Tag: Al-Quadin Muhammad

Colts activate 3 players from COVID-19 list among slew of roster moves

The Colts made a slew of roster moves, including the activation of 3 players from the COVID-19 list.

The Indianapolis Colts activated three players from the reserve/COVID-19 list, the team announced Friday.

The three players who remained on the list were cornerback Xavier Rhodes, defensive end Al-Quadin Muhammad and offensive tackle Julién Davenport.

Rhodes and Muhammad were among the first players to be placed on the reserve list when camp opened in late July. They haven’t logged a practice to date. Davenport was put on the list a day or two after practice started at the Grand Park Sports Campus in Westfield.

The Colts no longer have any players on the reserve/COVID-19 list as it stands.

Rhodes should be put right back in as CB1 on the boundary while Muhammad will have to compete in the defensive end room, which won’t be as easy with Ben Banogu and others showing out. Davenport is likely to join the left tackle competition alongside Will Holden and Sam Tevi.

The Colts also announced Friday that they placed wide receiver J.J. Nelson on the injured reserve list, and they waived safety Rolan Milligan and quarterback Jalen Morton.

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Colts’ 2021 training camp preview: Defensive end

Previewing the DE group ahead of Colts training camp.

The Indianapolis Colts report for training camp in less than a week with rookies reporting on Saturday, and one of the rookies will be looking to make a major impact in 2021.

The Colts let both of their defensive end starters walk in free agency. Justin Houston is still on the market while Denico Autry signed with the Tennessee Titans. With the additions of some depth free agents and a couple of draft picks, the Colts are banking on their young edge rushers to make an impact.

As training camp approaches, here’s our preview for the defensive end position:

7 Colts whose jobs are in jeopardy in 2021

Which jobs are in jeopardy this offseason?

The Indianapolis Colts have gotten through the 2021 NFL draft and are now focused on the process of trimming down the roster to 53 players over the next few months.

The majority of those decisions won’t be impacted until training camp begins. The Colts have their offseason workouts but the jobs are hardly secured then. Though most starting jobs are already locked up, there are some players on the current roster who may be on notice following the offseason moves.

Here are seven Colts whose jobs are in jeopardy this offseason:

Colts to re-sign DE Al-Quadin Muhammad

Al-Quadin Muhammad is coming back.

The Indianapolis Colts are re-signing defensive end Al-Quadin Muhammad to a one-year deal, per Adam Schefter of ESPN.

With Muhammad back, the Colts are likely entering the draft with a very young group of unproven pass rushers. But adding Muhammad does give them a bit more depth in the room given what he’s done for the Colts over the last three years.

Muhammad has held a rotational role for the Colts on the edge since they claimed him off of waivers ahead of the 2018 season. In 2020, Muhammad recorded 2.0 sacks while playing 56% of snaps.

Muhammad joins Ben Banogu, Kemoko Turay, Tyquan Lewis and Isaac Rochell on the defensive line and will likely be competing for snaps if and when the Colts use a relatively early pick on an edge rusher.

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4 former Saints to watch out for in free agency

Former New Orleans Saints players like Dan Arnold, Al-Quadin Muhammad, Willie Snead, and Alex Okafor will test free agency in 2021.

Things didn’t work out for these players in their first stint in New Orleans. Whether the depth chart was overcrowded or they hadn’t yet begun to reach their potential, they ended up on the outs and had to start fresh with another team.

But now they’re hitting free agency, and happen to fill positions of need for the Saints. Could a reunion be in the works? Or would the Saints rather look in a different direction? With little salary cap space to work with, maybe prominent roles in a familiar system can help the Saints make better offers to some free agents than others.

Here are a couple of names to know before the action kicks off in Monday’s legal tampering period.

Colts injury report: DE Al-Quadin Muhammad downgraded to DNP

Thursday’s injury report.

The Indianapolis Colts (10-4) released their injury report Thursday ahead of the Week 16 matchup with the Pittsburgh Steelers (11-3), and it seems one of their defensive ends is trending in the wrong direction.

After starting the week with a limited tag on Wednesday’s injury report, defensive end Al-Quadin Muhammad was downgraded to a DNP tag, which means his status for Sunday’s game is officially in doubt.

Here’s a look at Thursday’s injury report for the Colts:

*DNP = Did Not Participate — LP = Limited Participant — FP = Full Participant*

Name Position Injury Wed. Thur. Fri. Status
Denico Autry DE/DT Rest DNP FP
DeForest Buckner DT Ankle DNP LP
Trey Burton TE Rest DNP FP
Anthony Castonzo OT Knee DNP LP
Justin Houston DE Rest DNP FP
Marcus Johnson WR Quad DNP DNP
Philip Rivers QB Toe DNP FP
Mo Alie-Cox TE Knee LP FP
Al-Quadin Muhammad DE Ankle LP DNP
Quenton Nelson OL Back LP FP
Jack Doyle TE Quad — DNP

Notes

  • Muhammad will definitely need to be monitored entering the weekend. Logging a practice might be necessary for him to play on Sunday.
  • DT DeForest Buckner, QB Philip Rivers and LT Anthony Castonzo all returned to practice on Thursday. They should be expected to play barring a change.
  • TE Jack Doyle popped up on the injury report Thursday with a quad injury so he will need to be monitored as well. If he can’t go, Mo Alie-Cox and Trey Burton will see bigger roles.

