Report: Colts Sign Punter Nolan Cooney to Practice Squad, Waive Cornerback Ryan Smith

The Indianapolis Colts have signed punter Nolan Cooney to their practice squad, the team announced on Tuesday.

In addition to signing Cooney, the Colts also waived cornerback Ryan Smith from the practice squad.

A former undrafted free agent in 2021 out of Syracuse, Cooney was first signed by the New Orleans Saints and spent time on their practice squad before being signed by the Arizona Cardinals’ practice squad in 2022. Although Cooney likely took reps during practices, he has no experience punting in the regular season.

During his time at Syracuse, Cooney appeared in 11 games and had 74 punts with an average of 44.8 yards.

Current Colts’ punter Matt Haack was brought in as a temporary replacement for Rigoberto Sanchez, who is out for the season with a torn Achilles. Haack is coming off a very poor performance against the Tennessee Titans last Sunday in Nashville.

Through seven games this season, Haack is averaging 42.2 yards per punt, but he does rank seventh in punts pinned inside opponents’ 20-yard line with 15, according to Pro Football Focus.

Perhaps Cooney, despite not see any action in the regular season, provides some competition for Haack going forward.