With the New York Jets adding cornerback Jaylin Simpson to their 53-man roster off of the Colts’ practice squad, that is now three members of Indianapolis’ 2024 draft class that is no longer with the team.
During roster cutdowns in late-August, Simpson, sixth-round pick Micah Abraham, and seventh-round selection Jonah Laulu were all released by the Colts.
Simpson was brought back to the practice squad, Laulu was claimed on waivers by Las Vegas, and Abraham wasn’t signed by anyone initially but has since landed on the Cincinnati practice squad.
Simpson will now have the opportunity to compete for playing time on the Jets’ roster, whether that be on special teams or for a backup spot at the cornerback position.
Laulu, meanwhile, has gone on to appear in 10 games this season with the Raiders, playing 270 defensive snaps. He’s totaled four pressures, 16 tackles, and over the last four games, Laulu ranks eighth among all defensive tackles in PFF’s run-stop rate metric.
When speaking to the media following roster cuts, GM Chris Ballard said the most difficult decisions came along the defensive line because of the depth that they had there, and that ultimately is why Laulu was released. In a perfect world, the Colts would have brought him back to the practice squad had the Raiders not claimed him.
As we all know, not every draft pick is going to hit and be a contributor. In fact, many won’t. But for a team emphasizes the importance of building through the draft, having three of your nine 2024 draft picks playing elsewhere in their rookie seasons isn’t ideal either, particularly with other teams deeming two of those players as being worthy of roster spots.
One year of this happening isn’t going to drastically hurt an organization by any means, but obviously from a developmental perspective, this can’t become the norm.
Now with that said, while early, the rest of the 2024 draft class does look promising, with Laiatu Latu, AD Mitchell, Matt Goncalves, Tanor Bortolini, and Jaylon Carlies already seeing fairly regular playing time–to varying degrees–this season. The Colts also landed Dalton Tucker as an undrafted free agent.
If this group continues on their current trajectory, the 2024 draft will be considered a success.
(This article was updated to provide additional information.)
