Colts: Kemoko Turay destroying Sam Tevi should have fans conflicted

The Indianapolis Colts now have a myriad of roster question marks with the start of the regular season just a little over a month away. Players like Kemoko Turay and Sam Tevi will be under the microscope after Indianapolis saw most of their stars go down with injuries.

Following the injuries to Carson Wentz (foot), Quenton Nelson (foot), and Ryan Kelly (elbow), the Colts might have to turn to their bench at quarterback, left guard, and center for potentially the first few weeks of the new season.

Where we already knew Indianapolis had questions, however, is at left tackle while free agent signing Eric Fisher finishes his recovery from Achilles surgery. The Colts have a trio of sound backup options, including Tevi, Will Holden, and Julién Davenport, to hold down the fort until Fisher’s ready.

However, a highlight from Friday’s practice that made the rounds on social media doesn’t bode well for Tevi’s chances. On the flip side, it looks fantastic for Turay, who absolutely embarrassed Tevi on the play.

Suffice it to say this highlight will have fans conflicted.

Kemoko Turay steamrolled Sam Tevi. How should Colts fans feel?

Is Turay becoming a stud…or is Tevi just not that good? Or both?

Do you want the good news or bad news first, Colts fans? Let’s just get the bad out of the way. This highlight further punctuates what reporters have been seeing at training camp: Tevi might be squandering his chance to become the temporary starting left tackle.

During the first week of camp, it was widely reported that 2021 first-rounder Kwity Paye was having his way with Tevi, a four-year pro with 44 starts under his belt.

With Holden impressing early on in his reps at left tackle and the Colts officially activating Davenport from the COVID list on Friday, well, let’s just say Tevi better make sure not to have another moment like this for the remainder of training camp.

After all, there is a reason that the Chargers picked Rashawn Slater in the draft. He was a Tevi replacement!

With that settled, time for the good news! Given how sluggish Tevi has looked at camp, should fans refrain from getting too excited about Turay? We’d say no.

While he obviously isn’t going to overwhelm every OL he lines up against, Turay has received glowing reviews throughout camp, so this is hardly a surprise.

This highlight suggests he finally has full confidence in his surgically-repaired ankle, which was operated on twice and really limited him in 2020 after he was cleared to return.

Though Tevi’s lack of confidence clearly played a role in this lowlight, it’s obvious Turay is looking more like the player who flashed star potential as a rookie and at the start of his second year before his gruesome ankle injury derailed all that progress.

Final verdict? There’s a reason the Chargers didn’t re-sign Tevi beyond his rookie contract, so don’t go assuming Turay is a world-beater all of a sudden. At the same time, get excited about Turay, because he could be a real difference-maker for the Colts this year.

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