After Time Away, Colts’ Braden Smith Returns Stronger — and Ready

WESTFIELD, Ind. — For Colts right tackle Braden Smith, the start of training camp isn’t just a return to football, it’s a return to himself.

Smith, 29, missed the final five games of the 2024 season while seeking treatment for a severe form of obsessive-compulsive disorder known as religious scrupulosity. The mental toll was immense, he says — so overwhelming that, at one point, he was just trying to survive.

“Yeah. I mean, it sounds kind of crappy, but I, I was just trying to be alive this time this year,” Smith said. “You know, like, I wasn't thinking about anything. Like, I just wanted to find joy in life. And for a while there, I didn't feel like I was ever going to find that again. So, I mean, just being out here is just a plus for me.”

The turning point came the day before Thanksgiving, when Smith left the team facility feeling overwhelmed.

“Last year before I left, I mean, I think it was the day before Thanksgiving,” Smith said. “I came in, got to the parking lot, left immediately, like, I felt like I had a mental collapse. And I went home and, I mean, you've heard the story before. You know, I went home, took a nap, like my wife said. But when I woke up, I just wasn't there like, it was — it was pretty dark.”

Smith and his wife, Courtney, decided together that he needed help. He stepped away from football and checked into a treatment facility for nearly 50 days.

“We decided as a collective group, me and my wife, like I needed to get help,” Smith said. “And so that next day, you know, I owe it to the team, like, let them know what's out there and take some time away that, you know, I need to get help and, you know, kind of just letting people know what's up versus like kind of being an enigma, like kind of guessing what's going on.”

Smith said his teammates and the organization showed unwavering encouragement during his time away.

“The coaches were supportive. My teammates were supportive. Their services were all supportive,” he said. “Like, I felt very supported during the whole thing.”

Now, with a renewed outlook and clarity, Smith says he’s found his drive again.

“You know, it's kind of like that edge that players have. Like, I didn't have that last year. I didn't feel that last year,” he said. “Like this year, like, you know, instead of, like, obsess over other things. Like, I can obsess about my craft and like, you know, turn a negative into a positive, you know, and, you know, I'm like, very keen on just, like, getting the details down. Like, I feel that drive, like the edge I'm talking about.”

Smith has also embraced his role as an advocate, particularly when it comes to kicking the stigma around mental health in football.

“Yeah, I mean, I feel very open about talking about it, like especially knowing how it felt going through those things,” he said. “Like, you know, it's great that we do have a platform to talk about it. And, you know, fortunately enough, like the cause here is mental health and kicking the stigma.”

“With me — like the thing I was going through — it seems very taboo. Like, you seem like you're kind of going crazy and you, you know, I know that other people are going through the same thing,” he added. “So I want them to feel empowered hearing about my story. Like, seeing that I came out the other side of it and let them know that they're not going crazy, that this is very normal, that, you know, these things happen.”

Head coach Shane Steichen praised Smith’s resilience and openness.

“You know, he had a chance to talk to the O-line and just explain in those guys — everyone had their back,” Steichen said. “The whole team had his back through the whole thing. And to have him back out here, what he went through, is great. Obviously, the support from the organization and their teammates — just shows the, you know, the family that we got here. So it was really good.”

Smith is back at Colts camp now with a fresh mindset and a stronger sense of gratitude.

“Tomorrow’s not guaranteed,” he said. “So, I mean, just being grateful for what I'm given and, you know, make the most in the present moment.”