Veterans and rookies for the Indianapolis Colts will report for training camp on July 24th, with the first practice taking place on July 25th.
Between now and then I will be previewing the Colts’ 91-man roster with a look back at each player’s 2023 season, along with what’s ahead for 2024.
I’ll be going through the Colts’ roster alphabetically, so up next is wide receiver Ethan Fernea. To stay up to date with our other previews, be sure to head over to Colts Wire.
2023 Season Review
A 2022 undrafted rookie out of UCLA, Fernea is entering his third season with the Colts, having spent the majority of his time on the practice squad. Last season, Fernea saw two snaps on offense and 27 on special teams.
At UCLA, Fernea was listed as a running back, according to PFF, carrying the ball 12 times for 84 yards in his career. He would catch eight passes for 155 yards and two scores, while playing a whopping 718 special teams snaps.
Fernea is listed at 6-0 – 195 pounds and posted a RAS of 5.91 coming out of college.
2024 Season Preview
As I’ve discussed before with other receivers in this preview, with Adonai Mitchell and Anthony Gould joining a position group that already featured Michael Pittman, Josh Downs, and Alec Pierce, this room has gotten quite crowded.
If the Colts do decide to keep a sixth receiver–which may not be a guarantee, given that nearly 96 percent of their snaps in 2023 came with three or fewer receivers on the field–one would assume that Ashton Dulin will be the favorite to win that role with his special teams experience and the reliable presence he can add to the offense if the Colts are in a pinch.
For Fernea, this means that the practice squad may again be the the likely landing spot. As is the case for any back-end of the roster player, special teams contributions will be vital. With that said, now in his third season with the team, I’m sure the Colts are hoping to continue seeing strides offensively as well.