5 Biggest Winners of Colts' Veteran Minicamp

The Indianapolis Colts wrapped up their spring training and will now break for summer after concluding their three-day veteran minicamp on Thursday.

While there was no tackling throughout their spring program, this initial stage of offseason workouts gave us an insightful sneak peek at how the roster will unfold by the time the regular season arrives.

OTAs and veteran minicamp served as the first step in determining each position room's depth chart order, but we'll have to wait until late July for training camp before said roles begin to solidify.

With that said, here are the five players who benefited the most from the Colts' spring slate of offseason workouts.

Bryce Boettcher

The Indianapolis Colts are set to have two new starters at each of their linebacker spots, and rookie linebacker Bryce Boettcher is expected to compete with veteran free agent signee Akeem Davis-Gaither for the opening at WILL linebacker.

OTAs were a solid first step in acclimating to the team, but veteran minicamp was when Boettcher first flashed his pass-coverage chops. In a 7-on-7 session on the first day of camp, Boettcher picked off second-year quarterback Riley Leonard and took him the distance.

This bodes well for his aforementioned competition at WILL linebacker. Boettcher is expected to contribute on special teams at the very least, while also rotating as a sub-package coverage specialist on defense, and this is a great first step in turning that expectation into reality.

A.J. Haulcy

Like Boettcher, Haulcy is another Colts rookie who is competing for a starting role, but unlike Boettcher, he has been expected to win his competition since he was drafted in the third round earlier this spring.

The Colts have high hopes for Haulcy, and so far he's not just been as advertised, he's been exceeding expectations.

“I tell you what, you think you know a guy and you go through the process and I think we, not only the coaches, but Chris (Ballard) and his staff, we thought we had a really good feel for what he was all about. And so far he's come in and exceeded my expectations, just from a mental standpoint in terms of picking things up, recall," Colts defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo said after their second minicamp practice on Wednesday.

"He's not a repeat offender when it comes to a mistake that he may get. He gets football. Like he has a really good feel for subtleties of the game that maybe a guy as a rookie doesn't have. So, I'm excited about where his upside can go.”

A.J. Haulcy has been even more impressive than the Colts initially expected, and that includes a hot start that saw him snag a one-handed interception on the first day of practice. As we break for the summer, we can confidently say that the starting strong safety spot is Haulcy's to lose.

Daniel Jones

The Colts' starting quarterback of the foreseeable future has continued to hit every necessary landmark throughout his Achilles rehab, while even suggesting that he's ahead of schedule at times.

Daniel Jones had a promising OTAs where he participated in 7-on-7 work for the first time since his injury, and he only continued that through the Colts' three-day veteran minicamp.

Jones kicked off minicamp by revealing to local reporters that he requested to participate in 11-on-11 work before the team breaks for summer, but head coach Shane Steichen quickly shut the idea down. This may seem like a negative, but to remind you, Jones was eyeing a Week 1 return, and now there's a reality where he's good to go by the time training camp gets underway.

This continued progression is not just promising for the Colts' 2026 campaign; it's necessary as they are banking on Daniel Jones to right the ship entirely.

Sauce Gardner

The Colts' superstar cornerback by no means needed a strong minicamp showing to prove anyone wrong, but Sauce Gardner maintaining his CB1 mindset is a good first step in proving that he's worth the blockbuster haul that landed him in Indianapolis.

"I hope they think that they should go at me," Gardner said about what he hopes opposing quarterbacks think when they see him lined up on the other side. "That's what I would like them to think so I can get more targets and be able to have more ball production, change the game more."

Gardner's was reportedly as lockdown as all get out during the Colts' final spring practice, and although Alec Pierce is not on the other side to allow iron to sharpen iron, Gardner remaining his confident self is all the Colts could ask for.

Ashton Dulin

The Colts have had an opening at their WR3 role since Alec Pierce took over the WR1 spot after they traded away Michael Pittman Jr. earlier this offseason, and Dulin exits veteran minicamp as the leader of said race.

Ashton Dulin is a career special-teams ace who has only filled in for the Colts offense on occasion, but despite his lack of receiving production and/or involvement, Dulin has proven to be reliable in every role he's ever been thrust into.

The Colts' seventh-year specialist only continued separating himself during veteran minicamp after putting on a strong showing in OTAs, and would be the third starting receiver if the regular season began today.

Indianapolis will likely be in the market for a veteran wide receiver throughout the rest of the offseason, but even if this hypothetical addition ends up winning the WR3 job, Dulin still projects as one of the Colts' main rotation pieces.

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