The Indianapolis Colts are making changes at kicker again, and this time, it’s Blake Grupe getting the call. After a short stint with Michael Badgley, the Colts decided to move on-despite the fact that Badgley had been mostly reliable when it came to field goals.
He nailed 10 of his 11 attempts, good for a 90.9% conversion rate, well above the league average of 85.1%. But three missed extra points proved costly in the eyes of the team, and on Tuesday, they cut ties with the veteran.
Enter Grupe, who arrives in Indy after kicking in 11 games this season for the New Orleans Saints. His resume tells a bit of a different story.
Grupe was solid on extra points, but field goals were another matter-he converted just 18 of 26 attempts, a 69.2% success rate that ranks 33rd in the league. That’s a steep drop-off from what Badgley was delivering, especially for a team still in the thick of a playoff push.
So why the switch? The Colts clearly value consistency on extra points, and Grupe offers that-at least more than Badgley did.
But it’s a gamble. Field goals are often the difference in close games, and Grupe’s struggles from distance could loom large down the stretch.
Whether this move pays off or backfires is something we’ll find out soon enough.
What’s also worth noting is who the Colts considered before settling on Grupe. According to reports, Indianapolis worked out several kickers following their Week 13 loss to the Houston Texans-including former Ravens standout Justin Tucker.
On the field, Tucker has long been considered one of the best in the business. But off the field, his situation is far more complicated.
Tucker was suspended for 10 games earlier this season after the NFL found he had violated the league’s personal conduct policy. Multiple women accused him of misconduct during massage therapy sessions while he was with the Ravens. Though he has denied the allegations and was never criminally charged, the league’s investigation led to a significant suspension.
The Colts ultimately passed on Tucker, opting not to sign him-but the fact that he was brought in for a workout raised eyebrows. In today’s NFL, teams are constantly weighing talent against character concerns, and this was one of those moments where the Colts had to decide what kind of message they wanted to send. They chose not to bring in a player with a recent suspension for off-field conduct, and that decision, at the very least, aligns with maintaining the organization’s standards.
Still, the pressure is now on Grupe. He’s stepping into a situation where the margin for error is razor-thin, and fans will be watching closely to see if the Colts made the right call.
If he can stabilize the kicking game-especially in high-leverage moments-this move could quietly become one of the season’s more underrated decisions. If not, it’ll be another chapter in what’s been a revolving door at the position for Indianapolis.