NFL insider Ian Rapoport has some less-than-ideal insights into Alec Pierce after the Indianapolis Colts placed the transition tag on Daniel Jones.
With Jones tagged, Pierce will now hit the open market as one of the most coveted free agents in all of football. Now, the Colts can prevent that from happening by agreeing to a new deal with Pierce before March 9, the start of the NFL’s legal tampering period.
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But as Rapoport pointed out, why wouldn’t Pierce want to hit the free agent market?
“The Colts made a big offer to Alec Pierce,” Rapoport said. “They’re going to try to get it done, but he’s about five days away from being a free agent. It’s hard to imagine Alec Pierce agreeing to a deal right now when he could be talking to anyone in the NFL in just a few days.”
Rapoport’s last sentence is an important one to note.
Rapoport continued, “He’s going to get a big contract no matter what. It sounds like he really wants to join Indy, but since he’s free now, they really, really have to pay for it. It’s not a good situation for Indianapolis because they have several other salary cap issues, but it’s their reality given the way things are going today.”
While the Colts made a “big offer,” as Rapoport said, entering free agency with interest from many teams could further increase his salary from Pierce’s perspective in terms of maximizing the value of his contract.
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Even if the Colts do retain Pierce, the cost of doing so may now be higher as Pierce’s influence increases.
If the Colts can come to an agreement with Jones before Tuesday’s tag deadline, they can use the franchise tag on Pierce.
But instead, Chris Ballard is venturing down a riskier path.
The Colts may be interested in re-signing Pierce, but if he hits the free agent market, as Rapoport hinted, anything could happen.
This article originally appeared on Colts Wire: NFL Free Agency: Colts insider on contract talks with Alec Pierce
