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Describing his style as “decisive and violent,” Boyd believes McGowan is “building his case” to overtake DJ Giddens for the No. 2 role on the Colts depth chart behind Jonathan Taylor. Neither player will have a major role as long as Taylor is healthy, but it wouldn’t be stunning if McGowan won this battle in the preseason.

Somehow, Daniel Jones returned. Both GM Chris Ballard and head coach Shane Steichen “reported on the quality of his play with a little relief,” though he isn’t quite 100 percent yet. It does sound like he’s trending towards playing Week 1 and should be mobile enough to make the Colts offense work even if he’s not quite as fast as he was before tearing his Achilles. It’s good news for the Colts’ pass-catchers and Jonathan Taylor.

Taylor, who had been a rumored hold-in, has actually participated in camp — though he did take a rest day on Friday — and Colts owner Carlie Irsay-Gordon said she would love it if Taylor “would be a Colt for life.” It seems like there’s positive momentum on an extension here, though it isn’t done just yet. Taylor is currently going off draft boards as RB4 and a top-10 pick.

The Colts also hosted RB Marcus Major for a workout today. McIntosh suffered a torn ACL in July 2025 and was recently waived by the Seahawks.

Claypool has not played since the 2023 season. Were he to sign with the Colts, he would not meaningfully impact the incumbent players’ target shares.

Indianapolis Star’s Joel A. Erickson puts it this way: “the Colts also find themselves at a crossroads. Ballard is headed into the final year of his contract; if Indianapolis does not win, the Colts could be headed for organizational change. A superstar running back might not fit in a rebuild.” It will be very interesting to see if Taylor holds in without a new contract. Ballard spent a lot of his press conference saying his own contract status — he’s a lame duck GM — won’t affect his ability to make long-term decisions. In his own words: We’ll see.

It’s great news for the Colts after Buckner had surgery on his neck late in the season. Buckner didn’t participate in any offseason activities. He’ll likely be brought along slowly, but this is terrific news for the odds of him suiting up for Week 1.

Pierce was placed on PUP to begin camp and is reportedly one to two weeks away from returning to the practice field following offseason ankle surgery. Preparing for life after Michael Pittman, Pierce could use as many reps with quarterback Daniel Jones as possible to grow into what is expected to be an increased role in the offense. Pierce signed a fully guaranteed four-year contract this offseason.

It doesn’t change anything, though it formalizes the possibility Pierce could begin the regular season on the reserve/PUP list, which would cost him a minimum of four games. Players can be removed from the active/PUP list at any time, though teams tend to take their time, because once you’re off, you’re off. Pierce appears destined to spend at least a few weeks working off to the side and rehabbing. Amongst the many possible outcomes is Pierce being removed from the PUP list but still missing a game or two to begin the year. At this point, he should probably be considered on the wrong side of questionable for Week 1, making him a dicey WR3 draft play. It also leaves the Colts with some of the league’s worst receiver depth. This will be the first of many updates after the next few weeks.

It was reported earlier this month that Jones was “cleared to do everything,” but now we have it straight from the source. After suffering a torn Achilles in Week 14 of last season, Jones has rehabbed and worked his way back to playing shape in time to open camp with the Colts at full strength. Jones had a nice season with the Colts before going down last year, throwing for 3,101-19-8 in 13 games while adding another 45-164-5 on the ground. He was rewarded with a two-year, $88 million contract this offseason and will look to lead the Colts to the playoffs after last year’s team fell short despite starting the season with an 8-2 record. Jones profiles as a fringe QB1/QB2 in fantasy after finishing as a QB1 in six of the 13 games he appeared in last season.