Veteran defensive end Tyquan Lewis of the Indianapolis Colts worked extremely hard to recover from a ruptured patellar tendon in his right leg and return at the beginning of this season.
Now, Lewis will have to undergo the same rehab in his left leg.
The Colts announced on October 31 that they have placed the 27-year-old on injured reserve. He will miss the rest of the season because of a ruptured patellar tendon in his left knee.
“Our hearts go out to Tyquan,” Reich said in his Monday press conference. “He was having a great year. … We’ll support him every step of the way.”
Lewis suffered the injury in the fourth quarter during Week 8 against the Washington Commanders. He needed a cart to leave the field.
Lewis Ends Second Straight Season on IR
It’s hard to describe how disappointing it is to see Lewis sustain the same injury — perhaps the toughest injury an NFL play can suffer. But Colts wide receiver Parris Campbell, who also played with Lewis at Ohio State, tried to put the injury into words.
“It was tough, tough to see,” said Campbell. “I know what he battled through last year to get back to the point to where he was now.”
Colts media also reacted to Lewis’ injury news.
Colts injury news: DL Tyquan Lewis is done for the year with a ruptured patella tendon. Same injury as last year, but the other leg.
Just brutal. Lewis had been playing terrific.
Tyquan Lewis ruptured his patellar tendon, his season is over. It’s the same injury as last season, but the other leg.
Awful blow for Lewis.
Lewis battled to return in roughly nine months from an injury that usually takes a full year to recover. He started the season and recorded a tackle in Week 1.
The 27-year-old started four of Indianapolis’ first eight games this season, recording 14 combined tackles, including 2 tackles for loss, 1.0 sack and 4 quarterback hits. He also had 2 pass defenses and a forced fumble.
Coincidentally, Lewis suffered his second ruptured patellar tendon nearly a year later after his first. He injured his right patellar tendon returning an interception against the Tennessee Titans on October 31, 2021.
Injuries Piling Up for Colts Defensive Line
Lewis became a regular starter this year when defensive end Kwity Paye left in Week 5 because of an ankle injury. Paye hasn’t played since then and didn’t even practice last week ahead of facing the Commanders.
With Lewis now out for the season, the Colts are without two of their top three defensive ends coming into the season.
Fellow starting defensive end Yannick Ngakoue has been the subject of some trade rumors within the last week. But even if the Colts decide to sell before the NFL trade deadline on November 1, it seems likely that they’ll be unable to depart with Ngakoue because of the lack of depth the team has along the edge.
Behind Ngakoue, Colts have Ifeadi Odenigbo, Dayo Odeyingbo and Ben Banogu for depth at defensive end on their roster.
While Banogu probably has the most talent of the group, he’s struggled to make an impact with the Colts. Indianapolis drafted him in the second round of the 2019 NFL Draft, but he only has 2.5 sacks in 42 career games. Banogu hasn’t played more than 11 defensive snaps in a game this season.
If Paye can’t play in Week 9, Odenigbo will likely see the most uptick in opportunities. He played a season-high 25 defensive snaps against the Commanders on October 30.
But the Colts could also easily deploy more of a defensive line rotation. Odeyingbo played 24 defensive snaps on October 30 and is the only non-starting defensive end on the Colts roster who has played more than 50% of the team’s defensive snaps in a game this year.
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Colts Update DE Tyquan Lewis’ Injury Status