Among the numerous additions that the Indianapolis Colts have made in free agency, GM Chris Ballard added some needed help at the safety position, signing Juanyeh Thomas.
Thomas went undrafted in 2022 out of Georgia Tech and has spent his first four NFL seasons with the Dallas Cowboys. During that span, he has played 549 defensive snaps, 264 of which came last season. He has mostly played free safety, but has experience lining up in the box and has even taken some snaps at the nickel.
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"I play fast," Thomas said, via Colts.com. "I play different spots, and I'm very, very smart. Once I have a read on something, I just go."
Thomas appeared in only seven games last season, missing the second-half of the season due to migraines, but that is something he has since worked through.
However, before that, Thomas was taking on a much larger role defensively for the Cowboys, which includes making three starts between Weeks 5 and 9.
Over 156 coverage snaps last season, Thomas was targeted only three times and held opponents to a modes 9.0 yards per catch. He's also generated four career pass breakups on only 21 targets, per PFF.
"I would say being a quarterback on the back end of the defense," Thomas said on where he improved last season. "I'm a talker. I talk a lot. Even if you don't get what I'm saying, I'm going to talk to you. I'm going to tell you where I'm going, I'm going to tell you where you need to go. That's something I took pride in getting better at, especially helping me get more playing time. Then, as I started playing, the game slowed down for me. If you literally know what you're doing, the game slows down."
With the starting spot next to Cam Bynum up for grabs, Thomas will presumably be competing for that playing time with Jonathan Owens, Hunter Wohler, potentially, and any addition the Colts make in the NFL draft.
Still just 25 years old, the Colts are taking a swing at tapping into the upside and potential that Thomas flashed last season in Dallas.
This article originally appeared on Colts Wire: NFL free agency: Evaluating Juanyeh Thomas' impact with Colts