Colts Should Consider Signing Former Fourth-Round Pick 

At some point this offseason, the Indianapolis Colts must address the linebacker position. Signing former fourth-round pick Kyzir White would be a good move. ESPN’s Bill Barnwell listed the Colts as an “ideal land spot” for the Arizona Cardinals free agent.

“Once a safety, White can be a tweener in some NFL defenses, which might see him as more of a weakside linebacker than the middle linebacker role he played in Arizona over the past two seasons,” Barnwell wrote. “He’s fun! White makes a ton of tackles; his 11.9% tackle share last season ranked 16th in the league, an impressive figure given that Budda Baker ranked third by the same metric. White’s missed tackle rate was reasonable (5.5%), and he had 2.5 sacks and eight knockdowns as a blitzer.”

The Colts own the 14th overall pick in this year’s NFL Draft. With that pick, they could wind up selecting Alabama linebacker Jihaad Campbell. But even if that’s the case, they’ll still need to add as much linebacker depth as possible.

Colts Should Consider Signing Free Agent Linebacker Kyzir White

His Career Thus Far

Kyzir White played college football with the West Virginia Mountaineers. He was named to the Second-Team All-Big 12 in 2017.

The Los Angeles Chargers drafted White in the fourth round of the 2018 NFL Draft. During the 2021 season, he recorded a career-high 144 tackles with two forced fumbles and a pair of interceptions.

After four seasons in Los Angeles, White signed with the Philadelphia Eagles in March 2022. He helped the Eagles reach the Super Bowl during his lone season in Philadelphia. White recorded four tackles in the Super Bowl LVII loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. 

White then signed with the Arizona Cardinals in 2023. He started all 17 games last season, producing 137 tackles and 2.5 sacks.

Why the Colts Should Sign Him

Linebacker E.J. Speed is currently a free agent and isn’t expected to re-sign with the Colts this offseason. Plus, the team lost fellow free agent Grant Stuard to the Detroit Lions. That means the Colts certainly need help at the linebacker position to replace those two.

Kyzir White isn’t a superstar by any stretch of the imagination. However, the veteran is a good blitzer and has recorded 7.5 sacks over the last five years. He has also had over 100 tackles in three of the past four seasons. White is known as a hard-nosed linebacker who could bring much-needed physicality to the middle of the Colts’ defense.

Zaire Franklin finally made the Pro Bowl last season with the Colts. The former seventh-round pick had 173 combined tackles (11 tackles for loss), and 3.5 sacks in 2024. If the team lands White, he, Franklin, and Jaylon Carlies could form a respectable linebacker room in 2025.

Colts general manager Chris Ballard has done a great job this offseason, bolstering the team’s secondary. He signed cornerback Charvarius Ward and safety Camryn Bynum on Day One of free agency. While Kyzir White’s signing wouldn’t be as exciting as the Ward and Bynum pickups, he would surely help out the Colts’ defense which could be much-improved next season.