Following the news that a pair of defensive backs would be opting out of the 2020 season due to COVID-19 concerns, the Indianapolis Colts went out in free agency to sign veteran safety Tavon Wilson.
After spending the majority of his career with the Patriots and Lions, the 30-year-old Wilson now joins the Colts as a depth piece in the safety room. While he’s still getting acclimated, it hasn’t taken long for him to take on a leadership role.
Linebacker Anthony Walker Jr. sees similar traits when looking back at another veteran safety who joined the team during the 2018 season.
“He reminds me a lot of Mike Mitchell – a savvy veteran, a guy who understands the game to the smallest detail. Definitely happy to have him in our locker room right now. A lot of the young guys are learning from him, but he’s a playmaker as well,” Walker told reporters Wednesday. “He can go out there and a guy that – he almost had 100 tackles last year, which we told him he won’t be reaching this year (laughing). Just to have a guy like that on our team now is very exciting.”
After safety Rolan Milligan opted out of the season, the Colts had to make a move. Third-round pick Julian Blackmon is still on the Non-Football Injury list as he recovers from a torn ACL in December. He might not make an impact until October at the earliest.
This led the Colts to bring in Wilson, who comes with a solid pedigree of production both on defense and on special teams. Being a depth player, Wilson as an asset on special teams will be huge.
It will be interesting to see what the Colts decide to do with Wilson once Blackmon is ready to return. They haven’t kept five safeties on the active roster since Chris Ballard took over in 2017. With an enlarged practice squad, the Colts have more options but it still warrants a decision.
The Colts need more leadership in the secondary with a young unit. They added Xavier Rhodes, but Wilson could find himself taking on a leadership role more often as the season approaches.