The Colts’ choice to keep Spencer Shrader looked uncertain in August. Three games into the season, it looks a whole lot smarter.
Before the regular season, veteran Blake Grupe seemed to be on track as the only kicker Indianapolis would carry. But the Colts leaned into what they saw in preseason and stuck with Shrader instead.
That call raised eyebrows at the time. Now, it doesn’t.
Shrader’s track record before this season gave reason for hesitation. In limited action last year, he looked shaky from distance, and before his Week 5 injury, he hadn’t shown consistent leg strength on kicks beyond 50 yards.
But something has changed. His knee injury may have played a part, because he looks much stronger in 2026.
The biggest proof came in Week 3 against the Houston Texans. Indianapolis needed every bit of Shrader’s work in a 19-17 win, and he delivered.
He hit all four field goals, including two from beyond 50 yards. One of those was from 58 yards, and the Colts also trusted him on a 53-yard attempt with 16 seconds left.
That final decision put head coach Shane Steichen in a spot where the clock kept draining down. If Shrader had missed, the choice would have been questioned immediately. Instead, the gamble paid off, and the Colts walked away with the kind of early-season win that can swing confidence inside a locker room.
The kick that decided it all looked even more comfortable than the distance suggested. In fact, the game-winner would have been good from 65 yards. Shrader has said he has made kicks from beyond 70 yards at Lucas Oil Stadium in practice and warm-ups, though the Colts surely would prefer not to test that in a real game.
There was even a little concern before kickoff. Shrader, who was handling extra points and field goals rather than kickoffs, slightly injured a groin muscle in pregame warm-ups ahead of Week 3.
That created some doubt about whether he’d be able to go at all. He pushed through it and stayed sharp all game.
So far this season, Shrader has missed only the first extra point. Outside of that, he has made all eight of his field goal attempts. Grupe, meanwhile, was signed to the New York Jets’ active roster before the season and hasn’t attempted a kick.
Could Grupe have handled the job well? Maybe.
But the Colts didn’t wait around to find out. They kept Shrader, and that may already be the smartest preseason move general manager Chris Ballard made.
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The Colts are 1-2, and the schedule ahead figures to keep testing them in different ways, from offenses built on the pass to groups that lean on a more varied attack. Adebawores development, and the likelihood that his role keeps growing, gives Indianapolis a useful piece at exactly the right moment. If he keeps affecting quarterbacks the way he did last week, the Colts may have found a defensive spark they can lean on. [Read more 🡒]