Colts officially announce Alec Pierce IR decision amid uncertain injury return image
Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Alec Pierce (14) signals a first down after a catch Sunday, Oct. 12, 2025, against the Arizona Cardinals at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
The Indianapolis Colts have had quite the rough start to the 2026 NFL season, as they've dropped their first two games to the Baltimore Ravens and Kansas City Chiefs, and now are looking at a lengthy absence from a key player.
Alec Pierce, their top wide receiver who just signed a $114 million four-year contract this past offseason, has a heel injury and is slated to miss a lot of time.
According to Stephen Holder of ESPN, Colts head coach Shane Steichen officially announced that the Colts will place Pierce on IR this season, forcing him to miss at least four weeks. But Pierce's return might not be for a while after that four-week minimum.
Colts officially place Alec Pierce on IR amid uncertain timeline
"The Colts are placing WR Alec Pierce on injured reserve, as expected, coach Shane Steichen says," Holder reports. "Rehab upcoming on his heel injury, with an eye toward possibly returning in an undetermined length of time."
This roster move from the Colts is not a surprise at all considering the nature of Pierce's heel injury. But it's still noteworthy that they've decided to place him on IR, knocking him out through at least Week 6.
Pierce is going to miss some time for the Colts, but it might not be just through Week 6. Holder reporting the "undetermined" timeline for Pierce is especially worrisome. His four-week minimum might turn into a much longer absence.
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His heel injury is the same issue he had surgery to fix over the offseason. Since aggravating it during Sunday Night Football against the Chiefs, the Colts WR's status is very much up in the air moving forward.
An uncertain timeline to come back is not a good sign for Pierce. While the hope is a four-to-six-week recovery timeline, it would not be a surprise if he missed more than that.
This IR placement doesn't reveal anything other than a four-week minimum absence for Pierce. The earliest he could come back is Week 7, which is far from a guarantee with his uncertain status moving forward.
For now, Pierce is only confirmed to be out for the next four weeks with this IR placement. Beyond that, Pierce's status is up in the air, and more will be known when Week 7 comes around.
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