The Indianapolis Colts are once again a defensive mess. Allowing the putrid Pittsburgh Steelers to score more than 30 points in a game is inexcusable. The tackling was awful, and the edge rusher group was invisible.
Indy and defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo need help because the current roster isn't good enough. While general manager Chris Ballard doesn't make trades often midseason (just one, and that was last season for Sauce Gardner), he might need to change that approach this season to make sure he has a job after the season is done.
Adding an edge rusher is needed. The team has the draft capital to acquire one of the three that follow and has the cap room to incorporate their salaries. If Anarumo gets additional help and the defense still struggles, the reason for it doing so is clear: Coaching more than the players.
Three edge rushers the Indianapolis Colts should try to acquire in a trade
Khalil Mack
35-year-old Mack is still a highly productive player. He does have a no-trade clause, but he is also on a 0-5 team that is going nowhere. Maybe he would want to join a team that at least has a chance to make the postseason, especially if he is a key reason the team does.
Mack wasn't great in Week 5, but he has 14 pressures this season, including three sacks. In two games, he had at least four pressures, as well as playing good run defense.
According to Spotrac, any team acquiring Mack would owe him $5,777,778 for the rest of the season, but that's definitely an affordable number. The question is what the Los Angeles Chargers would want back in a trade. The assumption isn't a high pick due to Mack's age.
Joshua Uche
The Miami Dolphins edge rusher is trending toward getting the most reps of his seven-year career this season, and by a wide margin. He has always been a good rotational player, but he is a full-time starter in 2026. He has 10 pressures, but has played terrific run defense, and he is a good tackler. He's missed only 4.5 percent so far through five games.
Indy likely wouldn't have to give up anything higher than a fourth-round pick for Uche, and would only have to pay him less than a million dollars for the rest of the season. He's proven to be adaptable and quickly acclimates to new teams.
YaYa Diaby
Diaby hasn't produced quarterback pressures this season as much as he has in the past, but that could change, of course. Through five games, he has seven total pressures. In 2025, though, he had 62, and in 2024, he had 70. In other words, he's bound to pick up the pace a bit.
While his current missed tackle rate is 23.1 percent, that all stems from two games (Weeks 2 and 3). In the other three games, he hasn't missed any.
He is set for free agency next offseason, and he is unlikely to be franchise-tagged by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Should Indianapolis trade for him, the team would owe the edge rusher just $2,653,444 for the rest of the season, so he is definitely affordable. He also has the talent to be a long-term fixture for the Colts.
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