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Indianapolis Colts waive CB Dallis Flowers following Jaguars game

Following the team’s loss to the Jaguars, the Colts’ announced that they’ve waived cornerback Dallis Flowers.

The Indianapolis Colts announced on Monday that they have waived cornerback Dallis Flowers.

Flowers will go on waivers, and if unclaimed, he will become a free agent free to sign where he chooses.

Coming off an Achilles injury in 2023 that limited him to only four games, Flowers hasn’t been able to regain that form we saw last year prior to the injury.

What was thought to be one of the bigger positional battles during training camp between him and Jaylon Jones never materialized.

Then, with JuJu Brents placed on injured reserve after Week 1, Flowers and Sam Womack split snaps across from Jones in Weeks 2 and 3, but in the two most recent games, Womack has seen the bulk of that playing time.

Over 58 coverage snaps this season, Flowers has allowed five completions on five targets, giving up a hefty 22.2 yards per catch. He was also responsible for the 85-yard Brian Thomas touchdown in Sunday’s game against Jacksonville.

In regards to filling Flowers’ spot on the 53-man roster, the Colts could look to make an outside addition–although at this time of the year, I’m not sure who that would even be. Or they could sign one of Kelvin Joseph, Gregory Junior, Jaylin Simpson, or David Long–who has been elevated to the game-day roster the last two weeks–from the practice squad.

GM Chris Ballard was banking on the development of his young cornerback room this season to help elevate the play of this position group but outside of Jaylon Jones, that hasn’t happened. Brents is on IR, while Flowers, Darrell Baker, Jaylin Simpson, and Micah Abraham were all waived, with Simpson returning to the practice squad.

Fortunately, the addition of Womack during roster cutdowns has helped provide a bit of stability to this unit.

(This article was updated with additional information.)

Will Colts CBs Sam Womack and Dallis Flowers split playing time again?

Without JuJu Brents, will Colts cornerback Sam Womack and Dallis Flowers split playing time again this week?

With JuJu Brents sidelined, the Indianapolis Colts utilized both Samuel Womack and Dallis Flowers in his absence against the Green Bay Packers. Will that rotation continue in Week 2?

With Brents on injured reserve, the depth of the Colts already thin cornerback room was going to be put to the test. When in nickel, Kenny Moore would man the slot and Jaylon Jones one of the boundary positions. When in their 4-3 base defense, Moore moves to the boundary position opposite of Jones.

However, that boundary position opposite of Jones is where playing time is now available. This past week, Womack would get the start, but he and Flowers played an almost equal amount of snaps, with Womack on the field for 20 and Flowers on the field for 19.

With the Packers relying so heavily on the run game–rushing the ball 53 times–neither player was tested in coverage.

Flowers finished the game with no targets and one tackle. The same for Womack.

So in terms of trying to decipher who might have separated himself, from the outside looking in, that’s not easy to do. And given the small sample size along with the unique nature of last week’s game, perhaps neither player did, which could mean we see the Flowers and Womack splitting playing time against his week.

This approach gives each player an opportunity to see playing time while also easing both Flowers and Womack in. Flowers is still looking to regain his form following an Achilles injury in 2023 and Womack has only been with the team for a few weeks after being claimed on waivers following roster cuts.

Even with the Colts run game woes, it’s almost a given that the secondary will see more action this week–again, we don’t often see a team running the ball for 53 plays in a game.

While the Chicago passing offense has struggled to get going, they are loaded with talent at the receiver position with DJ Moore, Rome Odunze, and Keenan Allen–who is on the injury report this week–along with Caleb Williams at quarterback.

Cornerback, and the secondary in general, was a big question mark for the Colts coming into the season and still remains one, especially without Brents.

With JuJu Brents out, who starts at CB for Colts?

With JuJu Brents on injured reserve, who will now start at cornerback for the Colts in his place?

The Indianapolis Colts announced on Tuesday that they placed cornerback JuJu Brents on injured reserve with a knee injury, that is potentially season-ending.

So now the question becomes, who will start at cornerback opposite of Jaylon Jones?

Along with Jones and Kenny Moore, the other three cornerbacks on the 53-man roster are Dallis Flowers, Sam Womack, and Chris Lammons. The decision likely comes down to either Flowers or Womack, with Lammons being a slot only option.

