The Indianapolis Colts will reportedly sign free-agent wide receiver Keenan Allen to an incentive-laden deal.
The Indianapolis Colts are finally doing what many fans have been begging them to do for months, and that's signing a legitimate player at wide receiver.
Late Monday night, NFL insider Jordan Schultz of The Schultz Report reported that the Colts are set to sign free agent wide receiver Keenan Allen to a one-year deal, worth up to $8.32 million in incentives.
The Colts had a projected $31.4 million in salary cap space before the deal.
Allen (6'2", 211, 34 years old) was the oldest option on the market, but he is coming off of a season in 2025 where he returned to the Los Angeles Chargers after a year away with the Chicago Bears in 2024 and put up 81 catches (122 targets) for 777 yards (9.6 avg.) and four touchdowns.
Allen would've finished first on the Colts in targets and receptions last year, fourth in receiving yards, and tied for third in receiving touchdowns.
While Allen is certainly "up there" in age, he should be able to hit the ground running in Indianapolis, as he spent seven years with Colts head coach Shane Steichen while the two were together with the Chargers from 2014-20.
It is also late in the offseason, but this is roughly the time of year that he signed his new contract to return to the Chargers from the Bears last year.
The Chargers originally chose Allen in the third round of the 2013 NFL Draft with the 76th overall pick out of the University of California. He spent the first 11 years of his career there until being traded to Chicago for a fourth-round pick in 2024 to join newly-drafted USC quarterback Caleb Williams.
After that short stint, Allen signed a one-year, $8.5 million deal last August to return to Los Angeles and quarterback Justin Herbert, putting up numbers that bested his lone season with the Bears.
The Colts won't need Allen to be a star; they'll just need him to be an efficient chain-mover who is in a supporting role in the passing game behind Alec Pierce, Tyler Warren, and Josh Downs.
In 171 career games, Allen has 1,055 receptions for 12,051 yards, and 70 touchdowns. He currently ranks 13th in NFL history in receptions, 33rd in receiving yards, and tied for 52nd in receiving touchdowns.
Pierce is stepping into a new, more significant role after signing a one-year, $114 million deal in March to become the team's new top receiver.
The Colts traded away their former leading receiver, Michael Pittman Jr., to make room for Pierce financially and to expand his role. However, Pierce had ankle surgery in March and has not yet returned, though the team still expects him to be available for Week 1 of the regular season.
Pierce has never finished higher than third on the team in targets, so adding someone like Allen, who has reliable hands, knows how to get open, understands every coverage he'll see, and already speaks Steichen's language, will be a secure option for quarterback Daniel Jones as the Colts attempt to recreate the offensive success they had in the early stages of the 2025 season.
The Colts have been relying on Ashton Dulin to fill the third receiver role this offseason beside Pierce and Downs, with Laquon Treadwell and Nick Westbrook-Ikhine competing for the fourth spot.
