The Indianapolis Colts will cut their roster to 53 players by Saturday at 4 p.m. ET.
The Colts, despite missing the playoffs in four of the past five seasons, have their best roster on paper since Chris Ballard became general manager in 2017. The biggest offseason additions were quarterback Philip Rivers and defensive lineman DeForest Buckner to go with receiver Michael Pittman Jr. and running back Jonathan Taylor, who were the team's first two selections in the draft. Led by guard Quenton Nelson, the Colts return arguably one of the NFL's best offensive lines from last season.
Here is a 53-man roster projection:
QUARTERBACK (3): Philip Rivers, Jacoby Brissett, Jacob Eason
Rivers has made a relatively smooth transition to the Colts after spending the first 16 years of his NFL career with the Chargers. The Colts have to hope they won't be getting the 23-turnover Rivers from last season. Eason, who was selected in the fourth round, is the only quarterback under contract for the Colts beyond this season.
RUNNING BACK (4): Jordan Wilkins, Jonathan Taylor, Nyheim Hines, Marlon Mack
Taylor, who ended his career at Wisconsin with back-to-back 2,000-yard rushing seasons, has been as good as advertised so far. But don't forget about Mack. He's had a healthy training camp and he's not going to give up his starting job easily.
WIDE RECEIVER (6): T.Y. Hilton, Parris Campbell, Zach Pascal, Michael Pittman Jr., Marcus Johnson, Dezmon Patmon
Pittman, the first player the Colts selected in the draft (No. 34 overall), has the size to go with the speed of Hilton and Campbell. But Campbell has to show that he can stay healthy. He spent the majority of his rookie season injured, missing nine games. Pascal is an underrated receiver who was forced to move into the No. 1 role last season after all the injuries.
TIGHT END (4): Jack Doyle, Trey Burton, Mo Alie-Cox, Andrew Vollert
Burton showed that he'll be a kick player in the offense after only playing eight games with Chicago last season due to injuries. He'll likely be used as a hybrid receiver the same way Eric Ebron was the past two seasons. Doyle, while rarely flashy, is the backbone of the tight end group.
OFFENSIVE LINE (9): Anthony Castonzo, Quenton Nelson, Ryan Kelly, Mark Glowinski, Braden Smith, Le'Raven Clark, Danny Pinter, Chaz Green, Javon Patterson
They were the only unit in the NFL to start the same five players in all 16 games last season. The line can't afford to deal to with any serious injuries because there's some concern about the depth at that position.
DEFENSIVE LINE (9): DeForest Buckner, Kemoko Turay, Sheldon Day, Justin Houston, Al-Quadin Muhammad, Tyquan Lewis, Ben Banogu, Denico Autry, Grover Stewart
Opposing quarterbacks will have more than just Justin Houston, who had 11 sacks last season, to look out for along the defensive line this season. Buckner, who was acquired in a trade from San Francisco, will open up additional opportunities for Houston and the linebackers with his presence in the middle of the defensive. The Colts have a lot of depth on the defensive line.
LINEBACKER (5): Darius Leonard, Anthony Walker, Bobby Okereke, Matthew Adams, E.J. Speed
The Colts believe they have one of the best linebacker groups in the NFL with Leonard, Walker and Okereke. Leonard, in just two seasons, has totaled 284 tackles, 12 sacks and seven interceptions.
CORNERBACK (5): Rock Ya-Sin, Kenny Moore, Xavier Rhodes, Isaiah Rodgers, T.J. Carrie
SAFETY (5): Malik Hooker, George Odum, Khari Willis, Julian Blackmon, Tavon Wilson
The Colts went through some pretty significant changes at defensive back during the offseason. Cornerbacks Pierre Desir and Quincy Wilson and safety Clayton Geathers are all gone. Moore is one of the best slot corners in the league. Hooker is heading into the final year of his rookie contract after the Colts didn't pick up his fifth-year option.
SPECIALIST (3): Chase McLaughlin, Luke Rhodes, Rigoberto Sanchez
McLaughlin will be Adam Vinatieri's replacement after the Colts decided to go in a different direction from the NFL's all-time leading points scorer. McLaughlin replaced Vinatieri and went 11-of-11 on extra points and 5-of-6 on field goals after signing with the Colts in December.