The Indianapolis Colts is a team that can't afford to let go of any prominent talent for Anthony Richardson to use as an offensive asset. While his receiving corps has the likes of Josh Downs, Alec Pierce, and AD Mitchell, Michael Pittman Jr. is the most proven and reliable.
But nobody in the NFL is guaranteed to stay where they are if a deal makes enough sense, and Matthew Schmidt of Carolina Panthers on SI believes a trade might make sense for Pittman to head to the Carolina Panthers.
Yes, Pittman signed a three-year extension with the Colts last year, but he has actually been somewhat of a disappointment in Indianapolis, and the Colts are teeming with other receiving talent in the form of Josh Downs, Alec Pierce and Adonai Mitchell.Matthew Schmidt | Panthers on SI
First and foremost, Pittman hasn't been a disappointment, but a constant for the franchise from his sophomore season. In five seasons Pittman has caught 405 passes for 4,470 yards (11.0 average), and 18 touchdowns.
Pittman had nothing but ascension until he played with a fractured back in 2024 and had a career year in 2023 despite playing with rookie Richardson and backup Gardner Minshew. In that campaign, he hauled in 109 catches for 1,152 receiving yards, both bests in his NFL tenure.
As mentioned, Pittman played the 2024 season with a bad back injury, which did him no favors. He only caught 69 passes for 808 receiving yards and three touchdowns with two more quarterbacks which included veteran Joe Flacco, this time around.
In short, Pittman isn't getting traded, and the Colts don't have a proven weapon yet in Mitchell, the latter of whom had arguably one of the worst rookie receiver seasons last year. These situations paint a picture that Pittman is invaluable to Richardson's development.
The Panthers need more talent to help Bryce Young, but that's nothing new with the NFC franchise. If Carolina wants more help, they will likely not find it through a deal with Chris Ballard for Pittman; it would take away the most reliable pass-catcher for Richardson who needs all the help he can get to succeed in year three.
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