Days before the start of training camp, the Indianapolis Colts added more experience along their defensive line.
The Colts announced on July 23 that they have claimed defensive tackle Byron Cowart from the New England Patriots. To make room for Cowart on the roster, Indianapolis waived defensive end Scott Patchan.
The Patriots placed Cowart on their reserve/physical unable to perform list to begin the 2021 season. Cowart did not play the entire year, but he did start 14 games during the 2020 season.
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More Defensive Line Depth for Colts
There’s no guarantee that Cowart will make the final roster. But with him coming to training camp instead of Patchan, Indianapolis has more experience on its defensive line.
The Patriots drafted Cowart in the fifth round of the 2019 NFL Draft. As a rookie, he played in five games, posting 2 combined tackles.
In 2020, Coward played 48% of New England’s defensive snaps and also lined up sometimes on special teams. He posted 27 combined tackles, 3 tackles for loss, 3 quarterback hits, 1.0 sack and 1 pass defense in 14 starts that season. His sack came against the Los Angeles Rams on Thursday Night Football.
Patchan would have entered Indianapolis’ training camp next week as a 25-year-old rookie. The Colts signed him as an undrafted free agent from Colorado State.
He spent the 2020 and 2021 seasons at Colorado State, but prior to that, he was in the Miami Hurricanes football program for five years from 2015-19.
In seven college seasons, he posted 153 total tackles, including 35.5 tackles for loss and 20.5 sacks in 40 games. Patchan posted 11.5 sacks and 19.5 tackles for loss in 2021.
How Cowart Potentially Fits With Colts
With the addition of Cowart, the defensive linemen on the Indianapolis roster have a combined 271 career starts in the NFL. Entering training camp, Cowart is one of four defensive linemen on the Colts roster that has between 12 and 15 NFL career starts.
At defensive tackle, Colts projected starters DeForest Buckner and Grover Stewart have combined to make 140 NFL starts.
But prior to claiming Cowart, all the other experience along the Colts defensive line is on the edge with Yannick Ngakoue, Kwity Paye, Ifeadi Odenigbo and Tyquan Lewis.
That doesn’t mean Cowart won’t face competition for playing time or even a roster spot at defensive tackle. The Colts possess a plethora of young defensive tackles with Dayo Odeyingbo, Eric Johnson, Chris Williams, Curtis Brooks, R.J. McIntosh and Caeveon Patton on the roster.
Odeyingbo is the most promising player of that group. He played 27% of the team’s defensive snaps last year and posted 6 combined tackles with 0.5 sacks.
Williams was also a rookie last season and played 12% of Indianapolis’ defensive snaps.
Johnson, Brooks and Patton are rookies. The Colts drafted Johnson and Brooks in the fifth and sixth rounds of the 2022 NFL Draft, respectively. Indianapolis signed Patton as an undrafted free agent on June 9.
McIntosh is a former fifth-round pick, but he hasn’t played in a regular season game since 2019.
Cowart is older than all six of those players. Depending on how the coaching staff decides to shape the defensive line depth, that could hurt Cowart. But he’s the most experienced of the group, which was likely the appeal for general manager Chris Ballard to claim him off waivers.
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Colts Claim Former Patriots Starter Off Waiver Wire