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I hate seeing anyone get injured in the offseason, and the Colts had made it until the last week of OTAs before they had a player suffer a significant injury. Today, the team announced that they have signed undrafted defensive end Gannon Conway out of Arizona State to replace defensive end Fili Moala's spot on the roster, as Moala is headed to injured reserve.
While the Colts have not said what the injury is (we might get some more info later today as interviews take place), but Ian Rapoport of NFL.com has some information:
#Colts DE Fili Moala will be placed on Injured Reserve. Source says he tore his ACL again. Partially torn, but enough to miss the season
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) June 11, 2014
#Colts DE Fili Moala collided with a teammate in practice, and his knee buckled. It’s the right knee, I’m told, same as in Nov. of 2012.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) June 11, 2014
That's really tough for Moala. He suffered a torn ACL (reportedly the same knee, per Rapoport) in 2012 and was placed on IR in November 2012, and then again he was placed on IR near the end of the 2013 season, on January 6, 2014. Moala played well in 2013 when given the chance, however, and tied a career high with 26 tackles. He also recorded 1.5 sacks, 1 pass deflection, and 1 fumble recovery while playing in all 16 regular season games, starting 6. He was considered important enough that the Colts brought him back on a one-year deal this past March. While the Colts defensive line has several players who will likely contribute, including Cory Redding, Arthur Jones, Ricky Jean Francois, and Josh Chapman, Moala would have been a valuable depth and role player and the Colts will miss him.
Conway, a 6-4, 280 pound end, signed with the Miami Dolphins after going undrafted in this year's draft but was released on May 16. He played in 30 games at Arizona State (starting 14) and made 51 tackles (9 for loss), 5.5 sacks, and 2 passes defended. He was named honorable mention All-Pac-12 in 2013.
It's unlikely that Conway will make the roster, but it's the offseason and with Moala going down the Colts have an extra roster spot. At this point, it's unlikely that anyone the Colts would bring in would be able to make the roster, so the Colts will just have to make up for the loss of Moala with the players they have. The defensive line doesn't have as much depth now, but the starters look to remain the same.