Former Auburn Tigers wide receiver Darius Slayton was released by the Indianapolis Colts on Friday, ending a short-lived experiment that never produced a single snap for him.

The Colts made the announcement on their team website.

Slayton, a 2019 fifth-round pick out of Auburn, signed with the Colts on Sept. 22 after the New York Giants released him earlier in the month.

Indianapolis brought him in as a vertical threat while Alec Pierce recovered from a heel injury, and the move also reunited Slayton with quarterback Daniel Jones, his longtime Giants teammate.

A knee issue limited him, however, and the Colts moved on less than a month later without Slayton ever appearing in a game.

For Auburn fans, the news closes another chapter for one of the program’s more productive recent NFL products. On The Plains, Slayton developed into a classic deep threat under Gus Malzahn.

In three seasons (2016-18) after redshirting in 2015, he caught 79 passes for 1,605 yards and 11 touchdowns, averaging a robust 20.3 yards per catch.

His senior year produced 35 receptions for 670 yards and five scores, highlighted by a memorable Music City Bowl performance against Purdue.

In that game, Slayton hauled in three touchdowns—including a 74-yarder—and finished with 160 receiving yards, setting Auburn bowl records in both categories.

That speed and ability to stretch the field translated to the NFL. Across seven seasons with the Giants, Slayton recorded 296 receptions for 4,435 yards and 22 touchdowns, maintaining a career average of 15.0 yards per catch.

He led New York in receiving yards in four of his first five seasons and remained a reliable perimeter option even as the franchise cycled through quarterbacks and schemes.

His 4.39-second 40-yard dash at the Combine and consistent downfield production made him a classic boom-or-bust vertical weapon—the same skill set the Colts hoped to tap into while Pierce was sidelined.

Instead, the opportunity never fully materialized. Limited practice time and the knee issue kept him off the field, and Indianapolis elected to free up the roster spot.

At 29, Slayton now returns to free agency still offering the size (6-foot-1, 198 pounds) and field-stretching ability that defined his Auburn and Giants tenures.

Whether another team views him as a midseason depth addition remains to be seen, but his track record as a proven deep threat—forged on The Plains and refined in the NFL—gives him a clear profile as he looks for his next opportunity.

War Eagle, and good luck wherever the next stop lands.