* Rumored trade candidates like Jonathan Taylor and Josh Downs expected to play Sunday unless deals materialize before the Tuesday deadline.
* Six 2026 draft picks now play significant roles for Indianapolis, signaling a youth movement amid the team's struggles.
* The Colts have lost the turnover battle in 13 consecutive games—the longest streak in franchise history.
Source: Parker S. Freedman / Getty
**Colts Wednesday Notebook: Rumored Trade Candidates Will Play**
**INDIANAPOLIS** **–** After two weeks on the road, the Colts are back at home on Sunday, with the looming cloud of the NFL trade deadline less than a week away.
The Colts (2-6) host the Cowboys (3-5) in Week 9.
Here is what we learned from the Colts returning to practice:
\-With the NFL trade deadline coming Tuesday, the question remains on how the Colts will handle their rumored trade candidate players. Remember, when the Arizona Cardinals got ready to trade Marvin Harrison Jr. to the Houston Texans last month, they had him inactive for a game, with the trade coming later that Sunday night. The Colts don’t plan to do that with the likes of Jonathan Taylor, Josh Downs, etc. So, assuming no trade materializes between now and Sunday, expect those Colts to be in the lineup at 1:00 vs. the Cowboys. Shane Steichen spoke to that on Sunday: “I think there’s a lot of hypotheticals out there on the trade talks. Right now, he’s on our football team.”
\-The state of the Colts (2-6) right now has many fans only care about the long-term vision, despite 9 more games remaining this season. That means eyes on the youth movement. Well, the Colts are all of a sudden relying heavily on their 2026 draft class. You have starters in LB-CJ Allen, S-A.J. Haulcy and LG-Jalen Farmer. You have others playing key roles in DE-Caden Curry, RB-Seth McGowan and DE-George Gumbs Jr. And it seems like only a matter of time before WR-Deion Burks sees more of a role. Throw in LB-Bryce Boettcher, who was starting, and that’s your entire ’26 draft class, playing quite a lot. Shane Steichen did mention on Wednesday playing some younger guys, specifically Curry, as a tweak for the Colts moving forward.
\-The Colts have 9 games remaining this season. If you are drinking purely from the optimism glass, the Colts have more than half the season to try and turn their season around. At 2-6, the Colts are 3.5 games back of the AFC South lead (having lost the first of two matchups with the Jaguars). And they are 3 games back of the final Wild Card spot, with an ugly 1-5 AFC mark not aiding things at all. Well, here’s some optimism. The Colts play just one team currently above .500 between now and their final game of December, and that’s the Giants with J.J. McCarthy. This is that stretch: Cowboys (3-5), Dolphins (1-6), at Texans (2-5), Giants (4-2-1), bye, at Eagles (2-6), at Titans (1-7).
\-Wednesday marks the anniversary of one of the biggest trades in Colts franchise history. It was deadline day last year when the Colts traded a 1st round pick in 2026 (16th overall pick), a 1st round pick in 2027 (currently 4th overall pick) and wide receiver AD Mitchell to the Jets for cornerback Sauce Gardner. Just a reminder, the 2026 NFL trade deadline comes on Tuesday, November 10th. “Obviously we were in a really good spot as a football team,” Steichen said when asked about his memories of the trade. “Made a trade for obviously a really good corner, very talented. We are excited he’s on this football team. He’s a tremendous talent. Young player with great energy. Plays hard. Matches No. 1 wideouts, that’s big, long and rangy.” Some 365 days later, and that trade looks like one of the worst in franchise history.
\-Again, don’t expect an Alec Pierce (heel) return anytime soon. “He’s rehabbing, can’t put a timetable on it right now,” is how Steichen described the Pierce situation on Wednesday. Pierce has been on injured reserve since Week 3. He was eligible to return (minimum 4-game stay on injured reserve) two weeks ago, when asked if Pierce could miss the entire season, Steichen tossed out the unknown timetable.
\-In a reverse of trading away two pillars last Tuesday, **[this Tuesday brought the Colts rewarding one of their own](https://1075thefan.com/735374/colts-sign-adetomiwa-adebawore-to-contract-extension/)** in inking 25-year-old defensive tackle Adetomiwa Adebawore to a two-year extension: “He’s been a huge bright spot. Going back to training camp, you saw it. Going into this year, you saw the way he was rushing the passer and winning one-on-ones, he’s done a phenomenal job. He’s an incredible worker, a great human, everything you want to stand for as a football player—the character, the preparation, the consistency how he works, the relentless effort to get after the quarterback has been phenomenal.”
\-The Colts have lost 13 of their last 15 games. In that span, the Colts haven’t won the turnover battle in 13 straight games. It’s the longest streak in franchise history. Currently, the next longest active streak in the NFL is 8 games for the Patriots, and 5 games for the Cardinals. That’s an amazingly bad streak of protecting the football/taking it away.
\-Curious how that environment will be on Sunday inside of Lucas Oil Stadium? This is the first game the Colts have played since firing Chris Ballard and trading away DeForest Buckner and Quenton Nelson. And it could be the final game of Jonathan Taylor’s Colts career. I’d expect a lot of Cowboys fans in the building. And the home faithful might have some very mixed feelings on their own team.