INDIANAPOLIS — The Colts are trying out kickers on Tuesday, league sources told IndyStar.
Former Saints kicker Blake Grupe is among the kickers trying out for Indianapolis, and the group does not include a few of the kickers among the eight who tried out in the days following Spencer Shrader’s season-ending torn ACL and MCL, the injury that forced the Colts into kicking uncertainty.
Indianapolis chose veteran kicker Michael Badgley, believing Badgley would be accurate inside the 50-yard line, even though he wouldn’t have Shrader’s leg strength beyond 50.
Badgley has made 10 of 11 field goals, including two from 50-plus, but he missed his third extra point in seven games on Sunday, prompting the team’s decision to bring in kickers to try out for the spot.
“We have to be able to make the layups and the free throws that we have,” Indianapolis special teams coordinator Brian Mason said. “It’s inexcusable. We all know that. I’m not going to get into the kicker evaluation or anything, and I’ll defer to Chris and the front office on any potential roster moves, but we’re certainly going to evaluate all kicker options that we possibly have.”
The hard part about trying out kickers in Week 14 is that there are no clear, obvious options available.
Grupe, like a lot of the kickers who are available, has already lost his job in another city this season, and no kickers who are available in the first few days of December come without risk.
“Shane, as the head coach, has to be able to trust the kicker as he’s calling the game, that he’s going to be able to make kicks, not impact the game as far as going for it, things like that,” Mason said.
For the Colts, the evaluation at this point in the season is different.
Indianapolis discovered Shrader by prioritizing leg strength and mental makeup, believing that the young kicker could develop with time.
The Colts don’t have any time right now. Indianapolis is tied with Jacksonville atop the AFC South, facing the NFL’s hardest schedule in the next five weeks. “If we’re looking at the situation in Week 14, we’re looking for somebody that’s experienced, that we know can handle pressure, that we know can be consistent,” Mason said. “Obviously, everybody would love somebody that can make 60-yard field goals, make all of their PATs, make consistent field goals, but as we’re looking at things right now, we’re looking at, hey, who can make PATs, be reliable to make kicks within 50, who can we trust for the next five weeks.”
A kicker’s overall body of work is more likely to reveal consistency.
But the Colts hold a tryout to get a sense of how a kicker is hitting the ball right now. Kicking is a volatile position, and it’s important to see how the ball is coming off a kicker’s foot.
“It’s always easy to evaluate: ‘Did he make kicks? Did he not make kicks?'” Mason said. “The next thing that’s going to be evaluted on is: What did those kicks look like? Did they have end-over-end rotation, what’s the height and trajectory of the ball, were the kicks down the middle?… And then how consistent are you within your mechanics and operation.”
A move at the Colts kicking position could be coming soon.
Indianapolis has to be able to trust the leg finishing off drives.
