INDIANAPOLIS COLTS News and Notes for 2007/2008

[The General]

Re: INDIANAPOLIS COLTS News and Notes for 2007/2008

Cornerback David signs offer sheet with New Orleans

Colts have 1 week to match the proposal; Indy would get 4th-rounder from Saints

The Indianapolis Colts face the prospect of losing both starting cornerbacks from their Super Bowl team.

Jason David, a restricted free agent and the team's starting right corner the past three seasons, has signed a four-year offer sheet with the New Orleans Saints. The Colts have seven days to match it, or receive a fourth-round draft pick in the April 28-29 NFL draft from the Saints as compensation.

The Colts lost their other starting cornerback last month when Nick Harper, an unrestricted free agent, signed with AFC South rival Tennessee.

The financial details of the Saints' offer sheet are unknown, but it likely is front-loaded -- a larger salary cap number in 2007. That might make it difficult for the Colts to match. They have less than $4 million of room under the league's $109 million salary cap.

David, 24, has started 43 regular-season games and six more in the playoffs since being selected in the fourth round of the 2004 draft.
Despite David being a fixture on defense, the Colts tendered him at the lowest level last month: one-year, $850,000. If he signed an offer sheet with another team that they chose not to match, the compensation would be a fourth-round pick. That made David an attractive restricted free agent.

 

[The General]

Re: INDIANAPOLIS COLTS News and Notes for 2007/2008

Colts looking for defense in draft


Tony Dungy's short offseason consisted of the usual victory laps. A parade in Indianapolis, the Lombardi Trophy tour, speaking engagements and Monday's trip to the White House.

Somehow, Dungy still managed to get some work accomplished. His task: catching up on the draft so he can put the pieces in place to defend a Super Bowl title.

"I'm a little behind," Dungy said recently of his prep work. "We're going to try and add depth and develop players."

It's become an annual tradition for Super Bowl champions in the salary-cap age. Win on the field, lose in free agency, reload through the draft.

Since beating the Chicago Bears in February to win the NFL title, the Colts have lost two assistant coaches and three starters -- cornerback Nick Harper, linebacker Cato June and running back Dominic Rhodes. Indy could lose another starter, cornerback Jason David, if it doesn't match New Orleans' four-year offer sheet this week.

There's more.

Defensive tackle Montae Reagor and third receiver Brandon Stokley were released in cost-cutting moves, and the Colts still haven't decided what to do with former Pro Bowl defensive tackle Corey Simon. Still looming are negotiations with three-time Pro Bowl defensive end Dwight Freeney, who wants a long-term deal after being given the franchise tag in February.

They've overcome the losses before. Remember Edgerrin James last year?

But in the Dungy era, they've never faced such a wide-ranging exodus. That makes this weekend the most critical of the offseason for the Super Bowl champs.

Fortunately for Indy, it still has the steady hand of team president Bill Polian, a master of finding bargains near the end of the first round. Since 2001, Polian has added Pro Bowl receiver Reggie Wayne and former Pro Bowl safety Bob Sanders; starting tight end Dallas Clark; and starting running back Joseph Addai. Nne of the picks came higher than 24th.

So what does Polian intend to do at No. 32?

Probably try to solidify a defense that ranked last in the NFL against the run during the regular season and has been decimated by free agency. Dungy doesn't think the choice is that clear cut.

"We lost more on defense than we did on offense," Dungy said. "But the key is to continue to get good players, whether they're on offense or defense."

The conventional wisdom until last week was that the Colts would try to plug holes at linebacker, where they struggled badly during the '06 regular season. Some believed Polian's first choice was Penn State's Paul Posluszny, who has been compared to another Polian favorite, Shane Conlan. But Posluszny almost certainly won't be around that late.

Another possibility is Miami's Jon Beason, whose smallish frame and speed would fit perfectly into Dungy's defense.

The problem is Indy does not usually put a premium on linebackers, letting four starters -- Mike Peterson, Marcus Washington, David Thornton and now June -- walk away since the end of 2002.

Others think the best value would come along the defensive line with ends Anthony Spencer of Purdue and LaMarr Woodley of Michigan and tackle Justin Harrell of Tennessee expected to be available.

If David leaves, though, things could change.

Without either of their starting cornerbacks from the Super Bowl, the Colts may look to Aaron Ross of Texas, Chris Houston of Arkansas or Eric Wright of UNLV. Polian has shown a propensity to take players from BCS conferences and schools that have consistently been successful. But the Colts haven't taken a cornerback in the first round since 1984.

Polian could also pull a surprise by looking for a receiver, such as Southern Cal's Dwayne Jarrett or Steve Smith, to replace Stokley.

But with so many holes to fill and no second-round pick, Polian could do just what Dungy suggests and take the most talented player available, regardless of position.

"You won't know how things are going to go, but Bill always does a good job," Dungy said. "We've gotten a lot of good players when we've picked down there before, and that's what we need to do this year, too."

SportingNews.com - NFL - Colts looking for defense in draft

 

[The General]

Veteran Defensive End Re-Signs With Colts

Veteran Defensive End Re-Signs With Colts

Josh Thomas has been one of the Colts? most reliable, productive reserves the past three seasons.
On Tuesday, Thomas and the Colts ensured that will remain so.

Thomas, a fourth-year veteran defensive end who became a restricted free agent following this past season, has re-signed with the Colts, the club announced on Tuesday afternoon.

Duration and terms were not disclosed.

Thomas, who signed with the Colts as a free agent shortly after the 2004 NFL Draft from Syracuse University, has played in 37 games the past three seasons, including two during the 2005 season as a starter.

He played in 11 games as a rookie in 2004, registering one sack, before missing the last five regular-season games and the postseason with a torn anterior cruciate ligament. Thomas returned the following season to play 12 games, registering a career-high three sacks.

This past season, Thomas played 14 games and made a career-high 35 tackles with one sack. He also played in all four postseason games, registering two tackles and a sack.


--colts.com

 

[The General]

Re: INDIANAPOLIS COLTS News and Notes for 2007/2008

EMBRACING HIS HERITAGE

First-Round Pick Gonzalez Embraces Cuban Background

INDIANAPOLIS – A week ago, he knew little about Indianapolis.

Anthony Gonzalez, a wide receiver from Ohio State University, knew the city had an NFL team for which he very much wanted to play.

But he didn’t know much else, and he particularly didn’t know the city had a growing Hispanic community.

But know this about Gonzalez:

Now that he does know, he’s happy about it.

Gonzalez’s father, Eduardo, is from Cuba, and Cuban heritage, tradition and language has been a huge part of Anthony Gonzalez’s life since he can remember.

And he said he sure won’t ignore it. Far from it.

“It’s been a part of my family,” Gonzalez, the Colts’ first-round selection in last weekend’s 2007 NFL Draft, said this weekend during the Colts’ 2007 rookie mini-camp, which will continue through Sunday at the team’s practice facility.

“It’s who I am. I don’t want to hide the fact that I’m Cuban or turn away from it. I want to embrace it. That’s how I’ve been brought up. . . .

“I talk about it when I’m asked. It’s something that’s a part of me.”

Minutes after the Colts made him the 32nd overall selection in the draft, Gonzalez was asked specifically about his heritage, and his new town’s growing Hispanic community.

“I didn't know that about Indianapolis, but that's something that’s very exciting to me,' Gonzalez said. “My Hispanic background, my Cuban roots, are something that's very important to me. If you walked into my house and smelled the food, you couldn't mistake it for any other nationality but Cuban.”

This past October, during Hispanic Heritage month, ESPN.com featured Gonzalez on its website with a story detailing Gonzalez’s story. How he is the son of a Cuban immigrant. How his grandfather went to school with Fidel Castro, and helped overthrow Fulgencio Batista. How in Gonzalez’s house, Spanish was spoken when relatives visited.

How he cooks Cuban food from a cookbook. How he hopes for the fall of the Castro regime soon so his grandmother can visit her homeland. How he plans someday to move to a Spanish-speaking country so he can learn the language.

And while Gonzalez’s focus this weekend is very much on football, he said he considers it an honor when and if people of Hispanic heritage identify with him.

“I’m not sure to what level it does happen, but to whatever level it is the case, it’s something I’m proud of and I’m excited about,” he said.

What Gonzalez said he is most excited about this weekend is being with the Colts, the team for which he said he most wanted to play before the draft.

His primary focus this weekend:

Learning the Colts’ way of doing things, particularly an offensive scheme that is not only one of the NFL’s most innovative, but most productive, too.

The toughest thing about the early days of the NFL?

“Just getting your steps down within the concept of the scheme,” Gonzalez said. “You run a particular offense for four years in college, you get very used to it.

“You know what steps you’re making your breaks on and what depth to insert yourself into. In a new offense, it takes a little bit of time just to get that feel.”

Colts Head Coach Tony Dungy and President Bill Polian each have stressed the rookie class that the rookie camp is about getting oriented, and that no evaluation will take place until the preseason. But after one practice Friday, Dungy said he likes what he saw from Gonzalez.

“He’s what we thought he was going to be,” Dungy said. “No question. He’s a good player. He can run and catch the ball. He works hard – all the things we thought when we drafted him.

“I think he’s going to fit in, like a lot of the guys in this class.”

The process of fitting in this weekend, Gonzalez said, has been about adapting what he learned at Ohio State to college. “There are only so many things you can do on the football field,” he said. “It’s not like your putting a 12th guy out there. A lot of things are similar. They’re just called different things.”

A lot of this weekend, he said, is about getting used to the subtle difference between college and the NFL.

“You have to speed everything up, you have to be a little more efficient,” he said. “You even have to get used to if your knee hits the ground you can still run. It’s just a little bit different – different enough to keep you one your toes for a while, but similar enough where you’re not completely awkward.”

Gonzalez, who caught 87 passes for 1,286 yards and 13 touchdowns at Ohio State, said he worked extensively in the slot-receiver position during Friday’s practice. That’s where he mostly played at Ohio State, and it’s a position that has been played in Indianapolis the past four seasons by veteran wide receiver Brandon Stokley.

