53 Colts Questions For 2024 Training Camp

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INDIANAPOLIS – Exhale, Kevin.

Below you will find 53 questions on the Colts (going off the magic roster cut down number of 53) heading into another training camp at Grand Park.

With camp report day on Wednesday and the first practice coming Thursday, here’s 53 questions to watch heading into Shane Steichen’s second season with the Colts:

1. Will Anthony Richardson be limited in any way? The expectation is that Richardson won’t have limitations rep wise come camp time. Of course, this was the spring plan, too, before some shoulder soreness led to an abbreviated end to his minicamp work. Will increased practice time in camp alter anything for Richardson, or did the month and a half break put to rest any of those concerns?

2. Will we see a veteran free agent addition at cornerback? The Colts have held back in adding anything of veteran note to the cornerback position this offseason. And something would have to really change in a hurry to see Chris Ballard become uber desperate in camp to sign a notable veteran corner, no matter the inexperience in that room.

3. How hot is Chris Ballard’s seat going into his 8 ^th year as general manager? A resume that includes 0 division titles and 1 playoff win in 7 years indicates a warm-to-hot seat. But Jim Irsay has never given any public indication that Ballard is on any sort of seat. If the Colts miss the postseason yet again, will we see a different tune from the Owner?

4. What will be the playing time for rookie Laiatu Latu? I think it would be a surprise if Latu was a 17-game starter as a rookie. But that doesn’t mean he will have a limited role in 2024. No, Latu should be part of this team’s pass rushing packages as a rookie. His raw playing time, snaps wise, might not be super high, but if he’s part of the passing downs defensively, he’s going to earn some important moments to disrupt the game.

5. Who will win the starting free safety job? Nick Cross appears to be the favorite for this job. Ronnie Harrison Jr. and Rodney Thomas II would probably qualify as the most realistic competition for Cross. Will the Colts dip into free agency to enhance the competition here?

6. Will veteran kicker Matt Gay bounce back from an inconsistent close to 2023? A bit lost in the shuffle late last season was Matt Gay missing 8 field goals, which tied the most of his 5-year career. Now, 7 of those misses came from further than 40 yards, 5 of which from longer than 50 yards. Still though, the Colts are paying Gay way too much money to miss that number of kicks, no matter the distance.

7. Is Jonathan Taylor back to being a true bellcow back? If you go off of the last game we saw from Taylor (30 carries in Week 18 vs. Houston), the Colts are very comfortable giving him a heavy workload. It’s possible that a healthy Taylor becomes the highest percentage carry guy of any running back in the league, although Richardson’s presence might influence that. How will the departure of Zack Moss impact the high usage rate of Taylor, too?

8. Is Jelani Woods, indeed, fully healthy? This spring would seem to indicate that Woods is back and ready to go. Woods participated throughout the spring offseason program, and made a couple of nice plays, after missing all of last season due to consistent hamstring issues. While the Colts have opted to run it back in 2024, Woods is a guy in the “raise the ceiling” category.

9. What is in store for Kwity Paye’s 4 ^th season? The Colts sent a strong message in their Kwity Paye belief by picking up his 5 ^th year option for the 2025 season earlier this year. Paye has had a fine start to his NFL career, but he has yet to be a truly consistent rusher, worthy of a rising contract or living up to that 1 ^st round draft pick label. The money is there for Paye in 2025. There’s still a good amount to prove though as a notable edge rusher.

10. Who will win the position battle between Alec Peirce and AD Mitchell? On offense, you don’t have a lot of true position battles. I’d consider that 2 ^nd outside wideout, opposite Michael Pittman Jr., to be one though. Pierce has been the entrenched guy there the last two seasons, but Mitchell had a very strong spring.

11. Will the Colts do anything unique in regards to the league’s new kickoff rule? Certainly, this revolves around the actual kick returner and if rookie Anthony Gould indeed finds a role there with more returns on the horizon. But this also applies to the back end of the roster when projecting coverage guys on special teams and the types of bodies desired there.

12. Will Shane Steichen make any specific changes to try and get the Colts a Week 1 win? Yes, the streak is now over a decade since the Colts last won a Week 1 game. It was the 2013 season the last time the Colts exited Week 1 with a win. That’s insane. Steichen obviously has only been part of only one of those losses, but he knows the stat. Will he make any tweaks to his training camp/preseason plan for that.

