The Indianapolis Colts do not appear overly concerned that they have no real proven playmakers at linebacker beyond Zaire Franklin. If it wasn’t already obvious before their Week two game against Denver, that matchup confirmed that defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo trusts Franklin and Joe Bachie and...no one else.
Since Indianapolis runs a base defense with just two linebackers on the field, that is sustainable as long as both men stay healthy and Bachie, who has served as a special teamer throughout much of his career, continues his adequate play.
When the situation dictates, another player moves into a traditional third linebacker spot; that player has been strong safety Nick Cross. He performed quite well in that capacity against Denver, so perhaps there is no urgency to make changes to the roster. However, that assumes several things that are not certain.
Should the Colts be proactive in addressing the linebacker position?
First and foremost, it assumes that both Franklin and Bachie remain healthy. It seems that every year, the league witnesses more and more injuries earlier and earlier. This year is no exception. The Colts have already suffered concerning losses in the secondary, but have been able to get by.
They are also awaiting the return of linebacker Jaylon Carlies, who was slated to be Franklin’s counterpart this year after the departure of EJ Speed.
The threat of injury is particularly concerning given the lack of proven experience Indy has behind its top two linebackers. The recently signed Chad Muma has started seven games over his three-plus years in the NFL.
That makes him the most experienced of the backups. Cameron McGrone, Segun Olubi, and Austin Ajiake have two starts between them. Along with Muma, the four current depth linebackers have made a total of 154 tackles in the NFL.
In his career, Ben Niemann has made 160 tackles.
Niemann is an experienced veteran who is currently available. Last week, someone on this site proposed that the Colts address this potential hole by signing Ja’whuan Bentley, a quality run stopper who was a team captain in New England. The Pittsburgh Steelers apparently thought that was a pretty good idea and signed Bentley earlier this week.
Niemann is the next man up for teams that need a reliable, versatile linebacker. Niemann’s career has been marked by outworking his limitations. He has decent size and speed, but is an average athlete at best. Still, he has carved out a seven-year career by turning himself into a jack-of-all-trades.
After making the Kansas City Chiefs as an undrafted free agent, Niemann played well enough to get a shot with Arizona in 2022. By that point, he had developed to the point of producing his best year, starting nine games and recording 70 tackles. He has bounced from Denver to Detroit since then, primarily as a backup and special teamer.
In a sense, he is another version of Bachie, who came from the Bengals along with Anarumo and earned his starting spot because he knew the defense better than the younger backups already in-house.
McGrone did not play well against Denver. He was on the field for just eight defensive snaps. Muma was out there for two. That could be because he is still getting up to speed, and perhaps he will take on a greater role in the weeks ahead. That is one of the unknown questions. As for Olubi and Ajiake, they appear to be pigeonholed as special teamers right now.
Ben Niemann would be insurance. Were he to come to town and end up playing a lot of defensive snaps, it would be because one of the starters got injured. But if that were to happen, he would be more of a proven commodity than anyone currently on the roster.
If Muma settles in...If Carlies returns soon...if Franklin and Bachie stay healthy...That’s a lot of ifs. The Colts are off to a fast start in 2025. It would be a shame to risk further success because they didn’t plug a few seemingly minor holes with low-risk answers. At this point, that’s what Ben Niemann could be for Indy.