The Indianapolis Colts announced on Saturday afternoon that they are elevating safety Ronnie Harrison and defensive end Genard Avery from the practice squad ahead of their Week 2 matchup against the Green Bay Packers.
The Colts decision to elevate Harrison does not come as a surprise with Julian Blackmon already being ruled out. Harrison was just signed to the practice squad on Tuesday.
Without Blackmon on the field, the Colts have two options in how they go about replacing him. They could either move Nick Cross to strong safety, where he saw his share of snaps over the summer, and start Rodney Thomas at free safety. Or the Colts could keep Cross at free safety and start Harrison at strong safety.
The decision to elevate Avery is the more noteworthy of the two moves given that Kwity Paye is listed as questionable. Paye did not practice on Wednesday or Thursday this week with a hamstring injury but did return in a limited capacity on Friday.
The Colts have until 90 minutes before game time on Sunday to decide whether or not Paye can go. Having the option to have Avery available gives them some additional insurance at defensive end depending on Paye’s status.
Avery missed the 2023 season due to a knee injury. The last time he saw regular season snaps was in 2022 with Tampa Bay, playing 72 defensive snaps that season.