If it’s up to wide receiver Josh Downs, he is going to be on the football field this Sunday for the Indianapolis Colts’ Week 3 matchup against the Chicago Bears.
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Downs has been sidelined with a high-ankle sprain that he suffered during training camp back on August 7th.
Downs did not practice in the week leading up to the Colts’ regular season opener against the Houston Texans. He did, however, return to the practice field last week all three days. On Wednesday and Thursday he was limited, and then on Friday he was a full participant.
As of Sunday morning, prior to the Colts game versus Green Bay, Ian Rapoport reported that Downs had a 50-50 chance of playing at that time. Instead, the Colts opted to give him at least another week to make sure his ankle was good to go.
For about the last week, all signs have been pointing to Downs return being soon. In addition to the report from Rapoport. Downs told The Athletic’s James Boyd last week that he felt he was about “80-90%.” Downs added that the key to him returning would be feeling that he is strong enough the play to his ability without having to worry about his ankle.
For a Colts’ passing game that has struggled to find any sort of consistency, the return of Downs would be a massive boost, providing quarterback Anthony Richardson with a uber-reliable target on those short to intermediate routes. Outside of capitalizing on some big play opportunities, the Colts have struggled to sustain drives through the first two games.
Downs is coming off an impressive rookie season where he caught over 70 percent of his targets and totaled 771 yards. Prior to his injury, he was off to a fast start in training camp, having built a strong rapport with Richardson.