Colts players and coaches speak on Samson Ebukam’s injury
WESTFIELD, Ind. (WISH) — The Colts lost a major contributor to last year’s defense to injury, Samson Ebukam, who suffered a torn Achilles’ at training camp on Sunday.
Ebukam led the team in sacks last season with 9.5.
Colts head coach Shane Steichen talked about Ebukam’s injury on Tuesday after practice.
“That’s a tough break for us,” Steichen said. “I mean, what a great competitor he is. The sacks he had last year, and he was just continuing in the right direction. So, big blow there but guys have got to step up.”
Fortunately for the Colts, they have a lot of depth at defensive end. Kwity Paye, Dayo Odeyingbo, and Tyquan Lewis combined for 20.5 sacks last season for the Colts. Plus, they drafted Laiatu Latu in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft.
Ebukam and Latu built a strong bond in the past few months since Latu was drafted.
“That’s my big bro,” Latu said. “So, I was learning a lot from him. He’s been like a big brother to me since I got here, even before. I watch a lot of film on him. He’s just been somebody that I really look up to. So, I really just want to go out here and play for him and be able to do what he does on the field so that it doesn’t feel like we’re missing a link.”
With the loss of Ebukam, Steichen said that the reps are likely going to pick up for the rest of the guys at defensive end. But, he said they’re going to have be smart about it during training camp.
While Latu has been really impressive so far in training camp, Steichen also had great things to say about Lewis for the depth that the Colts have at the position.
“He’s tremendous for us,” Steichen said. “He’s been here for a while. Just the way he goes about his business every single day, the way he rushes the passer. I mean, he’s a leader in that room for a reason and we’re extremely excited to have him.”
“We still have a lot of great leaders in that room,” Lewis said. “We know that we have a void to fill. He (Ebukam) was our sack leader last year, but we’re going to come in waves. We all stick together as one.”
The Colts return to practice at training camp on Wednesday from 10-11:30 a.m.