Flowers was initially competing with Jones for playing time during the offseason and into training camp. It was a competition, however, that Jones gained control of quickly and never let go.

Flowers 2023 season was cut short due to an Achilles injury and he is still trying to regain his past form. In the Colts’ preseason opener, Flowers allowed four receptions on six targets for 54 yards and was penalized twice. He did perform better in the final two games.

“I know for him he didn’t play as good as he wanted to,” said Gus Bradley after that first preseason game. “But we kind of anticipated there might be some different looks that he might have to get accustomed to just coming back off this injury. So I think that’s a good start for him. We know where he’s at. He knows where he’s at and the progress he has to make.”

For what it’s worth, Flowers was a healthy scratch in the team’s opener against Houston, with defensive coordinator Gus Bradley saying that was a special teams decision.

Womack, meanwhile, has been with the Colts for just over two weeks after being claimed on waivers following roster cutdowns.

He was going to spend the bulk of his time in the nickel, but he comes to the Colts having boundary experience, which the defense may need to rely on given how thin they are at the cornerback position.

Womack had a strong preseason with the 49ers. As far as the regular season goes, he’s played just 216 defensive snaps over two seasons.

On the practice squad, the Colts have four boundary cornerbacks in David Long, Jaylin Simpson, Ameer Speed, and Kelvin Joseph. But at least for this first game without Brents, one would think it will be either Flowers or Womack.

The Colts are back on the practice field Wednesday, which should perhaps provide us with some insight based upon who the early defensive starters are.

For a draft and develop team like the Colts are under GM Chris Ballard, it’s not all that surprising that he wanted to give Brents and Jones the opportunity to continue developing–and that only comes with time and live reps.

However, the depth of this position group was always in question after an offseason where the only additions made came on Day 3 of the draft. Now, that depth is very much going to be put to the test.

Colts’ CB Dallis Flowers returns to practice Wednesday ahead of matchup vs. Texans

The Colts were back on the practice field Wednesday ahead of their Week 1 matchup versus Houston and so was CB Dallis Flowers.

The Indianapolis Colts were back on the practice field Wednesday ahead of their Week 1 matchup with the Houston Texans and so was cornerback Dallis Flowers.

https://twitter.com/RomeovilleKid/status/1831354583844593724

Flowers missed some practice time last week while dealing with a hamstring injury. When the full injury report is released later this afternoon, we will see in what capacity Flowers practice and whether or not he was limited.

Coming off an Achilles injury in 2023 that limited Flowers’ season to only four games, he was competing with Jaylon Jones for a starting boundary cornerback position. This was a competition, however, that Jones took control of quickly and never let go of.

Flowers would play 85 defensive snaps over the Colts’ three preseason games. He had a rough debut, allowing four receptions on six targets for 54 yards with two penalties as well.

“I know for him he didn’t play as good as he wanted to,” said Gus Bradley. “But we kind of anticipated there might be some different looks that he might have to get accustomed to just coming back off this injury. So I think that’s a good start for him. We know where he’s at. He knows where he’s at and the progress he has to make.”

However, shaking the rust off, he bounced back over the next two games allowing just two total completions for 18 yards with no penalties.

Flowers will begin the season as a backup cornerback–a position for the Colts where there are more questions than answers right now, and that goes for both the starting boundary cornerbacks as well as the depth.

It’s going to be a tough test right out of the gate for this Colts’ secondary. They open the season against Houston, who at receiver have Stefon Diggs, Nico Collins, and Tank Dell.

Then in Week 2, the Colts travel to Green Bay to face the Packers, who have Jordan Love at quarterback and cast of six wide receivers, with the offense more than willing to rely on all of them.

What Colts’ DC Gus Bradley said about CB Dallis Flowers’ performance vs. Broncos

Colts’ defensive coordinator Gus Bradley was asked on Tuesday about the performance of CB Dallis Flowers in the team’s preseason opener.

Sunday’s preseason opener for the Indianapolis Colts was the first time that cornerback Dallis Flowers had been back on the field in a game since Week 4 of last season when he suffered an Achilles injury.

