The Indianapolis Colts' special teams units sputtered out of the gate but have found their rhythm a few weeks into the season.
The Indianapolis Colts are coming off a hard-fought victory over the Houston Texans, snapping a five-game losing skid to their division rivals. The Colts' offense had an up-and-down day in the 19-17 win, and their defense faltered late as well, so special teams had to be the difference-maker.
Kicker Spencer Shrader went 4-for-4 on his kick attempts, and the Colts' punt and kick coverage units were fantastic as well. The entire group looked like their dominant form from last season, which hasn’t always been the case this year.
The Week 1 blowout loss to the Baltimore Ravens was a low point for the unit, as coach Brian Mason ripped the group for a poor start to the game.
“We did not play to our standard on special teams in this game,” Mason said. “Special teams has to impact field position, has to win the battle of explosives, and impact the game, especially early in the game. We did not do that.”
The Ravens’ average starting field position off of kickoffs in that game was the 33-yard line, and Shrader missed an extra point to begin the day. While special teams weren’t the reason why the Colts lost big in that outing, they certainly contributed to the loss early.
To give Mason and his unit credit, though, this game felt like an outlier more than anything else. The Colts were one of the better special teams groups last season, and Mason built that up as the standard in 2025. The last two weeks have further shown that the Week 1 performance is one to forget.
Over the past two weeks, the Colts have cut the opponent’s starting field position on kickoffs to the 27.6-yard line. Only one kick return has gone past the 35-yard line, while six have come up short of the 30-yard line. One big reason for this is the fact that the Colts lead the NFL in kickoffs that land in the landing zone and then bounce into the end zone for a touchback, resulting in the ball starting at the 20-yard line instead of the typical 35 on a touchback.
Shrader has also bounced back from that missed extra point, knocking home all eight field goal attempts this season, which includes going 3-for-3 from 50-plus yards. Punter Rigoberto Sanchez has also maintained his elite level of play, ranking third in average punt distance and sixth in net average punt yards.
Seth McGowan also ranks in the top five in kick return average, and the special teams as a whole have yet to make a crucial mistake since Week 1. In fact, according to Sumer Sports, the Colts gained 5.04 more total Expected Points Added (EPA) on special teams than the Texans did, which means a lot in a game decided by two points.
After a concerning Week 1 performance from a typically great unit, Mason’s special teams have leveled out over the past two weeks.
NFL games are decided in the margins, and having a great special teams unit can be the difference between a playoff berth and another 8-9 season in some cases. The Colts have a much better chance of getting ahead and closing out games with Mason’s special teams unit performing as it has in the past two weeks.
