3 surprise cuts the Colts could make this offseason

1. RB Nyheim Hines

Hines has been a nice find for the Colts, with 170 catches over three seasons (63 catches twice) since being drafted in the fourth round out of NC State in 2018. But the passing game is his niche, as he topped a 50 percent snap share in only three of 16 games last season (once after Week 1, below 40 percent in all but one other game).

The Colts can and should make Jonathan Taylor (47 percent snap share in 2020) an every-down workhorse starting in 2021. His production as a rookie (1,169 rushing yards, 11 touchdowns, 36 catches) flat-out demands it. Hines will be battling for the leftover scraps with Jordan Wilkins, even with what he has shown he can do as a pass catcher to give him an edge.

Hines will only count for $2.364 million against the cap this year, the final year of his rookie contract. But the Colts can offload almost all of that ($2.183 million) by cutting him (or trading him, as there could be a market there).

As is the case with Glowinski and Doyle, the Colts aren’t pressured by cap implications to cut Hines and keeping him would be fine. But for a team with aspirations to make a deep playoff run, fine can’t be good enough to just keep around if it opens up possibilities elsewhere or opens up a bigger role for someone. So among a list of cuts that may all be surprising, the second-string running back in line for a smaller role gets to be No. 1.