The Colts have a potential free agent gem they’d ideally like to retain, right guard Will Fries, but is their secret already out?
According to ESPN’s Ben Solak (subscription), Indianapolis Colts starting right guard Will Fries was named among their ‘underrated players who could be steals’:
G Will Fries
2024 team: Indianapolis Colts | Age entering 2025 season: 27
I’ll give every non-Colts fan reading this $5 if they can tell me what school Fries was drafted from, and in which round. (I’m not going to actually do that; I don’t have that much money.) A relative unknown in the larger NFL scope, Fries — a 2021 seventh-rounder out of Penn State — won the starting right guard job in just his second season. He is not the most physically imposing blocker the league has ever seen, but he’s quick, technically sound and still has enough power to uproot smaller defensive tackles. From Week 10 in 2022 (when he won the job) to Week 5 in 2024 (when he fractured his fibula), Fries was clearly one of the best young guards in football.
Fries’ market is a fascinating one relative to that of a Mekhi Becton, who is the exact opposite: often unbalanced or unsound technically, but an absolute mauler and a keystone player of a supersized rushing attack. Becton’s background as a first-round pick, his splashy plays on tape and a little Jeff Stoutland shine from his season in Philadelphia probably will get him paid in this cycle — and for some teams, Becton is a better fit than Fries. But Fries is the better player, especially on gotta-have-it downs in pass protection.
The guard market has been robust in recent years, so finding a good deal for Fries is tricky — if a team wants to land him, it will almost certainly have to overpay. Jon Runyan got $30 million over three years from the Giants last year at a similar age to Fries. Two years ago, 29-year-old Shaq Mason got $36 million over three years from the Texans. Fries has comfortably played better than both for multiple seasons.
Fries probably will shoot to beat the deals that Ben Powers (four years, $51.5 million) and Damien Lewis (four years, $53 million) got when they changed teams last offseason, and could even get into Kevin Dotson range (three years, $48 million) if the market for guards is as strong as it was a year ago. The Chargers are a strong possibility, as are the Patriots, who can move Mike Onwenu along the line. One other team to watch? The Cowboys, who for the first time in a decade, have a hole at right guard to fill after the retirement of Zack Martin.
Originally a 2021 7th round pick of the Colts, the 26-year-old Fries has blossomed into one of the better young guards in football and was in the midst of a breakout 2024 campaign before being lost to a season-ending fractured tibia after just 5 starts this past season.
Specifically, per PFF, Fries still graded out as their 4th best offensive guard with a +86.9 overall grade—including a ‘road grading’ grade +84.9 as a run blocker. His collective grade was even higher than Colts’ All-Pro left guard Quenton Nelson’s +81.3 overall grade.
If veteran right tackle Braden Smith returns, it’s possible that the Colts could slide 2nd-year swing-tackle Matt Goncalves—who held his own as a rookie, into the starting right guard spot. However, Goncalves looks most natural and comfortable at right tackle long-term.
The Colts otherwise lack great internal options, as fill-in veteran Mark Glowinski (33) is also a free agent and remains more of a temporary and arguably emergency stopgap. Undrafted rookie free agent Dalton Tucker initially flashed but struggled as he hit a rookie wall in relief.
It’s worth noting that the Colts were also mentioned as a potential landing spot for other teams’ free agent gems in this piece—including Detroit Lions cornerback Carlton Davis III:
“A defense that asks Davis to play a little more zone will better fit his skill set, Solak writes. “The Ravens and Colts need a veteran starter at outside corner who can play a variety of coverages, which Davis can handle well.”
As well as Kansas City Chiefs veteran safety Justin Reid:
“Reid is best on a young defense in need of leadership and tone-setting: The Jaguars and Panthers are good landing spots, as are the Colts and Giants,” Solak adds.