Indianapolis Colts defensive tackle DeForest Buckner was the subject of some unfounded trade rumors earlier in the offseason—rumors he debunked almost immediately.
While the Colts, in theory, could have saved a ton of money against the salary cap by trading or releasing the veteran captain, it was never a realistic possibility. Nor would it have made much sense for the Colts.
When speaking to reporters this week at the start of the offseason training program, Buckner dispelled any notion that he was leaving.
“There was never any talks about me being traded, being released or any of that. It’s the offseason. People like to make headlines, clickbait and all of that kind of stuff so I just thought it was funny,” Buckner said.
The rumors began circulating that Buckner wanted to play for a contending team. While that can be said for any player on any team, Buckner made a quick rebuttal to the rumor.
It got enough circulation that even some players from other teams pounced on the opportunity to recruit his services on the off chance the rumors were true.
“I woke up actually one morning and had two different guys from different teams text me and they were like, ‘Hey man, is it true? You can come over here and play with me.’ I was like, ‘Man, what’s going on right now?’ I checked Twitter and I’m like, ‘Wow.’ I guess I was trending a little bit so I thought it was funny. I sent out a little tweet letting people know I wasn’t going anywhere,” Buckner said.
The Colts and Buckner did wind up agreeing on a restructured contract, which saved the team $2.5 million against the cap this offseason. The reason for the move is unknown at this point, but those moves typically are made with a plan in mind.
As for the direction of the team, the Colts are likely to take a quarterback with the No. 4 overall pick, barring a trade-up, in the 2023 NFL draft. The term rebuild is used often with the Colts right now, and it’s not an entirely false statement.
Buckner and general manager Chris Ballard had a discussion after what was a tumultuous campaign in 2022.
“I had a conversation with (Chris) Ballard at the end of the season. It was just a great conversation about – obviously things didn’t go the way we wanted last year and everything. We just had a conversation – him just saying, ‘Trust me.’ We have a great relationship,” Buckner said.
With two more years left on his deal, Buckner will continue to be a massive voice in the locker room and the engine of the defense as the team hopes to turn things around quickly.
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