The Indianapolis Colts enter Week 3 still searching for a win after losses to the Baltimore Ravens in the season opener and the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday night. The Chiefs game was particularly brutal, not just because it was a narrow overtime loss the Colts could have won, but because one of their best offensive players, wide receiver Alec Pierce, was carted to the locker room with a left heel injury early in the second quarter. It's the same heel he had surgery on over the offseason, an injury that caused him to miss most of training camp.
The fact that the Colts kept the game close for the rest of the way without him says a lot, but they can't afford to be without him for long. Unfortunately, it looks like they might have to prepare for exactly that scenario. On Monday, NFL insider Ian Rapoport reported that Pierce is expected to attempt to rehab the injury rather than have surgery, meaning he'll be out for "several weeks" while recovering.
Rapoport also noted that if there are no setbacks, he could return midseason, but the Colts could still place him on IR while he recovers, and surgery isn't completely off the table. It will depend on how he progresses in the coming weeks. More news: Jonathon Brooks’ Injury Curse Strikes Again for Panthers First and foremost, this is a devastating blow for Pierce.
He just signed a four-year, $114 million extension with the Colts over the offseason to take over as the team's WR1 after Indianapolis moved on from Michael Pittman Jr., and he earned every bit of that money with the season he put up last year. In 15 games, Pierce hauled in 47 catches for 1,003 yards and six touchdowns, averaging a whopping 21.3 yards per catch, leading the team in receiving yards and posting his first 1,000-yard season. More news: Eagles Bring Back Super Bowl Hero After Dallas Goedert Injury More news: Latest Caleb Williams Injury Update May Have Saved the Bears’ Season Everything was pointing to him building off that and having an even bigger season this year, but now it's looking like he'll miss a good portion of the campaign.
In his place, expect more targets to go to tight end Tyler Warren, along with receivers Josh Downs, Keenan Allen, and new signing Darius Slayton.
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