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The Indianapolis Colts announced on Tuesday that the team has signed running back Darius Anderson and tight end Charlie Taumoepeau to its practice squad and waived tight end Xavier Grimble from its taxi squad in a corresponding roster move.
Regarding Anderson, the 5’11”, 195 pound running back out of TCU was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Dallas Cowboys following this April’s NFL Draft.
As a senior in 2019 for the Horned Frogs, he rushed for 832 rushing yards on 151 carries (5.5 ypc. avg.) and 6 rushing touchdowns in 12 starts—earning All-Big 12 honorable mention.
Anderson has a RAS [Relative Athletic Score] of 7.69 out of 10.0
He had a shot to make the Cowboys initial 53-man roster but was released this past Friday.
Still, Anderson clearly possesses some rushing talent:
Darius Anderson (@TCUFootball) to the for the North!
— NFL Network (@nflnetwork) January 25, 2020
: @seniorbowl on NFL Network pic.twitter.com/odR1hDh8j1
Darius Anderson: cleared for take-off!
— TCU Football (@TCUFootball) September 16, 2018
Anderson houses it from 93 yards away!
TCU 14, OSU 10 | 2Q, 9:08 pic.twitter.com/kgobPpLpNW
Meanwhile, Taumoepeau is a 6’2”, 245 pound tight end from Portland State, who was also signed by the Cowboys as an undrafted rookie free agent in 2020.
The senior Vikings standout caught 36 receptions for 474 receiving yards (13.2 pyr. avg.) and 2 touchdown receptions during 10 starts in 2019—earning First-Team All-Big Sky honors.
Taumoepeau has a RAS of 8.08 out of 10.0—demonstrating that he’s an impressive athlete.
It’s been reported that he previously interviewed with the Colts ahead of the NFL Draft:
Portland State's Charlie Taumoepeau might be the best tight end after the catch in this class. Defenses he played in the FCS had their hands full trying to bring him down.
— Evan Lazar (@ezlazar) March 6, 2020
Play speed, toughness/physicality, contact balance, lateral cuts. Dude was a problem. #NFLDraft pic.twitter.com/ZC17Gld8pM
Taumoepeau played extremely well against FBS competition. Against Oregon #GoDucks in 2018 he caught five passes for 125 yards and two scores. This one went for 71 yards. He said he's had video interviews with @Eagles , @Colts and @Titans
— Aaron J. Fentress (@AaronJFentress) April 19, 2020
, to name a few, since the combine. pic.twitter.com/al9P59MNru
Both young players clearly have some developmental potential going forward on the Colts practice squad—which can hold a maximum of 16 players this season (due to COVID-19).
While running back is currently pretty deep in the Colts backfield—in Anderson’s case, tight end is much thinner in the wake of veteran Trey Burton (calf) being placed on injured reserve—meaning Taumoepeau has an outside chance to contribute immediately—if he really flashes initially on Indy’s practice squad.