Year by year, a Colts team that seemed to have an infallible identity is undergoing rapid change.
That was no truer than on Friday morning, when the team announced that Reggie Wayne would not be re-signed. At 36, he was already unsure of his plans for 2015. Now, he has to mull the weight of retirement versus the possibility of another club in free agency.
The press release did not specify Wayne's future plans, though a spot in the team's ring of honor is without question.
It was once Peyton Manning's team. Wayne and Marvin Harrison were on the outside and, through some miraculous longevity, the trio went on to win 91 games together, including a Super Bowl in 2006 and a seven-year stretch of double-digit victories.
Now, the last of that great trio is gone.
In the years since Harrison's retirement in 2008, the Colts have gone on a massive identity rebuild. Manning was ousted for Luck and now Wayne, fighting the rigors of age, is handing the baton to T.Y. Hilton.
"Everyone knows the greatness and history associated with number 87," Colts general manager Ryan Grigson said in a statement. "He truly is one of a small handful of players who really define the Colts as an organization. He was already a Hall of Famer in the making when Chuck and I arrived in Indianapolis in 2012, but no one has contributed more, on the field and in this building, to our turnaround, our continued growth, and our overall success since then.
"Reggie was the catalyst that sparked and ignited the team during our comeback against Green Bay in 2012. His gritty performance that day and that entire challenging season infused us all with the belief we could overcome any obstacle. His dedication and the example he set are second to none. We wish him nothing but the best in whatever new endeavor he pursues."
Following his arrival in 2012, Grigson has made plenty of splashy moves to install a new cadre of weapons around a new franchise quarterback, though experiments with Hakeem Nicks and Trent Richardson have largely failed.
It makes us wonder if Hilton and Luck are part of a new budding trio, or if something so dominant and home-grown could ever be replicated again.
Should Wayne retire, he'll do so as a six-time Pro Bowler who played in 14 seasons. He did not miss a single game from 2003-2012, and as of this moment, is the league's active leader in receptions and receiving yards, and third in touchdowns.
All time, he sits 22nd in touchdowns (82), seventh in receptions (1,070) and eighth in yards (14,345), just one slot behind Marvin Harrison.
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