Colts Activate Jaylon Carlies from Injured Reserve Ahead of Week 14 Clash with Jaguars
The Colts are getting some help on defense just in time for a critical divisional matchup. Linebacker Jaylon Carlies has officially been activated from Injured Reserve and is set to make his 2025 season debut this Sunday when Indianapolis travels to Jacksonville to face the Jaguars.
Carlies, a second-year defender and former fifth-round pick, has been sidelined since training camp with an ankle injury. After missing the first 13 weeks of the regular season, he’s now back in the fold - and not a moment too soon for a Colts defense that’s been grinding through injuries.
“He had a great week of practice,” head coach Shane Steichen said Friday, signaling that Carlies is ready to hit the field after three weeks of full participation in practice. The Colts opened his 21-day practice window in Week 12, and Carlies has steadily ramped up ever since.
This isn’t Carlies’ first time dealing with adversity. He missed all of the offseason program while recovering from shoulder surgery, and just when he was getting back into the swing of things in training camp, he went down again - this time with the ankle injury that’s kept him off the field until now. That setback came on just the eighth day of camp.
Despite the injury history, Carlies has shown flashes of his potential. A converted safety out of college, he played in 10 games as a rookie last year, starting six of them.
In that span, he recorded 36 tackles (two for loss), a sack, a quarterback hit, and a pass breakup - solid production for a young player still adjusting to the linebacker position at the NFL level. Now healthy, the Colts are hoping he can pick up where he left off and give them a boost heading into the final stretch of the season.
Roster Moves: Grupe and Wormley Elevated, Lewis Ruled Out
Along with Carlies’ activation, the Colts made several other roster moves ahead of Sunday’s game. Defensive end Tyquan Lewis, who had been listed as questionable with an ankle injury, has been ruled out.
It’s another tough break for Lewis, who already missed three games earlier this season with a groin issue. He had returned to action recently, but this new injury will sideline him once again.
On the year, Lewis has totaled 3.0 sacks and four tackles for loss.
With Lewis unavailable, rookie JT Tuimoloau is expected to see more snaps in the defensive line rotation. The Colts also elevated defensive tackle Chris Wormley and kicker Blake Grupe from the practice squad for Sunday’s game. Both players will revert back to the practice squad after the game.
Wormley made his Colts debut just last week as a gameday elevation, and he made the most of it - finishing with two tackles, including one for loss, a sack, and a quarterback hit. He’s helping fill the void left by DeForest Buckner, who’s been out, and adds depth behind Neville Gallimore and Adetomiwa Adebawore on the interior.
As for the kicking game, the Colts are turning the page. After Michael Badgley missed his third extra point in seven games, the team waived him and brought in Grupe.
The former Saints kicker has had his struggles on field goals this season - missing eight - but he’s been reliable on extra points throughout his three-year career, missing just two in that span. The Colts are hoping that consistency carries over in a game that could come down to a few key kicks.
Looking Ahead
With Carlies back and key contributors like Wormley stepping up, the Colts are piecing together a defense that’s been battered by injuries. Sunday’s matchup with the Jaguars carries major implications in the AFC South, and every player returning to the fold matters.
For Carlies, it’s a chance to reestablish himself as a core piece of this defense. For the Colts, it’s one more step toward staying competitive in a tight playoff race.