We continue to take a look at the Indianapolis Colts interior defensive line with our training camp previews, highlighting the sole nose tackle in the front seven.
Name: Grover Stewart
Position: DT
Height: 6-foot-4
Weight: 315
Age: 23
Year Drafted: 2017 (fourth round)
Background
A fourth-round pick in the 2017 draft, Stewart joined the Colts as a part of a revamping of the defensive roster. He hasn’t had a huge impact on the defensive side of the ball since being drafted, but general manager Chris Ballard has high hopes in Year 3 for Stewart.
Stewart wound up playing 27.79% of the defensive snaps during the 2018 season working as a depth piece behind veteran Al Woods as the nose tackle position.
During the 2018 season, Stewart appeared in 15 games while making one start recording 17 tackles (eight solo) and two tackles for loss.
2019 Outlook
Stewart hasn’t been immensely productive since being drafted in the 2017 crop, but he’s worked mostly behind the veteran in Woods—who became a free agent this offseason.
The Colts haven’t had much use of the typical nose tackle type like Stewart, but there is a chance he grabs a role working on early downs against the run and special teams work given his size.
The Colts don’t have a defensive lineman with Stewart’s size, so it is likely that he will make the roster barring a change over the course of training camp or the preseason.
Bottom Line
The Colts front seven was stout during the 2018 regular season and while Stewart wasn’t a major player in that development, he’s likely to find himself a role along the interior defensive line.
