Former Michigan State defensive lineman Mike Panasiuk has found a new home in the National Football League. Panasiuk is signing with the Indianapolis Colts per MLFootball’s reporting.

Panasiuk was a star with the St. Louis Battlehawks in the UFL, which he has parlayed into his second stint in the NFL after spending time with the Carolina Panthers. Since turning professional, Panasiuk has made the transition from defensive to offensive line.

From 2016-2019, Panasiuk recorded 100 tackles, 18 tackles for loss, 4 sacks and 2 interceptions in his Michigan State career.

At 6-foot-3 and 300 pounds, with the movement he possessed on the defensive line, Panasiuk provides a versatility on the offensive line.

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This article originally appeared on Spartans Wire: Former Michigan State football DL signs with Indianapolis Colts

The Indianapolis Colts have concluded their second preseason game by defeating the Arizona Cardinals on Saturday. Barely any starters outside of a couple saw the field, but there was enough from the game to provide much-needed clarity in areas of the roster. After their first win of 2024, here are the three Colts from Saturday’s game who have their stock on the rise with the regular season just weeks away.

Zavier Scott | Running Back

Running back Jonathan Taylor saw no snaps against the Cardinals and backup Trey Sermon is still dealing with a hamstring injury. This situation opened up opportunities for Evan Hull, Tyler Goodson, and Zavier Scott, to dominate the backfield activity. However, Scott impressed the most out of all the running backs on Saturday evening.

The former Maine Black Bear tallied up 11 carries for 55 rushing yards and a touchdown. Scott led the way for the ground attack and showcased power running and relentless drive through any contact.

Scott might have put his name in consideration for Shane Steichen’s offensive scheme. While he’s likely behind all the other names, Scott is a jack-of-all-trades who poses a threat as a ball carrier, receiver, and potentially, a passer.

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Isaiah Land | Defensive End

The Colts possess one of the most intriguing defensive fronts going into the 2024 regular season. Notable stars like defensive tackles DeForest Buckner and Grover Stewart headline the rest of this potentially dominant group led by Charlie Partridge. While rookie end Laiatu Latu has played fantastic in the absence of the 2023 sack leader Samson Ebukam (Achilles tear), others have shown out in the preseason as depth pieces. One of those players is second-year defender Isaiah Land.

In 2023, Land saw seven games and collected a sack with six tackles. However, he played like a man on a mission against the Cardinals. Land was constantly disrupting plays and finished with a sack and three tackles (two for loss). With Ebukam out for the season, Indy needs another depth edge rusher for depth purposes. If Land continues this pace, he might have a shot at making the 53-man roster to see meaningful action.

Nick Cross | Safety

Safety Nick Cross has had to withstand constant criticism so far through 2024. The critiques don’t come unwarranted, as training camp hasn’t been a good friend to Cross, who is competing to start at one of the safety positions opposite Julian Blackmon. However, Cross played well in the preseason opener against the Denver Broncos but looked on fire against the Cardinals.

Cross played a lot of snaps so Gus Bradley and the coaching staff could properly evaluate him as a starting safety, he didn’t disappoint with five tackles (one for loss) and good on-field placement in coverage. Cross is still just a 22-year-old going into his third NFL season, so the fruits of Indy’s trade to get him may finally be paying off. This is still the preseason, so the real games will tell a much more vibrant story of Cross’ readiness to start.

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The Indianapolis Colts have rested most of the team’s starters in the 2024 NFL preseason. The exception? Matt Gay, the second-highest-paid kicker in the league. Carrying a cap hit of over five million dollars, Gay has had some struggles since arriving in Indianapolis. Afterranking 27th in field goal percentage (80.5%) amongst his peers in 2023 (min. 15 attempts), the 2024 season has not begun well for the 30-year-old.

Gay missed two field goal attempts against the Arizona Cardinals on Saturday night, bringing the tally to three for the preseason. The misses have come from 54, 53, and 44 yards and were all pulled wide left.

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The leg power is certainly there, but the accuracy appears to remain a lingering issue from last season. Lost scoring opportunities will lose you football games all day, something Colts fans have been all too familiar with since the turn of the century.

The issue is that the NFL kicking market is pretty dry. Not a lot of options exist out there – Randy Bullock is probably the best we’re looking at. Bullock last played for the New York Giants in 2023 where he knocked down five of his six attempts, so about the same conversion rate as Gay.

“I feel like the ball is coming off my foot really well,” said Gay. “I gotta make the kick regardless of who’s holding or what’s happening” (via James Boyd | The Athletic). If the misses persist, the Colts will be stuck with one of the worst special teams contracts in the league. General Manager Chris Ballard could bring in a kicker to compete, but the options aren’t abundant.

Head coach Shane Steichen said he thinks that Gay “is gonna be fine” after two disappointing performances. His lone made kick through two games came from 35 yards out.

On the bright side, Gay recorded a career-high eight field goals made from 50+ yards last season. Again, distance is not the issue. Missing kicks may be more costly than knocking down the occasional long one, though.

At the end of the day, Gay is likely to be the starting kicker in Week 1 when the Colts face the Houston Texans at Lucas Oil Stadium on September 8th. Likely to be a close game, it should be a good test for Gay’s clutch time ability.

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