The Indianapolis Colts have ruled out wide receiver Josh Downs for Sunday’s Week 13 matchup with New England.
Unfortunately, this was the expected outcome. Downs would suffer a shoulder injury against Detroit. Although he would return to the game the following possession, it was reported on Monday by Ian Rapoport that Downs was “week to week” with the shoulder injury and a “long shot” for this week’s game.
Head coach Shane Steichen would then echo similar sentiments on Wednesday, while not ruling Downs out at that time, but saying that it would be “tough” for him to be available.
Downs has been a steady and reliable target for the Colts this season in a passing game that has been very up and down. On the year, Downs has caught 72 percent of his 74 targets for 594 yards with four touchdowns.
Without Downs available, the big question now for the Colts is, who will handle the slot snaps?
When Downs was sidelined in Weeks 1 and 2, it was a by-committee approach with several different players lining up inside. I would guess we see something similar this time around as well, but do think that AD Mitchell could be in line for the majority of those snaps, which is not all that different from the first two games of the year.