With that, there was some rust in his return, which didn’t necessarily catch defensive coordinator Gus Bradley by surprise.

“Although we said in OTAs that last 5 percent, or the last 10 percent is what he needs to work on,” said Bradley on Tuesday. “So we kind of anticipated that there would be some spots where he was just getting acclimated to the speed of the game again.”

With JuJu Brents sidelined for Sunday’s game, Flowers got the start at cornerback opposite of Jaylon Jones, who he is competing with for playing time.

Flowers would end up on the field for 38 snaps and would make five total tackles, according to PFF. However, in coverage, he was thrown at six times, allowing four completions at 13.5 yards per catch with no pass breakups. Flowers was also penalized twice.

“I know for him he didn’t play as good as he wanted to,” added Bradley. “But we kind of anticipated there might be some different looks that he might have to get accustomed to just coming back off this injury. So I think that’s a good start for him. We know where he’s at. He knows where he’s at and the progress he has to make.”

With Brents locked into one of the starting boundary cornerback positions, Flowers and Jones are competing for the spot opposite of him–although going back to OTAs and through three weeks of training camp, Jones has seen the bulk of those starting snaps.

Jones would surrender an early 14 yard completion on Sunday but forced a pass breakup when he was targeted a second time, and now looks even further entrenched as one of the Colts’ starting cornerbacks.

If Flowers is going to make any sort of push for that role, it will have to happen over the next few days with the Colts having two joint practices and a preseason game with Arizona.

Colts’ training camp: What does the CB competition look like after 5 practices?

With the Colts are five training camp practices in, where does the cornerback competition currently stand?

The Indianapolis Colts are five training camp practices in, and the competition at cornerback is looking very similar to what it was during OTAs and minicamps.

Before training camp began, GM Chris Ballard highlighted the key positional battles that will be taking place this summer. When describing the cornerback position, he mentioned that the only certainty was that Kenny Moore would be starting. Beyond that, everything else was up for grabs.

However, based on the reports that we’ve heard so far, as was the case during offseason programs, JuJu Brents appears to be locked into one of those starting boundary roles.

As far as the starting spot opposite of him, Kevin Bowen of 107.5 The Fan noted that Jaylon Jones appears to be ahead of Dallis Flowers, which again, was the case during offseason programs.

Jones, a seventh-round pick by the Colts in 2023, ended up seeing significant playing time as a rookie with Brents dealing with injuries and Flowers sustaining a season-ending Achilles injury early in the year. As noted on the Colts’ team site, Jones played at least 60 percent of the defensive snaps over the final 13 games.

In coverage, Jones would allow a completion rate of 54 percent on 57 targets, and held pass-catchers to just 10.6 yards per catch, limiting big plays, while coming away with five pass breakups.

“He had some up and down moments,” general manager Chris Ballard said, “but I thought he played really well for the most part.”

Before Flowers season ended, he allowed 11 completions on 18 targets at only 10.5 yards per catch with three pass breakups.

“I thought he was really impressive up until that injury,” said defensive coordinator Gus Bradley after the draft. “He did some good things. He’s got that maturity. Very driven. Knows what he wants and is pretty focused on that; you see him in these walkthroughs.”

Just because Jones seems to have the early leg up in this competition doesn’t mean that things can’t change. Ballard would also mention that this positional battle could extend into the first month of the season. How each of these players performs in the joint practices and preseason games will carry weight as well.

The Colts’ secondary play last season was very up and down, in part due to needing to rely heavily on a few inexperienced players. However, with valuable experience gained and another year of being in the same system, improved play is the expectation.

While there are question marks about this position group on the outside, internally the Colts seem to be quite bullish, given that no outside free agent additions were made and the only additions in the draft came on Day 3.

“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.”

Colts’ training camp roster preview: CB Dallis Flowers

Next up in our Indianapolis Colts’ training camp roster preview is a look at what’s potentially ahead for cornerback Dallis Flowers.

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 cornerback Dallis Flowers. To stay up to date with our other previews, be sure to head over to Colts Wire.

2023 Season Review

A 2022 undrafted rookie who signed with the Colts, Flowers took on a much larger role during his second NFL season, starting at cornerback. Unfortunately, Flowers season was ended in Week 4 due to an Achilles injury.

