Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - TO-DO LIST: What Do Indianapolis Colts Still Need to Do This Offseason?

Starting point is 00:00:01 As we enter the dead part of the NFL offseason, what's next on the docket for the Indianapolis Colts? Let's get to it. You are Locked on Colts, your daily Indianapolis Colts podcast, part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. Welcome to Locked on Colts. I'm Zach Hicks. That's Jake Arthur. And today's episode is brought to you by Fanduel. Right now, new customers can bet just $5 and get $150 in bonus bets. if their first bet wins head to fan duel.com to get started. On today's show, Jake and I are going to hit on some more offseason topics,

Starting point is 00:00:45 talk about some potential moves that the Colts could make, whether it's extending some players and some free agents out there as well. The Colts have over $31 million in cap space. So there are some ways that they could maneuver still this offseason as we get ready for OTAs and training camp. Then we're going to talk about some young players that we want to see get a shot on their respective sides of the football. We know that C.J. Allen and A.J. Halsey are obviously going to be in the mix for starting

Starting point is 00:01:11 roles. But what about some non-starters that Jake and I don't want to see the Colts give up on yet? And speaking of giving up on players, there are a couple of Colts players kind of on their last legs with the organization. We're going to highlight a couple to close out today's show. But Jake, let's talk about potential moves. The Colts can make the rest of the soft season. Obviously, the time for big free agent deals and like massive additions. that is far behind us right now in the offseason.

Starting point is 00:01:38 But there are stills like some roster moves that could be made for the Colts. And I think notably extensions, right? We all kind of lambast to the Colts. We're not extending Alec Pierce early. And that resulted in them having to pay, what, $10 plus million more per year to get him this right before free agency this off season. So there are a couple guys who kind of fit the potential extension like mold that we're looking for for the Colts.

Starting point is 00:02:04 You have some veterans in Quentin Nelson and Jonathan Taylor who are entering the last years of their contracts. You have some young players that could be breaking out this upcoming season in Josh Downs, Atatamua, Ataborei and Colby Wooden. And then you just have the do it all duelen, who's also entering the final year of his contract. But all jokes aside, if he's a potential starter at wide receiver this year, it might be wise to extend him at his typical like three to four million dollars per year. So you're not paying upwards of like six to eight maybe if he has a really good year. as that like third or fourth receiver for you. So I think the Colts have like it's more of a debate this off season than it was last off season with potential extensions because last year it was really just Alec Pierce.

Starting point is 00:02:46 This year you have like a handful of players where you might want to get some of these extensions done before the end of the off season. Yeah, we've been kind of zeroing in on this period for a while now because so many prominent guys were coming into the final year of their deals. I certainly think Quentin Nelson and Jonathan Taylor make the most sense, only because with Quentin, I guess really with both of them, you're not waiting on their game to reach another level. You've already seen them at an all-pro level.

Starting point is 00:03:19 You know, so there's no mystery to their game. Nelson, you're pretty sure you want to make him a lifer. And then Taylor's at the point of his career where he's probably going to get one more really good contract. He's going to be paid top five among running backs, maybe top three. So whether it's the Colts that do it or another team, someone's going to do it, you know, whether it's now or this year, you know. So I would certainly look into that. Downs is really interesting because he fits a specific role in your receiving core, like a very specific one where it's, you're not just recycling receivers right now. And you don't have anyone waiting in the wings to replace him.

Starting point is 00:03:59 So I would maybe prioritize him a bit. But, you know, we see them do at least one of these big ones, it seems, by the end of every summer. It's usually someone of the caliber of a Nelson or Taylor, you know, Aaron Hart Ryman was the most recent one, I believe. The guys like Tommy, I think they would want to wait on, Colby Wooden, especially since they just got him in the building. Doolin's very interesting, though. You know he's going to be around after this year. So you might as well.

Starting point is 00:04:29 Like just go ahead and do it. But like you said, it is interesting timing because for the first time, really, his price tag could change drastically. Like you've always paid him as an elite, like an elite special teamer before. But now if he goes out and catches like 40 balls for you and five or six touchdowns, well, number one, you're probably not going to keep him at the involvement that he's in on the depth chart because it's not the plan. but his price tag might reach beyond what you really want to pay. So his is very, very interesting. But my expectation is by the end of the summer, we'll see maybe Quintner Taylor get locked up.