13. Which rookie will play the most in 2024? This has to be a debate of Laiatu Latu or AD Mitchell. Although, Jaylon Carlies at linebacker might be a sleeper vote. I’ll go with Mitchell from an outright snap count standpoint.

14. Do the Colts have enough room for 5 tight ends? One of the debates come roster cut time will be this in regards to the tight end position. Frankly, keeping 5 tight ends seems like a ridiculous number. But it is quite possible for the Colts. Obviously, proper health is going to be needed elsewhere on the roster for this to come to fruition, but it will be something to watch as August rolls on.

15. What is next for Michael Pittman Jr.? Statistically, the next item on the Michael Pittman Jr. list has to be scoring more touchdowns. It’s pretty crazy Pittman Jr. has just 15 touchdown catches in his 62 career games (4 years). Being more of that difference maker in and around the scoring area should be a goal for MPJ on his new contract.

16. Is the starting offensive line locked in stone? It certainly seems that way. The only real debate would be Will Fries at right guard, or perhaps the health of Braden Smith at right tackle. The Colts do not seem too inclined to offer true competition at right guard, which is understandable after Fries had a nice 2023 campaign.

17. How much will Anthony Richardson play in the preseason? This will be a very interesting one to monitor. Richardson played a decent amount in the preseason last year after he was named the team’s starter following the preseason opener. After Richardson went through the injuries he did as a rookie, will that impact how Shane Steichen views the August playing time for his young rookie? Will Richardson’s first hit not come until Week 1 of the regular season?

18. How multiple will the Colts run game be? Perhaps the most dynamic element to the Colts offense moving forward will be this, assuming Richardson is under center. Given Richardson’s skills, the Colts should be a multiple rushing attack, stressing the defense from a responsibility standpoint. Remember, Jonathan Taylor and Richardson spent just 2 snaps together last season. The Colts should be able to strike some serious fear here.

19. Does Joe Flacco still have it? Entering last season, it would be hard to have much conviction in answering this questions positively. But then Flacco resurrected his career with a super impressive stint in Cleveland. This spring, the 39-year-old Flacco still showed plenty of ability to sling it down the field. So, if the Colts need to turn to him at any point this season, that element of the offense should still be a threat.

20. Is there a role for a pass catching running back? Maye this is too much of a fantasy football question. But I’m curious if the Colts will have Jonathan Taylor play that third-down role, or if they’ll look for another player to eat up those duties. Could second-year back Evan Hull or even Tyler Goodson cement themselves in a role that used to be a duty for Nyheim Hines?

21. What will the arrival of Charlie Partridge mean to the defensive line? The Colts are not only running it back roster wise, but also with their coaching staff. Charlie Partridge is the new addition though, leading the defensive line unit. Partridge was extremely well thought of in the college ranks, with some impressive units in the pass rushing department. What will Partridge bring to a heavily invested defensive line group?

22. If AD Mitchell beats out Alec Pierce, what role will be there for Alec Pierce? The “loser” of a Mitchell vs. Pierce battle isn’t going to be diminished to splinters on the bench. No, that player still should have some role offensively. And if it’s Pierce, you could view him like a home run hitter off the bench in baseball.

23. Which tight end should be sweating a roster spot? For me, this is one of the hardest questions to peg an answer of conviction for. It is part of why I kept 5 tight ends on my most recent 53-man roster cut down. Who would be most on the bubble? Drew Ogletree? I guess, as it is hard to put Will Mallory, Kylen Granson, Mo Alie-Cox or Jelani Woods on that bubble list.

24. Who makes up the third-down pass rush package? The “Indy Car” package, as we like to label it, had a pretty consistent personnel grouping last year of DeForest Buckner, Samson Ebukam, Dayo Odeyignbo and then either Kwity Paye or Tyquan Lewis. My early 2024 thought is the first three names will remain the same of Buckner, Ebukam and Odeyingbo. And then that 4 ^th spot will get a heavy, heavy look from rookie Laiatu Latu. Right?

25. How much will the deep ball be part of Anthony Richardson’s game? This supposed strength to Richardson’s game has yet to be truly seen in an NFL setting. It’s easily one of the more intriguing aspects to the skillset of Richardson, and something the Colts have really lacked in quarterback play of recent. Will this, indeed, be a staple of Richardson’s quarterback style?

26. Is there a sleeper on defense that will impact in 2024? If you look at the overall depth of the defense, answers are a bit lacking at linebacker, cornerback and safety. Names like Segun Olubi, Darrell Baker Jr. and Ronnie Harrison Jr. are guys that were off the radar this time last year and ended up being needed to some degree in 2024.

