Although the Indianapolis Colts prioritized re-signing Daniel Joens and Alec Pierce this offseason, the roster did end up experiencing quite a bit of turnover during the free agency period.
GM Chris Ballard would end up making 10 outside additions, while numerous key players for the Colts over the years, including Zaire Franklin, Michael Pittman, and Kenny Moore, are no longer with the team.
However, being active in free agency doesn’t guarantee success either, and following the Colts’ three minicamp practices, it seemed to be a quiet few days for several of the team’s offseason additions.
Jake Arthur of Colts Roundtable recently posed the question, are “free agent additions already at risk?” He notes that Nick Westbrook-Ikhine at wide receiver and Micheal Clemons at defensive end find themselves at crowded position groups.
The Colts are even reportedly “mulling” over another addition at wide receiver.
“Cornerback Cam Taylor-Britt and safeties Jonathan Owens and Juanyeh Thomas are in similar situations,” Aruther added.
Of the players mentioned, Clemons’ deal was the most significant, with the Colts signing him to a three-year, $17 million deal, which makes it more likely that he sticks around. That said, if the Colts released him during roster cutdowns, Clemons leaves behind a dead cap hit of only $1.52 million, according to Over the Cap.
Westbrook-Ikhine, Owens, Taylor-Britt, and Thomas are all on short-term deals with minimal financial commitment, making it easy to move on. And although not mentioned by Arthur, you can put Jerry Tillery and Derrick Nnadi — two more offseason additions — in this same category.
All that said, there is still a ways to go before decisions have to be made, but the potential lack of impact from the Colts’ free agent additions only sheds more light on a major question — did the Colts get better this offseason?
This article originally appeared on Colts Wire: Can Colts free agent additions make impact at crowded position groups?
