Receiving a big-ticket extension this offseason, Michael Pittman Jr. is dealing with his first prolonged damage absence in years. The Colts could also be with out their prime broad receiver for some time as a consequence of a again damage.
The damage is anticipated to sideline the fifth-year wideout for a number of video games, with ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter indicating IR is in play for Indianapolis. Pittman has not been on IR since his rookie season, having performed all however two video games since.
This provides to the Colts’ damage bother. Jonathan Taylor missed final week with a high-ankle sprain, and Anthony Richardson didn’t overcome a uncertain designation to play. The Colts began Joe Flacco for Richardson, who suffered oblique and abdominal strains in opposition to the Steelers. Each the quarterback and operating again are unsure for Week 6, a sport that won’t contain Pittman.
Leg surgical procedure value Pittman three video games as a rookie, throughout a interval by which an IR placement solely value a participant three video games. Pittman would miss 4 if positioned on IR, and again accidents can actually linger. This has already been a rocky season for Pittman, who has admittedly been hamstrung by Richardson’s developmental points. Pittman has solely topped 40 receiving yards in one of many Colts’ 5 2024 video games. Not coincidentally, it was the Week 4 contest Flacco completed.
The Colts gave Pittman a three-year, $70M extension, doing so after utilizing their franchise tag for the primary time since 2013. His career-best numbers got here with Gardner Minshew primarily concentrating on him final season; the previous second-round decide totaled 109 catches for 1,152 yards. The Colts paid Taylor first, however the Chris Ballard regime — one which has made roster retention a excessive precedence throughout his tenure — circled again to the 6-foot-4 wideout on Day 1 of the authorized tampering interval.
Indianapolis has been a Pittman-centric aerial operation for some time, having not carried out too nicely to seek out tight finish manufacturing and struggling to land a dependable WR2 as nicely. This 12 months, nonetheless, the workforce has different choices in latest Day 2 draftees Alec Pierce, Josh Downs and Adonai Mitchell. Downs joined Pittman in not working towards Wednesday, with a toe damage sidelining the second-year participant. Extra of a deep menace in comparison with Pittman, Pierce leads the Colts with 368 receiving yards. The Colts might want to depend on the third-year playmaker extra with out their high-priced prime goal.
