The Indianapolis Colts have officially released their initial 53-man roster for the 2023 season.
While there will likely be more changes to come because of some position groups being thin at the moment, there are some interesting things to take away at who made the team and who surprisingly didn’t.
Let’s take a look at what caught the eye when looking at the Colts’ initial 53-man roster:
1
The running back room
It seemed like the whole league was waiting for the Jonathan Taylor trade to drop throughout Tuesday but when the initial deadline hit, the news broke that the Colts won’t be trading him and he will remain on the PUP list. The saga is far from over and JT will now miss at minimum the first four games of the season.
Despite Taylor being on the PUP list, Chris Ballard still released Jake Funk, Kenyan Drake, and Jason Huntley. That leaves only three running backs on the initial roster.
- Zack Moss, who is currently recovering from a broken arm.
- Deon Jackson, who has played in 25 games and made two starts in his first two seasons.
- Evan Hull, the fifth-round pick from this year’s NFL draft.
The expectation is that Moss will return around the season opener but it hasn’t been confirmed if he will be ready to face the Jacksonville Jaguars. A new running back could join the roster Wednesday once the waiver claims are filed.
2
The surprise cut
The most shocking name to see not make the initial 53-man roster is one of this year’s fifth-round draft picks Darius Rush. There was a hope that Rush would not only earn significant playing time as a rookie, but he would also push for one of the starting boundary cornerback spots on the roster.
After getting his pick-six in the first preseason game against the Buffalo Bills, the rest of August just didn’t go his way. Against the Chicago Bears, he found himself working behind Darrell Baker Jr., Dallis Flowers, JuJu Brents, and Jaylon Jones. Then he would end up injuring his hip in that game which caused him to miss the rest of the preseason.
Injury-aside, this move doesn’t make much sense to waive a promising talented player at a position that the team doesn’t have proven guys outside of Kenny Moore II.
Tony Brown was the player that seemed to get the edge over Rush. Brown does offer special teams value and maybe it was his ability to play in the nickel spot behind Moore II that influenced the decision.
I wouldn’t be surprised if another team claims Rush but it would be wise for the Colts to do their best to get him on the practice squad.
3
What's the plan at tight end?
The one group I wanted to first see who made the 53-man roster was at tight end. The five tight ends in question all ended up making it through cutdown day but it also will likely see some movement in the coming days. Unless Shane Steichen has a vision of how he can utilize all five players.
We are aware that Jelani Woods has torn his hamstring but we have yet to get any clarity on when it happened and where he is at in his recovery. If it is going to cost him to miss the start of the season then the team can now place him on short-term IR and he would be able to return after four games.
There is also the possibility that the team could move on from Mo Alie-Cox. He could be a name that a tight end-needy team could target via a trade, but that’s all just speculation right now.
Outside of Woods and Alie-Cox. Kylen Granson, Drew Ogletree, and Will Mallory are safely heading into the season opener but the question remains on how they will contribute to the team to start the year.
4
Expect a waiver claim on a wide receiver
As I alluded to, this roster construction is far from over and I expect that there will be a number of waiver claims for Indianapolis on Wednesday. Another group that needs another player in it is at receiver. For now, it’s just Michael Pittman Jr., Alec Pierce, Josh Downs, and Isaiah McKenzie.
Chris Ballard will likely be targeting a receiver that can provide special teams value since he was planning on Ashton Dulin being the fifth receiver on the roster before they lost him for the season.
It would also help if the player has some size to work on the boundary since Downs and McKenzie’s size would hold them back in that role if MPJ or Pierce had to miss any time with an injury.
5
McTelvin Agim's preseason gets him on the initial roster
McTelvin Agim joined the Colts this offseason after spending his first two seasons with the Denver Broncos. Entering training camp there wasn’t much chatter on him but as the preseason went along and he continued to stack up performances, he made his push to make the team.
He had seven tackles (three solo), one TFL, half-a-sack, one QB hit, and two pass deflections throughout his preseason action. There are 10 players on the defensive line that made the initial 53-man roster, which is common under Chris Ballard so that does bold well for Agim.
Because of his performance, he should be considered to be on the team when they kickoff against the Jacksonville Jaguars but as a backend player, he’s not safe as the front office continues to tinker with the team through waiver claims and free agent signings.
6
Several Colts done for the year
As a part of the roster-cutting process, a few players were placed on the injured reserve list. Doing so before Wednesday means these players will be forced to sit out for the entire season, barring their release from the reserve list with an injury settlement.
We knew offensive lineman Danny Pinter was going to miss the rest of the season due to a broken ankle. But rookie sixth-round pick Titus Leo was a surprise addition to the list. It isn’t clear what his injury is, but it’s serious enough to be placed on season-long IR. Additionally, second-year undrafted linebacker JoJo Domann and tight end Ricky Seals-Jones were placed on the reserve list.
