Indianapolis Colts’ wide receiver Alec Pierce is set to be a free agent this offseason, and his teammate Michael Pittman believes that Pierce is about to earn a big payday.
«Alec is worth a lot of money,» Pittman told The Athletic. «So don’t be shocked when you see something crazy. I think he had like 44 catches — 1,000 yards on 44 catches. I’ve never seen that before. He can take the absolute top off of anybody. When they’re trying to stop it, he just has a way of getting behind them. Like it’s crazy. He’s really earned himself a nice payday.»
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Pierce has led the NFL in yards per catch the last two seasons and he eclipsed 1,000 receiving yards for the first time in his career this past year.
While known for being a vertical threat, Pierce’s role expanded this past season, with him being asked to attack other levels of the field more regularly.
Then, going beyond Pierce’s production, when a defense has to worry about a legitimate downfield threat, that can help open up opportunities for other pass catchers over the middle or on underneath routes with the spacing that is created. Even the run game can benefit.
Spotrac is projecting that Pierce will earn north of $20 million per year on his next deal.
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Retaining Pierce should be a priority for GM Chris Ballard this offseason, and based on what he said during his season-ending press conference, it sounds like it will be.
«From Day 1, from when we worked him out at the University of Cincinnati, we had a great belief in Alec Pierce,» Ballard said. «I think he’s been a good player every year. … I thought Reggie (Wayne) did a tremendous job helping him expand his game to all three levels. Alec’s a priority.»
This article originally appeared on Colts Wire: Free agent Alec Pierce ‘worth a lot of money’ says Michael Pittman
