League sources are saying it’s looking less and less likely that Colts DE Dwight Freeney will be traded.

There was never a strong possibility that Freeney would be traded in the first place, but it is clear the Colts are making the defensive line a priority under new head coach Chuck Pagano. He is trying to quickly improve that defense, according to league sources.

The Colts have already reached an agreement with DE Cory Redding, a versatile lineman who Pagano coached in Baltimore and can play the end in a 3-4 scheme. The Colts also invested heavily in Robert Mathis, who will now be an OLB as they switch to the new scheme.

The last piece is Freeney, who would also fit in as an outside linebacker under Pagano.

Freeney does carry a $20 million cap hit on his current contract, which is set to last one more season, but the Colts were able to enter the league year with roughly $13 million in cap space. The Colts had been trying to restructure Freeney’s contract. But he just recently hired CAA to represent him. Because Freeney was without an agent for about a year, the Colts had little time to work out an extension.

Given the rebuilding project going on in Indianapolis, the team doesn’t need to be active in this free-agent market.

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