Blake Grupe might have felt pretty secure in his employment with the Indianapolis Colts heading into the preseason. During training camp, though, Spencer Shrader was the better player and earned the kicker spot on Indy's initial roster for 2026. Grupe is now forced to look for a new team.
The most obvious landing spot for the player entering his fourth season in the NFL is the New York Jets. New York is hoping to overachieve this year, as many national pundits believe the Jets might only win a few games.
Having a good kicker would help them be more successful, and Grupe is certainly better than the kicker that New York kept on its roster, Jason Sanders. The 30-year-old former Miami Dolphins player didn't kick in 2025 after suffering a hip injury. He was released this past offseason and then signed by the Jets.
Former Indianapolis Colts kicker Blake Grupe would be a perfect fit with the New York Jets
He has had a poor preseason, including missing a field goal attempt and extra point try in the final preseason game. Grupe would give New York a kicker with a stronger leg who would have already earned a roster spot had he not been battling another player at his position in Indianapolis.
Grupe just needs to either be claimed by another team within 24 hours of being released or sign elsewhere after clearing waivers. New York could easily make room by releasing Sanders, who signed a one-year deal with New York for $1.3 million and would cost the Jets nothing in dead cap if he were cut, and then sign Grupe to a similar deal.
With the Dolphins in 2024, Sanders was quite good, especially from beyond 15 yards when he made 12 of 14 attempts. Before that season, though, he had made only 19 of 34 kicks from 50 yards or beyond. He hasn't shown he can get back to his level from two years ago during training camp or the preseason this year.
Grupe has played in far fewer seasons than Sanders, but has made 19 of his 27 attempts beyond 50 yards, including all four tries after he was signed by the Indianapolis Colts late last season. In five games for Indy, he made all 11 of his field goal attempts and all 10 of his extra point tries.
He is also good on kickoffs at placing the ball near the goal line with some nice height during the kick. In fact, he is better at doing that than Spencer Shrader is, and one might wonder, even if Shrader is successful on most field goal tries, whether he is worth keeping around if he allows other teams to get good field position when returning kickoffs.
Blake Grupe might not end up with the New York Jets, but that move makes the most sense. What seems assured is that the kicker will find a new team soon. He's earned that.
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