PFF announced their best PFF Colts team of the past twenty seasons, beginning in 2006, which of course, was the Horseshoe’s impressive and magical Super Bowl winning season, and culminating until the most recent 2025 campaign:
Offense
- QB: Peyton Manning (2006-2010)
- HB: Jonathan Taylor (2020-2025)
- WR: Reggie Wayne (2006-2014)
- WR: Michael Pittman Jr. (2020-2025)
- Slot WR: T.Y. Hilton (2012-2021)
- TE: Dallas Clark (2006-2011)
- TE: Jack Doyle (2013-2021)
- LT: Anthony Castonzo (2011-2020)
- LG: Quenton Nelson (2018-2025)
- C: Jeff Saturday (2006-2011)
- RG: Mark Glowinski (2018-2021, 2024)
- RT: Braden Smith (2018-2025)
Defense
- DI: DeForest Buckner (2020-2025)
- DI: Grover Stewart (2017-2025)
- ED: Robert Mathis (2006-2016)
- ED: Dwight Freeney (2006-2012)
- LB: Jerrell Freeman (2012-2015)
- LB: Bobby Okereke (2019-2022)
- SLB: Shaquille Leonard (2018-2023)
- CB: Vontae Davis (2012-2017)
- CB: Kelvin Hayden (2006-2010)
- Slot CB: Kenny Moore II (2017-2025)
- S: Antoine Bethea (2006-2013)
- S: Bob Sanders (2006-2010)
Now, it’s worth noting that the “PFF era” is looking at each individual player’s complete body of work during that period of time for the Colts and not just their best individual season with the franchise of PFF grading.
Otherwise, it’s a fair question of whether we would’ve
seen both Marvin Harrison and Tarik Glenn from 2006, while running back Edgerrin James narrowly missed the cut as he departed the franchise during the 2025 free agency period. More recently, Eric Ebron obviously had a huge receiving season for the Colts at tight end with 13 touchdown receptions back in 2018, if it had solely been based on best individual seasons in Indianapolis.
On offense, there aren’t any real surprises for me given the criteria. I may have expected longtime bookend Ryan Diem of the ‘Peyton Manning era’ to potentially challenge Braden Smith for the starting right tackle job, and potentially Ryan Kelly with Jeff Saturday, given that was the back-half of the latter’s pro career with the Colts. Still, I think Saturday’s playing career peak in the PFF era was probably better than Kelly’s in comparison.
Mark Glowinski (2017-21, and *2024) was a solid starter at right guard for Indianapolis, particularly in run blocking where he clearly excelled. That being said, it speaks to the franchise’s lack of true star power and collective dearth of talent at the position that he makes this All-PFF squad entirely.
Regarding the other side of the football, the Colts’ defensive line seems rather self-explanatory. The Colts had their best defensive end duo in franchise history during the ‘Peyton Manning era’ with the historically elite quarterback terrorizing tandem of Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis–both of whom were ‘Ring of Honor’ teammates. Meanwhile, All-Pro DeForest Buckner and his running mate, run-stuffing space eater Grover Stewart, are as consistently as good as it’s gotten at defensive tackle in Indianapolis on a more longer-term basis.
There’s more surprises here defensively than on offense. Former Colts linebacker Jerrell Freeman is a sneaky addition here, and given that he was overshadowed a bit by perennial First-Team All-Pro Darius ‘Shaquille Leonard’, who arrived a bit later in Indy and was an NFL superstar to begin his Colts career, and I think some casual NFL observers forget how good Freeman was for the Colts during a solid stretch here in the Andrew Luck era of years past.
Joining him as another surprising addition is former Colts starting linebacker Bobby Okereke, who due to a salary cap crunch at the position, was allowed to depart to the New York Giants in 2023 free agency. PFF was long a proponent of Okereke, who excelled in pass coverage with their advanced grading. Given his starting stint with the Colts was relatively short, as only in 2021-22 was he a full-time starter in Indy, and it’s a little surprising to see him here, especially in comparison to his former teammate, Zaire Franklin, who was an NFL All-Pro for Indianapolis back in 2024. While Franklin obviously racked up the cummulative tackles in Indy, he not have been quite as effective in his peak in PFF’s eyes in comparison to Okereke’s shorter starting stint here.
Lastly, Kelvin Hayden makes the list here at starting outside cornerback opposite the late Vontae Davis. Hayden, who played for the Colts from 2005-10, and during the wonderful Super Bowl run, was a bit unheralded in comparison to his starting cornerback counterpart Marlin Jackson Jr. That being said, Hayden was another rock solid starter for Indianapolis, who of course had a 56-yard interception return for a touchdown in SB XLI.
When it comes to starting safety, the Pro Bowl tandem of Bob Sanders and Antoine Bethea was another pairing defensively where that’s as good as it’s ever gotten for the franchise and likely will be the case, for a longer time.
