The Colts’ cuts to reach the mandatory 53-player limit included quarterback Easton Stick. The move was not a surprise as the Colts have Daniel Jones, Anthony Richardson Sr. and Riley Leonard ahead of him.
The Colts also terminated the contracts of tight end Pharaoh Brown, defensive tackle Derrick Nnadi, offensive guard Josh Sills, safety Juanyeh Thomas and wide receiver Nick Westbrook-Ikhine.
The team waived defensive tackle Dam Ball, running back Ulysses Bentley IV, safety Austin Brown, cornerback Robert Carter Jr., running back Anderson Castle, offensive tackle Blake Freeland, tight end JJ Galbreath, wide receiver Anthony Gould, kicker Blake Grupe, wide receiver Sahmir Hagans, cornerback Kenneth Harris, center Josh Kreutz, offensive tackle Roy Mbaeteka, defensive end Mitchell Melton, tight end Tyler Moore, center Jimmy Morrissey, defensive end Durell Nchami, wide receiver Ben Nikkel, wide receiver Eli Pancol, cornerback Mekhi Rodgers, offensive tackle Nolan Rucci, safety Daniel Scott, wide receiver Raylen Sharpe, center Geno VanDeMark, linebacker Devin Veresuk, safety Trey Washington, offensive tackle Trey Wedig, linebacker West Weeks and defensive tackle Colby Wooden.
They placed wide receiver D.J. Montgomery and wide receiver Coleman Owen on season-ending injured reserve.
Tight end Will Mallory was placed on injured reserve with a designation to return.
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Colts wide receiver Keenan Allen was arrested early on Sunday morning in Indianapolis and he was released from custody on Sunday afternoon.
Allen left the Marion County Jail shortly before 4 p.m. according to police records. A police report obtained by multiple media outlets shows that Allen was arrested after police officers approached Allen’s vehicle while it was parked in a no-parking zone.
Allen allegedly showed signs of intoxication and is facing misdemeanor charges of operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated and operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated. He has a court date scheduled for September 16.
The Colts signed Allen earlier this month and he made his first appearance for the team in their final preseason game on Saturday.
The Colts have picked a winner in their kicking competition: Spencer Shrader.
Blake Grupe has been released, leaving Shrader as the only kicker on the roster.
Shrader may have locked up the job when he made a 60-yard field goal in yesterday’s preseason finale, although Shrader already appeared to be in the lead based on his superior performance in the previous two preseason games.
Last year the Colts started the season with Shrader as their kicker and finished the season with Grupe taking Shrader’s place after an injury. Now Shrader is healthy, and he has the Colts’ kicking job back.
The Colts are adding an offensive lineman to the roster on Sunday.
Tom Pelissero of Netflix reports that the Bills have agreed to trade center Sedrick Van Pran-Granger to Indianapolis. The Bills will also trade a 2027 seventh-round pick with the Colts sending a 2027 sixth-rounder back to Buffalo.
Van Pran-Granger was a 2024 fifth-round pick by the Bills and he played in 31 regular season games for the team. He started two of those contests and also appeared in three playoff games.
Tanor Bortolini is the starting center for the Colts and Van-Pran Granger will likely be slotted into a backup role with his new team.
Colts wide receiver Keenan Allen was arrested in Indianapolis early on Sunday morning.
Per a police report obtained by multiple media outlets, Allen was arrested around 1 a.m. on charges of driving while intoxicated (DWI) and DWI endangering a person. Both charges are misdemeanors and Allen has not been formally charged at this point.
The Colts released a statement about the matter on Sunday.
“We are aware of the incident involving Keenan Allen last night,” the statement said. “We are in the process of gathering more information and have no further comment at this time.”
Allen signed with the Colts a couple of weeks ago and had one catch in Saturday’s preseason game.
The growing trend of NFL teams keeping their quarterbacks out of the preseason has reached the point where more than one-third of starting quarterbacks did not take a single snap in this year’s preseason.
The reasons were different for different teams: Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and Colts quarterback Daniel Jones are recovering from season-ending injuries. Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott and Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson haven’t played in the preseason in years, across multiple coaching staffs. Rams coach Sean McVay is perhaps the most cautious coach in the league when it comes to avoiding preseason injuries, so of course reigning MVP quarterback Matthew Stafford didn’t play.
But the result is the same: If you’re tuning into a preseason game, you’re increasingly likely to see backup quarterbacks exclusively, and if you see a starter at all, it will typically only be for a series or two.
