INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Offseason ankle surgery has kept receiver Alec Pierce out for all of the Indianapolis Colts' offseason workouts.
It may limit his activity — or keep him off the field — for the start of training camp, too.
Pierce told reporters Wednesday that doctors expected it would take his left ankle four to six months to fully recover from a late May procedure, which was done shortly after he signed a four-year, $114 million contract to remain
in Indianapolis.
“We talked with the doctors, and I think we determined surgery was the smartest play for the long term,” he said. “They kind of were saying I was going to have to do it at some point, and then when I asked him what the time frame was, they said like four to six months. It was late March, so then I was like, 'OK, four months gets me basically to camp, kind of somewhere in there I should be back.”
Pierce said he played with the injury since late in the 2024 season and it bothered him all of last year, though he felt more discomfort over the final month of 2025. Following the season, he tried a platelet-rich plasma injection, which uses a person's own blood to accelerate healing, to see if it would help and then spent two or three weeks in a walking boot.
When it didn't work after two months, Pierce opted for surgery.
“We were seeing how that shot reacted, and it seemed like that kind of helped heal it, but I don't think it did as much as we wanted it to," Pierce said. “Even then, I'm walking. I'm saying, ‘I don’t think this is working.' They're telling me like, ‘You’ve got to wait, like this is a thing that takes time to heal.”
Yet the injury didn’t seem to hinder his productivity on the field. The former University of Cincinnati standout averaged 22.3 yards per reception in 2024 and 21.3 yards in 2025, posting the league's top numbers among all qualifiers.
If Pierce isn't ready at the start of camp, the Colts would be without their new No. 1 receiver, and their starting quarterback, Daniel Jones, also could be limited. Jones is still rehabbing from a torn right Achilles tendon that ended his 2025 season in early December and though he's been doing position group work and 7-on-7 drills the last two weeks, he still isn't cleared for 11-on-11.
Jones and the Colts remain hopeful he will be ready to take that next step in his recovery when players report to camp next month in a suburb on the northwest side of Indianapolis. The former New York Giants starter also opted to return to Indy, accepting a two-year deal worth up to $100 million after his one-year contract expired in March.
“He’s on track right now, so I think that’s a big part of it,” coach Shane Steichen said when asked about Jones on Tuesday, the first day of the team's three-day mandatory minicamp. "But again, I mean if he’s full go and ready to go, we’re not going to hold back anything.”
Jones and Pierce developed quite the connection last season.
Pierce caught 33 passes of the 59 passes Jones threw his way, finishing with 689 yards and two touchdown catches in the 10 games they played together before Jones' season-ending injury. Pierce finished the year with 47 receptions and 1,003 yards, both career bests, and six TDs.
His performance and steady improvement over his first four NFL seasons led the Colts to trade Michael Pittman Jr. to the Pittsburgh Steelers, clearing the way for Pierce to take over this season as the No. 1 receiver.
All Pierce has to do now is get healthy.
“We want the (return) date to be as early as possible,” Pierce said. “But I have to kind of let my body guide it and see how you feel. The more you overdo it, the more sore you get can kind of sometimes be counterproductive. So I'm learning when to push through the pain and soreness and when to back off.”
___
AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL
