General manager Chris Ballard and head coach Shane Steichen must have looked at the Indianapolis Colts' cornerback room at the beginning of August and thought, "We can do better." The problem is, the team has moved from players they should have kept or added ones they shouldn't have added.
Veteran Xavien Howard was signed off the streets after missing 2024 with an injury. His former team, the Miami Dolphins, decided they didn't want to try bringing him back, so Howard took his time and signed with a desperate team. The Colts were that team.
But that was just the beginning of things. One of the last moves the team made before the 2025 roster was announced was to release Chris Lammons. Lammons had been pretty terrific in training camp and the preseason, and could be counted on when the rest of the CB group was getting hurt.
Indianapolis Colts make the wrong decision by releasing Chris Lammons
The backup cornerback has been in the league since 2019 and hasn't been trusted to be a full-time starter, but that's fine. Each team needs depth, and until preseason Week 3, Lammons was lights out in coverage this preseason. He lacks elite athleticism but has veteran smarts and could help the team in 2025.
This is especially true as the team lost rookie sensation Justin Walley to a knee injury ahead of the season, and there is definitely no guarantee that Howard or the recently acquired Mekhi Blackmon will actually be good. Lammons was solid, if unspectacular.
But the Indianapolis Colts have made a number of odd moves ahead of the season. Besides naming New York Giants first-round bust Daniel Jones as the starter ahead of Anthony Richardson, the team's late cornerback decisions might make the beginning of the season fairly rough.
But we can discard the notion that Indy is trying to "tank" the season in hopes of getting a high draft pick in 2026. That is unfair to players, and overall, the Colts' roster is pretty good. Instead, Ballard and Steichen are making gambles that might not pay off. Just don't blame the players if they don't.