The Indianapolis Colts’ bye week is now behind them, and they will enter their second half of the season at 8-2 on the year.
After wins by Denver and New England while the Colts were off, Indianapolis is now the No. 3 seed in the AFC playoff picture, but they’ll have the opportunity to make up that ground moving forward.
The schedule down the stretch, however, does toughen up on paper, with the Colts having one of the more difficult final seven-game stretches in the NFL.
Before the Colts return to the practice field this week, let’s take a position-by-position look at the current state of the roster.
State of the Indianapolis Colts roster after the bye week
Quarterbacks: Daniel Jones, Riley Leonard
*Anthony Richardson is on injured reserve
Jones currently ranks fifth in completion rate, third in yards, and fifth in yards per attempt. Without Anthony Richardson, the Colts have stuck with Riley Leonard as the backup with Brett Rypien on the practice squad.
Running backs: Jonathan Taylor, Tyler Goodson, Ameer Abdullah, DJ Giddens
Taylor has put together an MVP-caliber season through 10 games. Behind him, Goodson and Abduallah have shared the RB2 reps as of late, while Giddens has been a healthy scratch. One area where the rookie must improve is in pass protection.
Wide receiver: Josh Downs, Ashton Dulin, Anthony Gould, Alec Pierce, Michael Pittman, Laquon Treadwell
At the top of the depth chart for the Colts are not only three very productive pass-catching options in Pittman, Pierce, and Downs, but three very different skill sets, which provides Shane Steichen with ample flexibility as he puts together game plans.
Tight end: Tyler Warren, Mo Alie-Cox, Drew Ogletree, Will Mallory
Warren has been exceptional this season. Along with leading the team in receiving yards, his blocking abilities and versatility unlocks so much more for this Colts’ offense. Steichen also continues to lean into two and three tight end sets, with Alie-Cox and Ogletree seeing regular snaps as well.
Offensive line: Tanor Bortolini, Danny Pinter, Matt Goncalves, Quenton Nelson, Dalton Tucker, Bernhard Raimann, Braden Smith, Luke Tenuta, Jalen Travis
The unsung heroes of the Colts’ red-hot start on offense. Success begins here with running lanes being carved out and time in the pocket for Jones.
Defensive line: Samson Ebukam, Laiatu Latu, Tyquan Lewis, Kwity Paye, JT Tuimoloau, Adetomiwa Adebawore, Neville Gallimore, Eric Johnson, Grover Stewart
*DeForest Buckner is on injured reserve
The big thing for this unit in the second half of the season will be generating a more consistent pass rush. Heading into Week 11, the Colts’ defensive front ranked 29th in ESPN’s pass rush win rate metric.
Linebacker: Austin Ajiake, Zaire Franklin, Buddy Johnson, Segun Olubi, Germaine Pratt
The addition of Pratt several weeks into the season provided stability at the WILL linebacker position next to Franklin. Ajiake has seen a few opportunities as well.
Cornerback: Mekhi Blackmon, Johnathan Edwards, Sauce Gardner, Jaylon Jones, Chris Lammons, Cameron Mitchell, Kenny Moore
*Charvarius Ward is on injured reserve
This position has gone from a big question mark for the Colts to now a position of strength, particularly once Ward returns. Having Ward and Gardner on the outside will allow for Lou Anarumo to call a much more aggressive game as well.
Safety: Cam Bynum, Nick Cross, Reuben Lowery, Rodney Thomas
Bynum and Cross have formed an excellent one-two pairing in Anarumo’s defense. A lot of the success that the Colts had in the secondary, even with unknowns at cornerback, started with these two.
Special teams: Michael Badgley, Rigoberto Sanchez, Luke Rhodes
Since taking over for Spencer Shrader, Badgley is 15-of-17 on extra points and 7-for-8 on field goals. Sanchez and Rhodes continue to play at high levels.
This article originally appeared on Colts Wire: Indianapolis Colts roster: Evaluating depth chart after bye week
