Colts Sign LB Sean Spence
The Colts have signed free agent inside linebacker Sean Spence. To make room on the roster, Indy placed tackle/guard Denzelle Good on injured reserve. 
Spence signed with the Colts as an unrestricted free agent in March but missed the initial cut down to 53. Less than two weeks later, he’s back with the team. The Colts already paid out Spence’s $750K guarantee, but his new deal likely has no guarantees, making him a week-to-week player. Spence also auditioned for the 49ers earlier this week before circling back to the Colts.
Last year, Spence played in 15 games (six starts) for the Titans and set career highs with 77 tackles, four tackles for loss, three sacks, three passes defensed, and one forced fumble. He finished third on the team in tackles.
Last year, the Colts ranked 32nd in DVOA against the run in 2016 and placed 31st in DVOA against opposing tight ends. With some improved depth at linebacker, they’re hoping to turn that around.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 9/12/17
Tuesday’s practice squad moves…
Baltimore Ravens
- Signed: QB Josh Woodrum
- Cut: TE Ryan Malleck
Buffalo Bills
- Signed: WR Malachi Dupre
- Cut: WR Daikiel Shorts
Chicago Bears
- Signed: WR Mario Alford
Indianapolis Colts
- Signed: LB Johnathan Calvin, WR Devin Lucien
- Cut: WR Fred Brown, S Ronald Martin
Kansas City Chiefs
- Signed: DL Rickey Hatley
New Orleans Saints
- Signed: RB Daniel Lasco
Oakland Raiders
- Signed: LB Max Valles
Philadelphia Eagles
- Signed: T Victor Salako, CB De’Vante Bausby
- Cut: CB C.J. Smith, WR Greg Ward
San Francisco 49ers
- Signed: DB Jarnor Jones
- Cut: LB Ben Boulware
Seattle Seahawks
- Cut: WR Kenny Lawler, OT Jarron Jones
Tennessee Titans
- Signed: TE Tim Semisch, OL Cody Wichmann
- Cut: TE Jerome Cunningham, OL Steven Moore
Colts To Sign Matt Jones To Practice Squad
Despite being cut after less than a week with the Colts, Matt Jones will stay in Indianapolis. The former Redskins starter agreed to sign with the Colts’ practice squad, Mike Garafolo of NFL.com tweets.
This move would not have been possible as recently as a few years ago, with Jones having played in 20 regular-season games. But practice squad eligibility has expanded, via the practice squad exception rule for which Jones qualifies as a player with fewer than three accrued NFL seasons, leaving the Colts the option to attempt to develop Jones on their taxi squad.
The Redskins cut Jones last week after having benched him midway through last season. The former third-round pick, though, averaged 4.6 yards per carry in 99 attempts last season.
Indianapolis houses three running backs on its active roster, with Robert Turbin and rookie Marlon Mack stationed behind Frank Gore on the depth chart. With the Colts not previously employing a running back on their practice squad, Jones now becomes the team’s No. 4 back.
The Colts cut outside linebacker Garrett Sickels from their practice squad, Mike Chappell of IndySportsCentral.com tweets.
Andrew Luck To Miss Week 2
The Colts have already ruled out Andrew Luck for Sunday’s game against the Cardinals, coach Chuck Pagano told reporters on Monday. Pagano added that he does not know if the quarterback will be able to practice this week, further casting doubt on when he will be able to take the field again. 
Scott Tolzien got the start in Week 1 in place of Luck and it was not pretty. Tolzien is now 0-3-1 as a starter in his career after going 9-of-18 on passing attempts for 128 yards with two interceptions. He was also sacked four times behind the Ryan Kelly-less offensive line.
The Colts benched the veteran in favor of recently-acquired QB Jacoby Brissett in the fourth quarter and he ran a successful drive for a touchdown. Although the TD was ultimately meaningless, Brissett’s ability to lead the offense down the field versus Tolzien’s struggles cannot be overlooked. Pagano indicated that the team will consider starting Brissett over Tolzien against Arizona.
