Roster concerns the Colts must address after trimming down to 53 players
The Indianapolis Colts trimmed their roster down to 53 players on Tuesday but with some concerning areas, this likely isn’t the final roster.
Tuesday was a tough day for the NFL. It was cut day, the day when every team has to trim their roster from 80 to 53 players. This causes a lot of movement throughout the league and leaves many promising players without jobs.
The Indianapolis Colts made their fair share of tough decisions on Tuesday, letting go of established veterans and promising rookies. In the end, Indy was left with a 53-man roster that looks promising but also has some areas of concern. With the season quickly approaching, the Colts will have to attack waivers and free agency, and try to negotiate trades if they want to address the remaining holes on the roster.
The weaknesses of the Colts roster
Overall, Indy’s roster is pretty solid, but there are two position groups where concern remains. It’s the groups that have been under scrutiny since last season: wide receiver and the offensive line. As far as wide receiver, it seems like the group is what it is and Indianapolis is comfortable with it.
Led by Michael Pittman Jr., the young group had somewhat of an inconsistent training camp, but there were a lot of promising moments. The Colts are gambling on that promise and it could pay off. However, a disaster at the wide receiver position is just an injury away for Indy.
The offensive line, on the other hand, has a very strong starting unit. Anchored by Quenton Nelson, Ryan Kelly, and Braden Smith, new starters Matt Pryor and Danny Pinter should be able to jump in and keep the unit stable. The problem is, that this is an incredibly thin group after the top unit. Indy’s initial 53-man roster only has eight offensive linemen.
That puts a lot of stress on the starting unit to stay healthy and perform. If things start getting rocky for one of the starters, the Colts don’t have many directions to look in for help. That’s why if Indy is going to make any more moves before the season starts, it will likely be to get depth on the offensive line.
Aside from the offensive line, and the perpetual concern that is the wide receiver group, the Colts have a roster that they should be comfortable with. There are a ton of talented players and depth at several positions. We’ll see how Indy finalizes the roster as the season approaches.