The Colts released Stokley in a salary-cap move earlier this off-season. He signed with the Denver Broncos. During the draft last weekend, Dungy and Polian each spoke of Gonzalez as a perfect replacement for the productive veteran.

“It’s kind of a non-issue for me, really,” Gonzalez said of the pressure replacing Stokley. “The expectations that I place on myself are such that as long as my teammates and coaches are pleased with my contributions, that’s all I really care about. Being that that’s the case, my work is centered around making them happy.”

The same, he said, is true of fitting into an offense that includes five Pro Bowl players, including two receivers – Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne.

“I don’t think there are any cons to that – I really don’t,” Gonzalez said. “When I got into this situation, this was honestly – and I’m not talking just to say it – but this is honestly the team I wanted to go to, because of the veteran presence and the winning tradition that’s set here. . . .

“It’s certainly an honor to play alongside two great receivers, two of the best in the game. It’s one of a million reasons why I’m so pleased with the situation I’m in, the fact that I’ll get to work with these guys.”

Gonzalez, after his first Colts practice, was surrounded by reporters wanting to hear from the first-round selection of the defending Super Bowl champions.

Was it unusual, he was asked, being the center of attention?

“Once the vets get here, I don’t think you guys will be talking to me,” he said with a laugh. “It will be business as usual.”

It’s a business Gonzalez said he has waited his whole life to begin, and now that it is here, “to finally have the opportunity, to finally be here, is very rewarding,” he said.

“My goal is to win a Super Bowl, and to contribute to the best of my ability in whatever capacity I’m able to contribute,” he said. “I’ve never been a statistics guy. In all honesty, I don’t even know what my stats were in college. To me, what’s important is whether or nor your teammates appreciate your contributions. . . .

“So as far as outside pressure goes, I don’t think I’ll really feel much of it. It’s not something I’ve ever paid attention to.”


The Official Website of the Indianapolis Colts

 

[The General]

Re: INDIANAPOLIS COLTS News and Notes for 2007/2008

Rookies Make Good First Impression at Mini-Camp, Dungy Says


The first impressions have been made.

And although this past weekend’s 2007 Colts rookie mini-camp was very much a time for orientation and just as much not about evaluation, the Super Bowl XLI Champion’s rookie class did practice three times in three at the team’s complex.

The position coaches watched.

The personnel officials did, too, along with Colts President Bill Polian and Head Coach Tony Dungy, all getting a first feel for the 2007 Draft class.

The early impressions? So far, so good.

“I thought it was very good,” Dungy said after the rookie camp, which concluded with a Sunday morning practice at the practice facility.

Dungy said while it was far too early to make serious judgments about individual draft selections or collegiate free agents, he got an impression of a group that is fast – not only on the field, but off of it, too.

Dungy said when watching rookies, he watches for their ability to fit in quickly and adjust to their surroundings, something he said the rookies at the complex this weekend did well.

“We’ve got a group that takes in information and they’re serious about things,” said Dungy, now in his sixth season with the team.

“You always feel like they’re talented enough athletically, but this group really did a good job handling the schedule and the information.”

All nine members of the Colts’ rookie class, including first-round selection Anthony Gonzalez – a wide receiver from Ohio State University – attended the mini-camp, as did about 15 rookie collegiate free agents.

The rest of the draft class is as follows:

Offensive tackle Tony Ugoh (second round, Arkansas), cornerback Dameyion Hughes (third round, California), defensive tackle Quinn Pitcock (third round, Ohio State), safety Brannon Condren (fourth round, Troy), linebacker Clint Session (fourth round, Pittsburgh), wide receiver Roy Hall (fifth round, Ohio State), cornerback Michael Coe (fifth round, Alabama State) and defensive end Keyunta Dawson (seventh round, Texas Tech).

The rookies left Indianapolis shortly after Sunday’s late-morning practice, and most will return in mid-May, shortly before the Colts’ mandatory veteran/rookie mini-camp at the practice facility May 16-18. Rookies from schools that have yet to complete spring semesters may not return until after the school’s final examination period.

“The biggest thing we want to see (upon the rookies’ return) is just the recall, and being able to take what they got and go home and work on it, and come back and not start again from Square One,” Dungy said. “Most of them have the impression that they’ll take their notebooks with them and work on the things we worked on.

“We want to just build on this and if we do, we’ll be in good shape.”

The Colts, who typically under Dungy have drafted with an emphasis on speed, did so again during the 2007 draft, he said. That was particularly true on defense, where the Colts used six of their nine selections.

“We have some speed at a number of positions – at defensive end and linebacker,” Dungy said. “We have some receivers who can run, and (offensive tackle) Tony Ugoh. The athleticism is something we like. We’ll generally sacrifice a little size to get that. It is going to be a fast group.”

The draft and this past free-agency period continued an inevitable trend that has been ongoing since Dungy’s 2002 arrival – the departure of players who predated Dungy and the arrival of players, particularly on defense, drafted to play in his system.

Rob Morris, the Colts’ first-round selection in the 2000 NFL Draft who started at strong side linebacker throughout the playoffs, is now the only player on defense who predates Dungy. With the exception of defensive tackle Anthony “Booger” McFarland, acquired in a trade from Tampa Bay last season, the other Colts’ defensive starters next season all likely will be players drafted or acquired by the Colts as rookies since Dungy’s arrival.

“You really feel like Bill (Polian) and his group have done a good job of understanding what we’re looking for and incorporating that,” Dungy said. “The guys we’re picking really seem like they fit what we do.

“Rob does feel kind of like the lone wolf out there, but it is right now guys who have been tailored to our system.”


The Official Website of the Indianapolis Colts

 

[The General]

PLENTY FAST ENOUGH

PLENTY FAST ENOUGH

Third-Round Selection Daymeion Hughes Has Made Plays Wherever He Has Played.


Since he can remember, Daymeion Hughes has heard it.

And since he can remember, it has been how others have defined his future potential as a football player.

Yes, Hughes – a cornerback and one of the Colts’ two third-round selections in the 2007 NFL Draft – started wherever he played. And yes, he always made big plays. And as was the case when he was a senior at the University of California-Berkeley, he typically was among the best players in his league.

But always, there was the question of speed.

So, Hughes said he wasn’t surprised when scouts and analysts questioned his speed entering the draft. And he wasn’t particularly surprised when those questions caused him to slip during the draft’s first day.

But as for all of those teams that passed on Hughes?

He figures he may have a surprise for them – that he can play cornerback in the NFL, and that he can do so at a big-time level.

“I’ve kind of been hearing it all my life,” Hughes said during the Colts’ recent rookie mini-camp, which concluded this past Sunday at the team’s practice facility.

“People have always told me I’m too slow to play and all that stuff. I never really ran track. I hated running just for fun.

“I was always good playing football, so it really didn’t matter.”

Hughes (5-feet-10, 190 pounds) was good enough at California to start 41 of 51 games, good enough to be the Pac 10 Defensive Player of the Year as a senior – and to win the Ronnie Lott Trophy the same year – and good enough to intercept 15 passes in four seasons for 244 return yards and four touchdowns.

All three totals rank second in school history.

The Colts, under President Bill Polian and Head Coach Tony Dungy, typically favor how a player plays on the field over “measurables” such as size and speed when it comes to draft evaluation. Hughes, Dungy said, is such a case.

“There’s something to be said for that,” Dungy said. “Guys who make plays on one level, many times that transfers over. That’s what we’re hoping for. “They (Hughes and rookie cornerback Michael Coe) are very confident guys.

“They understand what defensive football is all about.”

Hughes, the 95th overall selection in the draft, originally was projected by many as a first- or second-round selection, and some publications – as well as ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper, Jr. –

ranked him the second-highest rated corner early in the pre-draft process.

But at the NFL Scouting Combine, Hughes ran with a hamstring issue and was timed at 4.74 seconds in the 40-yard dash. At Cal’s Pro Day, he ran a 4.56.

“I’ve never been a real good tester or anything like that,” Hughes said. “I’ve never had ridiculous numbers on paper, but when you turn on the film, I’m going to perform. That (film) is probably where they (the Colts) saw it (what they liked in Hughes).

“I was actually talking to one of the scouts after the combine. I was kind of down. He told me, ‘Some teams don’t look at the numbers or time and grade you.’

“So, it has been a good situation for me, coming here.”

Not only are the Colts the defending Super Bowl champions, their starting cornerbacks from last season – Nick Harper and Jason David – signed as free agents in the off-season with Tennessee and New Orleans, respectively. Hughes said that may mean opportunity.

“It was a little nerve-wracking at the time, just waiting all day, but once I got drafted, it was like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders,” Hughes said. “I was happy to be in a place like Indy, because it’s a high-caliber team and I might get a chance to contribute early with the loss of the two cornerbacks from last year.

“I feel like this is the best fit for me. As long as it’s the best fit, I can’t be upset.”

Hughes, when discussing the draft this past weekend at rookie camp, spoke of being selected in the third round matter-of-factly. He emphasized that he believed he was drafted into the best situation, and said for that reason, he wasn’t bitter over where he was selected.

“I would have been mad whether I was drafted first round or fifth round,” Hughes said. Either way, he said, “I was going to come in and do what I had to do to play. I don’t think it’s about having a chip on your shoulder or nothing. It’s just about being a ballplayer. You have to handle yourself as a professional, on and off the field, and take it as it comes.”

Which is how Hughes said he always has approached football. Cal defensive coordinator Bob Gregory recently told the San Francisco Chronicle he hadn’t expected Hughes to make an immediate impact. But Hughes proved him wrong, playing extensively as a freshman, starting five games that season and 11 as a sophomore. He then started every game his junior and senior, intercepting eight passes as a senior – the second-highest total in school history.

And although Hughes said he prefers playing man-to-man coverage – “I can control the situation a little better,” he said – Cal also extensively played Cover 2, the sort of coverage that is often employed by the Colts. Which is one reason Hughes said he believes many believe he is a good fit for the Colts.

“Probably because I make a lot of plays on the ball in short-area zone situations,” he said. “I had a lot of picks in my career playing Cover 2. I had a lot of picks playing man, too, but that’s probably why they say that – or they think I’m not fast enough to play man.”