Both the Colts and Cardinals will be without their best offensive players when they meet. Arizona learned on Monday that running back David Johnson will be sidelined for an extended period due to his wrist injury.
Andrew Luck Expected To Miss Several More Weeks
- La Canfora writes that Colts QB Andrew Luck will miss several more weeks as he continues to recover from recover from offseason shoulder surgery. That is consistent with reports from earlier this week suggesting that Luck could be on the sidelines until sometime in October. Per La Canfora, Luck is expected to practice sooner rather than later and the plan is for him to ramp up his throwing regimen shortly. Indianapolis, of course, does not want to rush the face of its franchise, but if Luck cannot suit up for a few more weeks — and it would be unfair to expect him to perform to the best of his abilities immediately upon returning to the field — it is fair to wonder whether the Colts have any chance at a postseason push in 2017.
Minor NFL Transactions: 9/9/17
Here are the today’s minor moves.
- With a ruptured Achilles’ tendon set to end Eric Berry‘s season, the Chiefs officially placed the eighth-year safety on IR Saturday. The team also signed offensive lineman Jordan Devey and safety Steven Terrell. Both Devey and Terrell went to training camp with Kansas City. The Chiefs cut both last weekend. Terrell started in five games as Earl Thomas‘ replacement with the Seahawks last season.
- The Colts cut safety Earl Wolff with an injury settlement, Adam Caplan of ESPN.com tweets. A 2013 fifth-round Eagles pick, Wolff hasn’t played in a regular-season game since 2014. The Redskins signed Wolff to a reserve/futures deal in January but waived him earlier this month.
- To fill Matt Jones‘ roster spot, the Colts promoted guard Adam Redmond from their practice squad. Redmond signed with the Colts as a UDFA in 2016. He’ll join Deyshawn Bond as a center option for the team, which will be without starter Ryan Kelly to start the season.
- For now, the Broncos won’t go with a two-Peko setup on their defensive line. They waived defensive tackle Kyle Peko, Nicki Jhabvala of the Denver Post tweets. The Broncos signed Domata Peko to be their starting nose tackle and have until Sunday afternoon to replace his cousin on the roster in advance of their Monday-night game. Kyle Peko missed time this summer because of an injury.
- The Lions signed offensive lineman Storm Norton off their practice squad and waived linebacker Nick Bellore, Michael Rothstein of ESPN.com reports. Rothstein adds this news could mean tackle Corey Robinson — brought off the PUP list last week — may not be ready to play in Week 1. Robinson missed the preseason with an injury.
- The Saints released outside linebacker Bryan Braman off IR with an injury settlement, Caplan reports (on Twitter).
Colts Waive RB Matt Jones
Matt Jones‘ tenure with the Colts has already come to an end. Less than a week after claiming him from the Redskins, Indy announced this morning that they’ve waived the running back. The team has promoted guard Adam Redmond from the practice squad to take the open roster spot.
Jones was waived by Washington last week, and he was subsequently claimed by the Colts. The fit made sense for Indianapolis; the team was relying on a 34-year-old starting running back in Frank Gore, and backups Robert Turbin and Marlon Mack aren’t the most intriguing options. However, it appears as if the team is content heading into the regular season with the trip of running backs.
Jones had shown promise with the Redskins, rushing for 490 yards and compiling 304 receiving yards in 2015. However, he took a step back in 2016, compiling 460 rushing yards in seven games. By the end of the season, he was behind Robert Kelley and Chris Thompson on the depth chart. While he owns a modest 3.9-yards-per-carry mark during his career, Jones has had issues taking care of the ball, compiling eight fumbles in two seasons. As Ian Rapoport tweets, the Bears attempted to claim Jones last week, so they might bite on the 24-year-old.
