Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
The Colts waive five more players.
The Indianapolis Colts waived five more players following the 2023 NFL draft, the team announced Thursday.
After opening the week by waiving four players, the Colts continue to make room for their massive 12-man draft class. They also have a pretty big undrafted rookie free agent class coming in.
Here are the five players who were waived Thursday:
Here’s a look at how the signing of Pharaoh Brown impacts the TE depth chart.
Free agency acquisitions are an ongoing process for the Indianapolis Colts, particularly on the offensive side of the ball.
The team ranked near the bottom of the league in multiple categories as the 2022 season ended, leaving many to wonder how general manager Chris Ballard would remedy that.
Eight offensive players have been claimed or signed, including the most recent addition in tight end Pharaoh Brown. Brown brings veteran experience and blocking skills to the tight end room.
This is what the Colts’ tight end depth chart looks like:
TE1: Mo Alie-Cox
TE2: Kylen Granson
TE3: Jelani Woods
TE4: Andrew Ogletree
Backups competing for a roster spot: Nikola Kalinic, Jalen Wydermyer, Pharaoh Brown
It’s reasonable to assume Brown will not overtake anyone for starting reps, but he would be decent depth, and his blocking skills could prove essential as the initial roster takes shape on the road to September.
It’s important to remember the team could also want to keep Brown as an insurance option for Drew Ogletree, who is returning from injury and will likely need a measured return to football.
Finally, with Mo Alie-Cox potentially on the trade block, the team is taking no chances on having players to fill its tight end room.
Keep up to date with the latest news, signings and rumors through our free agency tracker for the Colts.
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The Colts signed 12 players to futures contracts.
The Indianapolis Colts signed 12 players to Reserve/Futures contracts, the team announced Monday.
As is typical protocol following the end of the regular season, the Colts will be preparing to expand their roster to 90 players for the offseason. Much of that includes signing players to futures contracts.
The expansion of the roster to 90 players doesn’t go into effect until the start of the new league year, which is March 15. That’s why it’s technically a reserve contract. This is essentially stating the player will be on the 90-man roster when the time comes.
There is no limit to how many futures contracts the Colts have as long as they are within the 90-man limit when the new league year rolls around.
Here’s a look at the 12 players signed to futures contracts to begin the offseason:
The Colts added a WR and a TE to the practice squad Monday.
The Indianapolis Colts signed tight end Jalen Wydermyer and wide receiver Vyncent Smith to the practice squad and released tight end Nakia Griffin-Stewart from the practice squad, the team announced Monday.
Wydermyer was a top tight end prospect early in the 2022 NFL draft process but wound up going undrafted mostly due to his extremely subpar testing numbers. The Texas A&M product recorded 118 receptions for 1,468 yards and 16 touchdowns across three seasons.
Smith went undrafted in 2018 out of Limestone, spending two seasons with the Houston Texans. In his career, he has 23 receptions for 329 yards and one touchdown.
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The Browns have brought in six young guys for a tryout including Dohnovan West and Jalen Wydermyer
The Cleveland Browns are still tinkering with the bottom of their roster and practice squad, even with the Atlanta Falcons right in front of them, as they tried out six players today. While they have yet to sign anyone, this is a sign they are open to the continued strategy of churning the bottom of their roster.
The six names are tight ends Darrell Daniels and Jalen Wydermyer, defensive backs J.R. Reed and Jalen Elliott, and interior offensive linemen Jordan Meredith and Dohnovan West. The headliners include Wydermyer, a rookie out of Texas A&M who was once viewed as a first rounder before drop issues riddled his tape and he bottomed out with his testing numbers, and West, who went mysteriously undrafted after putting together solid tape at Arizona State.
This is at the very least an indication of the position groups the Browns feel most uneasy about the depth at. Especially given the plethora of injuries they have suffered since their Thursday night win over the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Browns worked out Darrell Daniels, Jalen Elliott, Jordan Meredith, J.R. Reed, Dohnovan West Jalen Wydermyer @jalenwydermyer
— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) September 30, 2022
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The Colts held a workout for LB Tae Davis and TE Jalen Wydermyer on Friday.
The Indianapolis Colts held a workout for free-agent linebacker Tae Davis and tight end Jalen Wydermyer on Friday, according to the league’s transaction wire.
This is likely the front office keeping an eye on potential practice squad additions rather than something to be alarmed about going into Week 3.
