Veterans and rookies for the Indianapolis Colts will report for training camp on July 24th, with the first practice taking place on July 25th.
Between now and then I will be previewing the Colts’ 91-man roster with a look back at each player’s 2023 season, along with what’s ahead for 2024.
I’ll be going through the Colts’ roster alphabetically, so up next is defensive tackle Taven Bryan. To stay up to date with our other previews, be sure to head over to Colts Wire.
2023 Season Review
Taven Bryan saw the third-most defensive tackle snaps on this Colts team last season, behind only DeForest Buckner and Grover Stewart. Bryan is known more for his pass-rush abilities and was originally signed to be a secondary option behind DeForest Bucker.
Bryan was fairly efficient with his pass rush opportunities, totaling 11 pressures and two sacks, ranking 38th out of 129 defensive tackles in pass-rush win rate.
However, where the Colts really needed a boost from Bryan—and Eric Johnson—was in run defense, particularly when they were without Grover Stewart. This led to Bryan being relied on more heavily to fill that role, even being asked to play nose tackle, but the results did not follow. He would rank 116th in PFF’s run defense grade and had a run-stop rate of 4.3 percent, which ranked 127th.
2024 Season Preview
With the addition of free agent Raekwon Davis, who will be asked to bolster the Colts’ run defense, but is someone who brings pass-rush upside as well, especially in Gus Bradley’s scheme, that third spot in the defensive tackle rotation is likely filled.
That leaves potentially just one roster spot to be filled at this position, which could leave Bryan on the outside looking in during cutdowns. Competing with Bryan for that role will be Johnson, Adetomiwa Adebawore, and Jonah Laulu—three recent draft picks, while Bryan is 28 years old and entering his seventh NFL season. It’s not uncommon in these instances that teams prefer to roster younger, more high-upside players on the back end of the depth chart.
Dayo Odeyingbo and Tyquan Lewis could also see some snaps inside as well.
The positive for Bryan in all of this is that with the addition of Davis, it should allow him be utilized primarily as a pass-rush specific defender, which is where he thrives, and routinely being in those situations could give him a leg up over Johnson and Adebawore.
