If it wasn't clear before that the Indianapolis Colts reportedly agreed to terms with veteran edge rusher Carl Lawson on Wednesday that the team is run differently; the Lawson deal proves it. Head coach Shane Steichen is supposed to oversee the entire team, but the defense firmly belongs to Lou Anarumo.
Anarumo was hired to be the team's defensive coordinator in 2025, and must have been given the freedom to do as he sees fit with the unit, with little input from Steichen. What seemingly makes this clear is that Indianapolis has signed many former Cincinnati Bengals who played under Anarumo when the DC was in Cincy.
Lawson has had some productive seasons, but he has also been injured a lot. He played in only one game last season with the Baltimore Ravens and just six with the New York Jets in 2023. He did manage to appear in 15 games with the Dallas Cowboys in 2024, and he had five sacks that season. In 2022, he had seven with the Jets.
Indianapolis Colts are turning into the Cincinnati Colts after signing Carl Lawson
In other words, Lawson should be able to help a struggling Colts pass rush, at least in terms of not getting consistent pressure, but he has to stay healthy. He shouldn't have any issues acclimating to Anarumo's scheme, but the edge rusher played under Anarumo from 2019 through 2020 with the Bengals.
In those years, Lawson played both linebacker and defensive end, and had 10.5 total sacks and 54 quarterback hits. That was quite a long time ago, of course (the last time Lawson played for the Bengals was the last season the Colts made the playoffs), but Lawson should be able to be productive quickly, as long as he is elevated from the practice squad.
Lawson will start there first, according to the Indy Star's Nathan Brown, and try to get in true football shape before playing real downs for the Colts. That might happen quickly, however.
Besides Lawson, the list of former Bengals that Anarumo has likely talked general manager Chris Ballard into signing in the last two seasons is long, and not overly good.
The players include Mike Hilton, Germaine Pratt, Joe Bachie, Josh Tupou, Akeem Davis-Gaither, and Cam Taylor-Britt. Hilton, Pratt, and Bachie didn't last long. Davis-Gaither is currently the green dot on Anarumo's defense and has been solid, if not spectacular.
The interesting part is that the Colts keep adding former Anarumo Bengals and hoping they work out, but most don't. There is a diagnosis for doing the same things over and over and expecting different results. Still, maybe Carl Lawson will turn out differently. He is 31 years old, young enough to help the pass rush, as long as he doesn't get hurt quickly.
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