But Hughes said as far he is concerned, the questions about his speed are questions for another time, a time that’s in the past. He said he is where he wants to be, with a team that wanted him, and for now, his primary concern is simple.

“Whatever the team needs me to do,” he said. “I’m willing to play special teams – whatever it takes, as long as we can get back to the Super Bowl. I felt like this was the best situation for me, to get a chance to play for a high-caliber team, and possibly get a chance to play early. I felt like this was the best fit for me.”


The Official Website of the Indianapolis Colts

 

[The General]

Re: INDIANAPOLIS COLTS News and Notes for 2007/2008

if the HORSE can field a top 11-15 league wide defense in 2007 with weekly consistency, they have all the ingredients needed to repeat as champions no matter how tough a task that is. Maybe wishful thinking on my part as a fan but with a good team returning (The offense is still the best for now), winning breeds winning. My gut says Jax will be trouble for us moreso than before.

 

[The General]

Re: INDIANAPOLIS COLTS News and Notes for 2007/2008

<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=235 bgColor=#003366 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px; MARGIN: 0px; VERTICAL-ALIGN: middle; PADDING-TOP: 0px; HEIGHT: 20px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" background=images/2006_homepage_ads/lineup2.gif>DRAFT TRACKER</TD></TR><TR><TD><TABLE cellSpacing=1 cellPadding=0 width="100%" border=0><TBODY><TR onmouseover="style.backgroundColor='#ffffcc';" style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" onmouseout="style.backgroundColor='#dddddd';" bgColor=#dddddd><TD align=middle width=3>RD</TD><TD align=middle width=3>SEL</TD><TD align=left width="100%">NAME - School</TD><TD align=middle width=4>POS</TD></TR><TR onmouseover="style.backgroundColor='#ffffcc';" style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" onmouseout="style.backgroundColor='#dddddd';" bgColor=#dddddd><TD align=middle>1</TD><TD align=middle>32</TD><TD align=left>Anthony Gonzalez - Ohio St</TD><TD align=middle>WR</TD></TR><TR onmouseover="style.backgroundColor='#ffffcc';" style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" onmouseout="style.backgroundColor='#dddddd';" bgColor=#dddddd><TD align=middle>2</TD><TD align=middle>42</TD><TD align=left>Tony Ugoh - ARK</TD><TD align=middle>OT</TD></TR><TR onmouseover="style.backgroundColor='#ffffcc';" style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" onmouseout="style.backgroundColor='#dddddd';" bgColor=#dddddd><TD align=middle>3</TD><TD align=middle>95</TD><TD align=left>Daymeion Hughes - CAL</TD><TD align=middle>CB</TD></TR><TR onmouseover="style.backgroundColor='#ffffcc';" style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" onmouseout="style.backgroundColor='#dddddd';" bgColor=#dddddd><TD align=middle>3</TD><TD align=middle>98</TD><TD align=left>Quinn Pitcock - Ohio St</TD><TD align=middle>DT</TD></TR><TR onmouseover="style.backgroundColor='#ffffcc';" style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" onmouseout="style.backgroundColor='#dddddd';" bgColor=#dddddd><TD align=middle>4</TD><TD align=middle>131</TD><TD align=left>Brannon Condren - Troy</TD><TD align=middle>S</TD></TR><TR onmouseover="style.backgroundColor='#ffffcc';" style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" onmouseout="style.backgroundColor='#dddddd';" bgColor=#dddddd><TD align=middle>4</TD><TD align=middle>136</TD><TD align=left>Clint Session - Pitt</TD><TD align=middle>OLB</TD></TR><TR onmouseover="style.backgroundColor='#ffffcc';" style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" onmouseout="style.backgroundColor='#dddddd';" bgColor=#dddddd><TD align=middle>5</TD><TD align=middle>169</TD><TD align=left>Roy Hall - Ohio St</TD><TD align=middle>WR</TD></TR><TR onmouseover="style.backgroundColor='#ffffcc';" style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #dddddd" onmouseout="style.backgroundColor='#dddddd';" bgColor=#dddddd><TD align=middle>5</TD><TD align=middle>173</TD><TD align=left>Michael Coe - Alabama St</TD><TD align=middle>CB</TD></TR><TR onmouseover="style.backgroundColor='#ffffcc';" style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffffcc" onmouseout="style.backgroundColor='#dddddd';" bgColor=#dddddd><TD align=middle>7</TD><TD align=middle>242</TD><TD align=left>Keyunta Dawson - Texas Tech</TD><TD align=middle>DE</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>


The Official Website of the Indianapolis Colts

 

[The General]

Re: INDIANAPOLIS COLTS News and Notes for 2007/2008

Colts Waive Linebacker Gilbert Gardner, Three Others


Gilbert Gardner started 12 regular-season games for the Colts en route to the Super Bowl XLI championship.

Gardner, a third-round selection by the Colts in the 2004 NFL Draft, was one of four players waived by the team this week, the club announced Tuesday afternoon. The others were linebacker Mike Labinjo, linebacker Brandon Hoyte and defensive back Trevis Coley.

The Colts also signed veteran tight end Mike Seidman as a free agent, and also have added rookie tight end Matt Farbotko as a free agent.

Seidman (6-feet-4, 261 pounds), a four-year NFL veteran from UCLA, caught 19 passes over the last four seasons for 158 yards and two touchdowns while playing for the Carolina Panthers.

Farbotko (6-6, 245), a collegiate free agent, played at Harvard, starting five of 18 career games and catching 21 passes for 289 yards and two touchdowns.

Gardner, who started 12 of the Colts’ first 13 games last season, started 15 of 37 games in three seasons, including starts in the last three games of the 2005 season. He made 97 tackles in three seasons, 50 solos, and defensed three passes with one interception.

With Gardner’s release, the Colts have five veteran linebackers with NFL experience on the roster – outside/middle backer Rob Morris (eighth NFL season); middle backer Gary Brackett (fifth NFL season), middle/outside backer Tyjuan Hagler (second NFL season), outside backer Freddy Keiaho (second NFL season) and outside backer Rocky Boiman (sixth NFL season).

Morris, who replaced Gardner at strong-side backer in mid-December last season, started throughout the playoffs, and Brackett started each of the past two seasons in the middle. Colts President Bill Polian and Head Coach Tony Dungy have each said Keiaho is expected to begin training camp as the starter at weakside backer.

Cato June, a starter the past three seasons on the weakside, signed as a free agent with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the off-season.

In the recent NFL Draft, the Colts selected Clint Session from Pittsburgh in the fourth round. They also signed four linebackers in collegiate free agency – Brandon Archer of Kansas State, Ramon Guzman of Buffalo, KaMichael Hall of Georgia Tech and Victor Worsley of North Carolina.

Labinjo, a three-year NFL veteran, signed with the Colts as a free agent on March 8 of this year. He previously spent time on the active roster with Philadelphia in 2004 and 2005 and with Indianapolis in 2005. He spent last season on Miami’s practice squad.

Hoyte, who originally signed with the Colts as a collegiate free agent after the 2006 NFL Draft, was waived by the Colts just before the 2006 season. He then re-signed with Indianapolis in January.

Coley signed as a free agent with the Colts in January.


The Official Website of the Indianapolis Colts

 

[The General]

Re: INDIANAPOLIS COLTS News and Notes for 2007/2008

Third-Round Pick Quinn Pitcock Likes Blue-Collar Image

INDIANAPOLIS ? Quinn Pitcock has heard what observers say.
Whenever anyone discusses the former Ohio State University defensive tackle, it seems the words are relatively the same.

A hard worker.

A big body.

A force in the middle.

And then there?s the phrase nearly always associated with the player the Colts selected with the second of their two third-round selections in the recent 2007 NFL Draft:

A lunch-pail guy.

Pitcock, asked about the description at the Colts? recent rookie camp ? held this past weekend at the team?s practice facility ? smiled. Yes, he said, he has heard it.

And he really doesn?t mind it.

?I bring it all,? Pitcock said at the mini-camp, which concluded Sunday. ?As far as the lunch pail, I take out double-teams. I have the ability to free up the pass rusher. I?m probably going to lose a little bit of weight here, get a little faster, with stronger moves. . . .

?Wherever they think I can fit the best ? I just want to play hard every down.?

That was Pitcock?s reputation for the Buckeyes, as a player who worked hard all the time, who made sacrifices for the team when necessary.

Pitcock (6-feet-2, 299 pounds), a three-year starter at Ohio State who started 34 of 49 games, made 133 tackles in college, with 65 solos, and 27.5 tackles for losses and 14 sacks. An All-Big 10 Conference selection and a consensus All-America selection as a senior, he was a big reason the Buckeyes spent last season ranked No. 1 in the nation before a BCS Championship Game loss to the University of Florida.

Pitcock missed the mini-camp with a hamstring issue, but Colts Head Coach Tony Dungy said, ?We think Quinn is going to be an excellent addition for us.?

?What we saw on tape in terms of a guy with quickness and an ability to play the run ? I think that?s going to really help us,? Dungy said. ?We?re going to look to develop a little more of the pass rush (from Pitcock) and I think playing our system is going to help him.

?He?s very smart. He?s a tough, hard-working guy with the quickness and strength you look for, so we?re excited to have him.?

At nearly 300 pounds, Pitcock is slightly heavier than many Colts defensive tackles. Raheem Brock, a starting defensive tackle, is listed at 274 pounds and veteran reserve Dan Klecko is listed at 275. Veteran starter Anthony ?Booger? McFarland is listed at 300 pounds, the only veteran defensive lineman on the Colts at 300 pounds or more.

?Everybody has been screaming for us to add a big tackle since we got here, and here he is,? Polian said.

Dungy said the addition of Pitcock doesn?t mark a significant change in defensive-line philosophy.

?Not really,? Dungy said. ?We just feel like we can do the things we want done. He has the quickness we?re looking for. He happens to have a little bit bigger body.?

Said Pitcock, ?It?s funny when 300 pounds is big. Coach wants me there or a little lighter ? wherever I feel the most comfortable. Who knows where that is yet??

However heavy Pitcock plays next season, he said he believes he couldn?t have been drafted into a better situation. His brother, Jafe, is a 6-2, 260-pound defensive lineman who signed with Ball State last spring.

