The Indianapolis Colts are done until training camp after finishing minicamp. During organized team activities (OTAs), some of the rookies stood out. This is especially true of safety A.J. Haulcy in terms of getting his potential partner on the back end of Indy's defense, Cam Bynum, to be impressed.
Haulcy obviously took the smart path in how to acclimate to his new team and which veteran to attach himself to. He wasn't going to learn from afar. The rookie was going to sit next to Bynum in meetings and soak up what the high-performing player taught him.
Speaking to the media after minicamp ended, Bynum said, "First day of practice, he had a one-hand, snag pick on an over route. Snatched it out the air. What's he's been doing so far learning the defense, sitting next to me in film, I'm able to get a lot of knowledge from him and vice versa; I'm able to give whatever I can to him...AJ's been doing a really good job filling in, and rotating in with heavy, heavy rotating with the 1s...He's operating like a vet."
Indianapolis Colts rookie AJ Haulcy making a believer out of Cam Bynum
Of course, turning minicamp and even training camp success into production and efficiency in real games are different things. Haulcy might stand out in practice, but when facing opposing teams might get lost at times. He will make mistakes as all rookies do.
Still, what he gives the Colts more than Nick Cross, who left in free agency, is brilliance in coverage. Cross was good against the run, but could be burned by receivers. Haulcy, at least in college, took the ball away while also keeping the other team from scoring. He is likely a much better, well-rounded safety than Cross.
The other player with a real chance of playing next to Bynum at safety is Hunter Wohler. Wolher was impressive in his first minicamp and training camp, too, but a Lisfranc ended his rookie season last year before the real games began. The team cannot really know what they would get from Wohler against teams wearing a different uniform than the Colts.
Plus, Indianapolis was clearly more sold on Haulcy in the 2026 draft than they were on Wohler in 2025. The former was a third-round choice. The latter was a seventh-round pick. That matters more than it might first appear.
What is obvious by mid-June is that AJ Haulcy is making the kind of impression that every rookie wants to. He is hoping the coaching staff is impressed, but he knows the veterans are. Bynum would have a built-in trust with Haulcy stemming from OTAs.
For the Indianapolis Colts to make the playoffs this coming season, something they seemingly must do or risk great changes to the team, the defense has to be a lot better. That means better health from cornerbacks Sauce Gardner and Charvarius Ward, as well as defensive lineman DeForest Buckner, but it also must mean rookies such as Haulcy play well nearly immediately.
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