Colts waive CB Jaylon Jones

The Colts waived Jones only two days ago. He now hops across the AFC South to Tennessee. The Titans correspondingly waived CB Melvin Smith Jr.

Johnson missed the first game of the season for the Colts while tending to a hamstring injury sustained in camp. His placement on injured reserve means he will miss the next four games, at minimum. The Colts suddenly find themselves lacking depth in the secondary with Charvarius Ward dealing with a concussion.

Ward joins CB Jaylon Jones (hamstring) on the sideline to begin the week. Jones has not yet suited up this season after injuring his hamstring in late July. The Colts are tasked with covering Broncos WR Courtland Sutton this week, and Jones appears to have low odds of playing. If Ward can return, his presence would go a long way toward containing the X-receiver.

Jones grabbed at his leg/calf area before departing. The third-year corner figured to be competing for a starting job on the outside next to Charvarius Ward. This has the potential to be a major injury for the Colts secondary. Jones started all 17 games last year and defensed 12 passes while picking off two.

Jones (6’2/200) is a former blue-chip five-star safety recruit who moved to CB shortly after arriving in College Station and became an instant starter. The stretched-out DB allowed a 53% completion rate over the last two seasons, despite being largely avoided in 2022 with just 19 passes being thrown his way in 601 total snaps. His 4.57s 40-yard dash is certifiably sluggish by modern outside corner standards (47th%) as was a 4.48s shuttle (45th%), but his 6.88s 3-Cone (78th%) and 38” vertical (84th%) were both strong marks for a solid 8.79 RAS. His filled-out frame allows Jones to establish leverage and put hands on receivers at the line. His advanced route cognition allows Jones to stay in the pocket of receivers downfield, allowing just one reception of more than 20 yards in 2022. Speed could limit him in the NFL, as he tends to play off to make up for his limitations. With his size and physical style of play, Jones could be asked to return to safety if he wants to earn a starting NFL job.

Jones (6'2/185) has been a Texas A&M pledge since early February, and in early June he reaffirmed his commitment to Jimbo Fisher’s program in early June. During Tuesday’s camp the four-star corner showed why he’s such a valuable recruit for Texas A&M, with his combination of size and athleticism proving to be too much for some wide receivers to handle. “The Texas A&M commit has legitimate size, he got his hands on receivers to knock them off routes without being too physical and he was always staying right in the pocket of the receivers,” Rivals recruiting analyst Adam Gorney wrote. According to 247Sports.com, Jones ran a 4.58 40 at The Opening regional camp in mid-March. It’s likely a safe bet that he’s shaved some time off of that sprint since then.

Jones added he’s “ready to get there to Aggieland and do what I’m supposed to do.” The Cibolo, Texas native verbally committed on February 3rd and was also considering Alabama, Arkansas, Baylor, and Colorado. Jones is ranked as the 7th-best cornerback in the class of 2020 and 14th player overall from the state of Texas.