George Gumbs has had quite the career arc already. The new Indianapolis Colts edge rusher began his college career as a walk-on, but at wide receiver. That didn't work out as well as he hoped, but for the long-term betterment of the player, and hopefully, Indy.
One thing is clear, however. No matter how dire things might seem at times for Gumbs, he won't quit. He recently told The Athletic's James Boyd that in a video talk.
Gumbs said, "I always found a way to not get discouraged to the point (of) stopping and changing my morals and my personality and who I am — just to push past it...There's always gonna be some sunshine after them clouds."
Indianapolis Colts fans should be actively rooting for George Gumbs
That is the kind of person fans want to root for. Does he have the size and relative athletic ability to have a chance to play professional football? Of course, but lots of other people do too. One of the aspects that separates those who succeed and those who fail is the belief in oneself to never quit. That is Gumbs.
Oddly, after trying to play wide receiver at Northern Illinois, he transferred to Florida, a high-profile team in arguably the best conference in college football, and started at defensive end. Without his faith, he couldn't have transitioned as well from position to position and school to school. Gumbs would no longer be playing football. In other words, his life's dream would be gone.
He still has to prove to head coach Shane Steichen and defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo that he deserves real reps in real games, though. The 6'4 3/8" and 245-pound edge rusher has been timed at 4.66 in the 40-yard dash and had a 41-inch vertical jump. Those are fantastic numbers for a player of his size.
What he hasn't yet been able to do, though, is take all that fantastic athleticism and translate that into elite production. In his first year at Florida (2024), Gumbs had five sacks and eight tackles for loss, but in his second year, he only had 2.3 sacks. He also had right knee surgery in November.
The above is one reason he dropped to the fifth round of the 2026 NFL draft, but he could turn out ot be a better pro than he was in college. Anarumo might find a way to get the best use out of George Gumbs, and the Indianapolis Colts could certainly use that.
Besides Laiatu Latu and, maybe, Arden Key, the team lacks proven players at Gumbs' position. He could become a valuable player in the NFL, and do so while helping Latu be even better, too.