?I made a little joke that they (his parents) should move out to Indiana, but hopefully, I can get them an RV,? he said. ?They can drive out and get a tailgate going.?

More importantly, Pitcock said he believes the Colts? one-gap style of defensive line play ? a style that emphasizes penetrating the line and rushing the quarterback ? fits him perfectly.

?I think I?ll do better here than I did in college,? Pitcock said. ?There?s a lot more freedom to do more. College was more of a stuff, run, start, stop the run, then pass rush: stop the run first, then react. There?s a lot more freedom here.

?I think it?s a great fit. The more I?m in the meetings, my grin turns into a smile. I?m ready to go. I feel like I fit perfect. I think it?s going to show off what I can really do.?


-- colts.com

 

[husker]

Re: INDIANAPOLIS COLTS News and Notes for 2007/2008

i think the colts had a great draft. it kind of scares me that everyone seems to think they had a good draft. usually people are saying they reached on many players and they end up being good drafts. i can't wait for the season to start.

 

[The General]

Re: INDIANAPOLIS COLTS News and Notes for 2007/2008

After looking it over more closely, I think they did well also my friend. Some questioned the 1st pick, but if Harrison or Wayne get hurt, we would need that extra good pair of hands out there on the field. They did address the defense pretty decent also, IMO. They are the champs and took the rough road in getting that title. I do have faith they will try very hard to defend their title with class.

 

[The General]

Fourth-Round Pick Condren Defied Odds to Reach NFL

Fourth-Round Pick Condren Defied Odds to Reach NFL

The news didn't surprise Brannon Condren.

As evidenced by his presence on the Colts’ roster, it didn’t stop him, either.

His experience told him it wasn’t unusual, and wasn’t impossible to overcome, so when Condren – a safety from Troy University – learned he hadn’t been invited to the NFL Scouting Combine in February, he did the only thing he knew to do.

He took it as another line of snubs.

He figured it was another case of a whole lot of people being wrong about him.

And he worked. A lot.

“I didn’t let it bother me,” Condren, the first of the Colts’ two fourth-round selections in the recent 2007 NFL Draft, said during the team’s 2007 rookie mini-camp.

“It did inside for a little while, but I got over it, and worked out at Troy every day and got myself ready for the Pro Day. I came out and did really good on that.”

How good? Good enough to run a 4.47-second 40-yard dash in his on-campus workout, and good enough to bench press 225 pounds 24 times.

How good?

Good enough to impress pro scouts, and good enough to be the 131st overall selection in the draft.

And at last weekend’s rookie mini-camp, he was good enough that Colts Head Coach Tony Dungy said he showed signs of being a player who can excel in the Colts’ safety-oriented defense – aggressive, hard-hitting and active.

“He’s a very, very athletic guy,” Dungy said. “He has suddenness. He has speed. He has played in the box, for the most part, so some of the deep coverage is new to him, but I liked what I saw.”

Condren’s draft story may be unusual for NFL players, but it wasn’t unfamiliar to him. The story of his football career is full of such scenarios.

Condren (6-feet-1, 205 pounds), who started two seasons at Troy, wasn’t originally offered a scholarship to Troy – or to any Division I schools, for that matter.

After playing at Gonzalez Tate High School in the Florida panhandle, he was offered a chance to walk on at Florida State, instead choosing to walk on at Troy because he believed he would have a better opportunity.

“It taught me to work hard,” Condren said. “I’ve never been given anything ever in football after high school. I had to earn everything I got. It just taught me to be a hard worker. I’m one of the hardest working guys ever, probably.

“I’ve got to get better. I’m out there doing extra stuff all the time. It got me to where I am now, so I ain’t going to quit doing it.”

At Troy, he played sparingly as a freshman, then started one of 11 games as a sophomore before emerging as a starter in his final two seasons. He made 127 tackles in his final two collegiate seasons, intercepting two passes and defending nine.

“I had a good senior year and I had a really good Pro Day,” Condren said. “A lot of people said, 'Why didn’t you go to the combine?’ It wasn’t my decision. I guess they felt they didn’t want me there. I kind of took that as they didn’t respect me by not inviting me to it. I went out on my Pro Day and showed them what they missed out on.”

Dungy said it’s not uncommon for talented players to go uninvited to the combine and make an impact in the NFL.

“(Colts defensive end) Robert Mathis was the same way,” Dungy said. “He just always had the belief he could play. I think that’s the big thing. When you have to fight your way through that, sometimes you come out of it a little tougher.”

With the Colts, Condren joined a team that utilizes the Tampa 2 defense, a safety-friendly scheme that emphasizes big hitting and ball-hawking ability at the position. Bob Sanders, a second-round selection in the 2004 NFL Draft, has emerged as one of the league’s top players at his position over the past two seasons, and Condren said “I look up to that guy.”

“I used to watch him on TV,” Condren said. “The guy’s one of the best safeties in the league. To be coming in here and going to be playing beside him, that’s just crazy to think about. It doesn’t seem real to me right now. I’m sure once all the veterans get in there and I’m out there playing with him, it will seem real then.”

And although Troy ran something close to the Tampa 2, Condren said last weekend was something of an adjustment.

“They run it just a little bit different, but it’s basically the same,” he said. “I just have to get adjusted to the new terminology and stuff like that. I’m still out there thinking too much. Once I get it down, I’ll get out there and start flying around a lot more.”

And for now, Condren said he’s sure there are people somewhere convinced he won’t do so, or convinced he can’t. He said he won’t worry about them. He’ll just take it as another in a long line of snubs.

And he’ll work. A lot.

“My whole life, since high school, I’ve had people saying, ‘You ain’t going to make it,’’’ Condren said. “They’ve said, ‘You can’t do this. You can’t do that.’ They never said it to me, but I heard it behind my back. That really gets to me, thinking somebody is saying I can’t do something. I’m out to prove to everybody that I can and that I am going to do it. That’s been one of my drives to do well since high school, just getting out there proving to people they don’t now what they’re talking about.

“I’ve pretty much proved everybody wrong so far. I’m out to prove them wrong now. I’m sure there are people back home saying, ‘He’s not going to make it in the pros. He ain’t going to do that.’ You know what? I’m here to show them I am going to make it. I am going to do it.

“They can count on watching me on Sundays and Mondays pretty soon.”

-- Colts.com

 

[The General]

Fourth-Round Pick Session Seeks a Roster Spot However He Can Get It

Fourth-Round Pick Session Seeks a Roster Spot However He Can Get It

Clint Session figures there's no other way.

None that he knows, at least.

So, for the next three and a half months, Session ? a linebacker from the University of Pittsburgh and a fourth-round selection by the Colts in the 2007 NFL Draft ? said he?ll do what he knows to do.

He?ll listen to the Colts? coaches.

And he?ll believe them when they tell him he has a very real spot to make the roster.

?Coaches always tell you, 'Every spot is open,??? Session said recently at the Colts? 2007 rookie mini-camp, which concluded this past Sunday at the Colts? practice facility.

And while Session said he?s not sure that?s entirely true, he said what he does believe is this:

He has what it takes to play in the NFL. And play very, very well. Somewhere. Anywhere.

?Most of the veterans are going to be starters, so anyway I can sneak in and contribute, that?s what I?ll do,? Session said. ?It doesn?t matter what it is ? special teams. Hopefully, it?s as a starter, but if it?s special teams, that?s what it is.

?If it?s as a backup, that?s what it is.?

Session (6-feet-0, 235 pounds), the Colts? second selection in the fourth round and the 136th selection overall, has a very real chance of making the roster, Head Coach Tony Dungy said this week.

Cato June, the Colts? starting weakside linebacker the past three seasons, signed with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as an unrestricted free agent, and Gilbert Gardner ? who started 12 games in the regular season ? was recently waived.

The departures of Gardner and June left the Colts five veteran linebackers with NFL experience ? outside/middle backer Rob Morris (eighth NFL season); middle backer Gary Brackett (fifth NFL season), middle/outside backer Tyjuan Hagler (second NFL season), outside backer Freddy Keiaho (second NFL season) and outside backer Rocky Boiman (sixth NFL season).

The Colts signed four linebackers in collegiate free agency ? Brandon Archer of Kansas State, Ramon Guzman of Buffalo, KaMichael Hall of Georgia Tech and Victor Worsley of North Carolina ? but of nine draft selections, Session was the only linebacker.

?He?s probably going to be off a lot of people?s linebacker boards just because of his height, but he looks like he has explosiveness,? Dungy said. ?He?s got speed and quickness and just looks like a lot of the guys we?ve had success with.?

Session?s height, while not prototypical by NFL standards, is not unusual for the Colts. Middle linebacker Gary Brackett is 5-11, as is Keiaho, who is expected to open training camp as the starter in place of June.

That lack of emphasis on size, coupled with the emphasis on on-field effectiveness, is part of what Session said made him ?feel like I was a perfect fit? for the Colts.

?Not only with the size and speed, but I know so much about Coach Dungy, just from reading about him and hearing all the good things he brings to the table, the staff that he has,? Session said. ?They?re very teaching-oriented guys, and they like to get after it just the way I like to play. That?s the kind of guy I am. I?m a blue-collar guy. I come to work everyday. I?m not going to take any days off or whatever.

?That?s the way they presented the franchise, the organization. I jut feel like I want to be a part of it. It?s a great fit.?

Session, who played middle and outside backer at Pitt, started 25 of 44 games, making 359 tackles, including 161 solos. He also had 2.5 sacks, seven forced fumbles and three interceptions. He started at middle linebacker as a sophomore, then moved to strong side as a junior. As a senior, he started on the strong side and was a team captain, making 101 tackles, with 67 solos, and one sack with five forced fumbles.

?I played everything,? Session said. ?I ended up the last two years at sam (strongside) linebacker. It?s similar to the way the Colts do it, minus the Tampa 2.?

Session played well enough at Pitt that Dave Wannstedt ? formerly the head coach of the Miami Dolphins and Chicago Bears ? mentioned him to the Colts.

