The Indianapolis Colts concluded the preseason Saturday night and now turn their attention to reducing the roster to 53 players before the deadline Tuesday, Aug. 30, at 4:00 p.m. ET.
Given the new rules surrounding the roster cuts, the Colts have slowly been making roster moves since the start of the preseason. They parted ways with five players following the preseason opener and four after the second preseason game.
In some cases, an injury may count as a roster cut. For instance, safety Armani Watts suffered a season-ending injury during the finale and is likely headed toward the injured reserve list. The Colts can simply place him on the list before the deadline, and it will count as a roster cut without actually having to terminate his contract.
Also, keep in mind the different verbiage when a player is let go. A released player is a vested veteran—those who have accrued six seasons in the NFL. They immediately become free agents. A waived player has not accrued six seasons and must go through waivers. All other teams will have a chance to claim waived players on their 53-man roster by 12:00 p.m. ET on Aug. 31.
Here’s a tracker, keeping up with the latest roster cuts for the Colts before the deadline hits:
Round 1 of roster cuts
Round 2 of roster cuts
Final roster cuts
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