NFL Draft Rumors: Colts Would Be Wise to Trade Dwight Freeney for a Pick

According to Peter King of SI.com, the Indianapolis Colts would like to trade Dwight Freeney.

Freeney, 32, has spent his entire 10-year career with the Colts, but the team is changing to a 3-4 defense this season and is looking to make wholesale changes.

The Colts finished with the worst record in the league last season and released their franchise quarterback, Peyton Manning, to draft Andrew Luck. The Colts team we all new from the early 2000s is now gone as a new era is about to begin.

The smartest move for the Colts to make is to package Freeney with their second-round pick. With the 34th pick, there is still plenty of value left on the board and teams will be anxious to trade up to get a player that they want.

With Freeney thrown into the trade, they can get extra picks. Freeney on his own will be harder to trade away, considering he is set to make over $14 million this season. However, a team that is one defensive player away from being an elite team may take a chance on him.

A team like the San Diego Chargers desperately needs help at the outside linebacker position, and will likely address that in the first round. If they can also get Freeney onto their roster, they will be considerably better at outside linebacker.

Another team the Colts should try to trade with is the Green Bay Packers. The Packers were 15-1 last season but struggled to get any pressure on the quarterback outside of Clay Matthews. They were ranked 27th in sacks, and will also be likely to address that need in the first round.

With the recent news of the Packers releasing Nick Collins, though, the team may head in a different direction in the first round and grab a player like safety Harrison Smith from Notre Dame. This will give the Colts the opportunity to trade with Green Bay for one of the 12 draft picks it has, including three in the fourth round.

A fourth-round pick is probably what the Colts could get out of Freeney. Throw in the second-round pick the Colts have and there is a possibility of getting three to four picks out of the deal. 

Freeney has been a model citizen and a great player for the Colts for the past decade, but it is best for both sides if he changes teams. He will be missed, but this can only benefit the rebuilding Colts.

Looking back at the past two Super Bowl champions, the Packers and the New York Giants, they built their teams through the draft, which is what the Colts need to start doing this year.