Colts general manager Chris Ballard met with the media today for the first time since the 2025 NFL Draft as Indianapolis bets set to begin training camp.
Ballard provided a flurry of thoughts, including a position battle between three players which has flown under the radar a bit this offseason.
Ballard mentioned the competition for the third cornerback spot between JuJu Brents, Jaylon Jones and rookie Justin Walley as a good one to watch.
Each of the three players comes into camp with their own story. Brents, a second-round pick in 2023, has flashed a lot of potential, but has struggled to stay on the field in his first two seasons. The 25-year-old enters his third season having appeared in just 11 games, which includes missing all but one game in 2024 due to a season-ending knee injury.
Brents is looking to put his health issues behind him and emerge as the dominant starter the Colts drafted him to be.
Jones, a member of the same 2023 draft class (221st overall), arrives at Grand Park as the incumbent, having started all 17 games and becoming one of the better players on a poor Colts defense in 2024.
The 23-year-old racked up 66 tackles, 12 passes defended and two interceptions last season.
The rookie Walley comes in as the wild card. Ballard praised his feistiness coming out of Minnesota.
“Walley’s competitive,” he said. “He’s a little pitbull.”
Walley, who played at Minnesota, comes in with 7 interceptions in his college career.
The third-round rookie is a defensive back hand-picked by new defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo. That alone suggests he could have the upper hand when it comes to fitting into the new scheme, but at the end of the day, it’s anybody’s job to earn.
