Vick Ballard is expected to open the season as the Colts' No. 2 back.

The Ahmad Bradshaw signing was a clear indication of GM Ryan Grigson's feelings about his running back corps; he recognized it wasn't good enough with Ballard in the lead role. Ballard will be no more than a low-end flex pick in fantasy drafts. In his AFC Team-by-Team Notes column accessible at the link below, Rotoworld's Evan Silva breaks down the Colts' projected 2013 backfield.

New Colts OC Pep Hamilton wants his offense to be "able to run the football."

"You have to have balance in your offense," Hamilton said. "The teams I've been a part of where the quarterback has been effective and offensively we've had success consistently were the teams that were able to run the football." The Colts ran the ball just 39.7 percent of the time last season under Bruce Arians, but that will change this season. Coach Chuck Pagano recently confirmed that Vick Ballard is his "lead guy," but we don't like him as much more than a low RB2.

Coach Chuck Pagano confirmed that Vick Ballard is "sitting there as the lead guy" in his backfield.

The Indianapolis Star believes the Colts have found a "workhorse" in Vick Ballard.

GM Ryan Grigson's top priorities will be fixing Andrew Luck's pass protection on the offensive line and upgrading the run defense. The Colts have enough holes that running back is relatively low on the list. Ballard has moved ahead of Donald Brown in the organization's eyes. Expect him to enter next season as the feature back.

Vick Ballard rushed 22 times for 91 yards and added one reception for three yards at Baltimore in the Wild Card round of the playoffs.

Ballard was stopped for a gain of two yards or less on nine of his carries in an inconsistent ground attack. The Colts never got close enough to the end zone for a goal-line opportunity. A workhorse back down the stretch, the fifth-rounder from Mississippi State finished the season as fantasy's No. 27 back. While Ballard is the favorite to enter next season as the starter, the Colts may bring in stiffer competition at the position.

Vick Ballard rushed 27 times for 78 yards and a touchdown in Sunday's Week 17 win over the Texans.

He added two catches for nine yards. Ballard failed to convert on two goal-line carries on the Colts' opening drive, but made up for it with a one-yard touchdown at the end of the first half. Despite his lack of big-play ability, Ballard has been a workhorse since taking over for Donald Brown (ankle) in Week 6 and will end the regular season with 966 total yards and three touchdowns. The Colts are expected to get Delone Carter (ankle) back for their wildcard matchup with the Ravens. Mewelde Moore has been a non-factor since being re-signed and will be relegated to special teams.

Interim coach Bruce Arians continued to heap praise on Vick Ballard following Sunday's loss to the Texans.

Ballard impressively racked up 105 yards on just 18 carries against Houston's staunch defensive front. "He's where I think he should be right now," Arians said. "He had the ability to make people miss and he found some great holes. He ran the ball extremely well." Arians also expressed regret for not having Ballard in for a goal-line play that Mewelde Moore fumbled away in the first quarter. Expect another 18-plus carries and the goal-line work against the Chiefs in Week 16.

Vick Ballard rushed 18 times for 105 yards in the Colts' Week 15 loss to the Texans.

The Colts ought to be kicking themselves for using Mewelde Moore at all. Moore (four rushes, six yards) got a first-half goal-line carry ahead of Ballard and was stripped by J.J. Watt, costing Indianapolis at least three points and probably seven. Meanwhile, Ballard ran with power and competitiveness between the tackles, and is clearly Indianapolis' best running back. He'll be worth a long look as a flex play in Week 16 at Kansas City.

Interim coach Bruce Arians confirmed Vick Ballard is in for a heavy workload in Sunday's game against the Texans.

With Delone Carter and Donald Brown sidelined by ankle injuries, Ballard will be backed up by street free agents Mewelde Moore and Deji Karim. "As long as he can stay in there he'll stay in there and when he needs to tap out, Mewelde will go in," Arians said. Ballard can safely expect to push for 20 touches, but the concern is that the Texans' defense eat up the Colts' depleted offensive line. They figure to come out focused and angry following Monday night's humiliation at the hands of the Patriots, leaving Ballard as a mere flex option.

Colts coach Bruce Arians on Monday compared Vick Ballard to "a poor man's" Edgerrin James, and said he believes Ballard has a "great future" in the league.

"He's powerful," said Arians of the 5-foot-10, 219-pound rookie. "A poor-man's Edge. Tough to bring down. Quick. Elusive. He's got a great future." Ballard racked up 20 touches and 104 yards in Sunday's win over the Titans. Although he is a workmanlike player lacking big-play running skills, the Colts have been thrilled with Ballard's improving versatility and ability to sustain a rushing attack with Donald Brown essentially amounting to a 2012 non-factor.

