Bewerbungen » INDIANAPOLIS ?The Indianapolis Colts kept insisting

Andrew Luck would play better after shoulder surgery.He did.Frank Reich acknowledged some of his best work came in a backup role.Apparently Quincy Wilson Color Rush Jersey , it still does.A healthy Luck and an opportunistic first-year coach led the Colts on a historic midseason turnaround, ending with a playoff run and a glimpse into a potentially promising future."We left our hearts on the field every game," Luck said Sunday, a day after a 31-13 elimination loss at Kansas City. "I know we all wished we played better yesterday. It's sad. We wanted this somewhat magical season to continue and we'll use that to motivate us."That could be bad news for a team that seemed to defy the odds at every turn.Most figured the Colts hit rock bottom when Josh McDaniels backed out of a deal to become the Colts' new coach while Luck continued to rehab his throwing shoulder in early February. General manager Chris Ballard wasted no time in making Reich, the offensive coordinator for the Super Bowl champion Eagles, his second choice.The odd sequence included Reich inheriting a defensive coordinator in Matt Eberflus, whom he didn't know much about and who was already plotting a conversion from a 3-4 front to a 4-3. Reich followed the advice of Ballard by keeping him in the same role and adding two more first-year coordinators to his staff.To outsiders, it looked like a complete rebuild.But the Colts never bought into the perception and delivered the kind of season nobody thought possible when they lost their fourth in a row in mid-October.That's when things changed.Luck rounded into form, the Colts developed a balanced attack, their revamped offensive line became a virtual fortress and the oft-criticized defense suddenly emerged as one of the league's stingiest units.The Colts (11-7) won nine of their last 10 regular-season games to become the third team in league history to make the postseason after starting 1-5, followed by a wild-card win at Houston."You wonder as a first-time head coach, what is this really going to be like? I just couldn't have imagined in my wildest dreams how this year was," Reich said. "The guys in this building, the guys in that locker room, the coaches and players, they just exceeded any of my wildest expectations."Everyone else's, too.Luck had the best overall season of his career, throwing for nearly 4,600 yards and 39 touchdowns while setting career highs in completions, attempts and percentage. He was sacked a league-low 18 times, one season after the Colts allowed a league-high 56 sacks.Meanwhile, Marlon Mack fought off injuries to finish with five 100-yard games 鈥?the most by a Colts running back in more than a decade.Eric Ebron finally delivered on the first-round promise the Detroit Lions saw in 2014 by catching 13 touchdowns to lead the league's tight ends and earning his first Pro Bowl selection."It was a helluva time, a helluva season," center Ryan Kelly said. "Guys were fighting for each other and it was just a good time."But Reich's favorite might have been watching the rookies develop.Quenton Nelson and Braden Smith were rock solid at left guard and right tackle, and linebacker Darius Leonard led the league in tackles with a franchise-record 163. Nelson and Leonard became the first rookie teammates to earn first-team All-Pro honors since Dick Butkus and Gale Sayers achieved the feat in 1965.Now, with Luck heading into his first healthy offseason in four years, a veteran coach and proven players, Reich knows the expectations will increase next season. He promises to be ready."We had an opportunity to learn so many lessons this year," he said. "We lost four or five and then won 10 or 11. So we've had a taste of that. I think handling success and high expectations is always more difficult, but I believe in the guys, the players, the leaders to get that done."NOTES: Kelly wouldn't rule out having surgery on his injured left knee but described the procedure as minor. … Pro Bowl tight end Jack Doyle said he spent two days in the hospital after suffering a season-ending kidney injury in late-November. Doyle told reporters he was feeling "pretty good," though he's still recovering. … Kicker Adam Vinatieri hopes to return for his 24th season after missing the shortest field goal of his career Saturday. He broke the NFL's career scoring record this season and now has 2,600 points. … Indy signed tight end Billy Brown, cornerback Jalen Collins, offensive linemen Antonio Garcia and De'Ondre Wesley Skai Moore Color Rush Jersey , receivers Krishawn Hogan and Steve Ishmael, quarterback Phillip Walker and defensive linemen DeShawn Williams and Anthony Winbush to futures contracts Sunday.100View Gallery Gallery:View from the sidelines: NFL cheerleaders 2018Raj Mehta-USA TODAY Sports | Raj Mehta With the final stretch of the season coming up, it’s time to look ahead and see how the Colts stand in terms of the salary cap. We’ll break down their positional salary cap spending, how it compares to the NFL average, their projected salary cap number for next season and their notable impending free agents. The figures used are from Spotrac.com and Overthecap.com and are based on the current “Active Roster” players in the NFL. QuarterbacksColts Spending: $25,176,076Percentage of Salary Cap: 12.97%NFL Average: $17,114,528Colts Player with the Largest Cap Hit: Andrew Luck — $24,400,000It all comes down to the production and Luck produces at an elite level in the NFL. He is well worth the money and there isn’t much more to say. Running BacksColts Spending: $1,861,358Percentage of Salary Cap: 0.96%NFL Average: 5,055,948Colts Player with the Largest Cap Hit: Nyheim Hines — $661,137The numbers of this group are quite surprising. It’s the lowest paid offensive or defensive group on the team and considering the amount of production they’ve gotten from the running backs, it’s