The Indianapolis Colts released wide receiver Darius Slayton on Friday, October 16, 24 days after signing him and before he played a snap for the club.
Indianapolis signed Slayton as a free agent on September 22 as injuries piled up at receiver; Alec Pierce went on injured reserve four days later. Slayton spent three game weeks on the roster without getting on the field, and a knee injury kept him out of the Week 5 game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
“He had some good weeks of practice, unfortunately, it just didn’t work out and I think those happen,” coach Shane Steichen said on Friday. “I got a lot of respect for him, what he’s done in this league, and I wish him the best going forward.”
Seven seasons in New York
Slayton, a 2019 fifth-round pick, spent his first seven seasons with the New York Giants. Across 106 career games, 78 of them starts, he has 296 catches for 4,435 yards, a 15.0-yard average, and 22 touchdowns. Last season he caught 37 passes for 538 yards and one touchdown in 14 games.
As a vested veteran released before the trade deadline, he did not have to go through waivers and is free to sign with any club right away.
A busy week in Indianapolis
The release came two days before the Colts blew a 13-0 halftime lead in a 26-20 home loss to the Tennessee Titans, and three days before the club fired general manager Chris Ballard. Tom Pelissero reported on Monday that assistant general manager Ed Dodds will run the personnel department for the rest of the season. The Colts are 2-4 and visit the Minnesota Vikings in Week 7.
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