?When people say, ?You?ll like this guy on your team,? or, ?You?ll like this guy in your camp,? we certainly put a lot of stock in that,?? Dungy said. ?Playing in Dave Wannstedt?s system, we got to see him do a lot of the things we do. That?s important to you.?

And while the system at Pitt wasn?t the Tampa 2 employed by the Colts, Dungy said it asks the linebackers to do plenty of pro-type techniques.

?It?s more of what Dave did when he was in Chicago and Miami -- coverage linebackers, different coverages,? Dungy said. ?But he wasn?t a 3-4 blitzer and he wasn?t a guy who just played in the box, and played going toward the line of scrimmage.

?He did a lot of things in coverage that we ask our guys to do.?

Session also played extensively on special teams, and he said that?s the area where he believes he may contribute to the Colts most immediately.

?I played special teams all four years,? Session said. ?I take pride in that. That?s very important to me. It?s very important to the team. We used to call it hidden yardage at Pitt. Those yards mean so much to determine a game. Every little bit counts.

?Special teams is a big part of where your offense starts. That means a lot, pinning guys down. All that stuff means a lot. It?s a big part of football.?

Said Dungy, ?We have a few guys like that. That will help us. That?s what you?re looking for, guys who can give you that speed ? not only on your offense and defense, but also on your special teams. It doesn?t necessarily have to be returners, but guys who can make plays on the coverage units.?

And that?s fine with Session, who said he?s thankful for the opportunity to show he can play in the NFL. And play very well. Somewhere. Anywhere.

?Every day I?m jogging off this field and thanking God I?m here,? Session said. ?I?m praying that something good comes out of it and that Coach notices my work ethic and what I bring to the table and that they find a spot for me somewhere out on the field.?

The Official Website of the Indianapolis Colts

 

[Cloverleaf]

Re: INDIANAPOLIS COLTS News and Notes for 2007/2008

General.....for some reason I think you are a Colts fan. Class Coach
and a lot of class players. WORLD CHAMPIONS!!!

 

[The General]

Re: INDIANAPOLIS COLTS News and Notes for 2007/2008

It is fun to keep up on the players and team news. Not that it is essential but just a 15 min hobby every couple days to keep up.

 

[husker]

Re: INDIANAPOLIS COLTS News and Notes for 2007/2008

Some questioned the 1st pick, but if Harrison or Wayne get hurt, we would need that extra good pair of hands out there on the field. They did address the defense pretty decent also, IMO.

i doubt gonzalez will do much this year. it took wayne and clark a year to understand the reads that the WR's have to make to work with manning. harrison is getting older (34 i think) and i think he is more of a future replacement for him. ugoh is a hopeful replacement for glen who is also getting older (33 i think). they are two of the colts oldest players and polian always thinks a year or two down the road when he drafts. that's why i think he is the best GM in the league. i think pitcock has a good chance to start or play a lot this year, i REALLY liked that pick.

 

[The General]

Re: INDIANAPOLIS COLTS News and Notes for 2007/2008

Polian is w/out doubt the best IMO also.

 

[The General]

ALL ABOUT TEAM - Roy Hall, THE OTHER BUCKEYE

ALL ABOUT TEAM - Roy Hall, THE OTHER BUCKEYE

Fifth-Round Selection Hall Emphasizes Team over Statistics


For Roy Hall, the choice was simple.

And, really, it wasn?t one he had to consider too long, if at all.

Throughout his career at Ohio State University, Hall ? a wide receiver selected by the Colts in the fifth round of the recent 2007 NFL Draft ? played behind a slew of talented receivers: Santonio Holmes; Ted Ginn, Jr; and Anthony Gonzalez, the Colts? first-round selection this past month.

Hall was talented enough to play at many schools and had he transferred, he likely would have started. And possibly, he would have improved his eventual NFL Draft status.

Instead, he stayed at Ohio State.

Not, he said, because he didn?t want to play. But because transferring wasn?t his way.

?Whenever you?re on a team, you have to understand the concept of team,? Hall said recently during the Colts? 2007 rookie camp.

Hall?s dedication to that team helped the Buckeyes to the No. 1 ranking much of this past season, and it also helped the Colts decide to select him with the 169th overall selection last month, Colts Head Coach Tony Dungy said recently.

Hall (6-feet-3, 240 pounds), who started seven of 48 career games in college, caught 52 passes for 580 yards and three touchdowns in four seasons. He played 11 games this past season, catching 13 passes for 147 yards and two touchdowns.

Not staggering statistics, but considering the depth at receiver at Ohio State, Dungy said collegiate statistics may not be an accurate measure of Hall?s NFL potential.

?At Florida State early on, there used to be those situations where they have a lot of good players there,? Dungy said. ?I remember (wide receiver) Dennis McKinnon showing up in Chicago (in the early 1980s).

?You say, ?Well, it?s just one of those things,? but he?s a good player. He (McKinnon) ended up playing in the Super Bowl (following the 1985 season) and being very productive. He just played behind a lot of good players at Florida State.

?Guys that can stick it out and continue to work, you don?t know what you have there.?

What Dungy said the Colts have in Hall ? and what he showed in the recent rookie camp at the Colts? practice facility ? is a player who ?can catch the ball.?

?He?s a big guy,? Dungy said. ?He can surely get deep. You saw that in this camp. I think he?s going to be a good special teams player. That?s one thing we haven?t really had from our wide receivers, a lot of special teams play.

?That?s an element that we don?t have. That?s what you?re always looking for, someone who can bring just one element that maybe you?re missing.?

Hall said while in college, he sometimes wondered if he would hear such praise from an NFL head coach.

He said he hoped he would get a chance despite his circumstance, but he didn?t know. Not for certain.

?I always knew I worked hard, and with hard work, people are sometimes granted those wishes that they want,? Hall said. ?You just keep driving forward. Someway or another you get your foot in the door and you have to make the most of your opportunities.?

A first-team All-Ohio selection as a high school senior, was a big-time recruit with dominant physical skills, but during his time at Ohio State, Ginn, Jr., Holmes and Gonzalez played more extensively. All three players eventually became first-round NFL Draft selections.

Ohio State Head Coach Jim Tressel approached Hall several times during his career, concerned he might be considering transferring.

Hall said that was an option he never wanted to consider.

?You have to understand what it takes to be a successful team,? Hall said. ?With that, sometimes you have to swallow your pride and use your ego, so to speak, so you can be successful as a team. For me, I had to humble myself and understand there was nothing that I was doing that was putting me in the position I was in.

?When you have an Anthony Gonzalez, a Teddy Ginn, a Santonio Holmes ? those guys were all first-round picks and you?re playing with those guys. It?s nothing that you did, but you have to understand that they?re the ?go-tos.?

?You do everything you have to do to contribute to the team. In my case, it ranged anywhere from blocking and knocking somebody?s head off to returning kicks on special teams to catching passes on third and short.

?I just kind of found my niche and was able to deal with that adversity.?

Because of his relative lack of playing time in college, few draft analysts had Hall as a highly-rated prospect, and many did not project him in the seven-round draft. Hall said he mentally prepared himself not to be drafted.

?I was prepared to either go as a free agent or get drafted,? he said. ?I knew a couple of teams had a lot of interest in me after my Pro Day workout.

?When I got drafted, it was a pure blessing, but it didn?t surprise me, though.?

Mostly, Hall said he did before the draft what he had done throughout college, which was to remind himself that what he had wanted more than anything was to graduate from Ohio State, and to be on one of the best teams in the country.

As for the draft, Hall said he figured that would eventually take care of himself.

And eventually, that?s just what it did.

?For me, when it was like a down period where I wasn?t getting a lot of hype, or catching a lot of balls, I knew somebody would need a bigger receiver somewhere and would probably take a chance,? Hall said. ?When I got on the field, I just had to make the most of every opportunity.?

The Official Website of the Indianapolis Colts

 

[The General]

Re: INDIANAPOLIS COLTS News and Notes for 2007/2008

Fifth-Round Selection Coe Says Colts a Good Fit for His Skills

Michael Coe didn?t quite get it.

He knew he was from a smaller school than many players drafted into the NFL, but he also knew he had the skills to play in the league, and he was projected by many analysts/observers to be a third- or fourth-round selection in the 2007 NFL Draft.

So, in late April, when the third round came and went . . .

And then the fourth did, too . . .

?It gets frustrating,? Coe said recently.

That frustration ended in the fifth round, and once it did ? once the Colts selected the cornerback from Alabama State with the 173rd overall selection ? Coe said the draft was forever a memory.

?Really, when I got drafted, I really didn?t think about it,? Coe said during the Colts? recent 2007 rookie mini-camp. ?I was just really excited, kind of speechless, when (Colts President Bill) Polian called me.?

When the Colts called, they selected a player many analysts considered one of the draft?s top 10-to-20 corners, as well as a player who excelled in the months shortly after last season.

Coe (6-feet-0, 190 pounds) began his collegiate career at the University of Arkansas. After red-shirting his first season, he played 13 games as a freshman, then started 14 of 19 games over the next two seasons before transferring to Alabama State as a senior to play for his father, Charles, then the ASU head coach and now an assistant with the Oakland Raiders.

While at Arkansas, Coe intercepted five passes in 2004 and 2005, then registered 14 passes defenses and two interceptions as a senior.

During the college all-star game season Coe drew the attention of many analysts, playing well enough at the East-West Shrine Game to be a late call-up as an injury replacement at the Senior Bowl.

Still, Coe lasted until the second day, and it was then that the Colts drafted him, having already selected Daymeion Hughes ? a corner from California ? in the third round.

?They both seem very similar,? Colts Head Coach Tony Dungy said after the rookie mini-camp. ?They?re very, very sharp guys. They have ball skills. They have instincts. What they don?t have is the flat-out, 4.3 (-second 40-yard dash) speed that a lot of people look at, but for our system I think they?re going be very good and they both understood what we were talking about and what we do.?

Coe and Hughes joined a young group of corners with the Colts, a unit that became younger this off-season with the free-agency departures of Jason David (New Orleans Saints) and Nick Harper (Tennessee Titans).