a fantastic bargain. The group is averaging 4.5 yards per carry and 1242 on the season. Both are average figures compared to the rest of the league, but considering the small amount of money the Colts have in them, it’s a great investment!ReceiversColts Spending: $19,517,647Percentage of Salary Cap: 10.06%NFL Average: $16,093,723Colts Player with the Largest Cap Hit: $13,000,000This might not be a great investment for the Colts this season. While TY Hilton has done many TY Hilton things this season, the group has been marred by inconsistent play, filled with poor route running and bad drops. Their play has improved in recent weeks, but this group has not lived up to their $19M+ billing. Tight EndsColts Spending: $13,131,981Percentage of Salary Cap: 6.77%NFL Average: $6,833,466Colts Player with the Largest Cap Hit: Eric Ebron — $6,750,000This group is one of the highest paid tight end groups in the NFL, but this group has earned every penny. Eric Ebron is tied for most touchdowns (11) in the NFL and Jack Doyle’s play has been top notch before suffering a season-ending injury. Mo Alie-Cox and Erik Swoope have also been nice pieces. This group has been the best in football, so it’s obviously been a great investment!Offensive LineColts Spending: $22 https://www.coltsfanshop.com/Jack-Mewhort-Jersey ,526,861Percentage of Salary Cap: 11.61%NFL Average: $26,090,929Colts Player with the Largest Cap Hit: Anthony Castonzo — $10,800,000Like the tight end group, the Colts offensive line has been amongst the best in the NFL this season. Unlike the tight end group, this group’s spending is below the NFL average. With Quenton Nelson and Ryan Kelly still in rookie deals, the Colts are getting great bargains. This is a young group that should be a bright spot for many years to come.Defensive LineColts Spending: $23,064,359Percentage of Salary Cap: 11.89%NFL Average: $25,190,996Colts Player with the Largest Cap Hit: Jabaal Sheard — $7,500,000The defensive line has had an up and down season. Some weeks they look invisible and others they look very good. Considering the Colts have spent the NFL average on the group and the group has been average for the most part, you can call this one a modest investment. Jabaal Sheard, their largest individual investment, has had a nice season along with rookie Kemoko Turay. The interior defensive lineman haven’t been as strong as the edge defenders, which can hurt the group at times. LinebackersColts Spending: $4,889,232Percentage of Salary Cap: 2.52%NFL Average: $17,671,703Colts Player with the Largest Cap Hit: Darius Leonard — $1,317,782This group has had a fantastic season, led by defensive rookie of the year front-runner and defensive player of the year sleeper, Darius Leonard. He’s a rookie, so his contract is very affordable and considering his play, he should be making 10 times more. Anthony Walker and the other linebackers all make less than 1 million and the group has been steady for most of the season. CornerbacksColts Spending: $5,137,021Percentage of Salary Cap: 2.65%NFL Average: $14,190,952Colts Player with the Largest Cap Hit: Pierre Desir — $1,562,500Considering the amount spent compared to the NFL average, you can definitely say this group has been a good bargain J'Marcus Webb Jersey , but overall, this group is average at best compared to the rest of the NFL. This group can definitely benefit by adding a star player in this year’s free agency class and considering the cap space and the amount the Colts have spent on this group, this is very doable and should be something the Colts pursue in the offseason. SafetiesColts Spending: $5,261,136Percentage of Salary Cap: 2.71%NFL Average: $9,537,528Colts Player with the Largest Cap Hit: Malik Hooker — $2,863,615Malik Hooker, on his rookie contract, is one of the best individual bargains in the NFL when talking about safeties. Clayton Geathers has had an underwhelming year and was outplayed early on in the season by Matthias Farley, who was put on Injured Reserve. This group has performed well considering the amount of spending the Colts have put into them, but this is also a group that can benefit from some free agency spending. Special TeamsColts Spending: 4,184,000Percentage of Salary Cap: 2.16%NFL Average: $4,435,608Colts Player with the Largest Cap Hit: Adam Vinatieri — $3,625,000It’s tough to compare special teams spending around the league. The reality of special teams is: do the punter and kicker perform well? If the answer is yes, then the spending is almost irrelevant. This group has performed very well this season. Salary Cap UpdateThe Colts currently have $49,338,629 in cap space according to Over the Cap. With all that money projected to carry over and with the salary cap expected to rise to $190,000,000 next season, the Colts should have approximately $123,610,387 in cap space next season.It’s worth noting that the Colts need to spend a certain amount of money to avoid being in breach of not meeting the NFL Salary Cap floor. In four year increments, starting in 2017 and going until 2020, NFL teams are required to spend at least 89% of their cap space in cash. The league is entering the third year of the four year cycle and the Colts will enter the 2019 offseason having only spent 68.4% of their salary cap. In short, expect the Colts to spend some money this offseason so they don’t have to go crazy next offseason to meet the NFL salary cap floor. Notable 2019 Free Agents Pierre DesirMatthias FarleyClayton GeathersRyan GrantMargus HuntAdam VinatieriAl WoodsAll in all, the Colts are in very good shape! Many of the position groups are performing extremely well compared to the amount of money the Colts have invested in them. This is a strong, young team with a lot of money in the bank moving forward. The team benefits from a lot of great rookie contracts, so I expect the Colts to be very active in free agency over the next couple of years.