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3 Colts players who could breakout this season
Kareem Elgazzar/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK

3 Colts players who could breakout this season

Originally posted on A to Z Sports  |  By Destin Adams  |  Last updated 5/23/24

The Indianapolis Colts have multiple young players on their roster, and the team would improve significantly if they took a huge step forward as players this season. 

And I have three in particular that I'm watching closely as potential breakout players during the Colts 2024-2025 season. 

1. Jelani Woods, TE

The Colts drafted Jelani Woods with the 73rd pick in the 3rd round of the 2022 NFL Draft. Woods caught 25 passes for 312 yards and three touchdowns as a rookie and did so with one of the most chaotic QB rooms in the NFL, with three QBs starting for the team during the year in Matt Ryan, Nick Foles, and even Sam Ehlinger. Woods did most of his damage down the stretch during his rookie season, totaling 18 catches and 233 yards coming between weeks 12 and 18 of his rookie season. Woods missed all of last season with a lingering hamstring injury and, therefore, has hardly worked with the Colts' new offensive coaching staff and head coach Shane Steichen. Woods' ability in the passing game gives him the highest ceiling of any TE on the team's roster. The Colts have been deploying a TE-by-committee approach over the last few seasons, but a major reason for this has been a lack of one player earning the lion's share of the snap count. Woods has the talent to do just and is a player I'll have my eye on closely when the team's training camp begins this summer. 

2. Daniel Scott, S

Most of the Colts' starting jobs seem pretty set in stone, but the team's starting FS job couldn't be more up for grabs. The team hasn't made a significant move at safety this offseason outside of re-signing Julian Blackmon, who is coming off a career season as the team's starting SS. At FS, the Colts also have their starter from last season returning in Rodney Thomas II, but their experience with him as the starter was less than ideal. Thomas II will enter training camp battling with Nick Cross, along with the Colts' 2024 5th-round pick Jaylin Simpson, but there's one other player some people might be forgetting. The Colts drafted Daniel Scott in the 5th round of the 2023 NFL Draft, but sadly, his entire rookie season was lost due to a torn ACL. He was expected to get a shot last year at competing for a job at safety as well as on special teams. Scott is believed to be fully healthy, and multiple people around the team seem very excited for the safety to make his real debut with the team. So, who knows, maybe he's the starting FS this team is looking for. 

3. Will Mallory, TE

Yep, you are reading that right. A second tight end makes this list in second-year TE Will Mallory. Mallory was only used sparingly during his rookie season, ending the year with 18 catches and 207 yards, with him active on game day for 12 games. I said earlier that Woods has the highest ceiling in the Colts TE room, and I meant it, but I think Mallory's ceiling is the 2nd highest. Woods, I mentioned his ability as purely a pass catcher, but Mallory is a bit different. I think his skill set is more balanced, and if he develops, he can impact the offense in multiple ways. I think he showed promise as a blocker, he still needs to be polished there, but he had flashes that impressed me there. But he also flashes in the passing game, with his route running being better than expected, and he can make plays with the ball in his hands after the catch. 

This article first appeared on A to Z Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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