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Indianapolis Colts: First Cuts Completed; Roster Down to 75

By Dave McKee

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The Indianapolis Colts have completed their cuts and are now down to a roster of 75. The deadline for the first wave of roster cuts is for Tuesday, September 1st.

The Indianapolis Colts, like most teams, did not wait until the September 1st deadline to complete their roster moves. Unless a team needs to find the injury status of a player on the roster bubble they are usually done the day before.

–= Related: 53-man Roster Bubble Watch =–

There were little surprises among the first cuts aside from one head scratcher and a rookie most fans were high on. Here is the first list of the Indianapolis Colts roster moves provided by ESPN’s Mike Wells:

The roster was down to 76 until the Colts released cornerback Deveron Carr later in the afternoon. Following his release, the Colts are now down to 75 players.

One player of note on the list was offensive guard Donald Thomas who was activated from the PUP list earlier in the week. He has spent the last two seasons on IR for a torn Quadriceps. Now that he is healthy, and activated, he has been released which is puzzling.

His release frees up $3 million in salary cap with only $500,000 in dead cap space. It is an odd move to wait throughout the offseason to cut him now. There is little talent available on the free agent market to replace him so the money might be going to get Anthony Castonzo‘s re-signing completed.

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The Colts could have used that cap space to further bolster their offensive line. I have to agree with many fans that Evan Mathis would have been affordable if Thomas was cut. Now that Evan Mathis is in Denver, it seems a little discouraging to see Thomas cut now.

Rookie linebacker Zach Hodges was also released from the team on Monday. He is the first of the five players I had listed on my “Bubble Watch” article posted two-weeks ago. Hopefully, he clears waivers and can make it to the practice squad.

Hodges, a Harvard graduate, has flashed potential as a pass-rusher and impressed coaches and players alike in training camp. Unfortunately for him, the outside linebacker position is one of the deepest on the roster, so he was a depth chart casualty.

Following their Thursday, September 3rd game against the Cincinnati Bengals, the Indianapolis Colts will be required to make the final cuts down to the official 53-man roster on the following day on Friday September 4th.

Check back with Ink on Indy for further roster moves as the Indianapolis Colts regular season fast approaches.

Next: Art Jones is Seeing Specialist After MRI

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