Prior to that, Flowers had allowed 11 completions on 18 targets, holding pass-catchers to 10.5 yards per reception. He would also force three pass breakups and handled kick return duties as well.

2024 Season Preview

Flowers is healthy and was a full participant during OTAs and minicamp. The cornerback unit last season would struggle, fighting inconsistency as they relied heavily on inexperienced players. Flowers return will be an important part of providing stability to that group.

“I think getting Dallis Flowers back will help,” said Ballard. “I think, looking back on it, when I made that statement, the injury part of it played into it, and then we gave him (Gus Bradley) a bunch of rookies. Well now, they’re no longer rookies anymore. Jaylon Jones is no longer a rookie. JuJu (Brents) is no longer a rookie. Dallis Flowers we’re hoping to get back healthy.”

Gus Bradley would say earlier this offseason that, outside of Kenny More, the starting cornerback spots were “wide open.” However, JuJu Brents appears to be locked into one of those starting spots.

Opposite of him are Flowers and Jaylon Jones competing for that playing time. In the early going of offseason programs, it was Jones getting those starting reps over Flowers, but any final decisions won’t be made until training camp takes place, the pads come on, and the intensity is kicked up a few notches.

With the addition of Anthony Gould in the draft, who can provide some added playmaking to the return team, Flowers may not be asked to fill that role this season, but brings valuable depth to the return units if needed.

PFF projects Colts’ starting lineup on defense for 2024 season

Pro Football Focus put together it’s starting defensive lineup project for the Indianapolis Colts. Here is what stood out.

Pro Football Focus projected the starting lineup for each NFL team for the upcoming 2024 season. Here is who they believe will be starting on the defensive side of the ball come Week 1 for the Indianapolis Colts.

DI: DeForest Buckner
DI: Grover Stewart
Edge: Samson Ebukam
Edge: Kwity Paye
Edge: Laiatu Latu
LB: Zaire Franklin
LB: EJ Speed
CB: JuJu Brents
CB: Dallis Flowers
CB: Kenny Moore
S: Julian Blackmon
S: Nick Cross

Similarly to the offensive side of the football, this lineup, for the most part, is what you’d expect for a Colts team that saw very little roster turnover during the offseason. However, there are two position groups that do stand out.

The first is at cornerback with Dallis Flowers named the starter opposite of JuJu Brents. If this is how things play out, I don’t think anyone would be surprised. Flowers was the starter for four games last season prior to his injury, allowing just 10.5 yards per catch, recording three pass breakups, and holding quarterbacks to a passer rating under 100.0.

However, while it is still very early and there is a long way to go before any starting spots are finalized, during OTAs, it has been Jaylon Jones starting at cornerback over Flowers.

Safety is the other position that caught my attention, specifically Nick Cross starting next to Julian Blackmon. Again, as was the case with Flowers, if this is how things play out, I doubt many will be surprised, but this will be one of the more intriguing training camp battles this summer.

Competing with Cross will be Rodney Thomas, who has played almost 1,700 snaps the last two seasons but is coming off a down year, and Daniel Scott, a 2023 draft pick by the Colts whose rookie season never got going due to injury.

The Colts have had Cross taking some snaps at strong safety in the past, but with Blackmon returning for the 2024 season, it is the free safety role that needs to be filled. In the early going, Cross has been a defensive starter over Thomas and Scott, with defensive coordinator Gus Bradley believing the free safety spot suits his skill set well.

“I think Nick, we tried him at strong, and he can play strong,” said Bradley after the draft, “but I think even looking back at him at college, when he sees things top down, his comfort level and his speed picks up. He’s in a pretty good mindset now. It’ll just play out, and we will see what we come up with.”

Lastly, I’ll also mention that with the addition of Laiatu Latu, it is Dayo Odeyingbo who PFF has getting squeezed out as the potential fourth member of the defensive end rotation. Now, having said that, we know that the Colts want to have a hockey-like rotation along the defensive front, so Odeyingbo will still see plenty of playing time.

