Antonio Cromartie signs with Indianapolis Colts
With injuries thinning their cornerback ranks, the Indianapolis Colts have signed Antonio Cromartie.
The Indianapolis Colts are dealing with a laundry list of injuries at cornerback, most notably an ankle injury that kept Vontae Davis out of their last preseason game. So, Antonio Cromartie came in for a visit on Monday, and he was not allowed to leave town without a contract.
The #Colts have agreed to terms with veteran CB Antonio Cromartie. With Vontae Davis on the shelf, Cro helps them some.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) August 23, 2016
Joining Davis in Indianapolis’ cornerback infirmary is Darius Butler (ankle), Patrick Robinson (groin) and D’Joun Smith, who is being eased back into action after a knee injury last year. Head coach Chuck Pagano originally said Davis is week-to-week, which was enough cause for concern. But ESPN’s Adam Schefter has more recently reported the Colts’ best corner has ligament damage in his ankle, and Davis is expected to miss at least the first month of the season.
Rapoport also passed along the team’s expectation Davis will miss games to start the season, and Cromartie will theoretically help fill that void. But the 32-year-old was released by the New York Jets in February, and despite rumors of interest from teams his first known workout was with the Colts.
In July, Cromartie denied rumors that a hip injury limited him last season and he would be forced to retire. He started 15 games for the Jets in 2015, but he graded out as Pro Football Focus’ 97th-ranked cover corner and there’s no way he was being kept around with an $8 million salary cap hit.
Cromartie is a four-time Pro Bowler over 10 NFL seasons, including a run of three straight trips to Hawaii from 2012-2014. Based on that, an argument can be made he’s not far removed from being a useful player. But it’s pretty clear the Colts needed a warm body to play cornerback, and Cromartie was probably the best available option.
While Davis is out, and with Cromartie as the de facto No. 1 corner, Indianapolis’ defense is unlikely to offer much resistance The offense is going to have to pile up a lot of points to win games, so Andrew Luck better stay healthy this year.