Indianapolis bets on a veteran
One year, up to $8 million, a 34-year-old wideout. That is the bet Indianapolis just made. Multiple US outlets report the Colts have an agreement in place with Keenan Allen, who walks into a receiver room that has been picked apart since March.
Michael Pittman Jr. was traded to the Steelers that month. Alec Pierce, the nominal No. 1 and the league leader in yards per catch over the past two seasons, still has not practiced in camp. Ankle surgery. Whether he plays Week 1 is anyone’s guess.
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Thirteen seasons, and the yards keep getting shorter
The Chargers took Allen in the third round in 2013, back when the franchise still played in San Diego. Eleven years there, then a trade to Chicago in March 2024. Last season he was back in a Chargers uniform: 81 catches, 777 yards, four touchdowns across 17 games.
His 9.6 yards per catch was the lowest of his career. That number tells you exactly what Indianapolis wants from him. Pierce and Josh Downs stretch defenses vertically. Allen works underneath, moves the chains, keeps third downs alive.
Only two Hall of Famers rank ahead of him in Chargers history
Six Pro Bowls. A career line of 1,055 catches, 12,051 yards, 70 touchdowns. His 985 receptions in Los Angeles and San Diego are a franchise record, and his 11,307 yards there sit behind only Antonio Gates. On the touchdown list he is third with 63, trailing Gates (116) and Lance Alworth (81).
Indianapolis has reached for a veteran in a pinch before. Last December, with Daniel Jones and every backup behind him hurt, the Colts signed 44-year-old Philip Rivers out of a five-year retirement for the final three games. They lost all three and closed the season on a seven-game skid.
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