I'd be very surprised to see this veteran defender return to the Indianapolis Colts in 2026. He hasn't been terrible, exactly, but he hasn't been worth what he's being paid, either. It's never easy to say goodbye, but it's time to cut ties.
It's often said that sport is the great equalizer. I mean, okay, in some ways it is. If you're talking about people coming together from different backgrounds to achieve a shared goal, yessiree, sport is a great equalizer. Correct me if I'm wrong, but it's also the place where you separate the men from the boys. And where you separate the old men from the young lions.
In most careers, you're just hitting your stride when you hit 30. When an athlete hits 30, especially in the NFL, those numbers start to hit back. The years when you'd reach double digits in sacks or tackles for a loss get further and further away. Before you know it, it's harder to hold your roster spot down than it is to drag a quarterback to the turf. That time has arrived in Indianapolis.
The Indianapolis Colts won't see either of these players back in 2026
Yeah, surprise surprise, we've got a two-for-one deal here. I don't believe either Grover Stewart or Samson Ebukam will be back with the Colts next season. They'll depart via different avenues, but the core reason will be the same for both. Neither Stewart nor Ebukam is close to the player they were just a few years ago.
Watching Stewart leave will sting quite a bit. He's been a member of the Colts organization since he was drafted in 2017. That's so long ago, Frank Gore was in the Colts' backfield, and Jacoby Brissett took over for Andrew Luck for the season. I mean, come on, Paul George was still on the Pacers. That's practically a lifetime ago.
Stewart has been an anchor for the Colts defensive line for years, but this season, he's just been dragging in the mud. The pass rush was never his forte, but with three games to go, he has just one sack and three quarterback hits.
Far worse, the number of stops he's recorded has fallen from 38 last season to just 21 so far in 2025. Pro Football Focus (subscription required) dropped his overall grade from 76.2 and 76.9 in 2023 and 2024 to a very mediocre 57.6 this season.
That places Stewart 98th among all defensive linemen in the league. DeForest Buckner is ranked 15th, and yes, I knew you were going to ask about the Indy standout. And Buckner brings us to the matter of contracts.
Yes, he has the second-highest cap hit on the Colts, but he's worth every penny. Stewart has the eighth-highest cap, and Indy can save over $12 million by cutting him loose after this season. I can see the conversation now; thanks for everything, Grover, and best of luck to you. But it's a business.
As for Samson Ebukam, he's a relatively fresh face in Indianapolis, as he joined the team in 2023. He was a beast in that first season, as he just missed double digits in sacks with 9.5. He had 17 QB hits, though, and added 10 tackles for a loss. He forced three fumbles and easily set a career high with 57 combined tackles.
The Colts expected him to rebound after missing all of last year with a torn Achilles tendon. Yeah, not so much. Through 11 games, he has just two sacks and four tackles for a loss. Yeah, he's been playing with a sprained knee since the Chargers game, but even before that, he had three games with zero sacks or QB hits.
PFF rated him at 84.4 in 2023, which placed him at number 15 among all edge rushers that year. So far this season, he's graded at just 63.3 and 88th overall in the league. As an unrestricted free agent next year, it won't cost the Colts a dime to see him out the door.
Spotrac sees his market value cratering, from his original three-year deal for $24 million to a $3 million valuation for 2026. I'd say the Colts would get better value putting that toward their second-round pick next year. Whoever that is.