NFL reporter Ian Rapoport has word that former Kansas City Chiefs left tackle Eric Fisher is going to sign a one-year deal with the Indianapolis Colts. The deal is reportedly coming in at $9.4 million. That’s likely with incentives based on playing time, knowing that Fisher is coming off of a season-ending injury.
Rapoport notes that the Colts are “comfortable” with where Fisher is at in his recovery from an Achilles injury suffered during the Chiefs’ win over the Buffalo Bills in the AFC Championship game in late January.
The Chiefs cut Fisher and fellow longtime tackle Mitchell Schwartz in a series of cost-cutting moves intended to start a complete overhaul of the offensive front. The team’s front five had become an aging line dealing with multiple injuries that created questions even around the most reliable options up front. Fisher faced an offseason of rehabilitation but given his Pro Bowl form in 2020 and the dearth of options at left tackle on the free agent market, it was clear the Colts had to make a move even in the midst of recovery in order to secure his services.
The Colts made sense as a destination for Fisher all along, especially after the Chiefs traded for Orlando Brown Jr. from the Baltimore Ravens. A return looked like it was possible for Fisher if the Chiefs came away from the 2021 NFL Draft without a likely starter, but the Brown trade guaranteed Fisher needed a new home.
As for the Colts, the retirement of Anthony Castonzo in January forced the team to make a move this offseason but many were surprised when the team failed to sign any major free agents or draft a top prospect at the position. Sam Tevi had been touted as a realistic option to date from the team’s front office, but such notions had very little weight, regardless of who was saying it.
Fisher has been the Chiefs mainstay at left tackle since he was drafted first overall in the 2013 NFL Draft. He spent eight seasons in K.C. and made the Pro Bowl in both 2018 and ’20.