Corey Ballentine was released by the Indianapolis Colts today. Green Bay should sign him back onto their roster.
On Friday, the Indianapolis Colts released cornerback Corey Ballentine, who had signed with the team in free agency this offseason. Ballentine, a former Green Bay Packer, spent the 2022 through 2024 seasons with Green Bay. There, he played a total of 37 games, including seven starts on the defensive side of the ball.
In total, he registered 581 defensive snaps with the team, along with 415 special teams reps. His 195 special teams reps in 2024, as a non-returner, were more snaps played on “we-fense” than kicker Brandon McManus, for reference.
Right now, there are major question marks about the depth of the Packers’ cornerback depth chart. Beyond Nate Hobbs, Keisean Nixon and Carrington Valentine, there are no roster locks on the team. That doesn’t change the fact that the team will need to keep at least five players at the position going into Week 1, meaning that two of the following players will need to make the roster as it stands today: receiver-turned-cornerback Bo Melton, seventh-round rookie Micah Robinson, practice squadder Kalen King, practice squadder Kamal Hadden, undrafted free agent rookie Tyron Herring, reserve/futures player Isaiah Dunn, May pickup Gregory Junior and July pickup Garnett Hollis Jr.
With all that being said, it wouldn’t be the worst idea for the Packers to bring Ballentine back into the fold and have him compete for the fourth or fifth cornerback spot on the depth chart. Again, he’s been an NFL contributor on the defensive side of the ball, which is not something any of the Packers’ cornerbacks behind their top trio can claim, and he’s also been a significant contributor on special teams, which only Junior can claim.