Colts TE Set to Miss Majority of Season Due to Turf Toe

The Indianapolis Colts will be without tight end Jelani Woods for the majority of the season.

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NFL insider Jordan Schultz shared the news that Woods underwent successful surgery on Friday for a turf toe and will miss roughly four months. Schultz shared the news via Twitter/X.

Woods is expected to be back about Christmas time, which would be roughly Week 16 or 17. Unfortunately, Woods is no stranger to injuries and has missed an extended period of time in the past. He missed all of last season with a hamstring injury.

In the meantime, Kylen Granson, Mo Alie-Cox, Drew Ogletree, and Will Mallory will get some run-in for the Colts’ tight end duties.

Colts head coach Shane Steichen was reportedly excited to see Woods back on the field after he finally got a glimpse of him on the football field.

“He’s going to be out for a little bit,” Indianapolis head coach Shane Steichen said. “I don’t have a timetable on it, but he’s going to miss some time.”

Although Steichen liked what he saw, multiple reports coming out of the training camp suggested that he was unable to find any sort of consistency. Because of the new NFL injured reserve rules, the Colts do not have to put Woods on the initial 53-man roster in order for him to return at some point like in seasons past.

The Colts drafted Woods in the 2022 NFL Draft in the third round with the No. 73 overall pick. His rookie season was solid as he recorded 25 receptions on 40 targets for 312 receiving yards and three touchdowns with an average of 12.5 yards per reception in 15 games and two starts.

The last time Woods was on the field was in 2022, and there’s a chance he could be out for the entire season once again.

Before his time with the Colts, he was the tight end for the Oklahoma State Cowboys and Virgian Cavaliers. Woods played for Oklahoma State from 2017-20 and Virgijan for one season in 2021. The 25-year-old recorded 75 receptions for 959 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns for 12.8 yards per reception in 45 games.

Woods’ best season came with the Cavaliers, during which he recorded 44 receptions, 598 receiving yards, and eight touchdowns in 11 games before he declared for the 2022 NFL Draft. As a graduate student at Virginia, he finished the season named to the first-team All-ACC.

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