David and Harper each started the past three seasons, and their departures left Marlin Jackson and Kelvin Hayden ? first- and second-round draft selections, respectively, in 2005 ? as the Colts? lone corners with extensive NFL experience. Tim Jennings, a 2006 second-round selection, played mostly on special teams as a rookie.

Coe and Hughes, Dungy and Polian each said on draft day, have the skills the Colts seek in a corner ? the ability to make plays while passes are in the air with the size to make tackles.

?I?m just excited,? Coe said during the Colts? recent rookie camp. ?Daymeion?s here and we?re meshing together. They already have some experienced guys. . . . but it?s exciting because there are a lot of young guys here. I think it?s good.

?They won before I got here, so I know the direction. I?m just eager to learn and contribute to this team. This is a great organization and I?m just happy to be a part of it. Whatever I can do to help them get back to where they?ve been going, I?ll do that.?

Early on, Coe said that may entail continuing to learn aspects of cornerback, one of three positions he played in college. Coe said he entered Arkansas as a wide receiver,\ and played both cornerback and receiver as a freshman. He moved to cornerback full-time as a sophomore, but at Alabama State as a senior, he said he was playing the nickel and teams were throwing away from him. At that point, he said the coaches moved him to safety at times.

?A lot of teams moved their better receivers inside,? Coe said. ?That?s the reason I played some safety. I could make all the checks from there so it was more convenient for the defense for me to do that. I started playing kind of everything ? corner, nickel, dime, safety . . . it didn?t matter.?

Coe said he feels most comfortable at cornerback, where he played mostly man-to-man while at Arkansas. Although he said playing man helped his confidence, and helped him learn the intricacies of the position, he said he believes he has the skills to play zone in the ?Tampa 2? defense commonly employed by Indianapolis.

?When I was at Arkansas ? the three years I played and the two years I started ? I played man,? Coe said. ?With that, you learn to have a bad memory and just be confident. As I matured, I started developing that kind of attitude, trying to get that confidence.

?Confidence is a big part of it. If you?re not confident in yourself, you can?t be on that island. You can?t help your team out.?

That confidence, he said, didn?t wane on draft day, although what he had heard before the draft differed drastically than what occurred.

?I don?t want to say it bothered me, but people said with my versatility and height, I wouldn?t get out of the third (round),? Coe said, laughing. ?I ran well at my Pro Day, but I?m just thankful I got drafted. One thing I prayed about was being in the best situation, where I can blossom. I felt like wherever I went, I?d be in the best situation. I think I?m more confident because of that, because it?s something I prayed about.

?I would have liked to have gone a little earlier, but I?m here and it?s part of the plan. I?m just excited about the opportunity.?

And now, Coe said, he?ll approach his post-draft experience as he would a difficult on-field situation: forget about it, and move forward.

?You?re sitting there and waiting all day,? he said. ?You see guys go who you think you?re better than and you can?t understand why. It was a crazy draft this year. There was a huge run of receivers and there?s usually not as big a run of safeties as there was in the first round. You usually get them later on, but people felt they had to get their safeties, so a lot of people got their corners later.

?It?s crazy, but you take everything with a grain of salt, just like you do at corner: You move on. You have to play the next play. That?s how I took it.?


The Official Website of the Indianapolis Colts

 

[The General]

Re: INDIANAPOLIS COLTS News and Notes for 2007/2008

We got to find a way to get some balance and stability in the secondary.

 

[The General]

Colts System Fits His Skills, Seventh-Round Selection Dawson Says

Colts System Fits His Skills, Seventh-Round Selection Dawson Says

If any place fit, Keyunta Dawson figured this was it.

He?d watched the Colts the past several seasons, watched Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis play defensive end, and patterned his game after theirs.

If Dawson could play anywhere in the NFL, he figured it was Indianapolis.

Then, came the 2007 NFL Draft last month.

Six rounds came and went without Dawson ? a defensive end from Texas Tech ? seeing his name. Finally, near the end of the seventh round, there it was:

Keyunta Dawson, Indianapolis Colts.

Colts Head Coach Tony Dungy called moments later, and Dawson was officially in the NFL as a member of the Colts.

?I was just glad and blessed to get that call,? Dawson said recently.

Because, Dawson figured, not only was he going to an NFL camp, he was going to get a chance with a team that didn?t emphasize size on the defensive front as much as speed, quickness and an ability to rush the passer.

Dawson, who started 23 of 49 games for Texas Tech, had 19.5 sacks in college, also making 25.5 tackles for losses.

And it is Dawson?s size (6-feet-3, 254 pounds) ? and his ability to play effectively at that size ? that made him a logical choice for the Colts, Dungy said.

?He?s a lot like a lot of our guys ? 6-feet, 6-1 guys who play with leverage,? Dungy said. ?Our scouts notice that and look at guys like that maybe more so than other players because we have had success with people like that.?

Mathis (6-2, 245), a fifth-year veteran, has 31.5 sacks over the past three seasons, and Freeney (6-1, 268) ? a sixth-year veteran and a three-time Pro Bowl selection ? has registered 56.5 sacks in five NFL seasons.

Neither player has prototypical NFL size, yet they have formed one of the league?s top pass-rushing tandems. Dawson has traits similar to Mathis, Dungy said.

?He?s got some movement and some of the same things Robert had, just a lot of natural rush ability without even doing a lot of work with (Colts defensive line coach) John (Teerlinck),? Dungy said. ?Just some moves and athleticism that we look for.?

Dawson, who started for the Red Raiders as a junior and senior, had 60 tackles, including six sacks and two forced fumbles as a senior, when he was a finalist for the Hendricks Award, given annually to the nation?s top defensive end.

An All-Big 12 selection as a junior, Dawson called Mathis and Freeney two ?of the biggest influences in my game.?

?In college, I always watched them and always liked the way they play ? just being a smaller end,? Dawson said. ?They have great power, great strength, great speed. I can?t wait to meet them and learn from them and see them in practice.

?I?m just waiting and kind if learning right now.

As was the case when the Colts used a fifth-round selection on Mathis before the 2003 season, many NFL teams were interested in Dawson as a linebacker.

The Colts? one-gap style of defensive line play emphasizes penetration and pursuing the quarterback, something that minimizes the importance of size, particularly at end.

?I?m a smaller guy,? Dawson said. ?Everybody told me I would have to be a linebacker in the league, but my heart was always on the defensive line. I always felt like there were very few teams that would play me at my size.

?A lot of teams told me I would have to play linebacker, so I feel like I have a chance to play here. I like how they play here, getting after the quarterback. It?s not much thinking. It?s just going out and getting to the ball.

Dawson had an idea the Colts might be interested. He visited the team on his first official pre-draft visit, but said even then he couldn?t be sure the Super Bowl XLI Champions would select him. That they did, he said, gave him an opportunity, one of which he now wants to take full advantage.

?My mindset is to be the best football player I can be,? Dawson said. ?I felt like it was the perfect fit and the perfect team for me to go to. After the season, I kind of hoped I?d come here. I liked Coach Dungy and his staff here and I like how they play defense.

?It?s hard to tell, but I did feel good. The draft is a weird thing. I felt like the Colts had an interest in me, but you never can tell.?


COLTS.Com

 

[The General]

Re: INDIANAPOLIS COLTS News and Notes for 2007/2008

Colts Add Four Players; Mini-Camp Starts at Practice Facility

The Colts continued to add to their roster Friday, the day their 2007 mini-camp began at their practice facility in Indianapolis.

The Colts have added four players, signing two free agents, one veteran free agent and acquiring rookie wide receiver Taylor Sele off waivers from the Washington Redskins, the club announced Friday morning.

Sele, who played at Boston College, signed with the Redskins as a collegiate free agent this past April 30. He was released a week later.

Sele (6-feet-0, 203 pounds) caught nine passes for 97 yards for Boston College last season.

The Colts also signed former Indiana (Pa.) University running back Chris Morgan, former Dallas Cowboys/New

York Giants offensive guard/center Matt Tarullo and former Penn State defensive tackle Edward Johnson.

Morgan (6-0, 210) finished his collegiate career as the second-leading rusher in IUP history, rushing for 3,817 yards and 34 touchdowns on 680 carries. He rushed for 1,318 yards and 14 touchdowns this past season as a senior.

Tarullo (6-5, 314), who played at Syracuse, signed in 2005 with the Dallas Cowboys as a collegiate free agent. He spent parts of 2005 and 2006 on the Cowboys’ practice squad before being signed and released by the New York Giants this off-season.

Johnson (6-0, 290) had 33 tackles and five sacks for the Nittany Lions last season.

The Colts’ 2007 mini-camp will be held Friday through Sunday at their practice facility.

colts.com

 

[The General]

Re: INDIANAPOLIS COLTS News and Notes for 2007/2008

Colts Rookies Get Used to Fast Pace of the NFL


Soon enough, the feeling fades, and it's no big deal. Or at least a lot less of one. For a rookie with the Colts, eventually you get past the awe.

Eventually . . .

But during the first few plays of a mini-camp, particularly for the defensive players, that awe is a very real feeling. Here, there are wide receivers Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne. There . . .

There, that’s quarterback Peyton Manning.

It’s, it’s . . .

Well, for a few plays – and maybe a few days – it’s just plain incredible.

“It’s pretty crazy right now,” rookie safety Brannon Condren said Saturday afternoon, shortly after the second practice of the Colts’ 2007 mini-camp, which will continue through Sunday at the team’s practice facility.

“You look across the line, and line up against Marvin Harrison, Reggie Wayne and Peyton Manning and all of them. You grow up watching them on TV forever, so just to be out there with them now is a crazy experience. I’m loving it, though.”

Such is the mood around the Colts’ practice facility this weekend.

There are nine rookies and 18 collegiate free agents currently on the Colts’ roster. Nearly all were in attendance at the team’s rookie mini-camp on May 4-6, a week after the 2007 NFL Draft.

But that weekend was about orientation. And acclimation.

None of the veterans practiced that weekend, and although many of the rookies met and shook hands with a few “name” players that first weekend, this camp is different.

This weekend, the rookies are on the field, in the locker room and in meeting rooms with the veterans.

This weekend, it’s a lot closer to the real thing.

