The Indianapolis Colts needed to make moves. Every NFL team did. The problem for Indy was that some of the players they were going to have to part with were once high-round draft selections. The good part is not all were made by the Colts.
As part of the mission to get down to a 53-man roster for 2025, Indianapolis cut ties with former first-round pick wide receiver Laquon Treadwell and second-round pick JuJu Brents. Indy didn't take Treadwell, but the team did choose Brents.
The proverbial writing on the wall was likely obvious to Treadwell when he got a lot of run in preseason Week 3 when the Colts were playing their backups, and QB3 Riley Leonard was starting at quarterback. Treadwell was great in the first half, but he should have been.
Indianapolis Colts reportedly part ways with Laquon Treadwell and JuJu Brents
He was playing against guys like him, who mostly weren't going to make their team's rosters. The receiver caught all of his five targets, including a 59-yard touchdown reception, and maybe that will be enough to land on another team.
His major problems have been that he often gets hurt, seems to be a one-note receiver (go deep or go home), and, with Indianapolis, he had no roster spot. The Colts' six-deep wide receiver group has been known since April, and Treadwell was an outlier.
The cut that hits closer to home, though, might be 2023 second-round selection Juju Brents. He was actually taken by Indy, and the hope is that he will be a long-term starter. Instead, he has appeared in only 11 games in his career, and was struggling with a bad hamstring in training camp and the preseason this year.
Colts released:
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) August 26, 2025
RB Khalil Herbert
CB Chris Lammons
TE Sean McKeon
CB Duke Shelley
WR Laquon Treadwell
DT Josh Tupou
He was far too big a risk to keep around, even if Indianapolis is completely unsure of how its cornerback group will shape up. The team recently signed Xavien Howard and is entertaining the signing of veteran Mike Hilton. Hilton and Howard are well past their primes, but have done more than Brents has ever.
Or, to be truthful, probably ever will. Even when he has played for the Indianapolis Colts, he hasn't been good. Neither has Laquon Treadwell in his entire career. The Indy roster is probably better without Brents or Treadwell on it.