In his first season with the Colts in 2025, cornerback Charvarius Ward has sustained three concussions. After the second one, he admitted he had doubts that he would be able to play football again, but he was activated from injured reserve prior to Week 12 and played in each of Indianapolis’ next three games.
Although a third concussion has him back on IR – thus bringing an end to his regular season, which has four games remaining – he is giving no thought to retirement. Per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Ward wants to continue playing and even hoped to avoid his current IR placement.
The fact that Ward is optimistic about his playing future is encouraging, particularly in light of a recent story from Nathan Brown of the Indianapolis Star. As Brown details, Ward’s second concussion led to dizziness, nausea, unfocused vision, and piercing headaches, and those symptoms returned to some extent shortly after the Colts’ Week 14 loss to the Jaguars.
Of course, Ward’s long-term health will be the key factor in deciding whether he is able to suit up again, as both defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo and head coach Shane Steichen acknowledged.
“What’s most important and what’s most paramount right now is how he is as a human,” Anarumo said (via Brown). “Forget about the football player part of it. I really just want him to be okay, and that’s what’s most important with dealing with all that right now.”
Brown’s story was published on Thursday, several days before Schefter’s report. As of that date, Steichen had not yet spoken with Ward about his prior retirement thoughts, saying he would do so shortly.
“I think it’s always concerning when you have that many concussions. He’s in the protocol, and we’ll work through it with him, and we’ll go from there,” Steichen added.
From a purely on-field perspective, Ward’s absence adds another layer of difficulty to what has been a trying stretch for the Colts. After starting the season 7-1 behind a resurgent campaign from quarterback Daniel Jones, the team has lost four of its last five games and are presently on the outside of the playoff picture. Jones himself is out for the season due to a torn Achilles, and 44-year-old Philip Rivers has come out of retirement to take his place.
Ward, 29, was not as effective after his second concussion as he had been earlier in the season, but with both him and marquee trade acquisition Sauce Gardner on the shelf, Indy’s secondary is notably shorthanded. Gardner is expected to miss Sunday’s bout with the Seahawks and hopes to return in Week 16.