The acclimation process this weekend, Colts Head Coach Tony Dungy said Saturday, has gone about as he expected. During the rookie mini-camp, he said he was impressed with how the class picked up on the details and how they listened and followed directions.

At Friday’s first practice with the veterans, the rookies were a bit slow, Dungy said.

By Saturday morning, he said that was improving.

“I thought our young guys looked a lot better this morning,” Dungy said after Saturday morning’s practice. “Just in terms of doing some things they’d worked on in the rookie camp, and things coming a little more natural to them, I thought the tempo went better this morning.

“It’s probably a pretty normal progression.”

That progression, the one from college to the football’s highest level, often depends on adapting to the speed of the game, something linebacker Clint Session – a fourth-round selection from the University of Pittsburgh – said has been the biggest adjustment.

“I thought we played at a fast level at Pitt,” Session said. “It’s nothing compared to here. It’s so fast here and they demand so much speed out of you. All the speed they thought you had coming in – they want you to use it. It’s fast, man.”

Session said he didn’t play against the first-team offense Friday. But on Saturday morning, that changed.

“Today was my first day going against Peyton,” he said. “I was doing pretty good until I saw Peyton Manning behind center. I was like, 'Oh, man, that’s Peyton Manning.’ But it’s football, so I didn’t let it get in my mind or anything. I’m going out and just doing my assignment.

“You just have to take all the speed you had in college and use it every play, even running drill to drill.”

Session said Colts coaches spend much of the mini-camp emphasizing to rookies specifics about the Colts’ style. On defense, he said that has meant hearing as much about maximum effort on every play as it has techniques and schemes.

“You finish everything,” Session said. “I’m trying to get a handle on the way they do things here. They run to the ball, run the ball. That’s important to all the coaches. They emphasize that more so than they emphasize the assignments. I definitely have to pick it up even more.”

While most rookies said there was an element of wonder playing with future Hall of Famers most agreed with Session, that that feeling fades quickly.

“You’ve got to get adjusted to the speed of things, the speed of practice,” said Colts rookie cornerback Daymeion Hughes, a third-round selection from California. “Once all the glitz and glamour and meeting people – once all that stuff is over, you’ve just got to get in between the lines and handle your business. At the end of the day, we all work for the Colts and we’re just trying to do a job. That’s how I take it.”

As a cornerback, the first time lining up across from Harrison – an eight-time Pro Bowl selection with it – has “a shock factor,” Hughes said.

“It’s hard not to like, get overwhelmed or excited,” Hughes said. “You just try to focus in. It’s hard. These guys are Hall of Famers. You just try to learn from them, everything they do. You take it as a learning experience.”

Offensive tackle Tony Ugoh, the Colts’ second-round selection last April, said he expects he’ll notice the full transition from college to the NFL in training camp. That’s the first time players will work against one another in pads.

“It’s kind of hard to prejudge,” Ugoh said. “You go 100 percent, but as far as finishing 100 percent, it’s different when you have pads on. Then, it’s all out. Now, you’ve got to keep your head out of things.

“You really can’t get into people like you would if you were in full pads. So, it’s different.”

At other positions, particularly at cornerback and wide receiver, the difference from one level to the next is more about speed – and therefore, more discernible in a no-pads environment.

“You definitely see it now – the speed of the game,” Hughes said. “The blocks are made faster and the wide receivers’ routes, they’re up on your toes faster. It’s faster. Everybody’s fast on the field. You pretty much have to neutralize it by techniques and angles.”

The process, several rookies said, was made easier by the assistance of veteran players. Rookies have been told by Colts coaches to watch and learn from veterans, and veterans are told to lead by example.

Some veterans do more than serve as role models. Ugoh said veteran offensive tackle Tarik Glenn has worked extensively with him the last two days, something that’s a help as a young player trying to learn a new system.

“I’m still learning and taking it in,” Ugoh said. “I’m trying to absorb everything in and take it in. I’m like a sponge, pretty much. I watch to see how they’re doing things and Tarik has helped me out tremendously. I’m pretty much just listening to him and pretty much just following him, doing what he does.”

Said Condren, “The main thing I’m trying to do this weekend is to work on my fundamentals and techniques right now, the stuff they want me to do. All this is right now for me is a learning phase. I’ve pretty much got the concept. It’s just little things I’ve got to work on right now to help get me better.

“Once you’re out there, you’re playing football. It doesn’t make a difference who’s across from you. You have your responsibilities and your assignment and if you do it, it should turn out OK.”


The Official Website of the Indianapolis Colts

 

[The General]

Outside Linebacker Keiaho Seizing Chance to Start

Outside Linebacker Keiaho Seizing Chance to Start

He knows his situation. Clearly.
And Freddy Keiaho said he knows that situation is a lot about expectations.

A year ago, there was one set.

?If I did my job, that was good enough,? Keiaho said.

And now?

?My margin for error has gone way down,? he said, smiling.

That?s fine with Keiaho, a second-year veteran, because that also means an opportunity to earn a starting outside linebacker position for the defending Super Bowl champions.

Keiaho, the Colts? third-round selection in the 2006 NFL Draft, spent last season as a reserve linebacker. Now, he has entered the team?s 2007 mini-camp as the Colts? starting weakside linebacker, replacing recently-departed Cato June at the position.

The job, as far as Keiaho sees it, is ?my position to lose.?

And that?s exactly how Colts Head Coach Tony Dungy wants him to see it.

?Freddy will do well,? Dungy said during the mini-camp, which concluded Sunday with a pair of practices at the team?s Indianapolis practice facility.

?I?m glad he feels that way. There are probably four or five other guys who feel the same way. He?ll do well. He?s well-suited for it.

?He knows what?s going on. He?ll do fine.?

Keiaho said he is equally confident. He also said he had better feel that way.

?I think everybody would be nervous if I wasn?t,? he said.

Keiaho said he?s far from overconfident, and he said the confidence isn?t forced. Much of that confidence, he said, came from his performance as a rookie. Although he played sparingly, he played well when given the opportunity.

In early November, when the Colts visited the New England Patriots in a Sunday Night game in Foxboro, Mass., Keiaho played extensively as a reserve when middle linebacker Gary Brackett was injured.

Keiaho made seven tackles, including four solos.

Although he made only two more tackles the rest of the regular season, he played in goal-line situations late in the season, and was in the game near the goal line in the second quarter of Colts? Wild Card Playoff game against Kansas City.

On 2nd-and-goal from the Colts 3, Keiaho?s hit on Chiefs running back Larry Johnson helped keep Kansas City from scoring, and was one of the biggest plays of a 23-8 Indianapolis victory.

?It was just a cool hit on Larry Johnson,? Keiaho said of his memorable postseason tackle. ?When I played New England, I came out of that game thinking, ?I can play in this league.? . . .

?You need those kind of moments, those moments where you make a big play and everybody?s congratulating you ? like the Larry Johnson hit where you feel like, ?Hey, I?m a player here.???

Not that he didn?t believe that before. Keiaho, who began his collegiate career as a fullback, started as a senior at San Diego State, making 2.5 sacks and 17 tackles for losses. The Colts then made him the 94th overall selection in the 2006 NFL Draft.

?I felt like that (he could play in the NFL) coming to camp last year,? he said. ?Coach told me I had a pretty good camp, handled the tight ends pretty good.

?I felt like I could be a player from there.?

But entering last season, the Colts? linebacker rotation was set. June, a Pro Bowl selection in 2005, was the starter on the weakside, and Brackett was at middle linebacker as the defensive captain. Gilbert Gardner, a third-year veteran, had replaced the departed David Thornton at strong side.

Keiaho played middle, strong and weakside in practice last season, but late in the season, when coaches made a move to replace Gardner at strongside, veteran Rob Morris ? the Colts? starter in the middle from 2000-2004 ? became the starter there.

?You always want to be on the field as player,? Keiaho said. ?If you play more, somebody?s going to play less. We were in that position where somebody had to play less. Rob Morris did a great job after the coaches sat Gilbert. He solidified the spot.?

This season, Morris is entering camp as the starter on the strongside and Brackett remains in the middle.

On the weakside, Dungy and Colts President Bill Polian have said they are confident Keiaho is ready to replace June, who had 10 interceptions in three seasons as a starter and who led the Colts in tackles two of the past three seasons.

?If you?re comparing it Cato, Cato had exceptional ball skills,? Keiaho said. ?I think I bring a little more physical-ness to the position. I?m a little more aggressive. Hopefully, I?ll be able to help a little more in the run and (opponents) won?t average 5.3 a carry (against) us.

?We?re two different players. He was a safety (at the University of Michigan). He has a different set of skills than I do.?

Dungy, laughing, said of Keaiho?s ability to intercept passes, ?He?s around the ball a lot. We don?t know if he can catch yet or not, but he?ll get his hands on some balls for us.?

At the very least, Keiaho said he knows he?ll have the opportunity to do so ? that, and a whole lot more.

?Hopefully, I can build on last year and I can make this spot my own and solidify my position here,? he said. ?It?s a great opportunity. It?s the best opportunity you could get.

?If I lose this job, it will be because I didn?t perform well.?

The Official Website of the Indianapolis Colts

 

[The General]

Bob Sanders Embraces Leadership Role

Bob Sanders Embraces Leadership Role

Bob Sanders didn’t practice with the Colts this past weekend.

It wasn’t by choice. The veteran safety, the player who played a huge part in the Colts’ Super Bowl season, is rehabilitating from off-season shoulder surgery.

Still, that doesn’t mean he wasn’t a factor at the Colts’ 2007 mini-camp, which ended on Sunday afternoon at the team’s practice facility.

The 2005 Pro Bowl selection was there in a new role.

A leadership role.

It’s a role he said he likes, partly because when he looks at the players he will be leading – the defensive backs in the Colts’ 2007 draft class – Sanders said he very much likes what he sees.

“I think they’re doing well,” Sanders said on Sunday, the final day of the Colts’ three-day, five-practice mini-camp.

“Since I’ve been here, this is probably the best group I’ve seen come in, as far as DBs. They’re running it. They’re putting it on the field.

“I think we’ll have a good, solid bunch next year.”

