The Colts on Wednesday opened the 21-day practice window for defensive tackle DeForest Buckner to be activated from injured reserve, opening the door for one of the team's toughest and most integral players to return to the field. He was a limited participant in Wednesday's practice.

Buckner was placed on injured reserve in Week 10 with a neck injury. He had to miss a minimum of four games, and because the Colts had a bye in Week 11, the All-Pro was not eligible to return until this week. Buckner can now be activated from injured reserve at any point in the next three weeks.

The 31-year-old's toughness has always been a hallmark of his game, and it's representative of the kind of mentality the Colts have as a team as well.

"That's the standard of our building," linebacker Zaire Franklin said about Buckner's resilience to get back on the practice field. "Guys like Buck, Quenton (Nelson), (Michael) Pittman, Grove (Grover Stewart) – I don't want to say playing hurt is the baseline, but we know we got a responsibility not only to the team but I'd really say to each other. I feel like that drives us more than anything else. When I'm out there and I'm picking myself up off the ground, I know it's because Kenny (Moore) needs me out there. And when I'm helping Grove up, I know he hurting because he know I need him out there. Buck knows we need him out there. So I know who he is. He's gonna push himself to be out there as soon as he possibly can."

The Colts currently sit at 8-5 with four games left in the regular season. Quarterback Daniel Jones sustained a season-ending Achilles injury in their Week 14 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, but the news that the Colts would be bringing the highly-regarded veteran quarterback Philip Rivers out of retirement to join their practice squad injected some "juice" into the locker room. They know they still have everything ahead of them and still have the pieces to be successful, and Buckner's return only solidifies that belief.

However, the Colts cornerback room suffered another blow on Wednesday with the news that Charvarius Ward Sr. was placed on injured reserve for the second time this season. Ward was placed in concussion protocol on Monday – the third time he's entered protocol this year – and will now miss at least the Colts' final four games of the 2025 regular season.

"I think that's what's most important, and what's most paramount right now, is how he is as human," defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo said Tuesday. "Forget about the football player part of it. I just really want him to be okay, and that's what's most important, dealing with all that right now.

Sauce Gardner, who sustained a calf injury in Week 13, did not practice on Wednesday, marking the fourth consecutive practice the two-time All-Pro has missed. Head coach Shane Steichen said last week that while Gardner will not be placed on injured reserve, he is expected to miss time while rehabbing from the injury.

The healthy members of the Colts cornerback room heading into Week 15 against the Seattle Seahawks are currently Kenny Moore II, Jaylon Jones, Mekhi Blackmon, Johnathan Edwards and Cameron Mitchell.

Wednesday's practice report: