INDIANAPOLIS – His toughness and playing style resonates throughout the Colts locker room.

Bring up Ahmad Bradshaw's name to Colts players and the praise is endless.

Now, those players will try and carry the torch of Bradshaw with the veteran running back's immediate playing future in doubt.

Chuck Pagano announced on Monday that Bradshaw suffered a fractured fibula in Sunday night's loss to the Patriots, bringing his 2014 season in jeopardy

"He's been seen by our doctors, our specialists and he's going to see a couple more. I'll have more information in the coming days," Pagano said on Monday afternoon.

"It kills you because he's a warrior. He loves football. He loves his teammates. He loves the (Horseshoe). He loves competing….We are going to miss his energy, his passion, everything he brings to the table."

With six games left in the 2014 regular season and a possible playoff run following that, the Colts will wait for a more concrete answer on Bradshaw's timetable before deciding what to do with his roster spot.

"We've got a lot of football left, that's why we are keeping our fingers crossed," Pagano said.

In coming back from a career-threatening neck injury that ended his 2013 season, Bradshaw has played with the passion that people around the NFL have witnessed since 2007.

Bradshaw has been a spark for the Colts offense this season. He's the team's leading rusher at 4.7 yards per carry and the third leading receiver with 38 catches.

His eight total touchdowns are the most on the Colts roster with Bradshaw frequently serving as a threat in passing situations.

As the Colts reach the final six games of the 2014 season, Bradshaw's on the field presence is in question.

"He's such a great teammate, great player, great to be around," Andrew Luck says of Bradshaw. "But it's part of football and we know no one's going to feel sorry for the Colts. We certainly don't feel sorry for ourselves. It's next man up, and unfortunate or not it's a theme of football and we have to make it work."

Starting running back Trent Richardson will continue to see the brunt of the backfield workload with Boom Herron sidling into the "Next Man Up" role.

Herron, a core special teams player for the Colts, has definitely shown flashes in his limited regular season action (22 carries for 74 yards and two catches for nine yards).

During Training Camp and in the preseason, Herron got ample first team work and was a bright spot throughout the month of August.

How will that back now perform during the critical stretch of a team in the thick of a jumbled AFC playoff picture?

Pagano is optimistic based off what he's seen from Herron.

Back in Anderson with the injuries to Richardson, Bradshaw and Vick Ballard, the thought was how difficult it would be to keep Herron out of a talented backfield.

It's not an ideal situation, but the reps are now coming for Herron.

"Obviously you don't want to see anybody get hurt or go down but it's an opportunity for me," Herron says.

"I'm definitely going to take advantage of it."