The free safety position remains a major question mark for this Colts’ defense. In an effort to provide some needed stability to that role, the team may look into moving Julian Blackmon from the strong safety spot to the free safety position, according to ESPN’s Stephen Holder.
During Friday’s practice, Blackmon came away with his second interception of the week. However, unlike his first takeaway, Blackmon’s second came as the deep safety. After practice, Holder asked Shane Steichen about the potential move, with Steichen confirming that they are looking into this.
“Coach Shane Steichen confirmed they’re looking at that as a possible move,” Holder posted on X.
Blackmon has experience playing free safety. In fact, that’s where the bulk of his playing time came from prior to 2023. But last year, he made the move to strong safety and put together a career year.
By PFF’s run-stop rate metric, Blackmon was one of the best at the safety position and a very sound tackler. In coverage, he came away with four interceptions and two pass breakups, with opposing quarterbacks having a passer rating of just 57.5 when targeting him.
“It just fits my role better, it fits my personality better,” Blackmon said earlier this offseason via Colts.com. “I’m more of a talkative person, I like to be around the ball and I like the take the ball away, and so that strong safety position in this defense, specifically, is more of that role. For me, it was kind of easy to move over there and start making those plays.”
After Nick Cross and Rodney Thomas shared the first-team reps at free safety during offseason programs, the Colts introduced Ronnie Harrison to the mix at the start of training camp.
Since then, Harrison and Cross have both been taking snaps with the starters, according to The Athletic’s James’ Boyd, while Thomas appears to be the third option at the moment. However, at least from the outside looking in, the Colts still seem to have more questions than answers when it comes to this position.
If the Colts do intend to play Blackmon at free safety, then Harrison perhaps becomes the front-runner for the strong safety role. Last season with the Colts, he played linebacker, and before that, had spent the previous few seasons as a strong safety. The Colts also used Cross in the strong safety role when he first entered the NFL.
As far as making an outside addition goes, GM Chris Ballard didn’t rule that out as a possibility, however, it didn’t sound like a move was imminent either, with him wanting to see how this positional battle unfolded first.
“We like our young players,” said Ballard last week. “I’m not saying we won’t do something. We definitely could. But I want to see these young guys get after it and compete.”