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USA Today Sports Media Group
USA Today Sports Media Group
Sport
Paul Bretl

2024 Colts season review: More help needed behind DeForest Buckner, Grover Stewart

As we continue our review of the 2024 season for the Indianapolis Colts, as was the case a year ago, DeForest Buckner and Grover Stewart need more help behind them along the interior defensive line.

When Buckner and Stewart weren’t on the field last season, opposing offenses took advantage. The other primary members of that defensive line rotation were Raekwon Davis and Taven Bryan.

In terms of getting after the quarterback, the combination of Davis and Bryan would total just 12 pressures the entire season on 333 total pass rush snaps between the two.

For comparison’s sake to the rest of the interior defensive linemen around the NFL, Bryan ranked 96th in PFF’s pass-rush productivity metrics–which measures how often a pass rusher gets after the quarterback and is more heavily weighted towards sacks–and Davis ranked 122nd out of 124 eligible interior defenders.

Then in the run game, opponents would feast when the Colts were without Buckner or Stewart. By run-stop rate, Bryan would rank 120th out of 153 defenders and Davis was 149th.

In terms of pure production and help, the Colts need to bolster their interior defensive line this offseason.

But in addition that, because of the struggles Bryan and Davis had, Indianapolis relied very heavily on Buckner and Stewart. Davis and Bryan would each play roughly 30% of the Colts’ defensive snaps this season–putting a heavy weekly workload on the plates of Buckner and Stewart at a position that is one of the more often-rotated units in football.

The defensive front has often been a position group where we’ve seen GM Chris Ballard make additions. In fact, the Colts had the highest-paid defensive line in football this past season. However, along the interior, the depth wasn’t good enough and reinforcements are needed.

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