the future but also on the present after a 9-8 season fell a fourth-down conversion short of winning the AFC South. This list will primarily look at 2024 value, but certain players' development for the long-term can help to break ties along the way.
Here's the list so far:
4. Bernhard Raimann, offensive tackle
5. Braden Smith, offensive tackle
6. DeForest Buckner, defensive tackle
9. Kenny Moore II, nickel cornerback
12. Laiatu Latu, defensive end
14. Zaire Franklin, linebacker
Today, we look at No. 3, Michael Pittman Jr.
Position: Wide receiver
Age: 26
Experience: 5th season
2023 stats: 109 catches, 1,152 yards and 4 touchdowns with 15 starts in 16 games
Last year's rank: No. 3
Why he's here: Michael Pittman Jr. is always here.
That's quite a testament to a player entering his fifth season who has played with seven different starting quarterbacks, and it's exactly why general manager Chris Ballard made him his first major wide receiver extension this offseason on a three-year deal for $70 million.
No, Pittman is not Justin Jefferson or Ja'Marr Chase or Tyreek Hill, who are making that $70 million extension look like a minor investment. But he's the No. 1 receiver for this team, and his fit matters in ways the stat sheet can't fully define, even though that part of his game is also very strong. Pittman has led the Colts in receiving in three straight seasons, topping out last year with 109 catches for 1,152 yards and four touchdowns. Only four more players in the whole league caught more passes.
Pittman is a volume receiver, built at 6-foot-4 and 223 pounds on being too difficult to keep away from the ball on shorter and intermediate depths of target than creating an explosive play through traditional air yards. But that skill is tremendous when you factor in how few threats his passing games ever have around him. The Colts haven't had a reliable tight end since his second season, and they have had just one other wide receiver crack 700 yards in that span, too.
GO DEEPER: The multiple personalities of Michael Pittman Jr.
On so many plays, the defense knows the ball is heading Pittman's way, and they'll counter with their top outside cornerback and umbrella coverage and it won't matter all that much. His efficiency and touchdowns have slipped some as a result, but his 7.5 career yards per target with such poor and revolving quarterback play speaks to a tremendous floor. The Colts missed it badly in the one game he missed with a brain injury last year against the Falcons, when the passing game couldn't function without him.
Pittman is more than just a production machine, too. He is the heart and soul of the Colts offense, the voice of the skill players, the leader organizing throwing sessions and off-the-field events like paintball, fishing trips and expeditions on his farm. He emerged at a time post-T.Y. Hilton, with zero stability at quarterback, to create an environment in which Anthony Richardson can now step into and feel comfortable.
That is his top task now. He needs to be the player Richardson trusts to be open even when he's not, to provide a functionality early in the down and trust late in the down. He'll draw coverage away from Josh Downs, Alec Pierce, Adonai Mitchell and Jelani Woods, who need to have explosive seasons. And he'll continue to set the tone as a blocker and bodyguard of the offense.
Pittman doesn't have the superstar explosive upside of the two players above him on this list, but his importance and base line are stronger than almost everyone.
Contact Nate Atkins at natkins@indystar.com. Follow him on Twitter @NateAtkins_.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Most essential Colts, No. 3: Michael Pittman Jr. is the safety net
