INDIANAPOLIS -- On the very first day of full-squad spring workouts, Indianapolis Colts rookie safety A.J. Haulcy announced his arrival in a very obvious way.
"First day of practice, he had a one-handed [interception] on an over route," veteran free safety Cam Bynum said. "He snatched it out the air."
It was a welcome sight to see from a rookie, to be sure. But the Colts are going to need more from where that came from if they're going to snap a skid of five seasons without a playoff berth.
One of the hallmarks of the Colts' 2026 defense might be its youth. While the Colts have stressed stability on offense, retaining quarterback Daniel Jones and receiver Alec Pierce, they have undergone a pretty significant overhaul on defense.
And that shift has been one toward a much more youthful lineup.
On a defense featuring stars such as Sauce Gardner and DeForest Buckner, it is the performance of players in their NFL infancy who might determine how far the unit can go. Depending on the result of training camp position battles, there could be as many as five defensive starters who are in their first or second NFL seasons in 2026. None of them has started a game in the NFL and only one has played so much as a single snap on Sundays.
"There's a lot of new guys," Bynum said. "It's a big turnover."
But the early reviews are mostly positive. There's a big difference between making plays in minicamp and doing it on opening day. But the young defenders are showing a capacity to handle what's being thrown at them. Even veteran defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo -- who has a reputation for not wanting to use young players -- has been impressed.
"Those guys are doing a good job," he said.
The group of young potential starters includes players at some key positions. It appears second-round pick CJ Allen is all but a lock to start at middle linebacker -- a position that likely will require him to handle sideline communication and calling plays in the huddle.
Meanwhile, Haulcy seems like a solid bet to win the starting role at strong safety. The third-round choice has been among the most pleasant surprises of the spring.
"We thought we had a really good feel for what he was all about," Anarumo said. "And, so far, he's come in and exceeded my expectations."
Anarumo added, "He gets football. He has a really good feel for subtleties of the game that maybe a guy, as a rookie, doesn't have."
Elsewhere, there's nickel corner Justin Walley, a 2025 third-round pick who sustained a season-ending knee injury last preseason and never played as a rookie. He was in the midst of an impressive training camp when he suffered his injury and, coaches say, has picked up where he left off.
Defensive end JT Tuimoloau, a second-round choice in 2025, is making a push to replace the departed Kwity Paye on the strong side. He's the most experienced of this young collection of players, having seen action in 13 games last season. Still, he played just 24% of the defensive snaps as a rookie and still has a fair amount of on-the-job training remaining.
Finally, in a surprise addition to the list, fourth-round choice Bryce Boettcher took a significant number of snaps with the starting defense during last week's minicamp. He could make a legitimate push to start in a linebacking unit that lacks depth and is ripe for newcomers to emerge.
The Colts appeared to emphasize experience in this year's draft selections, and that seems to be playing a role in the quick assimilation of the defensive rookies. Haulcy started a remarkable 44 games at three schools, including 11 at LSU last season. Allen and Boettcher started 30 games each at Georgia and Oregon, respectively.
"There's a lot of things, a lot of moving parts, but they've got to understand our systems and how we operate within the systems to be out there, to go make plays," coach Shane Steichen said. "If you don't know what to do, it's going to be hard to go make plays."
But that, so far, is not proving to be an impediment for these players. And they're earning the respect of their older peers as a result. The veterans around them have set a high bar that the youngsters seem to be reaching.
"It's a good mix," Bynum said, comparing the youth with the more experienced veterans. "There's a lot of knowledge to be able to bring. So, I think it forces the rookies and the young guys to play up to that veteran status. And I think that's what I've seen so far.
"I don't feel like anybody's acting or operating like a rookie."