According to The 33rd Team NFL Insider Ari Meirov, the Indianapolis Colts have received a better trade offer for veteran starting nose tackle Grover Stewart than they did for his former interior teammate DeForest Buckner:
For reference, Buckner was traded to the San Francisco 49ers early last week for their 2027 4th round pick, which presumably means that Indianapolis can either acquire a 4th round pick that’s from an NFL suitor worse than the 49ers (6-1), or perhaps, although it would be surprising, there could be a potential 3rd round pick.
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I would realistically heavily lean much towards the former, given Stewart’s age, play, position, and pending free agency.
While it’s arguable that the Colts failed to maximize Buckner’s true trade value (*especially in light of the ensuing Jeffery Simmons trade), by doing him and his family a solid by dealing him back to the franchise that drafted him as a first rounder back in 2016, and with whom he played his first four seasons for prior to being traded to Indianapolis, it would still be surprising to see Stewart garner more draft compensation, all things considered.
As a looming free agent at 33-years-old, Stewart is your typical one dimensional run stuffing nose tackle, and has had a bit of a down season for his normally high standards. That being said, it’s highly possible that a change of scenery to a playoff hopeful and defensive tackle needy team could bring out some vintage ‘Big Grove’ out of the gates for the season’s final stretch run.
On the season, Stewart has 26 tackles (8 solo), 2 tackles for loss, 0.5 sacks, and a pass defensed during all 8 starts during the 2026 campaign.
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Stewart has long been a personal favorite of Colts team owner and CEO Carlie Irsay-Gordon, much like star running back Jonathan Taylor remains for that matter—which could make him especially difficult to part with on a personal level and regarding his longstanding veteran leadership in the Indianapolis locker room.
That being said, if they could get a 3rd or 4th round pick for Stewart, then that’s a move the franchise should make, as he’s getting a bit long in the tooth at defensive tackle and doesn’t factor into the team’s long-term plans, especially with an ongoing rebuild realistically taking at least the next 2-3 seasons—if all goes according to plan.
