The Indianapolis Colts wasted no time making moves after parting ways with general manager Chris Ballard, with assistant GM Ed Dodds beginning his new stretch in charge by adding two players to the practice squad.
On Tuesday, Indianapolis signed wide receiver Mecole Hardman Jr. and punter Thomas Morstead. Hardman is entering his eighth NFL season and was released by the Buffalo Bills before the 2026 season began. Morstead, meanwhile, has not appeared in a game this season after spending last year with the San Francisco 49ers.
The Colts’ decision to add help at receiver comes with their depth already stretched thin. Alec Pierce and D.J.
Montgomery are both on injured reserve, and Pierce has played in only two games while dealing with a heel injury despite signing a four-year, $114 million deal in the offseason. Right now, Keenan Allen is the only wideout on the active roster who has found the end zone this season.
That has left Indianapolis searching for any kind of spark in the passing game, and Hardman is at least a swing worth taking as the Colts try to steady a unit that has been hit hard by injuries. The team needs someone who can help them score, and the current situation makes that search even more urgent.
The punter move was just as practical. Rigoberto Sanchez is questionable after suffering a foot injury on Sunday, so Morstead gives the Colts another option if they need one.
Indianapolis is coming off a 26-20 loss to the Tennessee Titans, a defeat that has only added to the sense that change is coming. There has already been talk that several veterans could be on the move, including defensive tackle DeForest Buckner, running back Jonathan Taylor and guard Quenton Nelson, according to Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer. For a team looking to reset, the next few weeks could look very different.
The Colts will try to snap a two-game skid on Sunday against the undefeated Minnesota Vikings. At this point, they could use every bit of help they can get.
In Other News...
Colts Reset Puts Jonathan Taylor At Center Of A Huge Decision
The Colts decision to move on from general manager Chris Ballard has reset the conversation around the franchise, and Jonathan Taylor sits right in the middle of it. Indianapolis still has an established star in the backfield, and the front-office change only sharpens the question of how the next leadership group wants to shape the roster around him after the owner stressed that the standard remains to keep competing.
Taylors place in that picture is complicated by the timing. He signed a two-year extension in August, keeping him under contract through the 2028 season, which makes him one of the more notable long-term pieces on the roster even as the organization sorts out its next direction. For a team with a new decision-maker on the way, that kind of commitment can mean stability, leverage, or both, and it ensures Taylor will remain a central part of the discussion no matter what comes next. [Read more 🡒]
Colts Suddenly Have A Travis Hunter Problem In AFC South Race
Travis Hunters role in Jacksonville has suddenly become a much bigger talking point for the Colts as the AFC South race tightens. The rookie cornerback did more than just flash on defense in Week 6, finishing with an interception, four catches for 59 yards, three tackles and a pass defended while also finding the end zone as a receiver, a reminder that the Jaguars are willing to lean harder into his two-way value.
What makes that development relevant in Indianapolis is the way Jacksonville has steadily expanded Hunters offensive involvement. After barely being used in the passing game early on, he looked far more featured last week, and that kind of usage can change how the Colts have to prepare on both sides of the ball. For a division matchup that already carries weight, Hunter is no longer just a defensive assignment, he is becoming part of the game plan in a more unpredictable way. [Read more 🡒]
Panthers Suddenly Have A Big Question About Chasing Sauce Gardner
The Panthers fast start has them looking like a team that could be thinking bigger than just staying in the hunt. At 3-2 and coming off a win in Philadelphia, Carolina has at least some reason to wonder whether a bold roster swing could help it keep pace, which is why a name like Sauce Gardner naturally enters the conversation even if nothing is actually on the table yet.
For Indianapolis, though, the idea immediately runs into reality. Gardner is fresh off a recent contract extension, and the Colts paid a steep price to get him from the Jets last November, so any trade talk would be complicated before it even got off the ground. The bigger question for Carolina is not whether Gardner would fit, but whether there is any realistic path to pry him loose at all. [Read more 🡒]