Ballard is not the only Indianapolis general manager who typically stays away from the deadline. Before the Hines deal, the last deadline trade the Colts made was the ill-fated decision to pick up Trent Richardson in 2013, following the team’s 2006 decision to pick up defensive tackle Booger McFarland for the Super Bowl run.

The 2024 NFL trade deadline has now come and gone, and for the Indianapolis Colts it was a quiet day--which should have been the case. The Colts did not make any moves prior to the Tuesday afternoon deadline and instead stood pat,

One week after coach Shane Steichen benched the 2023 No. 4 pick in favor of 39-year-old Joe Flacco, rival NFL teams inquired about potentially trading for Richardson ahead of Tuesday’s trade deadline. Those franchises were all met with the same response, per a league source: “Never.”