Colts CB Justin Walley suffered a season-ending knee injury a year ago; Wednesday he had a pick-6
· Yahoo Sports
WESTFIELD – Just over a year ago in a not too different situation, Justin Walley saw his rookie season cut far too short. The second-year Colts slot cornerback faced adversity Wednesday in Day 1 of joint practices at Grand Park against the Atlanta Falcons, but he also got the last laugh on the biggest stage.
Visit newsbetting.cv for more information.
On a day where the Colts defense struggled to contain star running back Bijan Robinson early-on, a unit that ramped up the pressure throughout the first-team 11-on-11 drills capped off the day with an exclamation point in the two teams’ lone ‘move the ball’ period -- which more closely simulates game action -- near the end of Day 1.
On a ball that Falcons quarterback Tua Tagovailoa held far too long, Walley jumped a shallow route near the right sidelined that the young cornerback snagged it with ease and took it to the house for a pick-six.
“Walley’s a playmaker and it’s great to have him back coming off the injury,” Colts head coach Shane Steichen said of his corner’s interception, referencing Walley’s season-ending torn ACL halfway through training camp last August in a joint practice with the Ravens. “He’s been making plays all camp and to see that, I was really excited for him.”
The first-team Falcons offense returned to the field to face the Colts defensive starters for another six plays, but the tone had already been set. A short run from Robinson was followed by a pitch to the Falcons running back that Colts safety Camryn Bynum read perfectly and stuffed at the line of scrimmage. Linebacker Akeem Davis-Gaither shrank the pocket the next play, leading to a “sack” by edge rusher Arden Key.
Colby Wooden then stuffed Falcons running back Brian Robinson for a loss in the backfield, and Wooden and Jaylahn Tuimoloau both got hands on Tagovailoa on the ensuing two plays that proved to be short dump-off passes.
Walley was a victim of the Falcons’ only real offensive play of note with the first-team, where Tagovailoa fired a deep ball to star receiver Drake London down the left sidelined. Despite a severely underthrown ball, London worked his way back to it and leaped over the top of the Colts corner to snag the ball.
Seeing Walley recover from an allowed completion that would’ve registered for a deep touchdown in a game with a point-scoring play of his own had his teammates nearly storming the field as he trotted toward the end zone.
“That just gives us juice and energy,” Wooden said of Walley’s pick-six. “Like, ‘Aww, okay, they don’t want to be here today.’ That just makes us more energetic, good to go.
“You see how everybody, we were ready to storm the field. It just brings good juice, good energy to keep it going.”
Picking up steam
After the Colts held him largely in check during the team’s regular season matchup a year ago in Germany – 17 carries for 84 yards on the ground and two catches for four yards – the Colts’ starting defense had little answer for Bijan Robinson early in the first 11-on-11 period Wednesday. Atlanta ran the first four plays for their running back – the first two handoffs up the middle for decent gains and the latter two completions to Robinson out of the backfield.
They were the best Atlanta’s starting offense would look all afternoon.
Davis-Gaither broke up a pass intended for Atlanta tight end Kyle Pitts to end the first period. Colts edge rusher Laiatu Latu kicked off the second with a sack of Tagovailoa, followed by a stuffed run contained by the defensive line. A wayward snap on a blown-dead play was then followed by a dump-off to Pitts where Latu forced the Falcons quarterback to scramble left, ending in a completion for minimal gain. Brian Robinson picked up just short of 10 yards on the next play, and London’s acrobatic catch brought that drive to a close.
Outside a run for a first down to begin the next starters 11-on-11 period, Tagovailoa sailed his only two throws to his receivers during the final teams period before the practice-ending ‘move the ball’ action – the second throw a desperation attempt as Colts edge rusher Micheal Clemons barreled down toward him. The defensive line stuffed two other short Bijan Robinson runs, and multiple members of the secondary snuffed out a backwards pass from Tagovailoa to Falcons receiver Jahan Dotson on a play that was blown dead before Dotson could get rid of the ball.
Kicking competition
Blake Grupe was given one more field goal opportunity than Spencer Shrader.
Grupe, who has been far more consistent in practices, made all five kicks. Grupe hit from 28, 33, 40, 47 and 54 to push his training-camp total to 38 of 41 on field goals in practice. Shrader, who is coming off a torn ACL and MCL that prematurely ended his 2025 season, made kicks from 33, 40 and 48, but he pulled his attempt left from 54, a recurring problem in training camp.
.oembed-frame {width:100%;height:100%;margin:0;border:0;}
Roll call
Tyler Warren, the Colts’ star tight end, went down on a route early in practice, stayed there for a moment and then headed gingerly to the training staff. Warren initially left practice with a member of the training staff to be examined in the injury tent, but he returned a bit later and watched practice with a wrap on his right thigh.
Running back DJ Giddens was also forced to sit out practice. Giddens, who has missed the last two weeks with a hamstring injury, initially warmed up with the team as if he was returning to action, but he found a trainer after positional drills and grabbed at the back of his right hamstring. Giddens also watched from the sideline.
Veteran cornerback Charvarius Ward (back), wide receiver Anthony Gould (groin), offensive tackle Luke Tenuta (knee) and offensive tackle Nolan Rucci (lower leg) all sat out practice.
Allen watched from the side, along with Alec Pierce, who remains on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list as he recovers from offseason ankle surgery.
Quick hitters
Tagovailoa finished 8-for-13 passing, but of his five incompletions, Davis-Gaither and Walley were the only Colts to get their hands on the ball. His bad misses on his other three incompletions didn’t give the Colts a chance to make a play. …Though he returned to practice over the weekend, the Colts again did not use rookie linebacker CJ Allen on the first-team defense Wednesday. Jaylon Carlies and Davis-Gaither played together during the first 11-on-11 series, and Boettcher replaced Carlies the second time around before Austin Ajiake and Carlies worked together in the third 11-on-11 series. … Adetomiwa Adebawore registered a “sack” with the second-team defense on Falcons quarterback Cooper Rush, who was inaccurate at times Wednesday, but also saw his receivers drop several makeable catches. …Safety Hunter Wohler read a dump-off throw from Rush perfectly in second-team 11-on-11 action, delivering a blow on the receiver moments after the catch that sparked a roar from the Colts’ sideline.
Joel A. Erickson and Nathan Brown cover the Colts all season. Get more coverage on IndyStarTV and with the Colts Insider newsletter.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Colts CB Justin Walley suffered a season-ending knee injury a year ago; Wednesday he had a pick-6