Here’s the full list of teams that didn’t play their starting quarterbacks at all this preseason, via Mike Reiss of ESPN:
Seahawks: Sam Darnold.
Patriots: Drake Maye.
Cowboys: Dak Prescott.
Ravens: Lamar Jackson.
Steelers: Aaron Rodgers.
Colts: Daniel Jones.
Jaguars: Trevor Lawrence.
Chiefs: Patrick Mahomes.
Eagles: Jalen Hurts.
Lions: Jared Goff.
Saints: Tyler Shough.
Rams: Matthew Stafford.
Anthony Richardson lost his starting job last year. It appears he has held onto the backup job this year.
The Colts have not announced who will enter the season as Daniel Jones’ backup, but Richardson outplayed Riley Leonard in the preseason.
Richardson completed 7 of 10 passes for 80 yards in the preseason finale against the Lions on Saturday. He finished the preseason 21-of-33 for 249 yards and an interception.
“I just wanted to go out there and operate the offense and be confident,” Richardson said, via Abby Halpin of the team website. “I was out there with the starters, so I just wanted to go out there and showcase that I could manage the game and be out there and let it rip. I think I did that to a certain extent.”
Leonard was 3-for-7 for 48 yards and an interception against the Lions, finished the preseason 20-of-42 for 199 yards and two interceptions.
The Colts did not throw a touchdown pass in three preseason games.
“I just want to do my best and put my best foot forward,” Richardson said. “I want everyone to win and everybody to reach their goals, dreams and aspirations that they’ve wanted since they were a little kid.”
Richardson, the fourth overall pick in 2023, is entering the final year of his contract.
Colts receiver Alec Pierce got back to practice on Thursday, having come off the physically unable to perform list after undergoing offseason ankle surgery.
Pierce said after the session that he’s on schedule with the season quickly approaching.
“Yeah, Week 1 is the goal,” Pierce said, via transcript from the team. “[J]ust first time being back out here, wearing the helmet, playing with the other NFL players, right? So, it’s — you got to knock a little bit of rust off, but been working in PT, been working kind of off and on with the trainers. They’ve been doing a good job preparing me, getting me ready.
“So, just a little different once you get back out here, get timing from Daniel [Jones] and these other NFL arms.”
Though Pierce noted he’s been ramping up throughout camp, the process of getting back on the field was still a little tough on him, mentally.
“You just got to find ways to try and stay in it because you’re going to be in those meetings and stuff,” Pierce said. “It’s good to be around the guys. They kind of — they keep your spirits up and stuff because sitting and watching film and watching walk-through, watching practice, like it gets a little monotonous. You want to be out there. You want to be out there helping the team, making plays with the team, working with your brothers. But the guys have been great. They’ve been checking in with me. Other than just not being out there on the field, everything’s been the same.”
Head coach Shane Steichen said it was great to have Pierce back on the field and the team is working to get him ready for Week 1. That’s a good sign for Pierce as he continues his process.
Last season, Pierce caught 47 passes for 1,003 yards with six touchdowns. He’s led the league in yards per reception in each of the last two years.
The Browns confirmed the release of wide receiver Cedric Tillman on Thursday afternoon and they also announced that they’ve replaced him on the roster with another 2023 third-round pick.
They have claimed cornerback Mekhi Blackmon off of waivers. Blackmon was cut loose by the Colts on Wednesday.
Blackmon entered the NFL with the Vikings and he was traded to the Colts ahead of the 2025 season. Blackmon appeared in 15 games as a rookie, missed 2024 with a torn ACL and played in all 17 games during his only year in Indianapolis.
Blackmon has 105 tackles, three interceptions, a sack and a fumble recovery for his career. Assuming he makes it through Sunday’s cut to 53 players, he’ll try to add to those totals in his third NFL stop.
The Colts have signed one of their special teams players to a contract extension.
Indianapolis announced that punter Rigoberto Sanchez has signed a new deal on Thursday.
According to multiple reporters, Sanchez’s extension is for two years. He was previously set to enter the last year of his contract.
Sanchez, 31, is about to start his 10th season after entering the league as an undrafted free agent out of Hawaii. Having replaced Pat McAfee, he’s been the Colts punter ever since, with the exception of a few games in 2020 that he missed while dealing with a cancerous tumor. And he missed the 2022 season with a torn Achilles.
Last season, Sanchez averaged 48.8 yards on his 44 punts with a 44.7-yard net average. 50 percent of his punts were downed inside the 20.
Sanchez and the Colts will play their preseason finale on Saturday afternoon against the Lions.
