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Colts are starting to build quality secondary with Kenny Moore

By Russell S. Baxter

Nashville TN - December 30: Indianapolis Colts Cornerback Kenny Moore II (23) runs back the interception during the NFL game between the Tennessee Titans and Indianapolis Colts on December 30, 2018, at LP Field in Nashville TN. (Photo by Jeffrey Brown/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Nashville TN - December 30: Indianapolis Colts Cornerback Kenny Moore II (23) runs back the interception during the NFL game between the Tennessee Titans and Indianapolis Colts on December 30, 2018, at LP Field in Nashville TN. (Photo by Jeffrey Brown/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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Indianapolis Cots general manager Chris Ballard continues to show faith in his system via a four-year contract extension for cornerback Kenny Moore.

It’s been a constant theme throughout this offseason. In his third year as the team’s general manager, Chris Ballard has built the Indianapolis Colts very steadily. And over the last few months, he has stressed his faith in the players he has drafted.

And he has also made sure that any players the franchise either signed via free agency or added via a trade the last few years have been ensured that they are part of a team that is most definitely on the rise.

This year, cornerback Pierre Desir and safety Clayton Geathers barely tested the free-agent market and were re-signed by the organization. Defensive tackle Margus Hunt was brought back. Starting defensive tackle Margus Hunt inked a two-year extension a week before the new fiscal year began.

The latest example of a performer that has played well for the Colts and is being rewarded for his efforts in cornerback Kenny Moore. Via NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the team has agreed to a four-year contract extension with the one-time undrafted free agent. Originally signed out of Valdosta State by the New England Patriots in 2017, he wound up not making the team. But Ballard and the Colts added him the first week of September and he wound up playing all 16 games for the club that year. Moore wound up making five starts, finished with 33 tackles, forced a fumble and knocked down five passes. He also add five stops on special teams.

In 2018, Moore played and started in 15 regular-season contests and the postseason split with the Texans and Chiefs. He finished fifth on the team with 76 stops, led the Colts with three interceptions and 11 passes defensed, added 1.5 sacks and one forced fumble. There were a combined 18 tackles, one interception, three sacks and three passes defensed vs. Houston and Kansas City in the playoffs.

With his first two picks in 2017, Ballard added safety Malik Hooker and cornerbacks Quincy Wilson and Nate Hairston. That same year, the team added both Moore and Desir in free agency. And this past April, the Colts used the first of three second-round selections on Temple University corner Rock Ya-Sin. That’s a lot of young talent for a defensive backfield that made big strides over the last few years. After finishing 28th in the NFL in pass yards allowed per game in ’17, Indianapolis featured the league’s 11xx-ranked pass defense this past year.

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Understandably, the Colts’ offense gets a ton of attention and understandably so with the likes quarterback Andrew Luck, wideout T.Y. Hilton, tight end Eric Ebron and that offensive front led by youngsters Quenton Nelson and Braden Smith. But Ballard and defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus have done yeoman’s work on the other side of the ball. And locking down Jones for a few more years is a great news for an emerging secondary.

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