APThe Colts made a pretty severe break from the Peyton Manning era before the start of the 2012 season and there will be even fewer Colts from the old days around when the 2013 season gets underway.
Bob Kravitz of the Indianapolis Star reports that the Colts have informed linebacker Dwight Freeney that the team will not be signing him to another contract. That means Freeney will hit the open market next month and sign with another team, likely one that plays a 4-3 front similar to the one he thrived in as a Colt before they switched his position while moving to the 3-4 in 2012.
Freeney had just five sacks in 2012 and didn’t look comfortable as an outside linebacker in the 3-4. He’ll be 33 in a week, so may be ticketed for more of a situational pass rushing role wherever he winds up next.
Kravitz reports that wide receiver Austin Collie got the same message from the team. Collie’s season ended in September because of a ruptured patellar tendon suffered in his first game back from a series of concussions. The Colts waited a long time for Collie, but the emergence of T.Y. Hilton as a rookie likely made it easier for them to move on. If Collie’s healthy, he could conceivably get a shot to reunite with Manning in Denver.
UPDATE 5:22 p.m. ET: The Colts confirmed that they won’t be bringing Freeney back. Owner Jim Irsay announced Freeney will be inducted into the team’s Ring of Honor in the future.
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for freeney it is a year too late, shouldve cut him after last year, pay him 14 mill last season to have 5 sacks and like 10 tackles is ludacris!!! i thank him for the past play, and wish him luck in the future, and collie, im sad to say should just retire and enjoy his life
Falcons have interest in Freeney.
Collie was a pretty good receiver in 2011. He might be a nice bargain because of his injury.
put him opposite chandler Jones. and put nico back at backer and well have a pretty tasty front seven in new England
He brings exactly what the Seahawks need.
He’s going to Buffalo.
Both these players will land somewhere.
Freeney can have a bounce back year in a 4-3.
Wish them both luck as Colts are headed in a new direction and really lucked out in the draft.
Look for Pagano to start poaching players from the Ravens (he already did last year). Guess we’ll see how good Paul Kruger really is without a Terrell Suggs or a Haloti Ngata on the other side of him from him.
Well now the cowboys might want to rethink resigning spencer, I feel like freeney still has a few seasons left as a dominant pass rusher if he plays in a 4-3 system.
Freeney is going to be a Tampa-2 DE in Dallas, Minnesota, or sign as a rush end in Atlanta, New York Giants, New England, or Seattle.
Collie could be a good pickup for another team. He was very good in 2010 until the concussions. 57 receptions, 650 yards and 8 TDs in 8 games.
Someone will pick him up.
Freeney is not a 3-4 player and that showed last year. He would look pretty good lining up opposite elvis dumervil and with von miller on the outside.
Collie will have a good year until Week 2 when he starts getting concussions.
Joemontanawasthegreatest, you’re right, that would be a great addition for the falcons, too. You know who else would be disgusting with this guy? The Seahawks. With Sherman (as much as I hate how he runs his mouth) on coverage giving freeney any decent amount of time to get to the QB, freeney could bounce back and have like 15 sacks next season. With a healthy Clemons back, that defense could truly be an elite unit.
Rajbais, I sure hope the patriots don’t sign him cause I like him and hate them, and the giants really don’t need him. Tuck and jpp make a great tandem. I think he will go to a contender, and the more I think about it, I’m not a betting man, but I’d probably place a wager that the Seahawks seriously pursue him. Get some targets for Wilson in the draft and bring this guy in as the major FA addition and that team is scary.
I guess it’s National “Not Resigning Day” in Indy.
Put him on the other side of Jared Allen.
falcons should totally sign Freeney. With him on one side and Abraham on the other they’d have the most overrated, overpaid and underachieving set of door stops in the league. Pull that trigger, Dimeatrough!
Denver has said they might look at Freeney to play end in their 4-3 .
Dwight will always be one of my favorite Colts ever and its sad to see him go, but it was pretty obvious that he isn’t the same player he once was anymore and was a bad fit in the 3-4. Hopefully he joins Peyton in Denver, he’d be great as a situational pass rusher there.
The Patriots can’t even afford both Welker and Talib. The market for his services will push the price tag way out of line for the Pats. It is fun to dream though.
He could lead the Jets in sacks with 5. He is prob lookin to sign his name.
Freeney will be missed. Hope he lands some place and has a great end of an HoF career. Collie is a gamer. He should retire. I know it’s hard for a young man, but he has a family to think of.
Pagano doesn’t know how to build championship teams. Luck will never touch confetti.
Freeney is washed up, even before the defensive switch he was done. He would be alright on 2nd and long and third downs. But he is not the super star he was 5 years ago.
Collie just should not play.
Welcome to the silver and black!!
When Collie retires he won’t even remember the time he’s played with the colts with the amount of concussions he’s had
Welcome to San Diego Freeney. It’s a great place to retire.
Patriot fan here. Freeney is truly a great player. There’s been some great battles over the years. Best of luck to Dwight Freeney!!
only thing san diego is knowned for is under achieving……….
irsay tweeted:
“thx 4 tha memrys dwite! ull b n tha rng of hnr!”
Please stop this Falcon’s talk. DFree will NOT be a falcon because the Falcons don’t have the money. No pay, no play. The Falcons can’t pay him.
I just hope wherever he lands he gets a chance to finally put a hit on Manning; he’s been wanting to since he got drafted.
Cowboys could use Freeney since they are going to a 4-3 Def. Paired with Ware that might attract Freeney’s attention.
I might as well throw in my 2 cents and sound as smart and all-knowing as everybody else on here. I say there is a 99 per cent chance that Freeney will end up with one of the other 31 teams in the NFL !!
Freeney to New Orleans.
Was part of the glory years for the colts. I wish I could be 33 and looking at the downside of my career still making 7 figure salary!
To ask Freeney to play OLB was ridiculous! He has always been a DE and for the Colts to take Mathis and Freeney and turn into OLB in a 3-4 was stupid. That’s why the Colts couldn’t stop anybody.
Both Freeney and Osi will be on the Seahawks radar. But at our price. The Seahawks have money, but will not over spend. They have 10 picks in this draft and it is deep.
We should have got rid of him last yr.. He needs to be playing for a 4-3 team where all he has to concentrate on is rushing the QB. He’s God awful at defending the run and dropping into coverage.
How great would look in a Pats uniform as a situational pass rusher. Just what the secondary ordered.
Who cares? Its the colts
Forget spencer! Cowboys sign freeney! Him and ware would be unstoppable