Don Deal: A player valued over $600 million is welcomed by the Indianapolis colts.

Don Deal: A player valued over $600 million is welcomed by the Indianapolis colts.

Taven Bryan, a free agent defensive tackle, agreed to a one-year contract with the Indianapolis Colts on Wednesday, giving the interior defensive line some extra athletic depth.

Although Bryan, a former first-round pick, has fallen short of expectations, he did show some promise in a bigger role with the Cleveland Browns than he did in his first four years with the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Bryan participated in 62% of the defensive snaps for the Browns in 2022. He recorded 26 tackles (11 solo), 3.0 sacks, two tackles for loss, and six quarterback hits in 16 games (all starts). Playing primarily at the three-technique, he had 23 total pressures, according to Pro Football Focus.

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Here is our immediate assessment of the signature:

Greenwood, Sam, via Getty Images

Bryan works at the three-technique with an athletic frame. After recording a career-high 3.0 sacks, he is unlikely to contend for a starting position because Dayo Odeyingbo and DeForest Buckner are ahead of him in the depth chart. However, sacks aren’t everything. As a third option from the three-technique, he does, however, offer some respectable depth, particularly when Odeyingbo is near the edge.

3-Technical Depth Diagram
DeForest Buckner
Taven Bryan, Dayo Odeyingbo, and Telvin Agim

From USA TODAY Sports, Mark Konezny

Bryan’s signing won’t prevent the Colts from choosing a three-technique in the draft if they truly like that player. However, the depth starts to lose importance. Although Bryan doesn’t provide the Colts with an elite interior defensive line, his arrival does give them some veteran, athletic depth at the position—something the team hasn’t really had behind Buckner in recent years.

USA TODAY Sports’ Douglas DeFelice

Chris Ballard may be shifting his position a little because the Colts have been fairly active in the first few days of free agency. The Colts will probably concentrate on other needy positions like right guard and cornerback instead. That’s not to say they won’t look to sign a veteran defensive tackle to a one-year contract again if the right opportunity arises, but we shouldn’t anticipate any big splash acquisitions.

In USA TODAY Sports, Bob Donnan

There’s not much to dissect about this one-year agreement, which comes in at a reasonable $4.5 million. It’s unclear how much of that is motivated by incentives, but for a top athlete, it’s a low-risk contract.

In USA TODAY Sports, Bob Donnan

Players who want to establish themselves usually sign one-year contracts, so we shouldn’t have high expectations going into this. Although the lack of output is alarming, Bryan’s 2022 season—his first as a starter—showed more promise. It’s not spectacular, but if the Colts can help him refine his game to match his athleticism, there may be some potential. Having strong opinions about the signing in any case is difficult.