Player Outlook
Michael Pittman enters his second season as a potential breakout candidate and should be drafted around the ninth or 10th round in most leagues as the first Colts receiver off the board. As a rookie, Pittman earned the trust of the coaching staff immediately, playing 92% of the snaps in Week 2 and consistently playing 80% or more of the snaps after coming back from IR in Week 8. We saw glimpses of the second-rounder's upside, especially with a five-catch, 90-yard performance in the Colts' playoff loss to the Bills, and he may end up emerging as the top option for Carson Wentz in Year 2. Don't draft Pittman expecting you'll be able to rely on him as a starter for Week 1, but he's an excellent depth piece with upside.
Player News
-
Colts GM Chris Ballard sees "breakout potential" in Pittman, according to Zak Keefer of The Athletic. Confidence in Pittman is one explanation for the Colts having a quiet offseason at the WR spot, despite having plenty of cap space and no clear No. 1 receiver. Granted, the Colts aren't putting everything on Pittman's shoulders, as they re-signed T.Y. Hilton to a one-year, $8 million contract, gave Zach Pascal a second-round RFA tender and still have hope that 2019 second-round pick Parris Campbell can finally stay healthy. Pittman, the 34th overall pick from the 2020 Draft, is the upside play for fantasy purposes, especially after he had 101 total yards in the playoff loss to Buffalo. It remains to be seen if he can develop good chemistry with new Colts quarterback Carson Wentz, who was an outright disaster in his final year with the Eagles.
-
Pittman caught five of 10 targets for a team-high 90 yards and added an 11-yard carry in Saturday's 27-24 wild-card round loss to the Bills. Pittman racked up 102 scrimmage yards in the first half, but he also dropped a difficult but makeable catch in the end zone on 4th-and-goal late in the second quarter. He was a non-factor in the second half, losing one yard on his only catch. The rookie second-round pick topped 100 scrimmage yards only once in the regular season while reaching 50 in just three of 13 games, but hopefully Pittman will be able to build on this strong postseason debut heading into his sophomore season.
-
Pittman (concussion) secured both of his targets for 28 yards Sunday in the Colts' 28-14 win over the Jaguars. After clearing the league's five-step concussion protocol earlier in Week 17, Pittman handled his usual starting role alongside T.Y. Hilton and Zach Pascal in the regular-season finale. The rookie second-round pick wrapped up his inaugural campaign with 40 receptions (on 61 targets) for 503 yards and a touchdown. He'll look to continue his steady production in the postseason, beginning with Indianapolis' wild-card game in Buffalo on Saturday.
-
Pittman (concussion) won't carry an injury designation into Sunday's game against the Jaguars. Pittman was deemed questionable Friday, but he has since cleared the league's five-step concussion protocol. The rookie second-round pick is slated to start at wide receiver in the crucial divisional tilt. Pittman hasn't produced big plays lately, as he's failed to post more than 50 yards or a touchdown in a game since Week 11.
-
Pittman (concussion) is listed as questionable for Sunday's game against the Jaguars after practicing fully both Thursday and Friday. Per Kevin Bowen of 107.5 The Fan Indianapolis, the wideout still needs clearance from an independent neurologist in order to play this weekend. That said, Bowen relays that Pittman appears on track to receive the green light to play ahead of Sunday's 4:25 p.m. ET kickoff.
Recent Tweets
-
3:29 pm ET / @HolderStephenStephen Holder
Don’t know how many WRs the Colts will keep, but I know this: 7th round pick Michael Strachan flashes every single… https://t.co/2WKS8RBiFj
-
3:25 pm ET / @gmbremerGeorge Bremer
Eason’s now 8-for-11. Bobby Okereke broke up a pass intended for Michael Pittman Jr., which has also been a daily o… https://t.co/Dhr431q0Sc
-
2:48 pm ET / @gmbremer
George Bremer
Good news? Jacob Eason was 2-3 with good completions to Michael Pittman Jr. in the first team series. Bad news? He… https://t.co/rFmcOed2fS
Completed Games
| WK | OPP | TAR | RECPT | REYD | REAVG | RETD | FPTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | @JAC | 2 | 2 | 10 | 5.00 | 0 | 1 |
| 2 | MIN | 6 | 4 | 37 | 9.25 | 0 | 3 |
| 3 | NYJ | 4 | 3 | 26 | 8.67 | 0 | 2 |
| *4 | @CHI | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| *5 | @CLE | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| *6 | CIN | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 7 | BYE | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 8 | @DET | 1 | 1 | 6 | 6.00 | 0 | 0 |
| 9 | BAL | 7 | 4 | 56 | 14.00 | 0 | 5 |
| 10 | @TEN | 8 | 7 | 101 | 14.43 | 0 | 12 |
| 11 | GB | 3 | 3 | 66 | 22.00 | 1 | 12 |
| 12 | TEN | 9 | 2 | 28 | 14.00 | 0 | 2 |
| 13 | @HOU | 5 | 5 | 46 | 9.20 | 0 | 4 |
| 14 | @LV | 5 | 2 | 42 | 21.00 | 0 | 4 |
| 15 | HOU | 3 | 2 | 19 | 9.50 | 0 | 1 |
| 16 | @PIT | 6 | 3 | 38 | 12.67 | 0 | 3 |
| 17 | JAC | 2 | 2 | 28 | 14.00 | 0 | 2 |
| PROJECTION | 99 | 64 | 930 | 14.53 | 4 | 107 | |
| * indicates player did not play that week | |||||||
Scheduled Games
| WK | DATE | OPP | OPP RANK | OPP FPTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 09/12 | Seattle Seahawks | 24 | 24.94 |
| 2 | 09/19 | Los Angeles Rams | 1 | 16.67 |
| 3 | 09/26 | @Tennessee Titans | 29 | 26.53 |
| 4 | 10/03 | @Miami Dolphins | 21 | 24.00 |
| 5 | 10/11 | @Baltimore Ravens | 3 | 18.56 |
| 6 | 10/17 | Houston Texans | 25 | 25.63 |
| 7 | 10/24 | @San Francisco 49ers | 15 | 21.50 |
| 8 | 10/31 | Tennessee Titans | 29 | 26.53 |
| 9 | 11/04 | New York Jets | 18 | 23.13 |
| 10 | 11/14 | Jacksonville Jaguars | 22 | 24.00 |
| 11 | 11/21 | @Buffalo Bills | 4 | 18.74 |
| 12 | 11/28 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 19 | 23.50 |
| 13 | 12/05 | @Houston Texans | 25 | 25.63 |
| 14 | BYE | - | - | - |
| 15 | 12/19 | New England Patriots | 10 | 20.63 |
| 16 | 12/25 | @Arizona Cardinals | 13 | 21.13 |
| 17 | 01/02 | Las Vegas Raiders | 23 | 24.25 |
| 18 | 01/09 | @Jacksonville Jaguars | 22 | 24.00 |
Team Trends
Red Zone Trends
Career Stats
| Season | Tar | Recpt | ReYd | ReTD | ReFD | ReAvg | FPTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2020 | 61 | 40 | 503 | 1 | 22 | 12.57 | 58 |
| 3 Year Avg | 61 | 40 | 503 | 1 | 22 | 12.57 | 58 |
| Career | 61 | 40 | 503 | 1 | 22 | 12.57 |