Kwity Paye on Colts' Defense: 'We're Hungry'

Indianapolis Colts pass rusher Kwity Paye reveals how he and the rest of the defense feel as training camp ends.

Much of the attention surrounding the Indianapolis Colts throughout training camp has been on the offensive side of the ball.

With rookie quarterback Anthony Richardson becoming the starter and all of the drama involving the Colts and Jonathan Taylor, the offense has dominated the storylines over the past month.

A group that has fallen into the background is the defense. Even when the defense is talked about, the focus is on the health of Shaquille Leonard or the competition happening in the young secondary.

But for the defense as a whole, there seems to be an edge to the unit that has not been seen in recent years. After collapsing at the end of the season, the Colts' defense needs to rebound in 2023. According to third-year pass rusher Kwity Paye, the unit has a fire underneath them as the season approaches.

“We’re hungry," Paye explained on Thursday. "We’re just excited to get back out there and work. We didn’t end the season how we wanted to last year. But we’ve got some guys in this defense that are just trying to get back out there and play.”

Paye is entering a crucial Year 3 with the Colts. After being selected with the No.21 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, there were high expectations that Paye could give the Colts a dominant presence on the edge. The Colts have been searching for high-level pass rush help since Colts legend Robert Mathis decided to hang up his cleats.

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Last season, Paye was able to rack up 45 tackles, including 13 tackles for loss, and 6.0 sacks in 12 games. Paye missed five games in 2022 with a nagging ankle injury. With the ankle healed and the injury behind him, Paye feels good heading into the season.

“I feel good," Paye admitted. "I lost some weight this past offseason. I’m feeling nice and slim and got my abs back (laughing). I’m just out here trying to work.”

Even though he missed five games, Paye set career marks in tackles, tackles for loss, and sacks. The Colts pass rush suffered when he was not on the field, and Paye hopes to stay healthy all season long for the first time in his career.

Paye also hopes to have an impact as a pass rusher deeper into the game. Much of the reason behind his weight loss was to have more energy in the fourth quarter. The defensive end out of the University of Michigan wants to be a force when the game is on the line.

"Last year I was playing around, like, 270," Paye remembered. "This year I'm like 264. ... Just late into the games, fourth quarter, that's where you want to be a prominent pass rusher. I felt like I was a little sluggish and didn't have the most energy. So I wanted to slim up, just tone up, and just ready to go for the season."

The Colts and defensive coordinator Gus Bradley are ready for Paye to take another step this season. Toward the end of his rookie campaign, the NFL game began to slow down for Paye. He recorded all four of his sacks after Week 10 in 2021.

2022 got off to a fast start with two sacks against the Houston Texans in Week 1. Paye had three sacks in the first four weeks of the season and looked like he was on pace to reach double-digit sacks.

Unfortunately, the ankle injury hit during Week 5 and kept him out for the next three games. He returned in Week 9 to get another sack, but the ankle flared up again in Week 10, forcing him to miss the next two contests.

Paye was never able to get into a rhythm during the 2022 season. Every time he started to get going, or had a stretch of games where he played well, the ankle injury would rear its ugly head. He would have to start all over again, and his production suffered because of it.

Now in 2023, Paye is putting pressure on himself to reach his full potential. He wants to become the pass rusher the Colts drafted him to be and has been extremely motivated to make 2023 his best year.

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"When you just put a lot of pressure on yourself, like when you're training and stuff, it's just like, I feel like I'm not doing enough," Paye said. "I want to just get out there and do more. You just want to come out here and practice. As soon as practice is over, I'm out there watching film and I just want to come back and start practicing again."

Paye has another running mate at the other edge spot in Samson Ebukam. While Ebukam missed time earlier in training camp with a hamstring injury, the two are showing the kind of duo they can be.

Paye and Ebukam have disrupted the Colts' offense with would-be sacks over the past week. Against the Chicago Bears in their joint practice sessions, Paye was very active as he got through the line on multiple occasions for would-be sacks of Justin Fields. The hunger that Paye has to have a big year is obvious in how hard he has been practicing.

"Just having that hunger throughout the camp and then going into the season will be good," Paye remarked. "Even if I have a good game, you erase that one and get to the next game so I can just improve off the last game."

While all the attention is focused elsewhere, do not sleep on Paye. 2023 may be the perfect time for his breakout campaign.

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