Early Colts 53-man roster prediction following the 2023 NFL Draft

With the 2023 NFL Draft over, what might the Indianapolis Colts roster look like in a few months when the season starts? Here’s a 53-man roster prediction.

The Indianapolis Colts brought a total of 27 new players via the NFL Draft and undrafted free agent signings. That is an unprecedented number of rookies that will be competing for a spot on the 53-man roster. After Nick Foles was cut late last week, the Colts now have one of the youngest rosters in the NFL with their oldest player being Luke Rhodes (30).

What could the roster look like with so many rookies? Could Indy see younger players taking a larger role in 2023? If so, Colts fans should probably temper their expectations on this season because it may take some time to get experience for this young roster.

Let’s take a look at what the Week 1 53-man roster could look like for Indianapolis.

Quarterbacks (2)

• Anthony Richardson (R)
• Gardner Minshew

The Colts will likely play Gardner Minshew during parts of this season, but the goal should be to have Anthony Richardson play as much as possible to gain that experience during a low-expectation season.

A dark horse to the quarterback room is still Sam Ehlinger, who could wind up being QB3 through the season until the Colts get Anthony Richardson into a more perminent role. Should Sam end up on the final roster, it won't be long-lived. The Colts have made it very clear that Anthony Richardson is the future of the organization, which leaves very little room for Ehlinger to remain on the team.

After getting starting experience, he could provide serviceable backup experience elsewhere in the league. That is, unless the Colts like him more than Minshew.

Cut: Sam Ehlinger

Running Backs (3)

• Jonathan Taylor
• Evan Hull (R)
• Deon Jackson

The Zack Moss experiment just never really panned out and at the end of the day, the Colts will end up cutting him from the 53-man roster with productive offseasons from both Deon Jackson and Evan Hull. After a productive season from Deon Jackson, who made a big impact last season with injuries to Jonathan Taylor and later on Nyheim Hines (who was traded for Zack Moss and a draft pick), Jackson should make the roster.

Evan Hull was pretty incredible in college at Northwestern and the coaching staff and player personnel are excited for him. Hull is a hard hitting back that doesn't give up and will pair well with Jonathan Taylor.

Cut: Zack Moss, Jake Funk, Darius Hagans (UDFA-R)

Wide Receivers (6)

• Michael Pittman Jr.
• Alec Pierce
• Josh Downs (R)
• Isaiah McKenzie
• Ashton Dulin
• Zavier Scott (UDFA-R)

This is the offseason that finally gets the Colts wide receiver room moving. They finally have a quarterback that can get them the deep ball, so long as they can make seperation. Defenders will need to start doubling Josh Downs by the end of the season, leaving Michael Pittman Jr. and Alec Pierce being single covered on shorter routes.

Zavier Scott is the surprise receiver in this room after going undrafted and beats out fan-favorite Mike Strachan. Unfortunately, Strachan hasn't really had the opportunity and when he does, he never makes the most of it. You'd like to think with a more physical offense that Mike would be able to get the job done, but he's the final man cut in this room. He has the potential replacing Zavier on this list, though— so don't count him fully out.

If there were 54 spots on the roster, Mike Strachan would be on this list.

Cut: Mike Strachan, Ethan Fernea, Johnny King (UFDA-R), Vyncint Smith, Malik Turner, Kody Case (UDFA-R), Tyler Adams (UDFA-R)

Tight Ends (4)

• Kylen Granson
• Jelani Woods
• Will Mallory (R)
• Andrew Ogletree

Indianapolis has drafted three tight ends in two years after Jack Doyle has retired, even with Mo Alie-Cox being on the roster. Mo has not been able to keep up to the standard of play that the Colts would like to see out of the big-man tight end and could be a cap-saving cut at the end of camp. Cutting Alie-Cox would save the Colts $2.92 million against the cap, but would still eat $2.39 million in dead cap this season.

