In what has to be considered one of the most surprising moves of the NFL offseason, the Indianapolis Colts on Saturday announced the release of defensive tackle Johnathan Hankins.
We have released DT Johnathan Hankins: https://t.co/75kSJpRlQd pic.twitter.com/4UfN292EOW
— Indianapolis Colts (@Colts) March 17, 2018
This comes just one year after Indianapolis signed Hankins to a three-year, $27 million deal. The 26-year-old defensive tackle was among the team’s best defensive players a season ago. He recorded 44 tackles and two sacks while acting the part of one of the best run-stuffing defensvie tackles in the game.
Indianapolis’ reasoning for the move is its transition from a 3-4 defense to a 4-3 scheme under first-year head coach Frank Reich. Hankins was signed last offseason when former head coach Chuck Pagano was still running the ship. Even this, it’s a rather interesting move and puts an elite-level defender back on the free agent market.
The Colts save $8.5 million against the 2018 cap by releasing Hankins.