The Indianapolis Colts waived cornerback Jaylon Jones on Tuesday, ending the 24-year-old’s four-year tenure with the team that drafted him, via ESPN’s NFL transaction log.
The move came as part of a three-transaction shuffle: Indianapolis promoted offensive tackle Luke Tenuta from the practice squad to the 53-man roster and signed tight end Kenny Fletcher Jr. to the practice squad.
Jones, a seventh-round pick (No. 221 overall) out of Texas A&M in 2023, had grown from a late-round project into a regular starter. He appeared in all 17 games as a rookie and started 10. In 2024, he started every contest, posting 100 combined tackles, 12 pass breakups, two interceptions and a forced fumble.
That ironman season included an AFC Defensive Player of the Week honor after a two-interception performance against the Chicago Bears. Across three seasons he started 29 of 44 games and recorded 162 tackles and 21 pass deflections.
His 2025 campaign was interrupted by a hamstring injury that landed him on injured reserve in mid-September. He returned in November and finished with 18 tackles and four pass deflections in 10 games, starting twice. By then the Colts’ cornerback room had changed.
A midseason 2025 trade for Sauce Gardner, the addition of veteran Charvarius Ward, and younger depth pieces left Jones as the odd man out.
At 6-foot-2 and 203 pounds he brought size and physicality, but opposing offenses often targeted him in coverage.
The timing also reflected a more immediate need on the offensive line. After final roster cuts, Indianapolis lacked a true backup tackle. Tenuta, a 6-foot-8 veteran, filled that hole.
Jones was entering the final year of his rookie contract, which carried a modest cap charge but little remaining guaranteed money, making him a straightforward roster casualty.
Jones is young enough that another team could view him as inexpensive, experienced depth. Whether the Colts attempt to keep him on the practice squad depends on whether he clears waivers.
For a player who started every game just two seasons ago, Tuesday’s transaction marks an abrupt change of scenery.
Indianapolis, meanwhile, enters Week 1 against the Baltimore Ravens with a remade secondary and one more body on the offensive line.
