The Indianapolis Colts are making another change to their offense to try and stop the bleeding.
The Colts cut kicker Michael Badgley and replaced him with veteran Blake Grupe ahead of their super-important AFC South showdown against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday.
Badgley, of course, was signed to replace rookie Spencer Shrader, after he was lost for the year with a knee injury sustained in Indy’s win over the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 5.
Badgley is 10 for 11 on field goals, with a long of 53. But he has missed three kicks in Indy’s past three games, including a crucial extra point in the Colts’ 20-16 loss to the Houston Texans on Sunday — Indianapolis’ third loss in its past four games.
That loss dropped the Colts (8-4) to a first-place tie with the Jaguars, who are also 8-4.
Blake Grupe Was Cut By The New Orleans Saints
Colts fans may revel in having a new kicker on the roster, but be careful what you wish for.
Grupe ranks 39th in the NFL out of 40 qualifying kickers in made-field-goal percentage in the NFL this season. He is 18 for 26 and was cut by the New Orleans Saints after he went 1 for 3 on field goals — including misses from 38 and 47 yards out — in their 24-10 loss to the Atlanta Falcons on Nov. 23.
Grupe’s field-goal numbers this season are bad, but he is just 75 for 94 in his career — plus he missed two kicks from inside of 30 yards in his rookie season, 2023.
Indy must be hoping it won’t need Grupe to kick many field goals and is locking him in for his PAT prowess. The third-year kicker is perfect on extra points this season (15 for 15) and is 86 for 88 on PATs in his three-season career, with both misses coming in 2024.
Blake Grupe Won A Kicking Competition To Land The Colts Job
Before you think the Colts haphazardly signed Grupe, he did have competition for the Colts job.
Grupe reportedly was the prevailing kicker between himself, disgraced former Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker and 22-year-old Maddux Trujillo.
Tucker, who ironically tried out for the Saints job last week to replace Grupe, is one of the most accurate kickers in NFL history. He just was reinstated from suspension by the NFL after allegedly committing sexual assault against more than a dozen massage therapists, a move that earned him his release from the Ravens.
Tucker, who turned 36 on Nov. 21, also struggled on the field in 2024. He missed a pair of extra points and was 32nd out of 39 qualifying NFL kickers with a 73.3 field-goal percentage and went just 11 for 19 on kicks of 40-plus yards a season ago.
Trujillo signed with the Colts after going undrafted in the spring and made it to final cuts before he was waived with an undisclosed injury designation in late August. Trujillo was placed on injured reserve and received a settlement from the Colts, which is why he is eligible to kick this season.
Trujillo came from Temple, by way of Austin Peay, and attracted attention on social media when he made multiple kicks from 60-plus yards last year, including a 64-yarder against Utah State.
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