The Indianapolis Colts should keep Stanford alum Coby Fleener

After his transition to the NFL, Coby Fleener, one of Stanford's greatest to ever play the tight end position at The Farm is set to become a free agent this March.

Shortly after the Indianapolis Colts selected Cardinal teammate, Andrew Luck, Coby Fleener was drafted 34th overall in the 2012 Draft by the Colts as well. 30 picks later, the Colts drafted Dwayne Allen from Clemson to play the same position as Fleener.

Coby Fleener and Dwayne Allen each have a well-defined set of skills, which made the Colts offense that much better when they were both on the field. With both young tight ends set to become free agents and less than 20 million in cap room to spend this offseason, Indianapolis can only sign one of them. Here are the clear reasons Indy must resign Coby Fleener instead of Dwayne Allen:

Coming out of Stanford in 2012, Fleener was a rare talent in college. His talents and statistics transitioned greatly into the NFL with his size and speed likewise of wide receivers. He is capable of taking the outside and run routes against cornerbacks one-on-one as well as being a pure red-zone threat at six feet, six inches. Indianapolis cannot let someone like this walk out the door.

Fleener not only has size and speed over Dwayne Allen, but durability as well. Besides the Colts' special team's players, Fleener is the only one on the team's roster to not miss a single game over the past three seasons. Coby has caught double the amount of passes for twice as many yards as Dwayne Allen.

Career Catches:
Fleener: 183
Allen: 91

Career Yards:
Fleener: 2154
Allen: 1045

On top of this, Coby Fleener has been more durable and prolific, as Allen has missed 21 games during his four-year career in comparison to Fleener's 4. In 2014, Fleener's yards, touchdowns, and games played solidified himself as a top tight end that season. As a result, he has developed himself into a foremost receiving option for Andrew Luck.

As for Stanford tight ends in general, Zach Ertz has grown into a brilliant one for the Philadelphia Eagles. In Fleener's 2011 senior season, Stanford utilized their tight ends significantly. Stanford ranked first in the nation in red-zone conversion percentage. The Cardinal converted 96% of red-zone drives with a score courtesy of their three tight ends at the time. Clearly any Stanford tight end, especially Coby Fleener, can provide considerable support to the Colts offense. Andrew Luck and Coby Fleener have not only been teammates, but roommates since their days at Stanford. Both have each other's support and chemistry.

The Indianapolis Colts can't let talents like Allen and Fleener leave the organization this suddenly. Although both tight ends are destined to have bright futures, resigning Coby Fleener is the ideal option for the Colts. However if he were to be separated from Andrew Luck, the team that lands Fleener has a glaring future at the tight end position.