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Indianapolis Colts News & Rumors

Colts Reach Injury Settlements With Two

September 9th, 2016 at 4:56pm CST by Connor J. Byrne

Friday’s minor moves from around the NFL:

  • The Chargers have reached injury settlements with wide receiver Rasheed Bailey and linebacker Shaq Petteway, per Adam Caplan of ESPN and Wilson (on Twitter). San Diego claimed Bailey on Aug. 18 after the Jaguars cut him, but the Bolts ultimately waived/injured him last weekend. The 6-foot-1, 209-pound Bailey went undrafted out of Delaware Valley a year ago and spent time with the Eagles, though he didn’t garner any regular-season experience with either them or the Jags. Petteway signed with the Chargers as an undrafted free agent from West Virginia on April 30.
  • The Patriots have waived running back Tyler Gaffney with an injury settlement, according to Doug Kyed of NESN (Twitter link). Gaffney, who hasn’t appeared in an NFL game since the Panthers took him in the sixth round of the 2014 draft, injured his foot in New England’s Sept. 1 preseason finale. He spent the first two years of his career on the Patriots’ injured reserve list with knee issues.
  • The Buccaneers have placed receiver Evan Spencer on the reserved/retired list, writes Darin Gantt of Pro Football Talk. The Redskins used a sixth-rounder on Spencer a year ago, but he ended up spending most of the season on the Bucs’ practice squad. He was active for Tampa Bay’s regular-season finale and was slated to be on its practice squad to start 2016.
  • The Colts have removed cornerback Tevin Mitchel and defensive end Ron Thompson from IR with injury settlements, tweets Wilson. Mitchell, whom Washington drafted in the sixth round last year, didn’t see any action as a rookie. Thompson signed with Indy earlier this year as an undrafted free agent from Syracuse.

Colts Waive CB Tevin Mitchel

September 8th, 2016 at 5:39pm CST by Connor J. Byrne
  • The Colts have waived corner Tevin Mitchel from IR with an injury settlement, per George Bremer of the Herald Bulletin (Twitter link).

Colts Sign Stephen Morris To Practice Squad

September 8th, 2016 at 4:19pm CST by Zachary Links

The Colts signed quarterback Stephen Morris to their practice squad and waived safety Lee Hightower, as Mike Chappell of CBS4 tweets. Interestingly, Morris will earn $20K per week – the most of any taxi squad player in the NFL, Rand Getlin of NFL.com tweets.

Stephen Morris (vertical)

Morris, whom the Colts waived Wednesday, first joined the organization late last season after spending most of the year on the Eagles’ practice squad. He previously went undrafted out of Miami in 2014 before signing with the Jaguars, who cut him prior to last season.

The 6-foot-2, 213-pounder will give the Colts a third option at quarterback behind franchise player Andrew Luck and veteran backup Scott Tolzien. Notably, Luck missed most of last season with injuries and is now dealing with a shoulder ailment, though he’ll be ready for the team’s Week 1 showdown with the Lions.

Hightower, who split his college career between Boise State and Houston, went undrafted this year. He tried out with the Texans before hooking on with the Colts last month.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Minor NFL Transactions: 9/7/16

September 7th, 2016 at 8:51pm CST by Zachary Links

Here are today’s minor moves.

  • The Colts waived quarterback Stephen Morris and signed cornerback Rashaan Melvin, as Adam Caplan of ESPN.com tweets. Melvin was cut loose by Miami a few days ago as they dropped down to a 53-man roster. Melvin started two games for the Ravens in 2014 and spent 2015 with both the Ravens and Patriots, playing in eight games for the latter.
  • The Buccaneers waived/injured running back Mike James, according to Greg Auman of the Tampa Bay Times (on Twitter). A former sixth-round pick, James spent three seasons with the Bucs, with his most notable work coming as a rookie in relief of Doug Martin. James rushed for 295 yards before himself going down with a season-ending injury. He averaged 4.9 yards per carry during that 2013 season.
  • The Jaguars removed safety Earl Wolff from their IR with an injury settlement, Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle tweets. A fifth-round Eagles pick in 2013, Wolff started six games for Philadelphia that season, deflecting five passes and grabbing his only career interception. Wolff reached a settlement with the Eagles prior to the 2015 season before the Jags signed him to a reserve/futures contract in January.

Colts Sign Akeem Ayers

September 6th, 2016 at 4:22pm CST by Zachary Links

The Colts have signed outside linebacker Akeem Ayers, as Mike Chappell of CBS4 tweets. In related moves, the team has waived cornerback Neiko Thorpe and added cornerback Frankie Williams to the practice squad. The team has confirmed the moves via press release. Akeem Ayers (vertical)

Ayers, a second-round pick of the Titans in 2011, was cut by the Rams over the weekend. That move surprised a lot of people since Ayers started eleven games for the club last season. Los Angeles cleared his entire $3.3MM of his cap charge from the books by dropping him and they hoped to re-sign him to a cheaper deal after the 53-man cutdowns were through. Unfortunately, for L.A. the Colts have spoiled those plans.

