The Indianapolis Colts ruled out a pair of players on Friday in CB Kenny Moore II and DE Kwity Paye and have elevated a pair of players from the practice squad to help fill in the gaps. The Colts announced on X that they had elevated DT Adam Gotsis and CB David Long Jr.
Practice squad players are allowed to be elevated a maximum of three times before they must be signed to the 53-man roster to get a helmet on game day.
The Colts defensive line is in a tough position after DT DeForest Buckner was recently placed on IR, and Paye has been ruled out for the game. They also have DE Tyquan Lewis questionable for the game after failing to practice on Thursday and Friday. Gotsis will help provide another experienced body in the mix. Gotsis has been in the league since 2016 and has started 54 games as a member of the Denver Broncos and Jacksonville Jaguars.
He has 218 total tackles, 25 tackles for loss, 10.5 sacks, 41 QB hits, and three forced fumbles in his career.
Practice squad rules have been expanded to allow more veterans to be stashed, so the Colts were smart to stash an experienced player like Gotsis. The same goes for Long, who has been in the league since 2019 with the Los Angeles Rams, Las Vegas Raiders, Carolina Panthers, and Green Bay Packers.
Long has started 12 games in the NFL, appearing in 66, and has 96 total tackles and one career interception. Moore is their starting slot corner, and backup Chris Lammons is questionable for the game with multiple injuries. Though he practiced on Friday, adding another corner for Sunday’s game was expected.
They didn’t elevate any offensive linemen, which might be a good sign for C Ryan Kelly and OT Braden Smith, who both finished the week questionable.