Davis entered the NFL as an undrafted rookie free agent in 2018, spending time with the New York Giants (2018-2019), Cleveland Browns (2019-2020), Houston Texans (2021) and Las Vegas Raiders (2022).
In 40 career games (five starts), Davis has recorded 52 tackles (40 solo), 2.0 sacks, two tackles for loss and five quarterback hits.
Wydermyer entered the league as an undrafted rookie free agent following the 2022 NFL draft. He initially signed with the Buffalo Bills but also spent a short time with the New England Patriots.
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Multiple preseason fan favorites were back at practice on Wednesday.
There were plenty of familiar faces back at practice after initially being cut by the New England Patriots on Tuesday.
Like the rest of the league, the Patriots went through the tough process of trimming their rosters down to 53 players. On Wednesday, many of the players on the cut list went on waivers with the chance of being claimed by another team.
The Patriots were fortunate that tight end Devin Asiasi was their only former player that got claimed on waivers. So that paved the way for a slew of fan favorites to return, including Lil’Jordan Humphrey, Tre Nixon, J.J. Taylor and LaBryan Ray.
Even veteran cornerback Terrance Mitchell was spotted at practice.
Others present: CB Terrance Mitchell, RB J.J. Taylor, RB Kevin Harris, WR Lil’Jordan Humphrey, WR Tre Nixon, TE Matt Sokol, TE Jalen Wydermyer, OL James Ferentz OL Kody Russey, OL Bill Murray, DL LaBryan Ray, DL Jeremiah Pharms, LB Cameron McGrone LB Harvey Langi, S Brad Hawkins
— Andrew Callahan (@_AndrewCallahan) August 31, 2022
There was also a reported “mystery lineman” wearing a No. 68 jersey. Could it be Drew Desjarlais?
*Unless Desjarlais is the mystery O-lineman wearing No. 68. He was 61 this summer.
— Zack Cox (@ZackCoxNESN) August 31, 2022
The Patriots will lean on some of their practice squad talent to fill roles at certain points throughout the season for a team that currently has more questions than answers.
At the very least, there are several players within the group that showed they were up for the challenge during the preseason slate.
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Patriots make a move at tight end.
The New England Patriots are signing former Buffalo Bills tight end Jalen Wydermyer to a deal.
Pro Football Network’s Aaron Wilson reported the news on Thursday.
Patriots are signing former Bills and Texas A&M tight end Jalen Wydermyer, per a league source @PFN365
— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) August 18, 2022
Wydermyer is listed at 6-foot-4, 255 pounds, which is a perfect prototypical size for an NFL tight end. He tested poorly at his pro day, seeing him fall out of the 2022 NFL draft, which led to the former Texas A&M standout signing with the Bills as an undrafted rookie free agent.
The Patriots saw Hunter Henry go down with an injury this week, and the severity is unclear. So this signing could be an indication of his status.
Wydermyer will compete with Devin Asiasi, Dalton Keene, and Matt Sokol for the projected third and final tight end spot.
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Jalen Wydermyer to sign with the Buffalo Bills
The NFL draft is over, and despite a highly productive career at Texas A&M, former Aggies Tight End Jalen Wydermyer went undrafted. A poor pre-draft athletic testing process caused a major shock to Wydermyers draft stock, and ultimately he didn’t hear his name called over the weekend.
But shortly after the draft, sources began reporting that Wydermyer would be signing with the Buffalo Bills as an undrafted free agent.
The road to NFL success is difficult for any undrafted free agent, but Wydermyer will have the opportunity to join a great offense in Buffalo, and will get to catch passes from quarterback Josh Allen.
If his play in Buffalo reflects his play in college station and not his performance in shorts at the combine, he’ll have a great shot to make the regular season roster.
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2022 NFL draft: Which A&M players are waiting to hear their name called?
The first day and first round of the 2022 NFL draft are officially over, with 32 men hearing their names called and ready to start their professional football careers. For Texas A&M, offensive lineman Kenyon Green became the first of hopefully a number of Aggies drafted, selected 15th overall by the Houston Texans, staying close to home and looking to make an impact right away.
With seven other Aggies looking to be drafted on day two and day three, teams will be eyeing areas of need to supplement their rosters, and with this being one of the more talented A&M draft classes, teams will be getting a steal in later rounds, as we see every year after the first round concludes. Let’s see who’s left before the second and third rounds begin.
