Colts Get Promising Update on Sauce Gardner Calf Injury

This morning, NFL Network insider Ian Rapoport shared the news that Gardner's MRI came back clean and that his injury is a calf strain that won't force him to sit out the rest of the season.

"#Colts star CB Sauce Gardner, who suffered a calf strain in Sunday’s loss, is considered week-to-week with the hope he’s back during the regular season, sources tell me and @TomPelissero
after the MRI. Not long-term. But he’ll miss some time," Rapoport wrote on X.

Week-to-week is a positive indicator that Gardner could return before the Colts' regular season campaign comes to a close. The Colts' next three opponents are the Jacksonville Jaguars and Seattle Seahawks on the road, and the San Francisco 49ers at home.

All three teams can be considered playoff-level opponents, which makes Gardner's injury all the more impactful.

Gardner played just two full games with Indy after the team dealt two first-round picks and wide receiver AD Mitchell to the New York Jets hours before the trade deadline in early November.

Now that he's out, the Colts' secondary reverts to how it looked before the trade deadline, with Charvarius Ward leading the pack, Mekhi Blackmon and Jaylon Jones fighting for snaps, and of course, Kenny Moore II in the nickel spot.

Blackmon played 46 of the team's 76 defensive snaps, while Jones played 31 of the 76 in Gardner's absence against Houston. The Colts allowed Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud to pass for 276 yards, which is his second-highest mark of the year.

Indy's secondary has some tough tasks incoming, including trying to stop Seahawks wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who leads the league in receiving yards by a large margin.

The Colts simply must find a way to win with Gardner out, which the team did when he wasn't here from Weeks 1-9.