The Indianapolis Colts made a rather impactful signing to their practice squad on Monday, announcing that they added veteran running back Ameer Abdullah while releasing running back Khalil Herbert from the practice squad.
Abdullah (5'9", 203, 32 years old) is entering his 11th year in the NFL after being made a second-round pick by the Detroit Lions out of Nebraska back in 2015. He spent the first several years of his career in the NFC North with the Lions (2015-18) and Minnesota Vikings (2018-21), before spending time with the Carolina Panthers (2021), Las Vegas Raiders (2022-24), and this offseason with the San Francisco 49ers.
In 141 career games, Abdullah has carried the ball 494 times for 1,994 yards (4.0 avg.) and eight touchdowns, but is often endeared for his abilities as a pass-catcher and return specialist. For his career, Abdullah has caught 203-of-268 targets for 1,468 yards (7.2 avg.) and 11 touchdowns. He's returned 151 kickoffs for an average of 25.1 yards, and 10 punts for an average of 9.1.
Abdullah has been a special teams fixture for much of his career, playing 1,502 special teams snaps on the kickoff and punt return and coverage teams.
Herbert, 27, signed a one-year, $1.3 million free-agent deal with the Colts this offseason but was released during preseason cuts. He then signed with the practice squad.
The Colts have other running backs Jonathan Taylor, DJ Giddens, and Tyler Goodson on the active roster, with Abdullah and Ulysses Bentley IV on the practice squad.
Jake Arthur has been covering the Indianapolis Colts for over a dozen years and is a member of the PFWA. He's one half of the Locked On Colts podcast and has worked for the Colts' official website, On SI, and more. You can follow him on X @JakeArthurNFL.