Vick Ballard rushed for 94 yards on 19 carries in the Colts' Week 14 win over the Titans on Sunday.

Ballard added one catch for 10 yards, but he ended up losing a goal-line carry to Delone Carter. Carter ended up punching it in for a score before leaving with an injury. Ballard was the lone healthy back for Indy to finish out the game, which contributed to his higher touch count. He'll likely get another start in the backfield next week against the Texans in Houston, but he won't be any more than a flex option.

Vick Ballard rushed nine times for 41 yards with a touchdown and added three catches for 21 yards in the Colts' Week 13 win over the Lions.

Ballard ran with much more power in this one. He consistently pushed the pile on key first-down runs and got his first career rushing touchdown. Ballard got another boost late as Donald Brown, who was playing about 40 percent of the snaps, went down with an ankle injury. If Brown is out against the Titans in Week 14, Ballard's stock will get a major bump. The rookie now has at least 12 touches in seven straight games.

Vick Ballard will start at running back on Sunday against the Bills.

Ballard has bypassed Donald Brown in the Indianapolis backfield, and Brown can be dropped in most formats. Ballard is the only back in Indy that we can trust and is a solid flex play against Buffalo in Week 12.

Vick Ballard played on 46 snaps in Week 11 while Donald Brown saw just 19.

It's unclear if Brown is limited by his ongoing knee issues or if he's simply been passed up. Either way, Ballard is the only back we can trust in Indy. He started last week's game and got eight carries on the first two drives while Brown watched. Averaging 16.8 touches per game over the last five weeks, he's a flex play in a home game against the Bills Week 12.

Vick Ballard was the lead dog in the backfield as Indy got dropped 59-24 by the Patriots in Week 11, rushing 16 times for 72 yards.

He added one catch for seven yards. Ballard touched the ball 11 more times than Donald Brown, and took the rock eight times to Brown's zero on Indy's first two series. Neither player was a major factor as the Colts began to fall behind thereafter, but Ballard's increased use wasn't solely a function of the lopsided score. It's, of course, quite possible Brown's knee was a factor in his limited use. As it is, Ballard will be the much stronger flex play against Buffalo's rag-tag run defense in Week 12.

Vick Ballard is expected to start Sunday's game at New England.

As we found out last week, it doesn't matter which back gets the ball first for the Colts. Ballard and Donald Brown will work in an equal timeshare, leaving both backs as mere flex options as opposed to RB2 possibilities. Delone Carter is the goal-line horse.

Vick Ballard rushed for 48 yards on 12 carries and caught two passes for 11 yards in the Colts' Week 10 win over the Jaguars on Thursday night.

Ballard got the start for the Colts, but he and Donald Brown were in an even timeshare role out of the Indianapolis backfield. Brown got most of the clock-killing work in the fourth quarter, too. Owners that took the plunge and played Ballard with Brown (knee) ailing likely aren't thrilled with the decision, but it was a tough one to predict with all of the uncertainty surrounding Brown. Neither player offers much game-breaking ability and shouldn't be any more than bye week filler options for Week 11 against the Patriots.

Vick Ballard started Thursday night's game against the Jaguars over Donald Brown.

Both Mike Mayock and Brad Nessler were also told that Brown was going to draw the start, so the Colts obviously had a change of plans prior to kickoff. It's safe to say that Ballard should dominate the backfield touches. Brown may just be an insurance policy tonight.

Interim coach Bruce Arians confirmed that rookie Vick Ballard's emergence in the passing game was a major factor in Mewelde Moore's release.

"It was originally Mewelde, and Vick has now grown into that spot," said Arians. Ballard isn't locked into the third-down role going forward, however, as Arians suggested Donald Brown would have played on passing downs had his knee not flared up last weekend. Once Brown is back to full health, the two backs are expected to split time.

Vick Ballard rushed 20 times for 84 yards and caught a 19-yard pass in the Colts' Week 7 win over Cleveland.

The Colts rotated in Delone Carter (11 carries) and Mewelde Moore (3) throughout the game, but Ballard was the lead back in the three-man committee. His 26-yard fourth-quarter run was the icer in Indianapolis' 17-13 win. Donald Brown's (knee scope) status for Week 8 against the Titans is uncertain. If Brown doesn't come back, Ballard should maintain one more week of RB2/flex value. A pedestrian runner lacking big-play ability, Ballard offers minimal upside but is capable of fantasy-viable production on voluminous workloads.