At least from the outside looking in, the Colts’ cornerback room will be one of the biggest unknowns about this team entering training camp. However, internally, the Colts appear bullish about the group that they have.
It’s not as if the uncertainty around this position is new, it’s been there all offseason. But even so, the only outside additions that were made at cornerback came late in the draft when the Colts selected Jaylin Simpson and Micah Abraham in the fifth and sixth rounds–telling us that there is confidence in the group that was already on the roster.
“I think all those guys, obviously, we drafted two young guys, but I think with Jaylon Jones, Dallis, and JuJu, they’re long, rangy guys that are physical when they get up and press,” said Shane Steichen during minicamp.
“They got good vision. I love those guys. It’s a good room. A good competition there. It’s going to be a good competition, obviously, in minicamp and OTAs, but going into training camp is going to be big for all those guys.”
As Steichen highlights, the skill sets are there. Now, what the Colts need is for that to translate to consistency on the football field.
The Colts cornerback room was hit with injuries last season. JuJu Brents was behind from the get-go after missing offseason programs and part of training camp with an injury. He then appeared in only nine regular season games. Dallis Flowers would appear in only four games after suffering an Achilles injury.
This was a young and inexperienced group, which resulted in inconsistent play. The Colts, as a secondary, would rank in the bottom third in both yards per pass attempt allowed and pass deflections. In short, too many big plays were surrendered and not enough plays on the ball were made.
However, as GM Chris Ballard noted earlier this offseason, improved play is the expectation for this group with Brents and Flowers both healthy, along with the experience gained over the last year being the two catalysts behind that.
Defensive coordinator Gus Bradley would call the battle for the two boundary cornerback spots “wide open,” although it appears Brents has a firm grasp on one of those positions, with Jaylon Jones getting the starting reps over Flowers throughout OTAs and minicamp.
Ultimately, this positional battle won’t fully work itself out until training camp takes place and the pads come on. But as Bradley would also mention, day-to-day consistency will be the deciding factor in whose starting come Week 1.