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 defensive tackle Jonah Laulu. To stay up to date with our other previews, be sure to head over to Colts Wire.
2023 Season Review
Laulu was the Colts’ seventh-round selection in this past April’s draft. At this stage of the draft positional need often takes a back seat and instead teams are focused on identifying players with a trait or two that the organization believes can be developed.
When it comes to Laulu, his two standout traits are his athleticism and versatility. During the pre-draft process, Laulu posted an elite Relative Athletic Score (RAS) of 9.62, which included a 4.96-second 40-yard dash.
Spending three seasons at Hawaii and the last two at Oklahoma, Laulu played up and down the defensive front, which included 1,080 career snaps lining up as a traditional edge rusher and over 800 snaps along the interior.
During his most recent season, Laulu spent the majority of his snaps lined up in the B-gap, according to PFF, and graded out well against the run by PFF’s metrics, while recording 22 pressures and one sack. Laulu is also a very experienced special teams player with 889 career college snaps.
For a closer look at Laulu’s game, here is what NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein had to say in his pre-draft scouting report:
“Interior defender with below-average mass but outstanding athletic traits. With loose and explosive hips, Laulu has rare fluidity and closing burst to the football. He springs into blockers off the snap and has the ability to become a more disruptive run defender, but he lacks ideal instincts and diagnosis quickness. Laulu’s rush production is nothing special, but it is easy to see the ingredients are all on the table if a team can help craft his hands and counters. Laulu’s potential and traits will make him a coveted addition as a late pick or priority free agent.”
2024 Season Preview
Last year along the defensive line, the Colts kept 10 players on their initial 53-man roster, with six of them being defensive tackles. However, with Laiatu Latu, Kwity Paye, Samson Ebukam, Dayo Odeyingbo, and Tyquan Lewis at defensive end, the Colts might have to go lighter at the tackle position this year.
If the Colts roster just nine defensive linemen in total, that could mean only four true defensive tackles are on the roster with just one roster spot up for grabs behind DeForest Buckner, Grover Stewart, and Raekwon Davis. Rostering only four defensive tackles would certainly be going light, but we’ve seen Odeyingbo and Lewis both take snaps inside, which could bolster that rotation’s depth.
If the Colts again roster 10 defensive linemen, that could mean keeping five defensive tackles, resulting in two roster spots being available this summer.
For Laulu, he will be competing for one of those roster spots. Being a recent draft pick may be a small advantage for him, but as a seventh-round selection, a roster spot isn’t guaranteed.
Laulu will be competing with other recent draft picks, which include 2023 fourth-round pick Adtomiwa Adebawore and 2022 fifth-round pick Eric Johnson. Also returning is Taven Bryan, who could find more success this year in a more pass-rush specific role with the addition of Davis.
As is the case for any back-end of the roster player at this position group, Laulu showcasing his ability on special teams and against the run, where teams could always use more help, will be important when it comes to standing out.
“Jonah is an interesting guy,” said GM Chris Ballard after the draft. “He was a four-year guy at Hawaii, two years at Oklahoma. He was a defensive end that they kicked inside this year as a 3-technique, and you finally saw his talent come to life. He needs some work and some development, but excited to get him.”