Getty The Indianapolis Colts made an adjustment to their secondary in Week 3, but it may not be a permanent change.
Barely 21 years old on opening day, Indianapolis Colts rookie safety Nick Cross was one of the biggest feel-good stories to begin the 2022 NFL season. But now a few weeks later, he’s facing the first real adversity of his professional career.
Cross played all 70 defensive snaps for the Colts in Week 1. His playing time dwindled to about two-thirds of the team’s defensive snaps in Week 2 and then during Week 3, he played only 1 snap on defense.
That’s obviously disappointing for a player who was hyped with a lot of promise during the preseason. However, Colts defensive coordinator Gus Bradley delivered a positive message to his rookie safety through the media on September 27.
“It’s kind of game to game, we evaluate [our safeties] — what’s best,” Bradley told the media. “Nick has got a really good skill set. He’s an elite athlete, and it’s just about gaining that confidence to play in and play out with the unit.”
Clearly, Bradley isn’t ruling out Cross still making a major contribution this season.
Rodney McLeod Bringing Veteran Presence
It’s rather unusual to see an NFL starter go from 100% of the snaps to almost zero in a handful of weeks. Cross’ lack of snaps in Week 3 is even weirder when considering Indianapolis’ starting free safety Julian Blackmon suffered an ankle injury that kept him from playing in the second half.
But Bradley explained on September 27 that the coaching staff wanted to turn to veteran Rodney McLeod against the Patrick Mahomes-led Kansas City Chiefs.
“It really wasn’t anything that he did,” Bradley said about Cross’ lack of playing time in Week 3. “We just felt like with the situation that we were going into, with the communication that needed to take place, that maybe Rodney’s experience might help us a little bit more. It really wasn’t based on Nick’s performance or anything like that.”
McLeod’s defensive snaps have trended in the opposite direction of Cross’. The 32-year-old safety played only 2 defensive snaps in Week 1, but then split playing time with Cross, lining up for 35 defensive snaps in Week 2. Against the Chiefs, McLeod played all 63 of Indianapolis’ snaps on defense.
But again, that’s not an indication that McLeod will continue to play more than Cross. Bradley added in his September 27 press conference that he expects the rookie to “make a big jump in practice this week.”
More Snaps for Rodney Thomas II & Isaiah Rodgers in Week 3
With Blackmon sidelined for much of Week 3, the Colts turned to a different rookie in the secondary — seventh-round pick Rodney Thomas II. Thomas played 51 defensive snaps and another 7 snaps on special teams.
The Colts defense played well with Thomas, as he recorded 2 combined tackles.
“He plays with a lot of confidence. So it wasn’t shocking that when he got his opportunity, it wasn’t too big for him,” Bradley said. “He plays fast, he plays aggressively. So, I think when that situation happened, we really didn’t flinch to put him in. Felt a great deal of confidence with him.”
Thomas didn’t receive any defensive snaps in the first two weeks of the season. Neither did cornerback Isaiah Rodgers. Bradley received criticism for that decision from his own safety, Blackmon, who told Colts reporter Nate Atkins of The Indianapolis Star on September 23 that Rodgers “needs to be on the field.”
Bradley may have been listening. Rodgers played 24 defensive snaps and posted 2 solo tackles against the Chiefs.
Even potentially without Blackmon in Week 4, the Colts enter a critical showdown against the Tennessee Titans with a lot of different options in the secondary. Bradley reminded everyone on September 27 that despite him not playing much in Week 3, Cross counts as 1 of them.