The release of Thorpe could mean that Darius Butler will be ready to go for Week 1. The Colts, of course, are thin at CB following Vontae Davis‘ injury.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Sunday NFL Transactions: AFC South

September 5th, 2016 at 9:20am CST by Dallas Robinson

Listed below are the Sunday roster moves for the four AFC South teams. Following the 53-man roster cutdown deadline yesterday, many teams will make slight tweaks to their rosters, claiming players off waivers or signing guys who clear waivers. Those transactions for the Texans, Colts, Jaguars, and Titans are noted below.

Additionally, as of 12:00pm CT today, teams can begin constructing their 10-man practice squads. You can check out our glossary entry on practice squads to brush up on those changes, as well as all the other guidelines that govern the 10-man units, whose players practice with the team but aren’t eligible to suit up on Sundays.

Here are Sunday’s AFC South transactions, which will continue to be updated throughout the day. All links go to Twitter unless otherwise noted:

Houston Texans

Indianapolis Colts

Jacksonville Jaguars

Tennessee Titans

Colts Sign Darryl Morris

September 5th, 2016 at 8:49am CST by Ben Levine

With the Colts’ secondary battling through injury issues, the team’s front office has brought in a veteran cornerback. According to Zak Keefer of The Indianapolis Star (via Twitter), the Colts have signed cornerback Darryl Morris. To make room on the roster, the team has cut rookie Frankie Williams.

Darryl MorrisMorris, 25, joined the Jets this offseason after having spent the past two seasons with the Texans. The former Texas State standout played in 23 games between 2014 and 2015, compiling 46 tackles and six passes defended. The Jets were hoping that Morris would provide some depth to their aging cornerback corps, but the defensive back was ultimately cut by the team on Saturday.

Williams, an undrafted free agent out of Purdue, will now seek work elsewhere, although Mike Chappell of IndySportsCentral.com tweets that the Colts are hoping he’ll land back on their practice squad. The team was seeking some reinforcement at cornerback, as Vontae Davis is expected to miss some time. Patrick Robinson and Darius Butler are also currently battling injuries.

Waiver Wire Priority For All 32 NFL Teams

September 4th, 2016 at 9:46am CST by Zachary Links

Yesterday was the 53-man roster deadline, but the madness will continue today as teams pick through the waiver pile for talented discards. Priority is dictated by the reverse standings with tiebreakers where necessary, which is to say that it will be the same as the 2016 draft order before all the trades. Unlike your fantasy league’s waiver wire, a team does not go to the back of the list upon making a successful claim. That means that the league’s worst teams from 2015 have a significant advantage today as they make late roster additions.

Here is the complete waiver priority order:

1. Titans

2. Browns

3. Chargers

4. Cowboys

5. Jaguars

6. Ravens

7. 49ers

8. Dolphins

9. Buccaneers

10. Giants

11. Bears

12. Saints

13. Eagles

14. Raiders

15. Rams

16. Lions

17. Falcons

18. Colts

19. Bills

20. Jets

21. Redskins

22. Texans

23. Vikings

24. Bengals

25. Seahawks

26. Packers

27. Steelers

28. Chiefs

29. Patriots

30. Cardinals

31. Panthers

32. Broncos

Colts Cut Stevan Ridley, Others

September 3rd, 2016 at 2:00pm CST by Zachary Links

The Colts are cutting running back Stevan Ridley, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). "<strong

Ridley was signed by the Colts just days ago after he was cut by Detroit. The Colts have spoken at length about their plan to preserve Frank Gore‘s legs by lightening his workload and Ridley figured to be a part of that. Alas, the Colts didn’t see enough from Ridley in the last few days to keep him on the 53-man roster.

After spending his first four years in the NFL with the Patriots, Ridley signed with the Jets last season, but didn’t see the field all that much after coming off the PUP list. With Chris Ivory and Bilal Powell handling the majority of the workload out of the backfield, Ridley took over for Zac Stacy as the No. 3 back and earned just 36 carries, totaling only 90 yards for a career-worst 2.5 yards per attempt. His stint with Indianapolis could represent his best opportunity to reestablish himself as a quality back.

Here’s the running list of the Colts’ cuts so far today (links via Mike Wells of ESPN.com unless otherwise specified):

  • RB Stevan Ridley
  • WR Tevaun Smith (Twitter link via Stephen Holder of the Indianapolis Star)
  • DE Ronald Thompson
  • DL Sterling Bailey (Twitter link via Aaron Wilson of the Houston Chronicle)
  • DT Kelcy Quarles (Twitter link via Ian Rapoport of NFL.com)
  • ILB Trevor Bates (link)
  • ILB Nate Irving (via Holder)
  • OLB Earl Okine
  • CB Tay-Glover Wright
  • CB Christopher Milton
  • S Alden Darby
  • S Lee Hightower
  • WR MeKale McKay
  • OG Kitt O’Brien
  • OG Adam Redmond
  • OT Mitchell Van Dyk
  • OT Jeremy Vujnovich

The team has also placed offensive guard Hugh Thornton, cornerback Tevin Mitchel and linebacker Ron Thompson on the injured reserve, according to Holder and Alex Marvez of SiriusXM (Twitter link). The 25-year-old has started 32 of his 37 games through his three seasons in the league.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Colts Waive D'Joun Smith

September 2nd, 2016 at 8:29pm CST by Zachary Links
  • The Colts waived defensive back D’Joun Smith with an injury designation, as Mike Garafolo of NFL.com tweets. Smith was a third-round pick in 2015.
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