Chris Ballard on Colts offseason approach: 'We want to grow our own'

It’s no secret that this is a big offseason for the Colts, Andrew Luck intrigue aside. The Colts have $84 million to spend in free agency, with 12 players on this year’s roster entering free agency themselves. And then there’s the draft, where the Colts have seven picks, including the No. 3 pick.

And then there’s the new coaching staff, and the never-ending Andrew Luck saga, and…

Chris Ballard, your table is ready.

He spoke with colts.com about his approach as the offseason kicks into full swing.

“We want to grow our own, and we want to build with homegrown Colts guys we draft,” he said. “We’ll be very selective. We were pretty active last year in free agency. I’m not saying we won’t go out and plug some holes. You want to try to fill as many holes as you can going into the draft so you’re not driven for a need. But saying that, we want to make sure we’re a good drafting team.”

Ballard says draft preparation begins with 18 straight days of meeting in February, and doesn’t slow down much after that.

“We’ll grind through each player and watch tape on every player,” Ballard said of the team’s approach to the draft. “We’ll get an initial stack on our board. We’ll go to the combine and spring workouts and April meetings and include our coaches in that process and get to our final board when we get to April.”

Follow sports producer Matthew VanTryon on Twitter @MVanTryon.

MORE ON THE COLTS OFFSEASON:

► Questions Josh McDaniels and the Colts still have to answer

► NFL Draft 2018: Is it a 2-player race for the Colts at No. 3?

► Insider: Roster issues the Colts must soon address