Rarely do you see one signing this late in the offseason possibly change the course of an entire division. But, that might have happened when the Indianapolis Colts signed former New York Giants' running back Ahmad Bradshaw earlier this week.
Despite concerns about injuries (missed six games last two seasons), Bradshaw is one of the most underrated running backs in the entire NFL when he is healthy. He put up nearly 1,300 total yards and averaged 5.2 yards per touch this past season. In terms of Pro Football Reference's Approximate Value Rating (AV), it was Bradshaw's best overall season since he entered the league from Marshall back in 2007.
In addition, Bradshaw only fumbled the ball three times in 244 touches (one per 81.3 touches). This is a huge improvement from his ratio of one fumble per 46.3 touches back in 2010.
Looking past these statistics for a second, Bradshaw brings something nearly as important to the table for the Colts. According to Pro Football Focus, he was the No. 1 overall pass protecting running back in the NFL in 2012. That's absolutely huge for young quarterback Andrew Luck as he looks to cut down on his mistakes in his sophomore campaign.
For what it is worth Vick Ballard ranked 42th in that category last season, while Donald Brown ranked 47th. What a huge difference this will make for Luck, who was sacked 41 times as a rookie and hit 17.9 percent of the time he dropped back. The addition of Bradshaw will help this aspect of the Colts offense a great deal.
It also means that Brown will likely be the odd-man out in Indianapolis. Ballard showed that he has a strong future ahead of himself as a starting running back. The mid-round pick in 2012 put up nearly 1,000 total yards as a rookie. Delone Carter also has the inside track for the No. 3 running back spot.
For Brown, it's likely a bitter end to what was supposed to be a successful tenure in Indianapolis. He was selected 27th overall back in 2009, but failed to live up to those expectations in four seasons with the Colts. Yet another swing and miss from former general manager Bill Polian.