INDIANAPOLIS — Indianapolis Colts' defensive lineman Grover Stewart has been suspended without pay for the next six games, the organization reported Tuesday.
The NFL suspended Stewart for violating the league's policy on performance-enhancing substances.
Stewart will be eligible to return to the active roster on Monday, Dec. 4, following the team's Week 13 game at Tennessee.
The Colts did not say which performance-enhancing substance prompted Stewart's suspension.
Stewart made an apology on Instagram, shortly after the announcement.
Stewart has been a key part of Indy’s run defense since reshaping his body after being a 2017 fourth-round draft pick out of Albany State in Georgia. He has steadily increased his weight from 295 pounds to 314, taking on a much leaner look as he teamed with two-time Pro Bowler DeForest Buckner to give Indy (3-3) one of the NFL's top interior defensive tandems.
This season, Stewart ranks eighth on the team with 20 tackles, two for loss, but Colts coaches have repeatedly said he has been playing at a Pro Bowl level for several seasons.
Without Stewart, the Colts will likely move Taven Bryan into the starting lineup Sunday against Cleveland (3-2). Bryan was Jacksonville's first-round draft pick in 2018, No. 29 overall, but he signed with the Colts as a free agent in March.
(Editor's Note: This story has been updated to correct that Stewart was suspended by the NFL, not the Colts.)