Starting point is 00:05:11 Yeah, for sure. It was actually a couple other veterans in Grover Stewart and DeForest Buckner entering their final years as well. We wouldn't expect DeForest Buckner get an extension that has to be a wait and see. Grover personally, I would extend as of right now because I think he's, I think he still has a good four to five years left of good quality play. But again, at his age, 31 years old, I understand.

Starting point is 00:05:32 I think he's 31. He'll be 30. Both of them will be 33 by the end of the year. Wow, 33. Never mind. Maybe, okay, Grover's probably got like three more years of good play under his belt. Because defensive tackle, especially one techs, do like last a little bit longer. So I would maybe.

Starting point is 00:05:50 Yeah, I would consider it with Grover, but Buckner, that would be a little bit tough there. But a couple of big names coming up for the Colts in the extension market. Now, the Colts do have $31.82 million in cap space according to over the cap. And I identified potential needs and needs could be a varying degree of needs, whether it's a starter or just depth here, being defensive end, running back, wide receiver, one tech defensive tackle and center. So most of the team, I guess, is what the Colts have needs at right now, Jake. But if you're looking for like a starting edge rusher, I highlighted a couple players in Joey Bosa and Janavian Clowny. Cam Jordan's also out there. Running back market, it's kind of rough right now.

Starting point is 00:06:32 Antonio Gibson is probably the name that intrigues me the most. Maybe a Jeremy McNichols, who I think was with the Colts in like 2018. That's how long he's been in the NFL at this point. Wide receiver, if you're looking for like a guy who can give you some starter snaps, Debo Samuel, Zay Jones, Noah Brown, that's kind of the extent of the names out there. One Tech, DeQuan Jones, Jordan Phillips, Greg Gaines. some big bodies out there. And then center, Ryan Bates and Andre James are both out there as well.

Starting point is 00:07:03 So I know I just threw a ton of names at you, Jake. Any thoughts or feelings on the names I threw out there or just where you could see the Colts going with some free agent moves the rest of the off season? Yeah, I think Jadavia and Clowny is probably the most appealing free agent, just in general to me. Not that he would come here and be a star, but I think you're just, I think you want to be able to sleep better at night at that strong side edge spot than a competition between Tuamolo and Arden Key. Now, I'd want to give Tuamolo out all the opportunity in the world to like earn whatever

Starting point is 00:07:38 role is suitable to what he, what he shows he should have this summer. But counting on Tuamolo out to take a huge jump or Ardenki to play out of position and start, I just don't, I don't love that. I want there to be more of a sure thing, a veteran out there like clowning. I'm not a big bosa guy. He's been hurt really his entire career, but he hasn't played good extended meaningful football in a few years now. So I'm not a big bosa person.

Starting point is 00:08:12 Cameron Jordan is, I think he's older than me and I'm old. So I'm not, that one's tough. And he seems like a guy who's like a saints or nobody type of player, you know. Let me throw one at you, though. this is not a pharagia but it's someone they might want to trade for Arizona James Connor okay he he is 4.8 million of a cap hit this year not bad they went they got Jeremiah love they signed Tyler Algier James Connor doesn't fit in there anymore but James Connor would fit in here if they want a Zach Moss type of runner for relatively

Starting point is 00:08:47 cheap like Connor is is worth more than a 4.8 million cap hit you could probably get him for like a six round pick at this point too you'll have an extra one next year because of a comp pick that's a trade i think actually would make sense yeah i think you kind of sold me on that one there how how do they feel about jalen jones you know that's the real question right how do they feel about oh arizona yeah yeah how do they feel about jalen jones send them out there but yeah i know i like your your talk to about a six round pick potential uh because the courts do have the extra one coming in um that could make a lot of sense you know when you said arizona they're going to do the sweat thing again because I know that he's I guess he hasn't shown up for the stuff yet but so much

Starting point is 00:09:29 of this is going to be like based on time right because I don't think the cults are going to make any of these veteran signings as of right now because they want to see how guys look in OTAs they want to see how they look early in training camp and then if you get like a training camp injury to any of those edge rushers they brought in right Arden Key Clemens Jalen Toomeloowal then it makes the call to clownie a lot easier if you're running backs are just not looking good then you can call Antonio Gibson. I mean, Doolin and Berks have dealt with their injuries the last couple of years. If you see an injury early on, then you can call a Zay Jones or a Debo Samuel.

