Indianapolis Colts: Grading Nate Irving Deal

The Indianapolis Colts made a couple of notable additions to their front seven earlier this offseason by signing veterans Trent Cole and Kendall Langford, and they made another key upgrade yesterday when they decided to sign inside linebacker Nate Irving. According to ESPN’s Josina Anderson, the former Denver Broncos contributor’s deal will pay him up to $9.25 million over the next three seasons, so we don’t exactly know how much money Irving will make per year.

What we do know is that a contract that will pay him “up to” about $3.167 million per season is definitely a cheap one, but it isn’t surprising to see that Irving was forced to take a small amount of money. He’s not a three-down linebacker since he struggles in coverage, and he’s also coming off of an ACL tear.

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However, the Colts weren’t looking for a three-down linebacker, since they desperately needed to sign someone whose forte is in run defense. Last season, the Colts allowed 4.3 yards per carry and were memorably torn to shreds by the New England Patriots on two separate occasions, including in the AFC Championship Game blowout loss.

When contenders are concerned, it’s all about keeping up in the arm’s race, and that involves making sure your weaknesses don’t match up with another contender’s strengths. Since the Denver Broncos have rising star C.J. Anderson, there’s more of an impetus for the Colts to make a run-defending upgrade at the inside linebacker position.

D’Qwell Jackson hasn’t been the standout the Colts were looking for against the run when they signed him to a solid deal last offseason, whereas Jerrell Freeman just downright struggled in that facet of the game. Freeman was the biggest dud on a team that was below-average-but-not-terrible against the run, so adding Irving will allow Freeman to focus more on coverage.

I like the fact that the Colts brought in Irving, even if he isn’t a true three-down LB, because they can mix and match him with Freeman. I don’t think Jackson is good enough at any one particular skill to start over either Freeman or Irving, so they will likely be the Colts main inside linebackers next season with both players being able to concentrate more on their strength.

Since the Colts have depth at the position, they can afford to allow Irving to take as much time as he needs before hitting the field again after tearing his ACL. Since he bases his game on downhill run-stopping, we shouldn’t expect much of a drop-off following his injury.

So how much of an upgrade is Irving in run defense? Among 59 qualifiers who had at least 25% of a team’s snaps against the run, per Pro Football Focus. he had the third-highest Run Stop%. This means that as a proportion of his total snaps against the running game (116) before his injury, he produced a “successful” tackle for the defense on 12.9% of his snaps. To give you an idea of the company he was in at third place, only Chris Borland and Rolando McClain bettered his percentage.

It’s not like this was a fluke either, because using a similar percentage to filter out qualifiers at the 4-3 outside linebacker position in 2013 (Irving was a strong-side LB that year), he was also third in the league in Run Stop%. First and second? The unquestionably elite Lavonte David and Irving’s excellent, well-rounded teammate Danny Trevathan.

Nobody will mistake Irving for being a quality cover linebacker, because that’s his weakest point. However, he has shown that he can be a real factor in run defense, and that’s something the Indianapolis Colts were definitely missing last season. In just eight games, Irving recorded 46 tackles, including a safety, and he showed in his two seasons as a starter or major contributor on the Broncos defense that he is someone who doesn’t just rack up garbage tackles either.

Aug 7, 2014; Denver, CO, USA; Denver Broncos outside linebacker Nate Irving (56) in the first quarter of preseason game against the Seattle Seahawks at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

Since the Colts are assuming little risk here with such a cheap deal, it’s hard to criticize them for signing a player coming off of a major injury. And despite Irving’s issues in coverage last year, he just might be better than Jackson on passing downs, though that remains to be seen.

What is clear is that he will be their best run defender at the inside linebacker position when he does return to health, and that’s enough to make this deal worthy of praise.

Ryan Grigson has come under fire for some big mistakes, such as the Erik Walden overpay, but this is one of his finer deals and an important upgrade. Nate Irving has the apparent security of a three-year deal, though we’ll see just how much of it is guaranteed, but that’s also a team-friendly length for the Colts.

They only have to pay him a maximum of $9.25 million for three years of solid run defense that this team needs, and, since Irving will be 27 when the season starts, they’ll theoretically get him for the best years of his career (assuming the ACL tear is nothing to be worried about, which is likely the case).

Final Grade: B

Next: Colts FA Grades on Offense

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