Of course, all eyes will be on the quarterback position during training camp. But what other training camp competitions are taking place for the Indianapolis Colts?
While meeting with reporters on Tuesday, prior to the team’s first training camp practice on Wednesday, GM Chris Ballard discussed a few of those other battles.
Although it has been assumed that Tanor Bortolini will be the starting center, as offensive line coach Tony Sparano outlined this summer, he is competing for that role with Danny Pinter, who saw some first-team reps as well during offseason programs.
Another competition that Ballard mentioned was for the swing tackle role. Competing for that playing time will be Jalen Travis and Blake Freeland.
“I think Travis has got a really good ceiling to what he’s going to become in our league,” Ballard said. “And Freeland has gotten bigger and stronger, which has been really encouraging.”
Defensively, we know that DeForest Buckner and Grover Stewart are leading the way at defensive tackle, but there is playing time up for grabs behind those two.
Free agent signee Neville Gallimore is someone Ballard is very bullish on, while Tim Smith and Adetomiwa Adebawore are competing for snaps as well.
“We think Neville Gallimore is going to really help us,” Ballard said. “He had a really good offseason. A really good dude and we think he’s going to add some needed interior depth.
“But with the addition of Tim Smith and Tomi–Tomi had a great offseason. This is going into Year 3, and a big year for him.”
Cornerback was also mentioned by Ballard. While we know Charvarius Ward will be starting on the outside and Kenny Moore will primarily be in the nickel, the other starting corner role opposite of Ward is up for grabs.
“With Walley, JuJu, and Jones, that’s going to be a good one to watch,” Ballard said. “Let me tell you, Walley is competitive. He’s a little pitbull, and it’s fun to watch those kinds of competitions take place.”
The last position that Ballard mentioned was linebacker, which is a very inexperienced group for the Colts. Jaylon Carlies is expected to start next to Zaire Franklin, but the other spots on the depth chart are all up for grabs.
“I think at linebacker, we’re going to have really good competition,” said Ballard. “A lot of unknown names–that’s okay. Nobody knew who Zaire Franklin was. …”They gotta make their own name by their play.”
After the 2024 season ended, Ballard discussed the importance of adding competition throughout the roster during this offseason, and he likes where the roster is at in this regard.
“I think we’ve got good competition across the board,” Ballard said.
This article originally appeared on Colts Wire: 5 non-quarterback training camp competitions Colts’ GM Chris Ballard highlighted
Reporting by Paul Bretl, Colts Wire / Colts Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