Starting point is 00:10:03 And it applies for the rest of the roster year. If Dalton Tucker just doesn't look good at Center, then you can call Ryan Bates, who has played at the last couple of seasons. So I don't think the Colts are going to make any of these moves anytime soon, outside of maybe an extension at some point relatively soon. But I think they're going to see how a lot of these guys look in training camp and then reevaluate from there, like they've done in the past with some of the, Amir Abdullah wasn't on the roster at this point last year.

Starting point is 00:10:26 No, he was he was a summer edition for sure. Right, right. So sometimes we see those summer additions that come in and just replace guys who just aren't up to snuff. We could see that happen this year. But the Colts are going to give their young guys a chance first. And then we'll see if there's potential down the line for like a clownie or a Debo or, you know, Ryan Bates type of signing for this team. Yeah, without a doubt. All right, guys.

Starting point is 00:10:48 So coming up here in a moment, we're going to talk about some of the younger guys on the roster that we want to and sure, get at least a decent little role out of what they're going to be showing up for this year. The NBA playoffs are here and every possession matters. I don't know if you guys have been watching, but it's getting interesting. Wembe is going nuts. He's got this clutch gene that he's showing off recently. If you're looking to get even closer to the action, you know, especially what you're seeing in those Western Conference finals,

Starting point is 00:11:18 then Fadewell has got a great offer to get you started. Right now, new customers can bet $5, and you're going to get $150 in bonus, if that first bet wins. That's right. Just turn five bucks into a hundred and fifty in bonus bets just for getting started. I like using Fandall during the playoffs because everything I need is just right there in one spot. You can check stats, trends, and matchups before making your picks, which makes the whole experience feel a lot more informed. The app is super easy to navigate as well.

Starting point is 00:11:46 It's very user-friendly and it makes playoff basketball even more engaging from start to finish. So head to fandle.com to get started. Vandul. Play your game. All right, welcome back, everybody. Before we move on, do not forget to check out the Everydayer Club for ad-free episodes and access to a group chat with other listeners of the show as well as Zach and myself. Just tap the link in the show notes or go to Lockdowncultz.com to join us today. All right, Zach, so there are some young players on this team, obviously, a good mix of young

Starting point is 00:12:19 and veteran. We know on the Lou Anirumo side, young players really have to earn. earn that trust, really have to earn that playing time. But it's not just defense. Like there's guys on the offensive side of the ball as well where they got some juice, but maybe they're in competition with some veterans. So when you look at this roster, who are some young guys who may be on the fringe of a starting spot, but regardless, you want to make sure you see plenty up in this year. Yeah. I mean, I think when you talk to two young guys who really won over Lou Aniromo last year and Justin Wally and Hunter Woller, like you want to see that same

Starting point is 00:12:55 faith and that same trust in those players going into this year and maintaining throughout training camp as these guys hopefully stay healthy throughout training camp. Justin Wally, I know he's a little chief putting on this list because he's in line to be a starter for the team, but certainly just didn't want to leave him out of this conversation. But the big one really is Hunter Woller, I think, especially for you, Jake. I know you're a huge Hunter Woller fan. I'm a little bit more lukewarm on him, but now that he's not slated to be a starter, I feel a lot better about Hunter Woller, right?

Starting point is 00:13:24 Be the dime linebacker, be a special team's ace, be the third, you know, that third safety that can get 10 plus snaps a game, upwards of like 10 snaps a game is what I should say. I think there can be a role for Hunter Woller, especially at the end of halves as well, like when teams are going to come out throwing the ball a little bit more and the Colts go to their three safety sets, seeing Woller around the line of scrimmage,

Starting point is 00:13:45 I think it can be a really good thing for this Colts team. So I think a big thing for me is making sure that Hunter Woller has a role on defense this year. Again, I don't want it to be a start. role. I wanted to be more of that like third safety role or maybe that that dime linebacker, nickel linebacker on passing downs type of role. But I do, I would like to see a guy like him have a role on defense because he did show out last year. And if he has regained his form and he looks the way he did last training camp, there's no reason to think that he shouldn't have a role on defense in 2026. Yeah, I like that that combo that's that's very much the obvious the top two. Because if you think about it,

Starting point is 00:14:23 if you look at who they're replacing, like, trust, I've been like the biggest Kenny Moore guy, like obviously you as well throughout his time here, but like physically he just wasn't like he's not an elite athlete anymore. He's over 30 years old. Playing man coverage is just not his game anymore.

