For much of the 2025 campaign, it seemed like the Indianapolis Colts were set to run away with the AFC South division. After back-to-back losses to the Kansas City Chiefs and Houston Texans, though, the Colts have lost control of the top seed in the division, ceding it to the Jacksonville Jaguars, who are also suddenly 8-4.
The Colts are seemingly on the verge of falling apart, and injuries certainly aren’t helping matters. The latest guy to go down with an injury was star cornerback Sauce Gardner, who was acquired for a massive haul in a trade with the New York Jets earlier this season. Gardner is expected to miss time with his new injury, but the team recently received a positive update on his status.
Colts Not Expected to Place Sauce Gardner on Injured Reserve
Ahead of the trade deadline this season, the Colts sent the Jets a 2026 first-round pick and a 2027 first-round pick, along with wide receiver Adonai Mitchell, in exchange for Gardner. After getting selected with the No. 4 overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, Gardner quickly established himself as one of the top cornerbacks in the league.
After struggling in 2024 with the Jets, Gardner has looked more like himself this season. In 10 games played, he has 33 tackles and eight pass deflections, despite the fact that he does not get targeted all that often because of his lockdown coverage skills. With Gardner on one side and Charvarius Ward on the other side, Indy had one of the most formidable cornerback duos in the league.
A calf injury that Gardner suffered early in the team’s loss to the Texans, though, has thrown a wrench in those plans. While the injury is not as severe as the team initially feared, Gardner is going to miss a couple of weeks as he works on getting himself healthy. However, it’s not severe enough to land him on injured reserve, indicating the team believes he can be back on the field within four weeks.
“The Colts are not expected to place Sauce Gardner on Injured Reserve, per me and Tom Pelissero. A sign he can return within the four week window,” Ian Rapoport of NFL Network shared in a post on X.
Colts Desperately Need to Get Back in the Win Column
GettyHead coach Shane Steichen of the Indianapolis Colts.
At the time, trading for Gardner made a lot of sense for the Colts, as they appeared to be in position to go on a deep playoff run. And while that could still very well be true, if they miss the playoffs, their trade for Gardner could end up being a massive mistake. The good news is that Indianapolis still has time to get its act together, but being without its new star cornerback is only going to make things more difficult for the team moving forward.
A difficult stretch is only going to get more challenging for Indy in Week 14, as a wildly important contest with the Jaguars is coming up. The winner of this contest will take firm control of the AFC South division, while the other could risk getting swallowed up in a crowded pool of wild card contenders. Kickoff for this contest is scheduled for 1 p.m. ET on Sunday afternoon.
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