The 2024 NFL season was a breakout year for Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Alec Pierce.
“Alec Pierce has become who we thought Alec Pierce could be,” said GM Chris Ballard on Friday.
After navigating up and down play during his first two NFL seasons, Pierce became that reliable downfield presence for the Colts offense in his third year.
Pierce would total 824 receiving yards on the season, along with seven touchdowns, both of which were career-highs for him, and he led the team in those categories.
League-wide, Pierce emerged as one of the more steady downfield targets in the game. His 22.3 yards per reception was the highest mark in football, along with tallying the most receiving yards on passes of 20-plus air yards downfield.
When an offense has that big play element, it can help create opportunities for others in the passing game through the added spacing that is created underneath for the short to intermediate passing routes as the defense attempts to keep everything in front of them.
As Ballard sat in front of the media on Friday and called his roster construction approach in 2024 a “mistake” because he did not add enough competition throughout, which fostered complacency, Pierce’s Year 3 leap is a prime example of competition can spark growth.
With the addition of rookie AD Mitchell in the 2024 NFL draft, the X wide receiver position opposite of Michael Pittman was one of the few places on the Colts’ roster where there was competition last summer.
After the selection of Mitchell, Pierce immediately knew that his playing time was potentially in jeopardy.
“I can’t say enough about Alec Pierce,” added Ballard. “Look, I’ll tell ya a story: after the draft, anytime you draft a player at a position, there’s some uneasiness and Alec felt it. He came to my office and said, ‘Chris, what does this mean for me?’ I said nothing. Compete. And that’s exactly what he did. He didn’t complain. He didn’t make excuses. He competed and he is freaking good.”
Ballard would go on to say that Mitchell certainly possesses the talent that the team knew was there when they drafted him, however, like many young players, it’s about finding consistency.
For Pierce, now the next step in his development is building upon the performance we saw from him in 2024, so that this level of play becomes the norm for him. Ballard certainly believes that as impressive as this year was, more is out there for Pierce.
“He is exactly who we thought he was going to be,” said Ballard, “and I think there’s more in there. I do. Alec Pierce is an excellent, excellent football player.”