Starting point is 00:14:41 So if you look at Justin Wally, he is coming off the ACL, but he's a younger guy, better athlete, probably more explosive at this point. Now he's got to develop the instincts and like some of the stuff. that Kenny had, you know, between the ears. That's just hard to acquire outside of experience.

Starting point is 00:14:58 But I like the, I like that you're going to have a fresher body there at Nickel. And then with Woller, more physical than Rodney Thomas, perhaps better. Thomas was a better playmaker earlier in his career and that really tailed off as his career went on. Woller seems to be a lot more proactive as a guy that can go get the ball, at least for what we saw in the summer. But again, physical, a high football IQ and is going to be able to play closer to the line at scrimmage where Thomas, you just kind of had to send him out to the moon. It was a free safety only because his tackling was just so bad.

Starting point is 00:15:37 Like he just couldn't be trusted in anything besides like deep center field free safety on obvious passing downs. Whereas Hunter Woller, even though I don't think he's like a traditional lineback or even like a traditional like strong safety to a degree, I do think there's more versatility in the way that you can. can use him on like it's still probably just passing downs only but you can use him more like you can have him cover a tight end you can have him be a hook zone defender you can have him uh rob the middle of the field you can even play him like in some looks in like half field stuff or like quarters deep stuff as well so i think there's more versatility with a guy like hunter waler whereas rodney thomas it's like deep center field go play on the moon and they throw a jump ball down the field you can make a play on it for us but outside of that we don't really feel good

Starting point is 00:16:23 about you anywhere else. Even that wasn't a guarantee. I mean, remember the Colts versus Texans week 18, the Anthony Richardson game that, you know, got the Colts the fourth pick. The Texans won that because of the jump ball at the goal line with Rodney Thomas jumping four seconds. Okay, but he was trying to help us get a quarterback. He was told, you know, before the play, obviously, big time team play.

Starting point is 00:16:44 That's why he got a role last year, right? It was for an honoring. And now he gets to go to the Super Bowl champion Seahawks. Right, right. There's levels to this. Who else we got here? Yeah, so a couple other players here, and I'll open it to you in a second as well. But I definitely wanted to mention Dionne Burks because while I do think that him falling late,

Starting point is 00:17:05 there's warranted in why he felt late, right? The injuries, the age, the production, there is reason to be concerned about his profile. But the way that he moves with the football on his hands, just how athletic he is, how electric he is. And when you look at this Coltswide receiver room, you know, you have a lot of good players, right? like Alec Pierce is going to be your number one. Josh Downs can beat man coverage. Doolin is kind of your do-it-all type player. Even like Westbrookina and Treadwell are kind of rugged like hard-nosed players.

Starting point is 00:17:33 But do you really have that kind of guy who has that burst and explosion with the football in their hands? Like I don't know if Burke should have like a starting receiver role by any means, but at least some jet sweep stuff, some scheme touches, some, you know, ways to get him the ball in space. Even if it's on special teams as well, like you've talked about a lot, this offseason Jake. I don't want to see Burks just neglected this offseason. Yeah, it's a tough, packed receiver room. Like, not all these guys are going to make it, you know, between Treadwell and probably not as much Burks, but like Treadwell, Burks, Anthony Gould, like, not everyone's going to make it, you know. So when you have Burks out there, I just, I'm with you.

Starting point is 00:18:15 I at least want to see him get like the work A.D. Mitchell was getting that amount of work. You know, they couldn't really guarantee him a ton of snaps because they had Pitman and Pearson Downs, but you want to get the guy something to allow him to make plays, but also like continue his development. So I'm with you on Birx. Back to the defensive side of the ball, though, we've got a really interesting one because, again, very, very deep cornerback room. We know who all the major players are, but you had a guy in Jonathan Edwards last year who made your roster as a UDFA. You know, senior bull standout, height, weight, speed guy, got on the field early because of a bunch of injuries everywhere. But he got some meaningful reps in training camp as well.

Starting point is 00:19:00 Now, history tells us this group might deal with injuries a little bit. So that might immediately be his way to get on the field. But even if not, I would like to see him on the field in some dime situations at least, you know. Yeah. My big thing with Jonathan Edwards is I just don't want to see the team give up on him yet. I know he had some ups and downs last year. Still needs to find the football. That's going to be the big thing for him.

Starting point is 00:19:23 But there's just so much intrigue with his game. Like he's just big. He's explosive. He's fast. He's in position a lot of times. He seems very coachable. Like he beat out guys that were a higher pedigree ahead of him last year. And I think this coaching staff really likes Jonathan Edwards.