As for the rest, Kylen Granson is going to have to have the largest offseason of his career to prove that he is the starting tight end in this group. Jelani Woods is the exciting tight end in the group that Colts fans would like to see more heavily involved in the passing game. With Richardson, that could very well happen. At the combine, Richardson's throws were a little higher, and that would hit Jelani right in the chest.

Will Mallory is the rookie coming in that could make a difference in the blocking game, something the Colts have been missing since the retirement of Jack Doyle.

Andrew Ogletree gets a chance to stay healthy during camp and hopefully can remain useful on this offense. This is one of the tallest units in the NFL and if Shane Steichen can scheme up this position group, it's going to be hard for defenses to keep up. Especially with the receivers the Colts have now.

Cut: Mo Alie-Cox, Pharaoh Brown

Offensive Line (9)

• LT Bernhard Raimann
• LG Quenton Nelson
• C Ryan Kelly
• RG Emil Ekiyor (UDFA-R)
• RT Braden Smith
• Blake Freeland (R)
• Jake Witt (R)
• Danny Pinter
• Wesley French

With the amount of times some of the depth positions move around the line to fill in for injuries, and just need, this group needed to be added together. This is an offensive unit that is heavily in flux every year. Last season was a really bad year for the line.

Could the Colts finally return to their glory as one of the best units in football next season? Something the organization hasn't seen since the retirement of Anthony Castonzo? That's what new offensive line coach Tony Sparano Jr. is hoping for.

Bernhard Raimann will get the real chance to step up in year two now that he has some games under his belt. The line is getting younger with two draft picks and an undrafted free agent, and they could all end up starting in Week 1.

The Colts are going to be looking at how to improve this offensive line as Ryan Kelly's time with the Colts could be coming to an end. Is his replacement already here in Danny Pinter or will they be drafting for a new center next year? Both Pinter and French provide solid depth on the interior while Blake Freeland and Jake Witt can provide depth on the outside, but that is not ideal to go multiple games like that.

Hopefully, this year the offensive line remains healthy and the Colts have solid production from the unit so that Richardson can make things happen down the field in his rookie season.

Cut: Jordan Murray, Cater O'Donnell, Arlington Hambright, Harris LaChance (R), Will Fries, Dakoda Shepley, Matthew Vanderslice (UDFA-R)

Defensive Tackles (4)

• DeForest Buckner
• Grover Stewart
• Adetomiwa Adebawore (R)
• Eric Johnson

Those are two bad men in the center of the defensive line and that's not changing this season. There were rumors that both DeForest Buckner and Grover Stewart could have been cap casualties or even trade bait, but the rumors were squashed very quickly.

Adding to the line in the draft, the Colts selected Adetomiwa Adebawore and he's loved for his work as a three technique on the line. That's a prime spot on the defensive line that will take some pressure off of aging veteran Buckner.

Eric Johnson is a depth piece here and adding a rotation with an edge rusher could end up working well for this unit. Rookie Caleb Sampson gets close to the final roster, but ends up being cut for Johnson.

Cut: Caleb Sampson, McTelvin Agim, Taven Bryan, Jamal Woods (UDFA-R)

EDGE Rushers (5)

• Samson Ebukam
• Kwity Paye
• Dayo Odeyingbo
• Tyquan Lewis
• Titus Leo (R)

With the big addition of Samson Ebukam this offseason, that really bolsters a defensive unit that plays well against the rush. Hopefully Samson brings a much needed pass rush to help the young secondary. Kwity Paye is a lock as a starter on this roster and Dayo Odeyingbo is coming off a solid second season that could increase in year three.

Tyquan Lewis is on his last leg and if he cannot stay on the field this offseason and during the regular season, he will get cut or just not picked back up next season.

Titus Leo makes an interesting debut for the Colts roster coming from Wagner. A hard-hitting rusher made a huge impact on defense and seems to fit the Chris Ballard mindset. He will beat out UDFA Guy Thomas along with Khalid Kareem and Rashod Berry.

