Tag: Tyquan Lewis

Indianapolis Colts’ defensive end Tyquan Lewis is now listed as questionable for Sunday’s game against Denver with a rib injury.

Lewis was not on the team’s injury report throughout the week but was added on Saturday. Along with Lewis being downgraded to questionable, the Colts also announced that Ryan Kelly and Jaylon Carlies were downgraded to out as well.

Lewis returned for the Colts’ Week 12 matchup against Detroit after landing on injured reserve following the team’s Week 4 matchup versus Pittsburgh with an elbow injury that did require surgery.

During the Colts’ first four games of the season, Lewis was one of the starting defensive ends, lining up opposite of Kwity Paye. But since returning, he’s averaged 24 snaps these last two games as the fourth member of the defensive end rotation, playing behind Paye, Dayo Odeyingbo, and Laiatu Latu.

Time will tell if this is what Lewis’ playing time will look like moving forward or if the Colts are just easing him back in.

Lewis has totaled 13 pressures this season, 12 of which came in the first four games, and has been a valuable contributor against the run. Out of all defensive ends this season, Lewis ranks fifth in PFF’s run-stop rate metric.

Awaiting the Colts is Broncos offense that, statistically speaking, has had modest run production, averaging 4.2 yards per rush. However, the offensive line has been one of the best in pass protection this season.

If Lewis can’t go, Isaiah Land, who has often been inactive on gamedays, will be available and a part of the defensive end rotation.

With the unfortunate season-ending injury to Colts’ defensive end Samson Ebukam, it is not only Laiatu Latu who will be relied upon more heavily this season, but Tyquan Lewis will be as well.

“That was a big blow for us,” said Lewis after Tuesday’s practice. “Samson’s a great guy. We all contribute in different ways and he’s also a leader of the group and a big contributor. We wish him the best as far as recovery goes.

“But as far as the group go, we’ve still got a lot of great leaders in that room. We know that we have a void to fill. I mean, he was our sack leader last year, but we’re going to come in waves. We all stick together as one.”

After dealing with injuries during the 2021 and 2022 seasons, Lewis was fully healthy in 2023 and put together a productive and efficient season, appearing in all 17 games.

Lewis played 437 snaps, totaling 44 pressures–the third-most on the team–and ranked 17th among all edge rushers in PFF’s pass-rush win rate metric. Lewis also ranked 43rd out of 122 edge rushers in run-stop rate as well.

“Each and every day I wake up, and soon as soon as my feet hit the ground, I just say I’m grateful for everything and entitled to nothing,” said Lewis. “I’m just grateful, man. In my career, it’s not necessarily what I’m chasing, I just want to wake up and just be the best every single day. Like every day I aspire to be the best I could be.”

In addition to Lewis’ production, his versatility is a key element to what he brings to the Colts’ defensive front, able to line up both as a traditional defensive end as well as playing snaps along the interior.

Without Ebukam, Lewis is going to see more playing time, but how or where is still to be determined.

There’s the potential that without Ebukam, the Colts could need more defensive end snaps from Lewis, which means playing inside less. He also could tasked with handling the obvious running downs, while Latu handles the pass rush situations.

But regardless of how the Colts decide to utilize Lewis this season, he doesn’t care all that much. He’ll be ready for whatever role needs to be filled.

“I mean, whatever they need,” Lewis said. “It don’t matter to me, man. I’m comfortable wherever you put me. You can put me anywhere. You can put me in the middle of the ocean. I can’t swim but I’ll try.”

The Colts are coming off a season in which they produced 51 sacks, the fifth-most in football. That ability to get pressure on the quarterback is a cornerstone for defensive success because doing so has a positive trickle-down effect to the entire unit.

Admittedly, replicating this production, and generating pressure more consistently overall, becomes a greater challenge without Ebukam, but Lewis believes this defensive front still has the ability to produce at that level.

“No question,” said Lewis when asked about still being as productive as last season. “That’s the main thing, that we have to win games. It starts up front with us. As far as production goes, we all contribute as one. One person goes down, next man up, just having that mentality.”

Veterans and rookies for the Indianapolis Colts will report for training camp on July 24th, with the first practice taking place on July 25th.

Between now and then I will be previewing the Colts’ 91-man roster with a look back at each player’s 2023 season, along with what’s ahead for 2024.

I’ll be going through the Colts’ roster alphabetically, so up next is defensive end Tyquan Lewis. To stay up to date with our other previews, be sure to head over to Colts Wire.

2023 Season Review

Lewis played 437 snaps last season, which was the fourth-most on the team at the defensive end position. After dealing with injuries in 2021 and 2022 that limited him to 15 total games, Lewis appeared in all 17 games in 2023, and was a very productive pass rusher.

Lewis was very efficient with his pass rush opportunities, totaling 44, the third-most on the Colts’ defense behind only DeForest Buckner and Samson Ebukam. In fact, among all defensive ends, Lewis finished 17th in PFF’s pass-rush win rate metric.

“Tyquan is the ultimate team player,” said Shane Steichen. “His versatility along the defensive line is an asset for us. Last season, you saw Tyquan develop more comfort and confidence as the year progressed. I’m excited to watch his continued growth.”

As Steichen notes, Lewis brings added versatility to the defensive front with his ability to play inside. Against the run, Lewis ranked 43rd out of 122 defensive ends in run-stop rate.

2024 Season Preview

The Colts signed Lewis to a two-year, $12 million deal with $7.7 million guaranteed earlier this offseason, telling us that even with the addition of Laiatu Latu, Lewis will be on this roster.

With the depth that the Colts have at defensive end, it remains to be seen how playing time will shake out, but we’ve heard GM Chris Ballard discuss the importance of having a deep rotation to rely on.

Having this kind of depth will help keep everyone fresh, it can wear down the offensive line, and it will really allow defensive coordinator Gus Bradley to play matchups by mixing and matching personnel.

Lewis again could see his share of opportunities inside, with the fourth spot in the defensive tackle rotation behind Buckner, Grover Stewart, and Raekwon Davis up for grabs this summer.