Starting point is 00:19:41 So I know they have some more depth in there. I know Cam Taylor Brits brought in and they're, you know, hopefully going to have more of Mooney Ward this year. So I don't want him being a starter by any means, but let's get him more involved. Let's keep him like in the loop and like let's keep developing this young player. I would hate to see him just thrown by the wayside because of all these like older players. So yeah, Jonathan Edwards is a player. I just can't quit yet.

Starting point is 00:20:04 And I hope the Colts don't. Now, again, sometimes when I go to bat for players like this, they just become nothing in the NFL. So, you know, we'll see. But I'm just so intrigued by him. I really want to keep developing that and seeing what he can. be in the NFL. Yeah, and then real quick, I think I speak for both of us when I say we would like to see either Tim Smith or Campbell win that backup one tech job. If it's Derek Nottie or Jerry Tilleri being the main guy behind, uh, behind Grover, then I think something has gone awry or I,

Starting point is 00:20:36 or those guys just completely fell flat. Again, the other day I mentioned like Tim Smith should be a boring player and that is perfectly fine. He's a space eater makes it difficult for, uh, teams to get through the line of scrimmage. Campbell offers a bit more pizzazz, and I think the Colts are high on him. So I would love to see one of those guys actually earn that backup one tech job. Yeah, absolutely. I like to go young at One Tech, even though it's a position where it's typically better as like you get older, like late 20s, early 30s is where their prime really is.

Starting point is 00:21:07 I would love to develop a player like a Cam Ball who, I mean, watching his film, I did see a lot of like Young Grover type of tendencies in him. So maybe you can get him down to like three. get him a little bit more explosive like the Colts did with Grover Stewart. I think we could see some good things from him in the future. So I would love to see him just have a role, even if it's like a healthy scratch most weeks. Like I would like to see Cam Ball prioritized over like a Derek Nottie for sure

Starting point is 00:21:33 this upcoming season. But coming up, Jake and I are going to talk about some other players who are kind of on their last legs. And a lot of these guys are still on their rookie contracts, but they were drafted in the previous defensive scheme or often, I mean, previous scheme in general. And we'll see what they can bring going forward and if they can make this roster. Support for today's episode comes from Square, the system that helps fix one of the biggest headaches in running a business.

Starting point is 00:22:03 Starting a business is exciting, but actually running it, well, that's where things can get complicated fast. Payments, inventory, staff, scheduling, online orders, it's a lot to manage. That's why Square brings everything together into one connected system. Square helps you take payments, track sales, manage inventory, and keeps your business running smoothly without juggling a bunch of disconnected tools. I've never used it as, you know, a business owner, but I am on the other side of Square all the time as a consumer. And man, if that doesn't make things a lot easier, just tap your card, boom, go. Sometimes you even get lucky and, you know, if you punch in your phone number, well, now you're enrolled in their reward system.

Starting point is 00:22:47 You come back time and time again. You're earning some cash back. And yeah, I think Square is probably the way to go. If I was running a business, I know that I like being on the other end of it. If you're starting a business or running one that deserves better tools, Square helps you sell, manage, and grow without slowing down. Right now you can get up to $200 off of Square hardware at square.com slash go slash locked on NFL.

Starting point is 00:23:11 That's SQU-A-R-E.com. G.O. slash locked on NFL. Run your business smarter with Square. Get started today. All right, guys. We are talking last chance you copyright, sorry. No, we're talking about some guys who, this is, they're probably on their last chance

Starting point is 00:23:33 with the Colts. Some of these guys, the leash has been a little shorter. But, you know, you can't wait forever on some of these guys in the NFL. It's the not for long league for a reason. So there are just some guys who, they've got some. heat behind them and you need to start seeing a little bit more from them if they're going to justify getting one of these kind of precious roster spots at this point. So, Zach, let's start on the offensive side of the ball. Who comes to mind when you think of, man, they really need to have

Starting point is 00:24:00 a strong summer or they might be on the outs. Yeah, you know, it's funny. These guys have varying degrees of your love for them here, Jake. Like DJ Giddens and Anthony Gould, I think, are two guys that when you talk about them, all you do is talk about them potentially getting cut and getting replaced. I'm not saying you hate them by any means, Jake, but when you bring them up, it's always about other guys taking their spot. But when you talk about Will Mallory, the light comes on behind your eyes.

