Colts: 3 players desperate to perform vs Vikings
By Jerry Trotta
The Indianapolis Colts are preparing for their second of three preseason games after they pulled off a late comeback to defeat Carolina in Week 1.
You know what that means, right? Roster cuts have already started with the 53-man deadline coming on Aug. 31, which is less than two weeks away.
The Colts started the player-shedding process this week when they waived five players on Tuesday. Five more will come off the board following Week 2 of preseason, so players will be under pressure to perform vs the Vikings on Saturday.
While none of the players on this list are necessarily in danger of getting cut (yet), but they could lose their grip on a starting job if they don’t produce.
These 3 Colts players need to deliver vs the Vikings on Saturday
3. Julién Davenport
It’s currently unclear if Eric Fisher will be ready to Week 1, but fans shouldn’t get their hopes up given he still hasn’t practiced.
That means either one of Sam Tevi, Julién Davenport or Will Holden will have a chance to begin the regular season as the starter. Unfortunately for the Colts, no member of the trio has looked like starting material during camp or the first preseason game.
Julién Davenport has a huge opportunity ahead of him on Saturday with the Colts.
That's the shaky offensive line we've seen most of camp, with Kelly/Nelson/Fisher all out. Will Holden gets beat off the edge and the Panthers get a strip-sack from Eason's blind side. From everything we've seen, Colts' LT situation — at least until Fisher returns — is not good.
— Zak Keefer (@zkeefer) August 15, 2021
Tevi was getting destroyed so consistently at camp that Indy moved him to right tackle against the Panthers. Holden, meanwhile got the start at LT on Sunday, and he got beat on the strip sack of Jacob Eason and was flagged for a false start penalty.
Davenport didn’t look great at left tackle, either, but he played limited snaps as he was activated off the COVID list just days leading up to the game.
In other words, Davenport might be on the longest leash right now. If he holds his own vs the Vikings, he could be in the driver’s seat to win the LT competition.