27. How will Mo Alie-Cox handle a contract year? Many had questioned this offseason if Alie-Cox would return for another season in Indy, considering his contract. Alie-Cox is back though, even as the Colts’ financial situation tightened a bit with many re-signings. Chris Ballard has always been a big of Alie-Cox. The veteran tight end has remained that in Indy amidst the Colts drafting several other TEs with some notable picks in recent years.

28. Will the Colts and Cardinals behave during joint practices? Credit to the Lions and Bears for behaving alongside the Colts in recent Grand Park joint sessions. That hasn’t always been the case though. Head coaches Shane Steichen and Jonathan Gannon have history together in Philadelphia so you’d hope they will be on the same page and instill that into their teams at Grand Park.

29. Will any undrafted rookie make the team on offense? Unlikely. Maybe a name at running back like Trent Pennix surprises and shows a receiving element. Could quarterback Kedon Slovis earn a practice squad look? At this point, I’d be extremely surprised if the Colts had any undrafted free agent make the team.

30. What is the rookie role for third-round pick Matt Goncalves? Back in the spring, Goncalves got his first NFL look at right tackle. When the Colts drafted him though they were very much up in the air on where the early fit would be for the Pittsburgh offensive lineman. Could there be some guard flexibility? If so, Goncalves could position himself as the team’s top OL backup in 2024, which is an important role.

31. Do we see more pass rushing from Grover Stewart? I know Stewart would like a few more reps on those passing downs. But his pass rushing impact will still likely have to come on those early downs, where the opportunities aren’t as abundant. Stewart is in terrific shape for an NFL defensive tackle, but it’s still a lot to ask of him to play all 3 downs, like a DeForest Buckner.

32. Will Anthony Gould find any offensive role? On more than one occasion this spring, you saw Joe Flacco uncork a deep one that 5 ^th round pick Anthony Gould ran under. One has to think Gould could earn a random specific play or two designed for him to sneak into the offensive huddle and try to pop a big play with him. This is assuming Gould is going to earn the main returner duties as rule changes benefit a player like him.

33. Any contract extension for Dayo Odeyingbo? It’s probably not going to happen, but Dayo Odeyingbo appears to be next up on the potential contract extension list. Odeyingbo heads into a contract year after some positive moments throughout his first 3 years in the NFL. He’s proven to be a nice, versatile defensive line option for the Colts.

34. How healthy is Braden Smith? The only Colts starter who missed the entire spring due to injury was Braden Smith, coming off an off-season knee surgery. Smith has missed at least 6 games in 2 of the last 3 seasons. His contract rises to a $19 million cap hit in 2025. For several reasons, this is a big year for Smith, as he continues to prove he is one of the most important players on this team.

35. Who emerges as the No. 2 running back? On the early downs, Trey Sermon probably needs to be viewed as the favorite there. Others like Tyler Goodson and Evan Hull could factor into more receiving centric roles. But it’ll be interesting to see if Sermon can take on more of a Zack Moss focus.

36. Will Anthony Richardson be able to hit more singles in the passing game? When it comes to the passing game of Richardson, a definite goal for his in Year 2 should be to just hit a few more singles, and keep the passing game going in more of a methodical way, at times. It’s not the flashiest form of passing, but it is something that Richardson needs to fine tune as he progresses in the NFL. If he can “hit a few more singles” in the passing game, it’s going to aid the Colts in sustaining drives and staying away from the true negatives (turnovers).

37. What tweaks will be there for Gus Bradley’s third year running the defense? For some, asking this might just be wishful thinking. But when you have a defensive coordinator going into his third year with the same team, leading a group filled with continuity, inquiring about tweaks and evolvements to a unit is fair. What, if any, will we see from Bradley’s defense?

38. What is the depth at linebacker? When healthy, Zaire Franklin and E.J. Speed will hardly come off the field for the Colts. Just like last season. But some depth spots need to be found for insurance reasons. And that doesn’t account for a 3 ^rd linebacker, who will be needed for those occasional base defense reps.

39. Who wins the starting outside cornerback job? In the base defense, expect Kenny Moore II to start outside, with JuJu Brents as the other favorite as an outside corner. In the nickel defense, Moore II will slide inside to play the slot, with Brents likely outside, and the assumed winner of a Jaylon Jones/Dallis Flowers competition.

