On the first day of minicamp, Indianapolis Colts head coach Shane Steichen opened his press conference by announcing that safety Daniel Scott had suffered a season-ending Achilles injury.
“To have that happen to him again, it’s a tough break,” Steichen said via the Indy Star. “You never want it to happen in back-to-back years, but you’ve seen guys who’ve had injuries throughout their careers, major injuries, it’s a bump in the road.”
Scott, a 2023 fifth-round pick by the Colts out of California, would spend his entire rookie season on IR after tearing his ACL in June of last year.
At Cal, Scott totaled six interceptions and eight pass breakups in his final two years while holding quarterbacks to a passer rating of under 80.0 when targeted.
Throughout OTAs, Scott impressed Steichen and the coaching staff with his performance, which included intercepting Anthony Richardson during one of the practices.
When both GM Chris Ballard and defensive coordinator Gus Bradley discussed the safety position, both mentioned Scott as someone in the mix for that starting spot next to Julian Blackmon.
“I think he’s going to have a (expleitve) of a future,” Steichen said during OTAs. “He’s smart, intelligent. That’s part of it playing in the back end, communication. He made a good play on the ball.”
The positional battle at safety will be one of the more intriguing competitions to take place this summer. Without Scott, that leaves Nick Cross and Rodney Thomas as the front-runners for that playing time.
In the early going, it has been Cross lining up next to Blackmon. With ample salary cap space and some players still available in free agency, perhaps the Colts will further explore that option with an already questionable position now becoming an even bigger need.
“For him, you’ve just got to have a positive outlook and attack that rehab like we all know he’s going to,” added Steichen.
