NFL Trade Deadline: Will Colts Unload Big Stars in Effort to Obtain Andrew Luck?

Desperate times call for desperate measures, and there is no doubt that the Indianapolis Colts are facing some very desperate times.

The Colts have been a perennial contender in not only the AFC, but the NFL for years now, and it's all hinged on the arm of future Hall of Fame quarterback Peyton Manning.

We always knew that Manning was an integral part of the Colts organization, but the exact extent of that was really unveiled when Manning was all but ruled out of the 2011 season with a neck injury.

There was nobody that doubted the fact that the Colts would struggle without their quarterback and leader, but I'm not sure many people saw this meltdown coming.

At 0-5, the Colts are currently at the bottom of the AFC South, a division they once had a stranglehold on, and they are already looking forward to next season.

They've had immense struggles on both sides of the ball, but the void at quarterback is the most obvious weakness on this once powerful team. 

The situation was so desperate that they brought veteran quarterback Kerry Collins out of retirement to hopefully stop the bleeding. It was a relatively unsuccessful return to the NFL though.

In three games Collins went 48-of-98 for 481 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. He was also sacked five times and fumbled four times.

The Colts next move was to backup Curtis Painter, who has shown promise stuck behind Manning.

While Painter hasn't been horrible with four touchdowns, no interceptions and two fumbles, there is no doubt that this team is in trouble.

The Colts are obviously starting to look forward to the future, and the truth of the matter is that it's a future that doesn't involve Peyton Manning for much longer.

With the NFL trade deadline coming up, would the Colts consider moving some of their stars in this wash of a season? Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk writes on the subject:

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With the trade deadline only four days away, and with an eleventh-hour deal or two typically being made, speculation has arisen that the Colts could send elsewhere one or two of their disgruntled free-agents-to-be:  receiver Reggie Wayne (pictured) and defensive end Robert Mathis.

Phillip Wilson of the Indianapolis Star traces the spitballing to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, who apparently said that the Colts should trade Wayne to the Bills and Mathis to the Jets.  That idea has quickly become rumor, even though at this point there’s no reason to believe either deal could happen.

Wilson thinks that the Colts should keep both players.  But if the Colts already have decided neither to use the franchise tag nor to give new contracts to one or both players, why not dump them now in exchange for future picks?

The hidden benefit, of course, is that it would be a legitimate way to weaken the team as part of a not-so-subtle effort to “Suck for Luck.”

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Ah, the infamous "Suck for Luck" campaign.

If you're not familiar with it, in a nutshell it's the theory that the worst team this season will win the No. 1 overall pick and be able to take Stanford quarterback and Heisman Trophy favorite Andrew Luck.

It certainly is a tantalizing option, especially for a team so desperate for a long-term quarterback solution.

It's important to note that these trades are just speculation, but that being said they do make sense.

It's rather obvious that the Colts aren't going anywhere this season, so why not unload a few impending free-agents and get some value back from them, all the while gaining positioning in the draft.

It's a rather desperate move, but like I said:

Desperate times call for desperate measures.