When Indianapolis Colts general manager Chris Ballard selected Justin Walley in the third round of the 2025 draft, he envisioned the rookie joining veterans Kenny Moore and Charvarius Ward as a potent cornerback trio. Then training camp started. Walley tore his ACL and was lost for the season.
Same thing happened with seventh-round safety Hunter Wohler. Just substitute Lisfranc for ACL.
So far, the Colts have not lost any projected front-liners to injury during the 2026 training camp. Alec Pierce is out, but that was due to offseason surgery. He should be back sooner rather than later. The injury news has been good for Daniel Jones and DeForest Buckner. Hopefully, it remains that way. But this is the NFL and players are going to get injured. Of course, not all injuries are created equal.
Players the Indianapolis Colts can least afford to lose to injury in 2026
Atlanta, New Orleans, and San Francisco have already seen key players suffer season-ending injuries within the first week of training camp. Carolina has already lost two significant performers.
Maybe the Colts used up all their bad karma last year. Maybe this year will be injury-free. If it isn’t, let’s just hope that these players can avoid the bug and stay on the field. Indy needs all of them if they are to compete in the AFC South.
Bernhard Raimann
Offensive line continuity is crucial for any team. You could make the case that left guard Quenton Nelson is the best player on the entire Colts team. As both a talent and as a leader, losing him would hurt.
But I am placing some confidence in rookie Jalen Farmer. He may not be ready for major snaps right away, but were he pressed into service in relief of Nelson (or Matt Goncalves on the other side), I suspect he would get up to speed pretty quickly.
I am not as confident about the situation at swing tackle. Last year, Jalen Travis proved to be very reliable in that role. But this year he is the starting right tackle.
Raimann plays the left side – the most important position on the line - and if he were to be lost, it could seriously impact pass protection and the passing game overall. Projected swing tackle Blake Freeland is returning from the broken leg that kept him out all last year.
CJ Allen
When the 2025 season came to its merciful conclusion, no one really knew what the future of Indy’s linebacking room would be. As it turns out, Chris Ballard engineered a complete overhaul. The only returning players provide deep depth and special teams plays. The projected starters are all new.
The pressure will fall the heaviest on rookie CJ Allen. He will be expected to play a role similar to the one handled by Zaire Franklin over the past five seasons. Veteran Akeem Davis-Gaither and fellow rookie Bryce Boettcher should see plenty of time, but Allen is the one who must quickly become a major force. If he is lost, the linebacking position figures to continue to be a problem this year.
Laiatu Latu
This one is pretty simple. The Colts had one top-flight pass rusher in 2025. Latu had twice as many sacks as anyone else on the team. Of the nine Colts who registered at least two sacks last year, six of them are no longer with the club.
Ballard did import a raft of new players – both veterans and rookies – to address the problem. None of them are sure things. Latu is the only sure thing they have.
When you consider how his athleticism and versatility allow him to drop into coverage at times, it’s easy to see that he is the single most important member of the Colts defense. Sauce Gardner may be a more accomplished player, but the Colts have some options should he miss time. They have nothing behind Latu.
Alec Pierce
Ballard paid a lot of money to retain Alec Pierce. After leading the league in yards-per-catch the last two seasons, he will now move into the X receiver role handled by Michael Pittman for the last five years. Pierce will run patterns all over the field. He will still be counted on to get deep, but he will be running more intermediate patterns and converting more first downs than ever before.
At least that’s the plan. The Colts do have a few other weapons in the passing game, including slot receiver Josh Downs and tight end Tyler Warren. But they are more complementary components who will need Pierce to draw attention to really thrive.
Jonathan Taylor
Michael Pittman is gone. Daniel Jones and Alec Pierce are returning from injury. Even if none of that were true, Jonathan Taylor would be the most important player on the Colts. Considering those other factors, he is arguably more valuable than ever.
Ballard knows this, which is why he just gave Taylor an extension, making him one of the highest-paid running backs in the league. The Colts have nothing but question marks behind him in the backfield. In JT, they have a talented player and a first-rate citizen. They need his production and his leadership.
Look – if you want a 1A name for this list, obviously it’s Daniel Jones. As with the running backs, the backup quarterback situation inspires no confidence. The starting quarterback is pretty much always the player a decent team can least afford to lose. I figure you knew that coming in, so I didn’t officially include him here. Unofficially – he’s right there with JT.
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