40. Any lingering injuries for guys like Michael Pittman Jr., Alec Pierce? Both of these wideouts missed the final week of the offseason program. By all accounts, this was for precautionary reasons with Pittman Jr. dealing with a knee injury and Pierce having a foot injury. Anthony Richardson getting ample work in with his top wideouts is an obvious, important storyline for camp.

41. Will we see a veteran free agent addition at safety? The season-ending injury to Daniel Scott this spring added a little fuel to this question. So far, the Colts have held back though in doing anything from the veteran route at safety. You can make a strong case no position group on the roster has more short and long-term questions than the safety position.

42. Will any undrafted rookie make the team on defense? Again, it’s hard to peg an undrafted free agent actually making the team. On defense though, you could maybe find a spot for a linebacker (Craig Young from Kansas). But it’s still difficult to have even some soft conviction surrounding any UDFA being on the 53-man roster come September.

43. Is there a sleeper on offense that will impact in 2024? The only real position where I see someone emerging in this category would be running back. Depth behind Jonathan Taylor is certainly not locked in. At wideout, we probably shouldn’t totally write off Ashton Dulin, as he returns from a torn ACL.

44. Will the kickoff rule change impact the roster building? An emphasis on finding a more dynamic returner, given the increase in kick returns coming in 2024, is one part of this question. But discussions on the types of special teamers to cover/block this new play has also been a poplar off-season topic. How will this impact the back end of the roster, where special teams focus rises?

45. Is Nick Cross ready for a breakout season? It is such an important Year 3 for Cross. Remember, Cross was still 20 years old when he started his first NFL game was a rookie in 2022. The “age/lack of experience” excuse for Cross is over. He needs to secure that free safety starting job and show that he was worthy of a trade back into Round 3.

46. Do we see the Colts scale back the playing time for their starting defensive tackles? The position with the most strength/quality depth for the Colts is certainly defensive tackle. It’s going to be interesting to see if some added depth at defensive tackle leads to dialing back DeForest Buckner/Grover Stewart’s play time at all, to keep them fresher as they reach their 30s.

47. Who is the backup left tackle? If you are making an ‘indispensable Colts’ list, Bernhard Raimann would have to be very high on that. Raimann is vital to the Colts, so that brings up the question of who would be his backup? Blake Freeland? Rookie Matt Goncalves? This is a question the Colts need to find an answer to during camp?

48. How beneficial will two joint practice sessions be? The Colts will have 3 total joint practices in 2024, two with the Cardinals (at Grand Park) and one with the Bengals (in Cincinnati). Certainly, the Colts will see some talented wideouts, and signal callers in those practices.

49. What is the rookie role for fourth-round pick Tanor Bortolini? Unless Bortolini can challenge Will Fries at right guard, which doesn’t seem very likely, a reserve interior role is likely for him. Down the road, Bortolini being the center of the future is quite possible. But his 2024 impact could be mostly a redshirt season.

50. Who will make up the defensive line depth? No position group rotates more on game day than the Colts defensive line. So ample playing time is there for guys who aren’t in the starting lineup. Main depth names should be Dayo Odeyingbo, Tyquan Lewis, Raekwon Davis and Laiatu Latu. Former draft picks Eric Johnson, Titus Leo, Isaiah Land and Adetomiwa Adebawore would be in that next wave.

51. What role will be there for the No. 2 running back? Given the contractual/injury issues with Jonathan Taylor last year, Zack Moss was a key piece for the 2023 bunch. The answer to that RB2 in 2024 isn’t defined yet, and neither is how that role will look. If Taylor is indeed the bellcow, it could be a whole lot of spot duty for a role that looked different last season.

52. Which Day 3 draft pick will play the most in Year One? I feel pretty confident in Jaylon Carlies being the answer here. Tanor Bortolini would need a serious injury to occur. Anthony Gould seems like a specialty guy. And rookie defensive backs Jaylin Simpson and Micah Abraham are still a ways down the depth chart. Carlies could very well be the 3 ^rd linebacker, and the first man up if Zaire Franklin and/or E.J. Speed get banged up.

53. Is there a third quarterback competition? Remember, the NFL has a new quarterback rule in 2024 in that teams can dress a 3 ^rd quarterback on game day, and that guy can be on the team’s practice squad. Opening up a 53-man roster spot for a 3 ^rd QB has to be enticing to NFL teams. Typically, the Colts have carried a 3 ^rd QB on their 53-man roster. Will Sam Ehlinger maintain this role for a 4 ^th straight year?

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