Surprises and Questions from Colts Preseason Depth Chart

The Colts’ cornerback situation is clearly dire, with Juju Brents and Jaylon Jones dealing with hamstring injuries they suffered in practice last week. Steichen told reporters that there “is no timetable for their return,” meaning the defensive backs behind expected starters Kenny Moore II, Charvarius Ward, and Justin Walley in preseason could be in the rotation in Week One.

At boundary cornerback, those players are Samuel Womack III and Johnathan Edwards. Womack appeared in 17 games for the Colts last season and was quite reliable when he was on the field. Many fans assumed the CB2 competition this offseason was mainly between Walley, Brents, and Jones, but some reporters close to the situation are indicating that Womack is strongly in the running for the job.

PFF awarded him the 38th-best grade among cornerbacks in the league last season with a 71.4, and he could definitely be a solid option to include in the rotation if Brents and Jones are out long-term.

Edwards, however, remains an unknown commodity, signed as a UDFA out of Tulane this offseason. He started his college career in the FCS with Indiana State but transferred to Tulane for his senior season. There was some buzz around Edwards during the draft process, as he performed well at the Senior Bowl and has impressive measurements. However, he ended up undrafted, with the Colts bringing him in for training camp.

Edwards has considerable upside in the future, but considering his lack of experience, having him second on the depth chart behind Justin Walley should raise concerns about the depth at the position.

Another question is with the Colts’ wide receiver room. Adonai Mitchell is currently listed as a second-string receiver for Thursday’s game behind Alec Pierce, a disappointing development given the high expectations many had for the Colts' second-round pick in last year’s draft.

Although the group is quite deep, many thought Mitchell to break into the starting lineup in year two. There’s still time for that to happen, but with the positive buzz about his performance so far in training camp, many expected Mitchell to take on a starting role alongside Josh Downs and Michael Pittman.

Lastly, many were surprised to see DJ Giddens, the Colts’ fifth-round pick in this year’s draft, come in at third on the running back depth chart. Many Colts beat reporters have made it seem as if Giddens has locked down the second spot, but it appears that Tyler Goodson still holds onto the role after spending much of the 2024 season rotating in with Trey Sermon.

Based on what Giddens put on tape at Kansas State and the way reporters and the coaching staff have talked about his play over the past weeks, it’s expected that he’ll surpass Goodson for the backup role sooner rather than later. For now, however, it seems he’ll remain the third-stringer.

All of these questions and surprises will likely be explained in the upcoming weeks of preseason, but a few questionable choices remain on the depth chart. Hopefully, Mitchell’s position as the odd man out is due to Pierce’s stellar play rather than Mitchell performing poorly; Giddens’ spot as the third-string running back is because of a lack of experience rather than a lack of talent, and the injuries at cornerback will provide a chance for some depth pieces in the room to shine.

The beauty of the preseason, however, is that these questions will hopefully be answered, at least in part, at 7:30 ET in Baltimore Thursday evening.