INDIANAPOLIS —After not sitting out a single snap for the Indianapolis Colts' offense in 2017, Jeremy Vujnovich is back to compete for a spot once again in 2018.
The Indianapolis Colts today announced the guard has signed his exclusive rights tender, officially keeping him with the team this season.
Vujnovich, a Louisiana College product, originally entered the NFL as an undrafted college free agent in January 2014 with the Green Bay Packers. He spent the 2014 and 2015 seasons on the Packers' practice squad before his release in May 2016, when he was picked up by the Colts.
Vujnovich would then spend most of the 2016 season on Indy's practice squad, though he did participate in his first two career regular season games that year.
Last season, however, Vujnovich won the starting job at left guard for the Colts coming out of training camp, and he would become one of just two players, alongside left tackle Anthony Castonzo, to play in all 1,030 offensive snaps for the team in 2017.
Now back in 2018, Vujnovich is one of several players hoping to secure a starting job for the team moving forward.
While Castonzo (at left tackle) and Ryan Kelly (at center) appear secure in their spots, that leaves the left guard, right guard and right tackle positions open for the taking between the likes of Vujnovich, Matt Slauson, Mark Glowinski, Isaiah Williams, Tyreek Burwell, Le'Raven Clark, Denzelle Good, Joe Haeg and Jack Mewhort.
Centers Anthony Fabiano and Deyshawn Bond are also competing for roles on the team this offseason.
Vujnovich is the third of four Colts exclusive rights free agents to sign back with the team for 2018. On March 14, the Colts tendered Vujnovich, cornerback Chris Milton, long snapper Luke Rhodes and tight end Mo Alie-Cox.
Exclusive rights free agents are players with two or fewer accrued years of NFL experience whose contracts are expiring. Their original team must tender the player by the league's new year (which was at 4 p.m. ET on March 14), or the player becomes a free agent. If tendered, however, the team has exclusive rights to that player for the upcoming season, and then it's up to the player to sign that tender offer.
