Colts Sign Former Browns, Eagles Starting Defender

The Indianapolis Colts announced on Thursday that they signed free agent defensive end Genard Avery and waived running back Darius Hagans.

Avery (6'0", 250, 28 years old) was originally drafted in the fifth round (No. 150 overall) of the 2018 NFL Draft by the Cleveland Browns out of Memphis, where he was a two-time all-conference defender. He has also spent time with the Philadelphia Eagles (2019-21), Pittsburgh Steelers (2022), and Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2022).

In 62 career games (17 starts), Avery has amassed 106 tackles (12 for loss), 8.5 sacks, 29 quarterback hits, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovered, and 5 pass breakups. Most recently with Tampa in 2022, Avery played in nine games and totaled 5 tackles (1 for loss), 1.0 sack, and 5 quarterback hits. 

Along with seeing action on defense (261.6 snaps per season), Avery has played a key special teams role throughout his career, averaging 117.4 special teams snaps per season.

Avery joins a Colts defensive end group featuring Kwity Paye, Samson Ebukam, Dayo Odeyingbo, Tyquan Lewis, Khalid Kareem, Rashod Berry, and Titus Leo.

Hagans was signed by the Colts as an undrafted free agent following the 2023 NFL Draft. The Colts now have Jonathan Taylor, Zack Moss, Deon Jackson, Evan Hull, and Jake Funk at running back.