However, it also goes to show why there is potential uncertainty around his future with the team next offseason as Odeyingbo enters the final year of his contract. If he truly ends up being the fourth member of the rotation, could he earn a larger contract elsewhere in free agency?

PFF projects Dallis Flowers to start at CB for Colts

PFF put together its starting lineup projection for the Indianapolis Colts and it featured Dallis Flowers starting at cornerback.

At least one starting cornerback spot is up for grabs this summer with the Indianapolis Colts, and PFF believes that it will be Dallis Flowers who is lining up across from JuJu Brents come Week 1.

The secondary as a whole is one of the bigger unknowns on this Colts team heading into the upcoming season. In short, last year there were too many big plays given up and not enough plays on the ball being made.

However, internally, the Colts seem quite bullish on their cornerback room. The only outside additions made this offseason came in the fifth and sixth rounds of the NFL Draft. GM Chris Ballard says that he expects improved play this season, in part because of the experience that this young room gained in 2023 but also because Flowers will be back.

Flowers’ 2023 season was, unfortunately, cut short due to an Achilles injury. In the four games he played, Flowers allowed 11 completions on 18 targets and surrendered just 10.5 yards per catch. He forced three pass breakups and held quarterbacks to a passer rating of under 100.0.

Competing with Flowers for that starting spot will be Jaylon Jones and possibly Darrell Baker and Jaylin Simpson.

While it’s still very early and a lot can change once training camp arrives and the intensity is cranked up a few notches, throughout OTAs, it was Jones who was starting opposite of Brents, not Flowers.

Although interceptions are great, and the Colts do need more of them, Gus Bradley has said that, ultimately, it will be day-to-day consistency that determines who will be starting at cornerback this season.

“All of these guys are extremely competitive,” added Bradley. “They get along great, but you can tell they all have a sense of, ‘Hey, there’s some opportunities right here, and we’ve got to be on it.’ And the big thing for us is you got to make plays, but the consistency.

“We have a veteran group up front. We have a veteran group at the linebacker spot, and the big thing with them is you’ve got to be able to trust. I love everybody, but you’ve got to be able to trust the guy next to you, and that’s what they need to make sure they possess that trust when they’re on the field.”

Colts CB Dallis Flowers participating in OTAs following 2023 Achilles injury

With OTAs underway, Colts’ CB Dallis Flowers was back on the practice field after missing most of the 2023 season with an Achilles injury.

In addition to quarterback Anthony Richardson being back on the practice field, the Indianapolis Colts also had tight end Jelani Woods and cornerback Dallis Flowers back out there, according to The Athletic’s James Boyd.

Flowers’ 2023 season was limited to only four games after he suffered an Achilles injury that ended his season against the Los Angeles Rams.

Prior to his injury, Flowers had allowed 11 receptions on 18 targets while holding opponents to just 10.5 yards per catch while totaling three pass breakups.

The cornerback position is one of the bigger unknowns on this Colts’ team heading into the summer. This was an inexperienced group last season that, in short, gave up too many big plays while not making enough plays on the football.

Following the draft, Bradley said that outside of Kenny Moore being in the slot, the two starting boundary cornerback positions were ‘wide open,’ and day-to-day consistency would be a key factor in determining who the starters are.

However, despite the uncertainty, the only outside additions that the Colts made to the cornerback room came in the fifth and sixth rounds of the NFL Draft when they selected Jaylin Simpson and Micah Abraham.

Internally, the Colts appear to be bullish on this position group. GM Chris Ballard expects improved play from this unit in 2024, and the two catalysts behind that are the experience that this young cornerback room gained last season and the return of Flowers.

“I think getting Dallis Flowers back will help,” said Ballard before the draft. “I think, looking back on it, when I made that statement, the injury part of it played into it, and then we gave him a bunch of rookies. Well now, they’re no longer rookies anymore. Jaylon Jones is no longer a rookie. JuJu (Brents) is no longer a rookie. Dallis Flowers we’re hoping to get back healthy.”

Also competing for playing time will be JuJu Brents, who PFF picked to be the Colts’ breakout player, Jaylon Jones, Darrell Baker, and Simpson. While things may be ‘wide open,’ as Bradley said, it also sounds like Flowers is going to play a key role in bringing some needed stability to this position.