When the Colts take on the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday, they will have to do so without one of their biggest impact players on offense, as wide receiver Josh Downs was ruled out on Friday with a concussion.
Downs has 26 catches for 217 yards through six games this season. He's picked up a total of 15 first downs on his 26 receptions, proving to be a go-to guy for Daniel Jones when the Colts need to move the chains.
In the Colts' win over the Arizona Cardinals in Week 6, Downs had six receptions for 42 yards and scored his first touchdown of the season.
The Colts on Friday also ruled out wide receiver Ashton Dulin (chest), who has made his mark as a key part of special teams in his seven years with the Colts but has also seen his opportunities on offense increase in the last few weeks. In the Colts' win over the Las Vegas Raiders in Week 5 – when Alec Pierce was sidelined with a concussion – Dulin played 47 of the team's 66 offensive snaps.
With both receivers out against the Chargers, that leaves more questions than answers about how the Colts will approach Sunday's game. With the Chargers' run defense allowing an average of 124.2 rushing yards per game, running back Jonathan Taylor could see even more of an increase in his workload (he's averaging 100.5 yards per game through the first six games of the season).
But Sunday will also be an opportunity for wide receiver Adonai Mitchell, who is expected to see an increased amount of playing time due to Downs' injury.
SoFi Stadium was the place Mitchell made that costly fumble at the goal line in Week 4 against the Los Angeles Rams for what would have been his first career touchdown. It was the place the second-year wide receiver had to begin to come to terms with the fact that he made an "unacceptable" play and would have to put in the work to get past it.
In the weeks since, Mitchell has been doing just that, working both on and off the field to earn his role. He played six snaps in Week 5 and was inactive in Week 6. And this weekend, SoFi Stadium could be the place where Mitchell shows how hard he's worked to rebound from his mistake.
"I've had multiple conversations with AD over the last couple of weeks, and he's been working hard, progressing in the right direction," Steichen said. "He'll be up this week."
Mitchell, while aware of what his return to SoFi Stadium might mean from an outside perspective, said he's focused on one thing, and one thing only.
"I'm just excited to just do my job," he said on Friday.
Mitchell's love for the game hasn't diminished – "I've been doing this my whole life," he said. But this weekend isn't necessarily about loving football or not. It's about doing what he's supposed to do when he's on the football field.
"I think just fighting through adversity, you know what I mean?" Steichen said when asked what he hopes Mitchell has learned. "It's a physical game, but a lot of it's mental, too. You've got to be mentally strong in certain situations, and things are going to come up during the season that sometimes you don't want to happen to you. It happened, and it is what it is, but he's bounced back the right way and he's been in the right mindset."