Cut: Rashod Berry, Khalid Kareem, Guy Thomas (UDFA-R)

Linebackers (5)

• Shaquille Leonard
• Zaire Franklin
• E.J. Speed
• Grant Stuard
• JoJo Domann

It's the rise of the Shaq attack this year as All-Pro veteran linebacker Shaquille Leonard is expected to make a huge return on the defense this year. After not resigning Bobby Okereke, the Colts are anticipating the leader of the defense to return to his original form and take control over a defensive unit that was less than spectacular last season.

However, the defense still had a solid year last season, thanks in large part to Zaire Franklin. Franklin stepped up in Leonard’s absence and established himself as a top linebacker in the league. His emergence made it possible for Indy to let Okereke walk in free agency.

Shaq Leonard paired up with Zaire Franklin, the linebacker core should be a solid unit with E.J. Speed rotating in and out. The Colts were expected to draft a linebacker with one of the 12 picks they had, but they didn't. Although they did bring in a few undrafted free agents.

Cut: Liam Anderson (UDFA-R), Cameron McGrone, Donovan Mutin (UDFA-R), Segun Olubi

Cornerbacks (8)

• Isaiah Rodgers Sr.
• JuJu Brents (R)
• Kenny Moore II
• Dallis Flowers
• Darius Rush (R)
• Jaylon Jones (R)
• Kevin Toliver II
• Tony Brown

One of the largest rooms on the team, the Colts have depth for the first time in what seems like a while. After drafting three highly-touted rookies in the draft in JuJu Brents, Darius Rush, and Jaylon Jones, Indianapolis is making this position a priority. Many thought the Colts would go after former Colts cornerback Rock Ya-Sin, but he eventually signed with the Baltimore Ravens after the draft.

JuJu is a hometown hero that was drafted to fit right into a Gus Bradley defense, making a statement in the draft during the second round. Paired opposite of Isaiah Rodgers Sr., this will be great for the Colts secondary.

The real question is whether Kenny Moore II can learn to play man-to-man as well as he plays a zone or not. Still lining up in the nickle, Kenny is one of the best in the league. He doesn't fit a typical Gus Bradley defense, so it's really up to Gus to find a way to utilize Kenny to his full potential.

Cut: Darrell Baker Jr., Cole Coleman (UDFA-R)

Safeties (4)

• Julian Blackmon
• Rodney Thomas II
• Nick Cross
• Marcel Dabo

In a year that Indy expected Nick Cross to step into the limelight and be the safety to replace Khari Willis at his young age, it was Rodney Thomas II that stepped up when needed the most. Rodney has deserved a starting role alongside Julian Blackmon in this defense. The two did really well together last year. His only real miss was a missed interception at the end of the Houston Texans game, but that helped the Colts more than it hurt them.

The missed interception led the Colts to the No. 4 pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, which secured Anthony Richardson.

The secondary is young, but with this infusion of youth, their depth, and skill level, this could be a quick turnaround for a struggling unit.

Cut: Henry Black, Trevor Debnow, Aaron Maddox (UDFA-R), Daniel Scott (R)

Special Teams (3)

• Matt Gay
• Rigoberto Sanchez
• Luke Rhodes

Matt Gay makes his second return in a Colts uniform. The first time was after being signed in the offseason in 2020 and then being cut/added to the practice squad. He was later signed by the Los Angeles Rams in the same season.

Now, he has the biggest free agency deal for a kicker in NFL history and is on the Colts roster, again. The hopes are that he is the solution to the kicking issue in Indianapolis that has been present since the end of Adam Vinatieri's career.

Rigoberto Sanchez will hopefully be back after tearing his achilles last season, which will be a warm welcome. As long as he can stay healthy, he's one of the best punters in the league.

Then you have the oldest player on the roster at long snapper, Luke Rhodes. He's been the long snapper since entering the NFL and should be a solid choice to continue.

Cut: Lucas Havrisik

READ MORE: 3 best moments from Colts draft series