Indianapolis Colts: 5 Bubble Players Who Should Make the Roster

The Indianapolis Colts finished the preseason with a 9-6 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals on Thursday, a classic fourth preseason game.

Sure, the game was nearly unwatchable, fortunately buried on the opening night of college football. But it still was an important sequence for many of the depth players on the roster, players fighting for their NFL careers.

The Colts coaches will be looking at the fourth preseason game as the tiebreaker for many of those depth battles, and it will also serve as a key part of our final 53-man roster predictions.

So with that in mind, which roster bubble players have shown enough this preseason to earn a spot on the final roster?

RB Tyler Varga

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An unlikely sixth option at running back before the season began, Tyler Varga has improved his stock enough to potentially eke onto the final roster.

The undrafted free agent from Yale has played tremendously this preseason, and while his 3.8 yards-per-carry average isn't particularly impressive, the context of which those yards came is important here. The Colts' backup offensive line has been very difficult to watch, and a complete lack of passing threat from the backup quarterbacks allowed defenses to stack the box.

Varga finished the preseason with 18 carries for 69 yards and five receptions for 36 yards. What was more impressive, though, was the highlight plays that Varga provided, plays that guys like Zurlon Tipton simply won't be making.

Combine those flashes with the consistent injury status of Vick Ballard and the very unimpressive preseason from Zurlon Tipton and you get Varga's ascension. If the Colts do decide that Ballard is too much of an injury liability to roster, Varga should be the fourth back over Tipton.

WR Duron Carter

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After a stellar training camp, former CFL wide receiver Duron Carter disappointed in the first two preseason games, catching just one pass for 16 yards and failing to convert several contested catch opportunities.

But Carter bounced back in the third and fourth preseason games, catching eight catches for 110 yards. Carter saw more opportunities and made the most of them, most notably in the Week 4 loss to the Bengals.

While Carter still has failed to secure a contested jump ball like the ones that garnered media attention in camp, he showed several other impressive skills in the Thursday night game. It started with a back-shoulder throw from Bryan Bennett in the the third quarter for 24 yards, followed up by a 42-yard catch-and-run later in the half.

Had Carter continued his preseason disappearance, it would have been hard to keep him on the roster. But considering how the Colts have used him (giving him plenty of opportunities, including some with the first team) and how he's responded, I don't see how they can risk him getting away on the waiver wire.

OT Denzelle Good

The Colts' need for offensive line depth has been well-established for the last few seasons, and one way that general manager Ryan Grigson has tried to alleviate that is by taking late-round fliers on offensive linemen in the draft.

It was Justin Anderson in 2012 and Ulrick John in 2014. In 2015, Denzelle Good was the surprise pick out of Mars Hill. Can he be the one to break through?

Based on preseason play, there is reason for optimism.

Good has shown good skills in pass protection as a tackle, although he has had a few slips in run blocking that will need to be cleaned up. He's not a player who is ready to play right now, but he looks like a player the Colts should be invested in.

The Colts need backup tackles, with nobody but Joe Reitz as a lock to make the roster. There is a possibility that Good is a practice squad player this year, but it wouldn't surprise me to see him on the final roster.

DL Earl Okine

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The Colts took a big blow this week when it was announced that Arthur Jones would need surgery on his injured ankle, potentially taking him out for the majority of the season.

The team will be needing to find a replacement, both on the field and on the roster. On the field, rookies David Parry and Henry Anderson will likely help fill in Jones' role, while Montori Hughes will get a crack as well.

But those guys were always pretty safe to make the roster, so they won't be filling Jones' vacated spot if he goes on the injured reserve list. If that does happen, as seems highly possible, former Florida defensive lineman Earl Okine should make the roster.

The 25-year-old was in the Fall Experimental Football League last season and in the Canadian Football League before that, but he's been making plays all preseason. 

Okine was one of Thursday night's few stars, blowing up several plays and earning a sack and forced fumble. He's earned his way onto the roster.

LB Junior Sylvestre

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One of the most contested roster spots going into training camp was the fourth inside linebacker, with D'Qwell Jackson, Jerrell Freeman and Nate Irving holding down the first three spots.

The most obvious candidates for the position were sixth-round pick Amarlo Herrera and second-year player Henoc Muamba out of the CFL. But neither of those players had showed much of anything prior to the final preseason game, and that opened the door for undrafted free agent Junior Sylvestre.

Sylvestre has played very well throughout the preseason, at least in comparison to the thin competition on the Colts roster. Even on Thursday, when Muamba and Herrera made their first notable plays of the preseason, Sylvestre stood out even more.

The former Toledo player led the Colts in tackles with six, had a sack and forced a fumble. Yes, Herrera is a sixth-round pick and Muamba is a returning player. But Sylvestre has looked significantly better this preseason, and that should be a part of this decision.