The Colts have one more practice on Friday before the injury designations are released for the weekend.

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Colts’ Al-Quadin Muhammad fined $10,500 for unnecessary roughness

Al-Quadin Muhammad slapped with a fine.

Indianapolis Colts defensive end Al-Quadin Muhamamd was fined $10,500 by the league on Saturday for unnecessary roughness during the Week 10 game against the Tennessee Titans.

The unnecessary roughness call led to Muhammad’s ejection late in the fourth quarter of the game. Muhammad punched Titans offensive tackle Ty Sambrailio with just a few minutes left in the game when the Colts were up 34-17.

Head coach Frank Reich said after the game that he didn’t see what happened but also said the team doesn’t condone Muhammad’s action.

“I asked the official afterwards about the play what happened, he said something about somebody getting hit on the head,” Reich said after the Thursday night game. “I wasn’t able to see it.”

Muhammad avoided a suspension, which was expected, and will be available for the Colts on Sunday against the Green Bay Packers. With Denico Autry on the reserve/COVID-19 list, Muhammad should see an increased role.

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Colts injury report: 5 players listed as DNP

Here is Thursday’s injury report.

The Indianapolis Colts (6-3) saw their injury report get longer on Thursday ahead of the Week 11 game against the Green Bay Packers (7-2) at Lucas Oil Stadium.

While the Colts got a few members of their secondary to return to practice, and it seems Jack Doyle could be ready to return, there is a situation unfolding in which four defensive linemen missed practice.

Here’s a look at the injury report for the Colts on Thursday:

*DNP = Did Not Participate — LP = Limited Participant — FP = Full Participant*

Name Position Injury Wed. Thur. Fri. Status
Trey Burton TE Rest DNP FP
Jack Doyle TE Concussion DNP FP
Justin Houston DE Rest DNP FP
Kenny Moore II CB Ribs DNP LP
Khari Willis S Ribs DNP FP
Mo Alie-Cox TE Knee LP LP
Julian Blackmon S Pelvis/Knee LP FP
Kemoko Turay DE Ankle LP LP
Denico Autry DE Illness — DNP
Tyquan Lewis DE Not Injury Related — DNP
Al-Quadin Muhammad DE Not Injury Related — DNP
Grover Stewart DT Not Injury Related — DNP
Noah Togiai TE Knee — DNP
Braden Smith OT Thumb — LP

With Autry out due to an illness and three other defensive linemen being listed as non-injured players, there is a chance the Colts are dealing with a potential COVID-19 situation. That is pure speculation, especially since no players were placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list on Thursday, per the league’s transaction wire.

The destinations will be released on Friday and if this continues to be an issues, the Colts may be down several key players against one of the league’s best offenses.

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Stock up, Stock down from Colts’ 24-10 loss to Ravens

Stock report from the Week 9 loss.

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The Indianapolis Colts (5-3) were defeated 24-10 by the Baltimore Ravens (6-2) in Week 9 at Lucas Oil Stadium.

As it is with every game, some players saw their stock get impacted by the result of the matchup. Some players will see an increase in their stock. Some will be on the other side of the coin where their stock has fallen for whatever reason.

It is important to remember that the stock in a player is fluid. It can change from week to week or it can continue on the path or trend it is following.

Here’s the stock report for the Colts from the Week 9 loss to the Ravens:

2017 Saints draft class ranked second-best in hindsight

The New Orleans Saints had a terrific 2017 NFL Draft class, but the Kansas City Chiefs outranked them by picking coveted QB Patrick Mahomes.

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The New Orleans Saints hit a series of home runs in the 2017 NFL Draft, landing instant upgrades at key positions like cornerback (with Marshon Lattimore), offensive tackle (in Ryan Ramczyk), free safety (Marcus Williams), and running back (Alvin Kamara). That sudden influx of young, high-end talent reshaped a roster that had gone 7-9 three years in a row into a squad that’s won 13 games in each of the last two seasons.

However, The Athletic’s Dane Brugler ranked just one other team ahead of them in reflection on that year’s crop of college prospects: the Kansas City Chiefs, who bagged Patrick Mahomes one slot ahead of the Saints. Mahomes, of course, was the player Saints coach Sean Payton famously coveted the most and could have (would have, and maybe should have) transitioned to from Drew Brees.

But let’s not lose sight of the positives here. Brugler had to dig all the way into the sixth round to find a swing-and-a-miss for the Saints in 2017, and that year’s final draft pick, Al-Quadin Muhammad, has earned his spot in the Indianapolis Colts lineup. Muhammad has logged 400-plus snaps in both of the last two years, racking up 13 tackles for loss, 11 quarterback hits, and 3 sacks. The Saints were simply too stacked for him to hang around.

The challenge now, of course, is paying all of these big names now that their rookie contracts are expiring. The Saints bought themselves some time by triggering the fifth-year options for Lattimore and Ramczyk as soon as NFL rules allowed them to, tying them to the team through 2021. But Kamara and Williams should each end up ranking among the top earners at their respective positions. Will the Saints be the ones to pay them?

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