Impact Marlon Mack's Achilles tear in Week 1 last year left the Colts with Hines, Jonathan Taylor and Jordan Wilkins in the backfield. Each of the four is still with the team, and Taylor is locked in for a sizable workload after exploding for 723 total yards and eight touchdowns over the final five weeks of his rookie season. If Taylor stays healthy, it'll be tough for Hines to match his career-best 2020 campaign, though he should still earn most of the backfield snaps in clear passing situations. He's entering the final year of his rookie contract, and his impressive work on punt returns (14.9-yard average, two touchdowns on 39 career attempts) will give his agent some extra ammo in negotiations for an extension. Colts owner Jim Irsay said linebacker Darius Leonard and offensive tackle Braden Smith will be the priorities for extensions this offseason, but Irsay at least mentioned Hines as a third candidate for a new deal among the team's 2018 draft class, according to Jim Ayello of The Indianapolis Star.
JULY 7, 2021 • ROTOWIRE
