The Indianapolis Colts have gotten some nice developments on the defensive side of the ball but none have been bigger than the emergence of defensive tackle Grover Stewart.
The fourth-year interior defender has become one of the league’s best run-stopping defensive tackles. He’s likely the most underrated player in that facet of the game and has been shining in the middle of the Colts defensive line all season.
Head coach Frank Reich has certainly taken notice of what Stewart has done in his fourth season, especially when it comes to how prepared he came in this season.
“Man, Grover Stewart is special. He’s having a really good year. He’s explosive,” Reich said Friday to the media. “He came in in the best shape of his life. He kind of transformed his body – made him quicker and faster. He lost a lot of weight, put on lean mass.”
Stewart has an 11.3% run-stop percentage, per Pro Football Focus. That’s tied for the 11th-highest mark in the NFL. He had 17 run stops in the entire 2019 season. He has 16 through the first nine games of 2020.
But along with being a sheer dominating force from the one-technique, Stewart is also the consummate teammate and leader the Colts want in the locker room.
“Then Grover in a different way is one of the true leaders of this team,” Reich said. “This guy, he’s not always the loudest or the most vocal leader, but if you talk about in the locker room who gets the most respect, Grover is in that top tier of guys because of his humble heart. He’s got this humble heart, yet he is a fierce competitor. I love guys like that – guys that are fierce competitors. So, he’s having a monster year.”
In a contract year, Stewart has become the priority player to re-sign to an extension and the longer the Colts wait, the more they are likely going to have to pay up.
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