Predicting Indianapolis Colts' First Wave of Roster Cuts

Over the next month, the Indianapolis Colts and its roster will go through a process of trial by fire.

Through training camp, preseason games and practices, the Colts have the responsibility to cut a 90-man roster to 53 men. It's a tall task, but one that the front office and coaching staff have been preparing for for months.

That final cut-down day is on September 5th, when the roster must be limited to 53 men. But prior to that date, the roster must first be cut down to 75. Those initial 15 cuts must occur by 4 p.m. ET on September 1, two days prior to the Colts' final preseason game against the Cincinnati Bengals.

These first 15 cuts are a little less than a month away, but we can still begin to guess which Colts will make it through those first trimmings. With no offense to the players on the bottom of the Colts roster, these are the most predictable of the offseason moves.

There is a chance that some of these players make it through the first waves of cuts, but overall, it shouldn't be a surprise when these players are let go on September 1.

Wide Receiver

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Cuts: Ryan Lankford, Tyler Rutenbeck, Ezell Ruffin, Quan Bray

Wide receiver is so loaded with talent this season that a large percentage of the first cuts will likely come from this area. Even with four cuts, the Colts will have seven receivers left on the 75-man roster, including T.Y. Hilton, Andre Johnson, Donte Moncrief, Phillip Dorsett, Duron Carter, Griff Whalen and Vincent Brown.

Most likely, Brown, Whalen and Carter will be battling it out in the final preseason game for the last spot (or two) on the active roster.

Of any of the above four receivers, Lankford has the best chance of making the final roster. He's been around for two offseasons now, and did flash a little bit of talent in last year's preseason. But he was ultimately waived midway through August last season, and it would be a shock to see him make it through final cuts this year.

Offensive Line

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Cuts: Brandon Vitabile, Matt Hall, Tyler Hoover

The Colts currently have 16 offensive linemen on the roster, a number that will likely get cut down to nine or 10 by September 5. For the first wave of cuts, I'm predicting half of the six (at least) cuts will occur.

When looking for potential first cuts, the first move is to look for players that have just been signed recently to fill out the roster, which is where Hall comes in. He was put on the injured reserve list midway through last year's preseason, and was then waived in May to make room for undrafted free agents. He was just re-signed last week.

It's hard to cut Vitabile without another viable option at center, but ultimately, it's a foregone conclusion that the center position will come down to a battle between Jonotthan Harrison and Khaled Holmes. Keeping another center for the final preseason game wouldn't be a surprise, but it's also an unnecessary luxury.

Hoover is the final cut, someone that was placed on the practice squad late last season. He was a defensive lineman in college, but has switched to the offensive side of the ball as of late. That's a tough switch to make, and he's one of the most expendable because of it.

Other Offensive Players

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Cuts: TE Sean McGrath, RB Abou Toure

McGrath, a former Henderson State product, hasn't stuck in an NFL camp since spending some time on Seattle's practice squad back in 2012. The Colts have Erik Swoope competing to make the roster at tight end already, and I predict local boy Justin Sinz (Purdue) will take the last tight end depth spot heading into the final preseason game.

The Colts have a lot of competition at running back, which will likely cut Abou Toure's career in Indianapolis short. They simply have too many other options, from Vick Ballard's return to Yale's Tyler Varga. Toure is a big back, the biggest on the roster at 6'2", 231 pounds. If he does make the cut, it'll be by beating out Varga for the role of fullback.

Cornerback

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Cuts: Deveron Carr, Ramon Taylor, Chance Casey

With 10 cornerbacks on the roster, the Colts will likely cut that number in half for the final roster. With the top four all but certain (Vontae Davis, Greg Toler, Darius Butler, D'Joun Smith), there is little need to keep more players than necessary around for the final preseason game.

The Colts have several young options available that make it easy to cut Carr, who was signed after the veteran combine back in March. Carr was an undrafted free agent in 2013, but missed all of 2014 after being waived by Tampa Bay in August. His chances of lasting in the NFL are quickly diminishing.

Ramon Taylor and Chance Casey were both late additions. Taylor was signed just last week, and Casey was signed in May after being waived by Oakland, where he spent a few weeks on the practice squad last year.

The Colts will still have Sheldon Price, Jalil Brown and Donald Celiscar battling for what will likely be the fifth and final roster spot.

Front Seven

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Cut: DT Jeris Pendleton, ILB Justin Shirk, OLB Carlos Fields

At one point, Jeris Pendleton was a bit of a fan favorite in Indianapolis, coming in off the street and playing well at the end of 2013. But the 31-year-old spent all of last season on the injured reserve list, and was just signed as a free agent again in June.

The linebackers are simply a casualty of a competitive, deep group. Inside linebacker has sixth-round pick Amarlo Herrera and 2014 depth linebacker Henoc Muamba battling for the fourth spot, and Junior Sylvestre out of Toledo is a more highly regarded talent than Shirk.

At outside linebacker, the Colts will have a difficult enough time deciding between Zach Hodges, Cam Johnson and Daniel Adongo (if any of them) before dealing with Carlos Fields.

Predicted 75-Man Roster

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Offense

QB (3): Andrew Luck, Matt Hasselbeck, Bryan Bennett

RB (6): Frank Gore, Dan Herron, Vick Ballard, Zurlon Tipton, Josh Robinson, Tyler Varga

WR (7): T.Y. Hilton, Andre Johnson, Donte Moncrief, Phillip Dorsett, Duron Carter, Griff Whalen, Vincent Brown

TE (5): Dwayne Allen, Coby Fleener, Jack Doyle, Erik Swoope, Justin Sinz

OL (13): Anthony Castonzo, Lance Louis, Khaled Holmes, Todd Herremans, Jack Mewhort, Jonotthan Harrison, Donald Thomas, Ben Heenan, Hugh Thornton, Joe Reitz, Ulrick John, Denzelle Good, David Arkin

Defense

DL (9): Kendall Langford, Josh Chapman, Arthur Jones, Henry Anderson, Zach Kerr, Montori Hughes, Earl Okine, David Parry, Kelcy Quarles

OLB (9): Trent Cole, Robert Mathis, Erik Walden, Jonathan Newsome, Bjoern Werner, Zack Hodges, Cam Johnson, Daniel Adongo, Cody Galea

ILB (6): D'Qwell Jackson, Jerrell Freeman, Amarlo Herrera, Nate Irving, Henoc Muamba, Junior Sylvestre

CB (7): Vontae Davis, Greg Toler, Darius Butler, D'Joun Smith, Donald Celiscar, Jalil Brown, Sheldon Price

S (7): Mike Adams, Dwight Lowery, Clayton Geathers, Colt Anderson, Dewey McDonald, Winston Guy, Robert Smith

Special Teams

K (1): Adam Vinatieri

P (1): Pat McAfee

LS (1): Matt Overton