The Colts, who have had a knack for finding placekicking talent in recent years, have added an offseason rookie understudy to Adam Vinatieri, announcing a deal with North Alabama’s Taylor Pontius on Wednesday.
Pontius hit 11-of-14 field goals in his final collegiate season in 2014, but the fact the Colts signed him after trying him out over the weekend is perhaps most relevant to his professional future. In the past two years, the Colts have signed Brandon McManus and Cody Parkey as rookie backups to the legendary Vinatieri, and both young kickers landed jobs elsewhere, with Parkey a Pro Bowler for Philadelphia in 2014.
For Pontius, the key will be showing enough to draw interest from another club. And teams surely must know that Indianapolis knows scout and teach kickers, even when it is utterly secure at the position with Vinatieri.