News broke on Friday morning that longtime Colts veteran cornerback Kenny Moore II and the Colts have mutually agreed to seek out a trade. The former 2017 waiver wire claim turned Pro Bowler and Team Captain has long been a fan favorite for his energy, passion, community outreach, and abilities on the field. Replacing him will be a tall order for a Colts team with plenty of other needs on the defense as well as limited draft capital. The Colts incumbent options are limited as well, with 2025 Round 3 pick Justin Walley coming off an ACL tear being the most likely replacement option on the roster.
The flaw in this plan? There is a distinct lack of experience in covering the slot among the entire Colts cornerback depth chart should Kenny Moore II be traded away.
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Sauce Gardner: 71 Slot Snaps vs 3,147 Boundary Snaps
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Charvarius Ward: 147 Slot Snaps vs 6,017 Boundary Snaps
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Justin Walley (in College): 62 Slot Snaps vs 2,189 Boundary Snaps
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Cam Taylor-Britt: 134 Slot Snaps vs 2,393 Boundary Snaps
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Mekhi Blackmon: 87 Slot Snaps vs 1,011 Boundary Snaps
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Johnathan Edwards: 13 Slot Snaps vs 273 Boundary Snaps
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Jaylon Jones: 32 Slot Snaps vs 1,901 Boundary Snaps
Even if you combined all 7 Corner’s career slot experience together, it would still be less slot snaps than what Kenny Moore II played in 2025 (in just 14/17 games).
There is only one player with more Slot experience than Boundary experience on the Colts roster post-Kenny Moore II trade… Cameron Mitchell with 422 Slot snaps compared to 383 Boundary snaps. He was primarily a slot corner with the Browns from 2023 to 2024 but once he went to the Colts he shifted to only having 14 slot snaps and 187 boundary snaps in Lou Anarumo’s scheme. In his lone start with the Colts he didn’t play a single slot snap.
Safe to say the Colts could address this need in the draft if they are not confident in their incumbents making this transition inside.
D’Angelo Ponds, Indiana
Football fans in the state of Indiana are already very familiar with the Hoosier’s star Corner. His abilities as a shutdown corner have been tested by some of the best Wide Receivers the Big Ten and College Football has had to offer since he followed Coach Curt Cignetti from James Madison to Indiana.
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How has he answered the call?
By allowing a stifling 51.6% Completion Percentage, 642 yards, and just 1 passing TD (against Ohio State star WR Jeremiah Smith) on his 124 targets in the past two years. He also made 5 INTs and had 16 Pass Breakups in that span as well.
Combine his fluid, smooth, and explosive coverage ability with reliable tackling, a physical play style oozing with grit, and incredible speed and quickness to ensure he is always in position to make a play, and Ponds has certainly earned his flowers.
The 5’9 and 182 lb. Corner may be undersized, but you wouldn’t know it based on how he plays the game. He has even received a fitting pro comp from Noah Compton via his Indy Draft Guide.
D’Angelo Ponds himself is aware of the Kenny Moore II news and implies a strong fit with the Colts as well.
The one downside of Pond’s projection to be the Colts nickel corner… he also doesn’t have experience there. In his entire collegiate career he has just 28 snaps inside and dominated as an outside Corner. At his size a move inside could make sense, especially with his quick hips, physicality, and run support all being translatable skills that fit there. But like the rest of the Colts corner room he lacks the experience at the position and could be the rare undersized corner who might thrive outside anyways.
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Ponds has also done his odds of landing with the Colts very little favors. His play in the playoffs made him a consensus 2nd round pick early in the pre draft process. But after weighing in 9 lbs. heavier than his listed playing weight at the Combine, dominating his testing, and reportedly doing very well in interviews with NFL teams, the Hoosier could be taken in Round 1 in a few weeks and few in the NFL Draft landscape would bat an eye.
For a Colts team with its highest pick at 47 overall, Ponds staying in Indiana has felt more and more unlikely. The low end of his draft projections is still a mid Round 2 pick, so there is a chance. Just don’t be surprised if he is unavailable on April 26th.
