Indianapolis Colts All-Time Team

Indianapolis Colts All-Time Team

Around 8 years ago, I wrote an article about who I believe should be on the Colts’ all time team and I felt it was time for an update. This will only cover the Indianapolis Colts era from 1983 to today. The format will be starter/backup.

Quarterbacks

Starter: Peyton Manning

Backup: Andrew Luck

No brainer on this one; Peyton is the greatest quarterback of all time and Andrew Luck is one of the most talented of all time.

Running Backs

Starter: Edgerrin James

Backup: Marshall Faulk

James gets the nod on this one thanks to his longevity and consistent play with the Colts and while the backup job was a fight between Faulk and Dickerson, Faulk gets the edge due to his receiving prowess.

Wide Receivers

Starter: Marvin Harrison, Reggie Wayne, TY Hilton

Backup: Bill Brooks, Michael Pittman Jr, Brandon Stokley

The top three are pretty clear-cut as Marvin Harrison is a top 5 receiver all time, Reggie Wayne is probably top 10-15 since 2000 and TY Hilton had tremendous consistency with many different quarterback. For backups, Brooks was a great #1 on many bad teams and was a starter on the all time team in 2016. Pittman Jr is still too young, but deserves a spot and Stokley rounds out the group after a few fantastic years with Peyton in the early to mid 2000s.

Tight Ends

Starter: Dallas Clark

Backup: Jack Doyle

No real debate on number 1 as Dallas Clark was outstanding with the Colts and one of the last receiving tight ends (or receivers in general) to play without gloves! The battle for the backup job was down to Doyle or Pollard and Doyle gets the slight edge due to his versatility.

Offensive Tackles

Left Starter: Tarik Glenn

Left Backup: Chris Hinton

Right Starter: Ryan Diem

Right Backup: Braden Smith

The battle between Glenn and Hinton was very tough as both were All Pro/Pro Bowl caliber players. Glenn got the nod because of the success of his teams and offenses. On the right side, there’s a big drop but Diem gets the nod over Smith due to consistency and longevity.

Offensive Guards

Left Starter: Quenton Nelson

Left Backup: Randy Dixon

Right Starter: Ron Solt

Right Backup: Jake Scott

Nelson is an easy pick for the left guard starter spot as his peak was as good as 99% of guards in the history of the NFL. Randy Dixon is a very capable and respectable backup. Ron Solt also had great success with the Colts and made a Pro Bowl with the team. Jake Scott gets the backup job due to his good run with the Colts in the early to mid 2000s on some crazy offenses.

Centers

Starter: Jeff Saturday

Backup: Ryan Kelly

This is a pretty easy choice: Jeff Saturday is one of the greatest centers of all time and Ryan Kelly is one of the best centers in the NFL today and has been consistently top 10 over the past 5-6 years besides a small blip.

Defensive Ends

Left Starter: Robert Mathis

Left Backup: Donnell Thompson

Right Starter: Dwight Freeney

Right Backup: Chad Bratzke

Mathis and Freeney as the starters are easy picks and are Hall of Fame talents. Thompson and Bratzke were tricky to pick as backups, but both had short runs of very good success.

Defensive Tackles

3-Tech Starter: DeForest Buckner

3-Tech backup: Jon Hand

1-Tech Starter: Grover Stewart

1-Tech Backup: Tony Siragusa

It’s crazy to think that out of all the defensive tackles the team has fielded, the best two are the current two. DeForest Buckner is a borderline All Pro player and consistent top talent and the Colts have never had that inside. Next to him is Grover Stewart, who has been one of the best nose tackles in the game for many years. Jon Hand is a versatile backup who could play in or out and I think would find some success as a 3-tech in today’s game. Siragusa was a pure beast who would be a perfect backup to Stewart.

Linebackers

Starters: Gary Brackett, Darius Leonard, Duane Bickett

Backups: Cato June, Jerrell Freeman, Jeff Herrod

Brackett was a tremendous leader and a great undersized athletic MIKE linebacker who fit perfectly in the Colts’ Tampa 2 system. Darius Leonard is the most talented linebacker the Colts ever had and was extremely speedy and well rounded. Duane Bickett had a great run in the 80s, winning awards and establishing himself as the leader of the Colts’ defense. For backups, Cato June was a great complimentary piece (to Brackett) and also flashed a lot of great athleticism and tackling skills. Herrod was a tackling machine and took over from Bickett in the 90s as the backbone of the defense. Freeman might be a surprising pick, but he was a great MIKE backer for the team in the 2010s and could do it all with some very productive seasons.

Cornerbacks

Starters: Vontae Davis, Kenny Moore, Eugene Daniel

Backups: Ray Buchanen, Kelvin Hayden, Nick Harper

The Colts have never had strong cornerbacks and that’s seen with this group overall. Davis, Moore and Daniel are pretty easy choices with Davis and Daniel on the outside and Moore in the slot. Davis at his best was one of the best corners in the league and the same can be said about Kenny Moore as a nickel. Daniel had a ton of longevity and was a consistent force for the Colts for 13 years. Buchanen had a short run with the Colts but had a couple of great seasons. Hayden and Harper were good not great players who had some big moments in their careers.

Safeties

Free Starter: Antoine Bethea

Free Backup: Mike Adams

Strong Starter: Bob Sanders

Strong Backup: Jason Belser

Bethea and Sanders is one of the best safety duos of the 21st century and they complimented each other as well as any safety duo. Unfortunately, Sanders was always injured, but at his best (and healthy) he was the best safety in the NFL. For backups, old man Mike Adams was fantastic on the back end and made a lot of big plays for the team over the years, especially as a ball hawk but in his later years he showed he can also be good in the run game. Belser spent many years with the team and proved to be a good hard hitting safety in the mid 90s.

Special Teams + Coaches

Kicker Starter: Adam Vinatieri

Kicker Backup: Mike Vanderjagt

Punter Starter: Pat McAfee

Punter Backup: Hunter Smith

Return Specialist Starter: Dominic Rhodes

Return Specialist Backup: Nyheim Hines

Head Coach: Tony Dungy

Offensive Coordinator: Tom Moore

Defensive Coordinator: Matt Eberflus

No real surprises here, with the only real tough decision being the defensive coordinator spot. While coaches like Vic Fangio is one of the all time greats, he wasn’t one with the Colts so the decision was down to Ron Meeks or Matt Eberflus and I chose Eberflus since it was his defense that was installed and thrived and not that of the head coach.