Redmond, a 2016 undrafted free agent out of Harvard, spent most of last season on the Colts practice squad. Mike Chappell of IndySportsCentral.com tweets that Joe Haeg and Le’Raven Clark are currently the team’s only healthy lineman, and Redmond will provide the squad with some extra depth. In fact, Chappell believes Jones could be back with the organization once the rest of the line is healthy (assuming he clears waivers).
NFL Workout Updates: 9/8/17
Today’s NFL workout updates, with all links going to veteran NFL reporter Howard Balzer’s Twitter unless otherwise noted:
Atlanta Falcons
- QBs Garrett Grayson and Mitch Leidner (link)
Carolina Panthers
- T Korren Kirven (link)
Detroit Lions
- QB Joel Stave; WR Malachi Dupre; OTs Landon Lechler and Givens Price; DT Taylor Harris; S James Sample (Twitter links)
Green Bay Packers
- G Darrell Greene; OTs Cornelius Lucas and Jeremiah Poutasi; DE Jhaustin Thomas (link)
Indianapolis Colts
- RB Kenjon Barner (link)
Kansas City Chiefs
- DB Akeem King (link)
New England Patriots
- WR Gabe Marks; TE Ryan O’Malley (Twitter links via Mike Reiss of ESPN.com)
New York Jets
- RB Cyrus Gray; TE Nick Truesdell; C Erik Austell; G Brandon Thomas; WRs K.J. Brent, Bug Howard, and Domonique Young; TE Robert Tonyan; DE Tyrone Holmes; DT Caraun Reid; LB Vontarrius Dora; CBs Elie Bouka, Jarnor Jones, Damian Swann, and Robert Nelson; S Trey Caldwell and K.J. Dillon (Twitter links: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
Philadelphia Eagles
- DBs De’Vante Bausby, Elie Bouka, Trey Caldwell, and Jarnor Jones (link)
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
- DE Jonathan Woodard; CBs Chris Humes and Sammy Seamster (link)
Tennessee Titans
- DB JaCorey Shepherd (link)
Workout Notes: Patriots, Jets, Bills
The Patriots auditioned some players of note this week, including linebacker Akeem Ayers, quarterback Thad Lewis, and wide receiver Jeremy Ross (Twitter link via Mike Reiss of ESPN.com).
Ayers has some history with New England after playing on their 2014 Super Bowl championship team. Last year, Ayers appeared in all 16 games for Indianapolis and recorded two sacks.
Linebackers Nicholas Grigsby and Antwione Williams also showed their stuff for the Pats.
Here’s a look at Wednesday’s other workouts from around the NFL:
- The Jets worked out former Maryland cornerback Alvin Hill, Aaron Wilson of The Houston Chronicle tweets.
- Canadian defensive tackle Stefan Charles worked out for the Giants on Tuesday, John Kryk of The Toronto Sun tweets.
- The Cardinals worked out wide receivers Donteea Dye, Cobi Hamilton, and Rashad Ross, as Howard Balzer of BalzerFootball.com tweets.
- The Bills auditioned defensive backs Ironhead Gallon, Lee Hightower, Rickey Jefferson, Marcus McWilson, Orion Stewart, and Jack Tocho, linebackers Kenneth Olugbode, defensive tackle Marcus Hardison, running back Connor Harris, and tackle De’Ondre Wesley, according to Balzer (via Twitter links).
- The Buccaneers auditioned quarterback Trevor Knight, wide receivers C.J. Board and Jake Lampman, and tackles Justin Murray and Avery Young, Balzer tweets.
- The Packers took a look at running back Jacob Huesman, Balzer tweets.
- The Colts auditioned linebacker Travis Feeney and defensive backs Jordan Moore, Taurean Nixon, Ezra Robinson, and Deron Washington, Balzer tweets.
- The Giants auditioned defensive backs B.W. Webb Brandon Dixon, and Jeremiah McKinnon, Balzer tweets.
Colts Work Out OL Emmett Cleary
- The Colts worked out offensive lineman Emmett Cleary, Field Yates of ESPN.com tweets. The Cowboys cut Cleary on Saturday after he played in 13 games for them last season.