Starting point is 00:24:25 And I see the old cartoon like heartbeat coming out and stuff, like Wiley Coyote and all that. But yeah, I think those three players really come to mind. DJ Giddons, Will Mallory, Anthony Gould, where with like a Giddins and a Gould, the Colts have brought in other players that could potentially push them off the roster. are in Dionne Berks at wide receiver, Seth McGowan at running back.

Starting point is 00:24:46 And you could even talk about some other running backs that are in the building as well that could potentially feel more of what the Colts are looking for. With Mallory, I don't really think that it's anybody taking his role, right? The Colts don't have another tight end that's going to take the scratched fourth tight end end role. It's just how valuable is the scratched fourth tight end role on your team. We actually had someone in the Everydayer Club the other day bring up like Will Mallory playing special teams.

Starting point is 00:25:11 And last year, Will Mallory played a grand total of one special team snap. And it came late in the season. And I think for his career, it's only 16 total, you know, across the, what, three or four years that he's been with the Colts. So, yeah, I just think that it's hard to keep, like, keeping a guy around if he's not going to contribute in some way. Because, like, how many years do you get is just being a healthy scratch type player? So I think Mallory is a perfectly fine tight end. But for what the Colts want and for a lot of what the NFL wants right now, is like you've got to bring a baseline of blocking to be on the field on offense and he just

Starting point is 00:25:47 doesn't bring it. So I think guys like Gould, Mallory, and Giddens are kind of like staring at the chopping block this off season. Yeah, I think with Giddens, you know, it's, I think they want to give him the opportunity. I do think they like him. But we can't hide the fact that he was, he was only active for it like nine games last year. So about half of the year, he was a healthy scratch because he doesn't play special team. and he is behind a bell cow running back. He's not particularly strong in past protection.

Starting point is 00:26:18 He's not an elite pass catcher. To me, I think he's the type of running back where if Jonathan Taylor got hurt for a couple of games and you needed him to start, I think it could work. Because he is a guy that gets, like he needs a bigger workload in order to be effective. You give him 15 or so carries, and he's going to have a good compilation of a day.

Starting point is 00:26:39 but just giving him a drive, giving him three, four carries in a game. He's just, he's not an effective guy that way. Where Seth McGowan, a violent runner with more urgency to him, a fine pass catcher, whatever, there's probably stuff to work with in pass pro. And then he's not really a special team or either, but it just seems like how the Colts speak about him, he's got more tools to work with as far as what actually gets you on a roster, or makes you active on game days.

Starting point is 00:27:10 And then there's other intriguing running backs that we've talked about. So that's one of them. You know, with Will Mallory, I will always feel like he probably should have been in the last segment where you want to see more of him. But I have resigned myself to the fact that he just doesn't fit what this team is looking for. He doesn't block. He doesn't play special teams.

Starting point is 00:27:28 He is only active if someone's injured. And so, you know, if there's another guy in this roster, the bottom of the roster that comes along and looks great, well, maybe you kick him off the roster, but this is his last chance to prove he's got more utility than what he has shown, I would say for sure. And then Gould, there's a million receivers on this roster, and they can't all make it. You know, Pierce and Downs and Doolin are going to make it. Berks is probably going to make it. Berks is fighting for essentially the exact same role as Gould on special teams, but Gould has really never factored in on the offensive side of the ball.

Starting point is 00:28:07 despite the fact that they think he has interior exterior flex. He, you know, looked pretty good last summer as a slot receiver, but before that was a field stretcher. So he's kind of versatile, and they've still never given him a shot. And they've had some injuries there before. So I think his spot's directly threatened. And then I think a couple obvious ones on the defensive side of the ball, Jalen Carlis and Jalen Jones.

Starting point is 00:28:33 You know, with Carlis, been injured both seasons of his career, Jones just clearly doesn't really fit what the scheme is going for with Loua and Arumo and these defensive back coaches. So it's going to be pretty tough for those guys too. Yeah, I would view Carlis and Jones kind of both as like on the outside looking in going into training camp. Like I would view at corner. Like I think the Colts are going to have Edwards over him. Maybe Mitchell over him too. Like I think it would be kind of debatable on where, where Luena Rumo and this defensive staff would view Jalen Jones.

