The Indianapolis Colts will play the Denver Broncos on Thursday and that will be tough for Indy since multiple stars are dealing with injuries.
On Sunday, the Indianapolis Colts lost to the Tennessee Titans, moving Indy’s record to 1-2-1, with the only win coming outside of the division. To make matters worse, Indy has to turn things around quickly because the team has a short week as the Colts will kick off Week 5 on Thursday Night Football against the Denver Broncos. If traveling to Denver to take on a talented 2-2 Broncos team wasn’t tough enough, Indy will be challenged with getting some of its best players healthy.
The Colts entered the game against the Titans already a little beat up. Indy had nine players on the injury report last week, and although Julian Blackmon was the only player to miss the game, Indianapolis didn’t leave unscathed. Indianapolis’ best two players sustained notable injuries and their statuses remain unclear.
Shaquille Leonard, in his first game this season, sustained a concussion against the Titans. With Indy playing on Thursday, it’s pretty likely that Leonard won’t be suiting up. That’s an extremely unfortunate injury in general but especially for someone like Leonard who has been working so hard to get back on the field.
The other major concern is Jonathan Taylor. While Taylor hasn’t been able to get going on the ground yet, an injury that sidelines him definitely won’t help. Unfortunately, that’s the fear as Taylor’s ankle was rolled up during the play he had the costly fumble. While Indy believes Taylor avoided any type of major injury, a Thursday game on the road makes things really tough regardless.
From @GMFB: The #Colts are monitoring their star RB Jonathan Taylor (ankle), while #Broncos RB Javonte Williams is feared to have suffered a serious knee injury. pic.twitter.com/BaRAgcLTFn
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) October 3, 2022
Injuries join the list of concerns for the Colts
Immediately after Sunday’s game, Taylor was asked about his availability for Thursday and he admitted that it was too soon to tell considering it was “like an hour after the game.” He says he’ll have to see how things go this week leading up to Thursday. Even though Taylor hasn’t been able to have the kind of production that he’s capable of yet, the Colts certainly can’t afford to play many games without him.
The injury concerns extend beyond Leonard and Taylor. The ailments of the seven other players on the injury report didn’t just disappear because they played on Sunday. DeForest Buckner, for example, missed all of practice last week but played in the game. It’s fair to assume that his status will be in question with the short week.
While it may be tough, this is some adversity that the Colts have to find a way to overcome. While a loss on Thursday won’t end Indy’s season, things will get really dark for the Colts if they fall to 1-3-1. Obviously, with so many games left to play, Indy would have the opportunity to climb out of that hole but Indianapolis should know that’s not a challenge a team wants.
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