Indianapolis Colts veteran cornerback Xavien Howard announced his retirement on social media, after just 4 starts—and having returned to the football field this year after a season-long absence.
The Colts also announced that they have placed Howard on the reserve/retired list and signed safety Trey Washington from the practice squad to the team’s active 53-man roster.
Howard missed Wednesday’s earlier practice because of ‘personal reasons,’ but we now know it’s because he’s hanging up the football cleats for good.
Per ESPN’s Stephen Holder, the choice was reportedly Howard’s, and there was no forced decision by the Colts because of the threat of imminent release.
The 32-year-old veteran cornerback, who was signed shortly before the season started and immediately inserted into the starting lineup because of injuries at the Colts cornerback position, clearly struggled after a year-long layoff, as he did not play football in 2024.
He started in all 4 games for the Colts, recording 11 tackles (7 solo). He was picked on early and often by Los Angels Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford and Puka Nacua this past weekend in coverage, as the pairing had great success. Per PFF, his +36.1 overall grade this season was ranked just 156th of 164 qualifying cornerbacks.
For me though, it wasn’t just that he looked a step slow out there in coverage—and really all season, but in Week 4’s tough road loss, the effort was also visibly lacking. That’s something that Howard can clearly control.
If Howard didn’t pick it up soon, the Colts were going to have to make a decision on his future status with the team. However, Howard just made that decision easy for them.
Acknowledging he had serious off-the-field issues later in his career, Howard finishes his playing days as a 2x NFL All-Pro and 2x NFL Pro Bowl.
Unfortunately for the Colts, his best days were well before with the Miami Dolphins and this season in Indianapolis, he was clearly in the twilight of his playing career—essentially running on empty.
The Colts are likely turn to both Mekhi Blackmon and undrafted rookie Johnathan Edwards to replace him on the outside opposite CB1 Charvarius Ward.
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