Colts’ Secondary Depth Issues Could Have Easily Been Avoided

Source: Justin Casterline / Getty

Who didn’t see this coming? Maybe not as soon as this, but still…

It seems like everybody with a set of eyes and a Colts depth chart in their hands could have told you there were major concerns in the Colts secondary.  Not just talent-wise but depth-wise as well.  It seemed like the team was more than comfortable in “trusting their guys” and hoping everyone took a step forward instead of improving through free agency.  They put all of their eggs in the “just get better” basket.  It seemed like a risky proposition to everyone outside of West. 56th Street and sure enough, not even two games into the season, the Colts are in a bind of their own creation.

Cornerback Juju Brents is head to injured reserve with a knee injury, likely missing the rest of the season, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.

Brents has been oft injured in his short NFL career.  Eight injuries and four surgeries in just two seasons have completely derailed his ability to establish himself as a reliable member of the Colts secondary.  He’s showed promise but the number of injuries and time lost due to them have put him in a position no NFL player would wish on anyone.  At best it seems that he’ll be brought back in 2025, and the Colts will treat him similar to Jelani Woods, a veteran who comes at a low cost and that you’ll see if you can get anything out of with no guarantee of a roster spot.

Now the Colts head into Week 2 with a ton of questions at their thinnest position.  They’ll bring in guys to try and shore up some depth (they’ve already signed Ronnie Harrison Jr. to their practice squad) but how much quality is there in any of these players is a big question mark.  Is this going to be a situation where you are now rotating guys in and out of positions to try and find a perfect match or someone that can just stop the bleeding defensively?  These are questions we shouldn’t be having to ask heading into Week 2.  Yet here we are.

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It could have been avoided.  It could have been less of a headache.  We all knew depth in the secondary was an issue for months and yet Chris Ballard and the Colts sat on their collective hands while $20 million in salary cap space sit in a bank account just screaming to be used.  It’s too late now, of course.  At this point you are just picking up guys of other teams’ practice squads or finding some aging veteran in street clothes to sign for the minimum.  If the Colts want to add a significant name that would have to be via trade and I don’t see them pulling the trigger on a notable trade not even halfway through the first month of the season.

So, it looks like we’ll be doing things the hard way in Indianapolis once again.  Why make it easy on ourselves and shore up a position of need when we can play this song and dance once again?  Where would the fun in any of that be?

Again, this could have been avoided.  But whether it’s through cockiness, stubbornness, cheapness or a little of all of the above the Colts are now in a pinch at the position they allowed to be a weakness for months.  They knew it in the off-season.  They knew it in the draft.  They knew it at OTAs.  They knew it at training camp.  They knew it in the preseason.  They did nothing.

Now, they get to reap what they sow.

To hear our debate about the Juju Brents injury and trying to figure out why Chris Ballard allowed this to be an issue, click the link below.

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