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The Indianapolis Colts will report to training camp on July 26 with their 90-man roster, which will be cut down to 53 players by the end of the preseason. To pass the time until camp, we're taking a look at every player on the Colts' 90-man roster. Today, we're looking at inside linebacker Antonio Morrison.
Who is he?
In the fourth round of the 2016 NFL Draft, the Colts used the 125th overall selection to take Florida inside linebacker Antonio Morrison. The linebacker played in 47 career games at Florida, recording 294 tackles, 21 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks, three passes defensed, an interception, three forced fumbles, and a fumble recovery. He racked up back-to-back 100-tackle seasons as a junior and a senior, and as a senior in 2015 he was a semi-finalist for the Butkus Award and a unanimous first-team All-SEC selection. He suffered a knee injury in Florida's 2014 bowl game and was back in time for the start of the 2015 season (a remarkable feat), though he did have a couple of off-field incidents while at Florida (most notably when he was barking at a police dog). He's not the most physically gifted inside linebacker, but he's a very physical and tough player. One anonymous scout told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel's Bob McGinn before the draft that Morrison is a player who is "going to be sitting there in the later part of the draft and someone's going to say, ‘Screw it, take him.' Then two years from now you'll go, ‘Holy (expletive), what a great pick.'"
What is his role?
With questions at inside linebacker following Jerrell Freeman's departure in free agency this offseason, Antonio Morrison stands a very good chance of making the team. Nate Irving and Sio Moore are the biggest competitors for the starting spot alongside D'Qwell Jackson, while the others (Josh McNary, Amarlo Herrera, Edwin Jackson, Junior Sylvestre, and Antonio Morrison) will be looking to compete for roster spots as well, still with an outside shot at factoring into the mix with the first team. As the team's fourth round pick, Morrison likely will make the roster, and his toughness is something that could be a welcome presence in the middle of the defense - even if as a depth player.
What are his chances?
Morrison has a good shot at making the 53-man roster as a depth player.