Indianapolis Colts cornerback and former UCLA Bruin Alex Johnson ended the NFL preseason strong in a 41-14 thrashing of the Cincinnati Bengals. We will see if this performance was enough to secure a spot on the 53-man opening day roster.
The 6-foot corner ended the game with 4 total tackles and 2 pass deflections against the Bengals, according to ESPN. He had a third of the Colts’ 6 pass deflections and was tied with safety Rodney Thomas II for the second most tackles on the team, but the headline on the defensive side of the ball went to the pick six by Indianapolis safety Daniel Scott.
The Colts’ defense ended strong and they regained reinforcements on the battered cornerback position with the acquisition of former All-Pro Xavien Howard and the returns of Jaylon Jones and JuJu Brents means that the chances for Johnson to find himself on the roster continue to slim.
Johnson played well, but he needed to make splash plays and as mentioned before, Scott made the play of the game for the defense with his touchdown. The former Bruin is stilled listed as the backup nickelback to Kenny Moore II on the Colts unofficial depth chart, according to Colts Wire’s coverage of the depth chart.
As Colts Wire mentioned, the Colts had Howard listed as the corner playing opposite of Charvarius Ward. There just might not be enough roster spots for the young corner and as the roster cutdown date looms around the corner, it’s looking like he will be a casualty of it.
The corners likely to make the cut are Ward, Howard, Moore II, Jones and Brents. Colts Wire also had Johnathan Edwards and Chris Lammons making the team or being a practice squad addition over Johnson.
If that is how the roster cutdown pans out, then Johnson will likely be a practice squad candidate on the Colts or another team.