Keith Abney II, Arizona State
Abney is a Day 2 Corner who could be an interesting fit as a nickel. He is undersized at 5’10 and 187 lbs. with short arms, but he plays physical and sticky man coverage that can beat receivers in the press. He stays in receivers hip pockets very well and has a smooth backpedal, which are both traits that favor Lou Anarumo’s more man coverage heavy scheme. Abney didn’t test at the Combine but did run a mid 4.4s time at his pro day, showing his long speed is strong to keep up vertically. He crashed downfield quickly and makes solid tackles reliably in the run.
However he does have his flaws. His tape has shown a tendency to get grabby downfield and he drew 13 penalties in the last 2 seasons. He can get caught guessing on routes and struggled against double move routes in 2025. And he struggles at shedding blockers, relying on avoided getting contacted instead of shedding and making a tackle. Like Ponds he also was an outside Corner in college with just 26 snaps as a slot in his collegiate career, making a shift to inside a projection.
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Still Abney has a knack for clutch moments that see him elevate in big moments. Game-sealing INTs against Baylor and West Virginia stand out the most in this regard. His ball skills are solid for a corner, so he can generate good interception numbers when given the opportunity to make plays on the ball.
Abney grades out as a late Round 2 to mid Round 3 corner and could be available at pick 78 in when the Colts make their 2nd pick of the draft. If there, he should be a top choice for the Colts if they want to address the slot corner need.
Keionte Scott, Miami
Keonte Scott is a high end testing athlete with strong ability to fight through blocks or evade blockers in the run game. He is a down hill style player who also can thrive as a blitzer off the edge. These abilities should translate well in Lou Anarumo’s scheme as the Colts are a more blitz friendly team than in prior years.
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Scott also was noted for his leadership as an older prospect and was named as a captain for both Auburn and Miami in his collegiate career.
Scott’s issues can be in understanding passing concepts and being able to hang with slots in man coverage, hurting his fit. Should he continue to learn and react accordingly he does have the requisite athleticism to keep up with players in space. Perhaps his best spot is at strong safety where he would have time to read the field and the receiver better. But his ability to come in as an impact downhill nickel is still enticing.
Keionte Scott should go in Round 3 to Round 4 of the NFL Draft so the Colts could add him after addressing other needs earlier on.
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Chandler Rivers, Duke
Rivers is another undersized but scrappy corner who has a very physical playstyle. He pressed receivers well as a Blue Devil outside but looks to move inside in the NFL. His football IQ, Zone awareness, quick change of direction skills, hands, and ability to read QBs eyes would do very well in the slot in coverage.
While he displays a strong understanding of what offenses plan to do, Rivers can be a bit overzealous in his pursuit to blow up a play that can cause him to lose leverage that hurts his ability to disrupt the play. Sometimes he gets caught looking in the backfield too much and is unable to make a play on his receiver because of it. And he has some grabby tendencies at the route step in man coverage which can draw flags.
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Still his coverage instincts and agility paired with his physicality make him a likely Day 2 pick.
Toriano Pride Jr., Missouri
Pride had the top speed at the Combine for Corners and he displayed it well on tape with strong vertical and closing speed. Despite his size he handled SEC wideouts well outside in man and zone looks. He displays some hard jams for his size as well at press point. Shoots his hands quick to press and to disrupt passes despite smaller arms. Unafraid at the hit point and is willing to throw his body around at the hit point.
Pride is a tough player with fun athletic traits and solid production against top competition, but his biggest weakness is at the hit point as he can be dragged for extra yards. He needs better form to truly bring down ball carriers. He also can be over aggressive at the press point and if he misses the press he is out of position. His recovery speed is strong though to help negate that weakness at times. Still his lack of strength, length, and productivity at creating interceptions hurts his stock to a Day 3 pick.
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With additional coaching Pride could make improvements at tackling and at reading routes and press technique to become a nickel weapon.
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