Colts Extend P Rigoberto Sanchez

It is a two-year deal, per NFL.com’s Mike Garafolo, who notes Sanchez will become one of the five highest-paid punters on his new agreement. This is Sanchez’s fourth Colts contract. The team had signed him to new deals in 2019 and 2024.

Sanchez was tied to a three-year, $7.5MM deal. Entering today, he was tied as the league’s 14th-highest-paid punter. A move into the top five will mean an AAV of at least $3.5MM. The Giants raised the punter AAV bar to $4.1MM with their Jordan Stout free agency addition in March.

Long snapper Luke Rhodes is the Colts’ longest-tenured player, having been with the team since 2016 (Ryan Grigson‘s final year as GM), but the AFC South franchise still has two players — Sanchez and defensive tackle Grover Stewart — in place from Chris Ballard‘s first offseason on the job. The Colts moved on from a few Ballard-era staples this offseason by trading Zaire Franklin and Michael Pittman Jr., cutting Kenny Moore and letting Braden Smith walk in free agency, but Sanchez will be retained beyond the 10-year mark.

Sanchez, 32 next month, joined the Colts as a UDFA out of Hawaii. He missed the 2022 season with an Achilles tear but responded with his three best years — in terms of punting average — since returning. Sanchez averaged a career-best 49.7 yards per boot in 2024 and checked in at 48.8 last season. Enjoying indoor punting environments for the most part, Sanchez ranked fifth in yards per punt in 2024 and eighth last season.