Starting point is 00:29:06 So I think if he has a great camp, they would certainly keep him. But he's probably more on the outside looking in. And the same probably goes for Carlis, where we think the top three linebacker spots are probably secured right now, right? With Betcher, Akeem Davis, there's C.J. Allen. And at the bottom, you're looking for more special teamers like West Weeks is coming in here. You have your boy, their suit coming in here who can probably play special teams. A GK who's played special teams. Those guys probably make more sense as bottom of the roster special teamers than a guy like

Starting point is 00:29:35 Carlize who just really hasn't done it. So where does he really factor in outside of one of those top three guys getting a camp injury? So yeah, I think both those guys are on the outside looking in. I wouldn't, I would say their chances of making the roster probably less than like 40% as of right now for me. But we'll see what factors in by the end of training camp. One more guy that I really wanted to throw on here, though, Jake, because even though I think

Starting point is 00:29:58 he's going to make this Colts team, he kind of fits the overall theme of this where I think it's his last chance really in the NFL in general. And that is Can Taylor Britt, right? The cornerback who came over from the Cincinnati Bengals had a really great start to his career, but has had some all-field stuff, has had a lot of injuries, had a really, really bad season last year. And we see this kind of with some Bengals players, right, where whether it's the Akeem Davis Gaither coming over here to be a starter or Jermannes coming in here to start, like former guys flocking back to Luana Rumo to start, it's also a place where former guys flock to Anerumo just to have their final chance in the league.

Starting point is 00:30:35 And I think a player like Taylor Britt is probably on his last legs. Like if it doesn't work out here, if he's a guy who doesn't make the team out of camp or gets cut in season or isn't very good this season is more of like a bottom of the roster guy, I don't know if he gets another contract in the NFL. He's on a vet minimum right now. So it's not outside the realm of possibility, especially for a guy who isn't really a special teamer, right? Like guys like Nick Westbrook-Akeena who are here on vet minimums, he'll,

Starting point is 00:31:02 always have a job in the NFL because he does the dirty work. He does special teams. He does the bottom of the roster thing. Taylor Britt, he just hasn't had to do it in the NFL. So usually with guys like this, like once their time runs out, you'll see him along that list of the Joey Bosa's and the Cameron Jorans and all those guys at the end of training camp. So this is kind of his last chance, I think, in the NFL. I mean, I think it was smart for him to reunite with Louana Rumo, but we'll see if he can take advantage of potentially his last chance to start in this lead. Yeah, without a doubt. I mean, especially at corner, if you don't look physically capable anymore, either, you're toast. Like, that is the outside corner. Teams will not take a gamble on you if you

Starting point is 00:31:45 don't look like you can move anymore. Like, that's like the number one thing they're looking for is can he still run. And if they don't think Taylor Brick can still run, they won't do it. I think one more that we got to mention real quick, Blake Freeland, he'll be in the running for swing tackle. But, you know, last year was a make or break year for him, but then he had a really bad ankle injury in the preseason, which kind of bought him more time on this roster, because he maybe wouldn't have made it or was going to be like your final tackle, but, you know, he was on IR.

Starting point is 00:32:17 And so he played a ton, he played like over 700 snaps as a rookie, and then almost not at all his second year because Gonzalez beat him out. So where is he at at this point? you know what I mean? Is he improved? Are we just at the spot where you're looking to see what he's physically capable of after the injury? Like, he's a guy where, you know, he's not got all the cards on his side necessarily. Yeah, absolutely.

Starting point is 00:32:43 I would say as of right now, players like Luke Tanuta and Nolan Rucci carry a lot more intrigued than him as a swing tackle. So, yeah, we'll see where it ultimately goes with Blake Freeland. But I'm with you. I think he probably extended his time in Indy by one with that injury last year. and we'll see if he's able to put in that work to potentially regain what maybe you had been lost in the past. But that is all we have for today, guys. Thank you all for tuning in to Lockdown Colts. We're back yet again tomorrow afternoon.

Starting point is 00:33:10 So make sure you subscribe and follow Lockdown Colts so you get all the latest episodes. And if you don't already, make sure you're following at Lockdown Colts at LockdownColts 2 all on socials. If you never miss an episode, the Everydayer Club is built for you. Get us ad-free plus members-only Discord access and much more. Head to Lockdowncoltz.com to join. the club thank you all for tuning in have a great day and we'll catch you guys back here tomorrow afternoon

Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - TO-DO LIST: What Do Indianapolis Colts Still Need to Do This Offseason?

There aren't comments yet for this episode. Click on any sentence in the transcript to leave a comment.