The Indianapolis Colts competition at tight end is shaping up behind the team’s tight end tandem of Dwayne Allen and Jack Doyle. Specifically, Erik Swoope, Darion Griswold, and Mike Miller are vying to become the 3rd tight end on the team’s roster.
As you may recall, the Colts lost Coby Fleener to the New Orleans Saints in free agency, so there’s a great opportunity for a young tight end to earn a spot on the team’s 53-man roster.
Originally a Miami Hurricanes basketball standout in college, Swoope was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Colts two seasons ago and has been subsequently stashed on the team’s practice squad ever since until his recent activation in Week 17 of this past season.
The 6’5″, 246 pound converted tight end has flashed enough promise for the Colts to keep within the organization, but entering unofficially his 3rd season, time may be of the essence to finally put his physical tools all together on the football field:
"“He’s made tremendous strides, basically every day that he’s been here, so that piece of clay,” said Chuck Pagano at OTA’s Tuesday. “That body we saw early on is much different. Now again, we’re wearing shorts, we’re running around in just helmets is all.”“We’re going to find out more in training camp once we get the pads on, but he’s doing a good job,” added Pagano. “He doesn’t look look like a guy that’s never played, a basketballer that’s playing football for the first time.”"
Nevertheless, the competition as a whole is clearly coming together, as both rookie undrafted free agents Darion Griswold and Mike Miller are also in the mix:
"“Yeah, those guys are working hard,” said Pagano. “Obviously, Dwayne (Allen) and Jack (Doyle) are the 1-2 combination right now. Swoope continues to grow and develop. Obviously, this will be a huge training camp for Erik. The young guys (Darion) Griswold and Mike Miller are doing a nice job.”“We’ve got a couple of young guys, who are making some plays out there,” added Pagano. “It’s not too big for them. They’re athletic guys. We had a red area day yesterday and ‘Big Mike’ made a few plays down there. He’s got stuff that you can’t coach as far as size and length. So it was good to see that and those guys make some plays down there.”"
Griswold is a 6’5″, 264 pound tight end from Arkansas State, who’s widely been considered one of the top undrafted free agents and a potential diamond in the rough for the team–possessing exceptional quickness for his immense size:
One thing that stood out today for me: UFA TE Darion Griswold has speed. #Colts
— George Bremer (@gmbremer) May 17, 2016
Meanwhile, Miller is a 6’6″, 250 pound tight end from Taylor, whose play has clearly piqued Pagano’s interest as well.
Unlike other positions, this appears to be one of the few spots on the roster that is entirely up for grabs. Each member of this young tight end trio has the chance to win a roster spot outright, and it should be a Colts competition to watch going forward.