Colts waive D’Joun Smith from IR with injury settlement

Though it went relatively unnoticed today, the Indianapolis Colts waived cornerback D’Joun Smith from injured reserve with an injury settlement, the league’s transactions show. It should also be noted that the Colts recently cut cornerback Tevin Mitchel and linebacker Ron Thompson from IR with injury settlements as well.

These moves are very minor ones, but they are worth at least noting for one main reason: the team could still bring them back. The rules have been changed this year to shorten the window before a team can bring a guy back in this situation, as they must wait for the length of the injury settlement (which is agreed upon between the team and the player determining how long the injury should take to heal) plus an additional three weeks (it used to be six weeks). It’s especially relevant because we know it’s in Chuck Pagano’s mind as a possibility too, as he brought it up at a press conference recently.

Smith is obviously the most interesting possibility for such a situation, as he was their third round pick last year and was a favorite of Chuck Pagano’s. He was cut this year because he’s been dealing with injuries and the Colts couldn’t afford to take up a roster spot on an injured player. We don’t have any indications yet that the Colts plan on bringing Smith back, but Pagano did say after the cut that “It’s unfortunate, but his head is in a good place. He’s a good football player, he’s got to heal up. We will hear from him again.” What that means, I don’t know, but it’s worth noting. At this point it seems like that ship has sailed, but you never know what circumstances will be surrounding the Colts when Smith gets healthy.

Mitchel is also a guy the Colts seem to like but, like Smith, couldn’t stay healthy and the team needed the roster spot. But if the Colts are still dealing with a mess of injuries at the cornerback position when either Smith or Mitchel get healthy and the window has passed, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Colts give them a look again.