The Colts went through a strange season, and perhaps a stranger beginning to the offseason, after losing quarterback Andrew Luck and then not firing coach Chuck Pagano and General Manager Ryan Grigson.
So now that they’re all on the same page, they have a common view of the reality that confronts them.
There was no disguising the truth when Pagano and Grigson met the media at the Scouting Combine, as they know they have to protect Luck better and they have to find pass-rushers if they want to keep pace with the teams they’ll see if they get back to the playoffs.
“The interior of that offensive line, the center and two guard spots, is the focal point,” Pagano said, via Stephen Holder of the Indianapolis Star.
“Obviously the bulk of our winning has been from our superb quarterback play,” Grigson admitted. " So yeah, that’s the common sense approach [to protect him].”
They didn’t last year, as injuries forced Luck to miss nine games, torpedoing their chances to maintain their hold on the AFC South.
But the Colts can’t just identify their problems, they have to address them. They’ve spent free agent money and high picks in recent years, with some notable misses in both areas. Now, they’re going to have less money to fix the problems, as they’ve squandered the cheap years of Luck and are about to enter the time in which he chews up a bigger portion of their salary cap.
“I would say this year is a little different than in years past just because of some of the financials we have on the horizon,” Grigson said. “Somewhat like 2012 where we tightened our belt. We had to scout our rear ends off.”
And this time, they have to be right.