On Wednesday morning, the Indianapolis Colts announced that they signed veteran tight end Kaden Smith, adding him to a deep tight end room.
The Indianapolis Colts recently announced that they waived undrafted guard Harris LaChance, and signed veteran tight end Kaden Smith. Smith, a 6-foot-5, 249-pound tight end, has been in the NFL since being drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the sixth round of the 2019 NFL Draft. Despite being drafted by the 49ers, he never played with them, being waived before his rookie season.
Luckily, Smith was claimed by the New York Giants, and that’s where he has played all of the games in his career. Smith’s rookie season was, by far, his best year, playing in just nine games but catching 31 passes for 268 yards and three touchdowns. Since then, his numbers have declined each season.
In 2020, Smith played in 15 games but only caught 18 passes for 112 yards. In 2021, he caught three passes for 33 yards but was limited to just nine games after a knee injury forced him to injured reserve. Kaden Smith didn’t play last season after being waived by the Giants for a failed physical, presumably for the knee injury that sidelined him in 2021.
However, Smith is just 26 years old and he will now join an Indianapolis Colts team that already has a pretty deep tight end room.
Colts tight end room is crowded with the addition of Kaden Smith
This move caught everyone off guard because Indianapolis already has a ton of tight ends, young and promising ones at that. Currently on the roster, Indy has Mo Alie-Cox, Kylen Granson, Jelani Woods, Andrew Ogletree, Pharaoh Brown, Will Mallory, and now Kaden Smith. Of those seven tight ends, four have been in the NFL for three years or less.
As they all fight to make Indy’s final roster, it will certainly be competitive. They've all shown promising flashes, but the Colts certainly won’t be able to keep them all. The tight ends that emerge as the top options will likely be the consistent ones that are also quality blockers.