Colts 2015 Player Preview: Running Back Abou Toure

Every year there are players who are at a team's rookie mini-camp simply on a tryout basis who end up impressing enough to earn a spot on the offseason roster.  That was true of running back Abou Toure this year.

Toure is a 6-2, 230 pound back who was signed by the Colts as an undrafted free agent shortly after their rookie mini-camp earlier this year.  He has been to a number of places, however, as in 2010 he played at Valley Forge Military College (in Wayne, PA), in 2011 he played at Dean College (in Franklin, MA), in 2012 he played at Utah State, and then in 2013 and 2014 he played at UT Martin.  During his two seasons with UT Martin, Toure rushed for 1,647 yards and 10 touchdowns.

The signing of Toure is one that shows the case of a player making the most of an opportunity, as he turned a tryout during mini-camp to a spot on the 90-man roster, where he has stuck ever since.  As the Colts enter training camp, he will again look to exceed expectations and make the most of the opportunity that he has.

The Colts have quite a few players at the running back position - enough so that Zurlon Tipton, who ended the 2014 season as the number two back, is a big question mark to make the 53-man roster.  Frank Gore will be the team's starter, while Boom Herron appears to be the favorite for the number two spot.  After that, rookie Josh Robinson and Vick Ballard would seem to have a good shot at making the team (as long as Ballard stays healthy), leaving Zurlon Tipton as, apparently, the fifth guy at the position.  The Colts almost surely won't keep five running backs, so undrafted free agents Tyler Varga and Abou Toure will need to make quite a push in training camp to earn a spot on the roster -  a push that, especially when it comes to Toure, seems unlikely to happen.