Vick Ballard

The 5-10, 226-pound Ballard was set to take the lead role in Indy last year, but his torn ACL in Week 2 prompted the Colts to go out and deal for Trent Richardson. A tough, straight-ahead grinder, Ballard has below-average speed for a running back and isn't a great pass-catcher – factors that are likely to work against him as he battles Richardson and Ahmad Bradshaw for carries in training camp. While Ballard saw 211 carries as a rookie in 2012, he didn't wow anyone with his 3.9 YPC, suggesting that his floor is no higher than Richardson's, while his ceiling is far lower. Even though he healed up well over the offseason, he'll most likely be relegated to a tertiary role this year behind Richardson and Bradshaw. Unless Richardson and Bradshaw fall victim to injury and/or ineffectiveness, he probably won't see more than a couple of carries per game.

Ballard took the lead in the Indianapolis backfield after Donald Brown suffered a knee injury in Week 5 and brought some stability to the role. At 5-10, 217, Ballard combines tough between-the-tackles running with enough wiggle to make defenders miss. While coach Chuck Pagano had named Ballard the No. 1 back in May, Ahmad Bradshaw's signing in June likely relegates Ballard to a timeshare. Moreover, Bradshaw is a tough short-yardage runner and outstanding in blitz pick-up, so he could get most of the third-down and goal-line work. Bradshaw is injury prone, however and not likely to see a full workload, so Ballard should see his share of early-down work while spelling him.

Ballard, a 2012 fifth-round pick will compete with Donald Brown and Delone Carter for the bulk of the Colts' tailback duties. Neither Brown nor Carter were particularly outstanding in their opportunities last season, meaning Ballard could see a fair share of carries during the season with a strong training camp. Nothing about Ballard's game is flashy, but he's decent or better in most areas. He has a feature-back build and does a good job of running low, and helps his odds of playing three downs by showing pretty good hands.