One position battle at Colts training camp appears to be coming to an end.
In speaking to the media at Grand Park on Monday, special teams coordinator Brian Mason said that Spencer Shrader “has the leg up” on Maddux Trujillo in the kicker competition.
"I think he's kicking better in training camp than he was in OTAs, I think he's kicking better in week three of training camp than he was in week one," Mason said of Shrader. "Obviously, any time you have a new starting kicker there's going to be some bumps in the road, but I think he's starting to get more comfortable.”
Shrader, who’s made 87% of his kicks compared to Trujillo’s 78%, will get the start in Indy’s second preseason bout with the Packers. He will also take over the majority of kickoff duties in practice as the team gets him ready for the regular season.
One of the reasons the Colts wanted to bring Shrader in to compete was his ability to remain consistent despite frequently bouncing between teams in 2024.
Shrader appeared in four games for three different teams last year and never missed a kick. Paired with the familiarity he has with Mason from their time together at Notre Dame, Shrader appeared to be the early favorite to come out of camp with the job.
And it now seems he’s just a step away from securing his roster spot.