Sanders, whose return last season was a major reason for the team’s postseason defensive resurgence, will enter his fourth NFL season next season. And although he said he doesn’t yet know if he will be ready when training camp opens in late July, he said he very much expects to return fully healthy – and at a higher level than last year – next season.

He also said he’ll return as a leader.

That’s a role he said he’s ready for, and that he’ll embrace, even if it does seem a bit strange to be embracing it so soon.

And Sanders said even if he didn’t want it, he wouldn’t have much choice.

He recently turned 26. He has played three NFL seasons.

And he is the most experienced player in the Colts’ secondary.

“It’s crazy,” Sanders said. “I’ve thought about that. I’m like, ‘Just a couple of years ago, I was the youngest guy. Now, I’m the oldest.’

“I have to make sure I do my role and lead these guys in the right direction.”

Sanders said he feels comfortable in a leadership role and he said there is one primary reason for that – his play on the field.

His goal for the 2007 season? He said it’s to make sure he’s on the field more often.

Sanders, the Colts’ second-round selection in the 2004 NFL Draft, has missed 24 of 48 regular-season games in his three seasons. He missed 10 games with injuries as a rookie, and last season, missed 12 more with a knee injury sustained early in the season.

The one season in which he has played more than half of the season was 2005, his Pro Bowl season.

“That’s my goal,” Sanders said. “My No. 1 goal is to make sure I stay healthy, and just focus on getting better as an all-around football player and not allow this past year to affect the way I play.”

Sanders returned last season for the playoffs, and when he did, the Colts’ defense improved drastically. After finishing the regular-season ranked 32nd in the NFL in rushing with 173.0 yards per game allowed, Indianapolis allowed more than 100 yards rushing just once in the postseason – during their 29-17 victory over the Chicago Bears in Super Bowl XLI.

Since that Super Bowl victory, the team has lost several defensive starters to free agency. One player was linebacker Cato June, and two others were the team’s starting cornerbacks, Nick Harper and Jason David.

This past weekend, Marlin Jackson and Kelvin Hayden – first- and second-round selections in the 2005 NFL Draft, respectively – worked at cornerback, with 2006 second-round selection Tim Jennings working as the third corner. Antoine Bethea, who started 14 games as a rookie last season, is expected to start alongside Sanders next season.

That’s a young group, and a group that has turned over dramatically in recent seasons. But that’s not uncommon in the NFL, and Sanders said it’s not something that should hurt Indianapolis defensively.

“That’s what we’ve done,” Sanders said. “We have had guys in and out. You get starters hurt every year. The younger guys have to be ready to step in and pick up the slack. I think it won’t be a problem at all.

“These younger guys are good coming in. They were great college players, and so far, they’ve done an excellent job.”

And if Sanders’ role expands this season, and becomes one in which he is more responsible for leading those around him, it’s a role for which he figures he’s ready, and one that he must fill.

“It’s a lot of pressure,” Sanders said. “People expect a lot of things out of you, but what I’ve done here, I feel like I’ve already made myself a leader by being out there and making plays on the field.

“I’ve got to definitely be there for the young guys and show them how to do things, how we play fast, and how we play Colts ball.”


The Official Website of the Indianapolis Colts

 

[The General]

ACTIVE ROSTER UPDATED 05-18-2007

ACTIVE ROSTER UPDATED 05-18-2007

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</TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>42 </TD><TD class=standard>Condren, Brannon </TD><TD class=schedulectr>DB </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-1 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>205 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>R </TD><TD class=standard>Troy </TD><TD class=schedulectr>D4b-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>- </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>31 </TD><TD class=standard>Davis, Tanard </TD><TD class=schedulectr>DB </TD><TD class=schedulectr>5-9 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>184 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>1 </TD><TD class=standard>Miami </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>- </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>61 </TD><TD class=standard>Dawson, Keyunta </TD><TD class=schedulectr>DE </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-3 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>254 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>R </TD><TD class=standard>Texas Tech </TD><TD class=schedulectr>D7-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>- </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>30 </TD><TD class=standard>Dawson, Clifton </TD><TD class=schedulectr>RB </TD><TD class=schedulectr>5-10 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>212 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>R </TD><TD class=standard>Harvard </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>- </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>64 </TD><TD class=standard>DeMulling, Rick </TD><TD class=schedulectr>OG </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-4 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>304 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>7 </TD><TD class=standard>Idaho </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>- </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>14 </TD><TD class=standard>DePriest, Michael </TD><TD class=schedulectr>WR </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-0 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>185 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>R </TD><TD class=standard>TCU </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>- </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>71 </TD><TD class=standard>Diem, Ryan </TD><TD class=schedulectr>OT </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-6 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>320 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>7 </TD><TD class=standard>Northern Illinois </TD><TD class=schedulectr>D4-01 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>25 </TD><TD class=standard>Dorsey, DeDe </TD><TD class=schedulectr>RB </TD><TD class=schedulectr>5-11 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>196 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>2 </TD><TD class=standard>Lindenwood </TD><TD class=schedulectr>W-06 (CIN) </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>69 </TD><TD class=standard>Echols, Quintin </TD><TD class=schedulectr>DT </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-1 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>313 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>R </TD><TD class=standard>Kansas State </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>- </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>46 </TD><TD class=standard>Farbotko, Matt </TD><TD class=schedulectr>TE </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-6 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>245 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>R </TD><TD class=standard>Harvard </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>- </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>76 </TD><TD class=standard>Federkeil, Daniel </TD><TD class=schedulectr>OT </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-6 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>290 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>2 </TD><TD class=standard>Calgary </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-06 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>81 </TD><TD class=standard>Fletcher, Bryan </TD><TD class=schedulectr>TE </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-5 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>230 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>3 </TD><TD class=standard>UCLA </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-05 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>93 </TD><TD class=standard>Freeney, Dwight </TD><TD class=schedulectr>DE </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-1 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>268 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6 </TD><TD class=standard>Syracuse </TD><TD class=schedulectr>D1-02 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>57 </TD><TD class=standard>Gandy, Dylan </TD><TD class=schedulectr>OG </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-3 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>302 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>3 </TD><TD class=standard>Texas Tech </TD><TD class=schedulectr>D4a-05 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>43 </TD><TD class=standard>Giordano, Matt </TD><TD class=schedulectr>DB </TD><TD class=schedulectr>5-11 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>200 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>3 </TD><TD class=standard>California </TD><TD class=schedulectr>D4b-05 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>78 </TD><TD class=standard>Glenn, Tarik </TD><TD class=schedulectr>OT </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-5 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>332 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>11 </TD><TD class=standard>California </TD><TD class=schedulectr>D1-97 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>11 </TD><TD class=standard>Gonzalez, Anthony </TD><TD class=schedulectr>WR </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-0 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>193 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>R </TD><TD class=standard>Ohio State </TD><TD class=schedulectr>D1-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>- </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>47 </TD><TD class=standard>Guzman, Ramon </TD><TD class=schedulectr>LB </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-2 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>232 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>R </TD><TD class=standard>Buffalo </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>- </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>56 </TD><TD class=standard>Hagler, Tyjuan </TD><TD class=schedulectr>LB </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-0 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>236 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>2 </TD><TD class=standard>Cincinnati </TD><TD class=schedulectr>D5c-05 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>59 </TD><TD class=standard>Hall, KaMichael </TD><TD class=schedulectr>LB </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-0 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>219 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>R </TD><TD class=standard>Georgia Tech </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>- </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>83 </TD><TD class=standard>Hall, Roy </TD><TD class=schedulectr>WR </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-3 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>240 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>R </TD><TD class=standard>Ohio State </TD><TD class=schedulectr>D5a-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>05 </TD><TD class=standard>Hare, Brian </TD><TD class=schedulectr>WR </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-2 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>192 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>1 </TD><TD class=standard>Purdue </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>- </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>49 </TD><TD class=standard>Harline, Jonny </TD><TD class=schedulectr>TE </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-4 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>245 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>R </TD><TD class=standard>Brigham Young </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>- </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>88 </TD><TD class=standard>Harrison, Marvin </TD><TD class=schedulectr>WR </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-0 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>185 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>12 </TD><TD class=standard>Syracuse </TD><TD class=schedulectr>D1-96 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>26 </TD><TD class=standard>Hayden, Kelvin </TD><TD class=schedulectr>DB </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-0 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>195 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>3 </TD><TD class=standard>Illinois </TD><TD class=schedulectr>D2-05 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>06 </TD><TD class=standard>Hodges, Reggie </TD><TD class=schedulectr>P </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-0 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>226 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>2 </TD><TD class=standard>Ball State </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>20 </TD><TD class=standard>Hughes, Daymeion </TD><TD class=schedulectr>DB </TD><TD class=schedulectr>5-10 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>190 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>R </TD><TD class=standard>California </TD><TD class=schedulectr>D3a-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>- </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>28 </TD><TD class=standard>Jackson, Marlin </TD><TD class=schedulectr>DB </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-0 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>196 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>3 </TD><TD class=standard>Michigan </TD><TD class=schedulectr>D1-05 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>27 </TD><TD class=standard>Jennings, Tim </TD><TD class=schedulectr>DB </TD><TD class=schedulectr>5-8 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>185 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>2 </TD><TD class=standard>Georgia </TD><TD class=schedulectr>D2-06 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>68 </TD><TD class=standard>Johnson, Tom </TD><TD class=schedulectr>DT </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-2 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>286 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>1 </TD><TD class=standard>Southern Mississippi </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>74 </TD><TD class=standard>Johnson, Charlie </TD><TD class=schedulectr>OT </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-4 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>305 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>2 </TD><TD class=standard>Oklahoma State </TD><TD class=schedulectr>D6a-06 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>62 </TD><TD class=standard>Johnson, Edward </TD><TD class=schedulectr>DT </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-2 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>296 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>R </TD><TD class=standard>Penn State </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>- </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>54 </TD><TD class=standard>Keiaho, Freddy </TD><TD class=schedulectr>LB </TD><TD class=schedulectr>5-11 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>226 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>2 </TD><TD class=standard>San Diego State </TD><TD class=schedulectr>D3-06 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>36 </TD><TD class=standard>Keith, Kenton </TD><TD class=schedulectr>RB </TD><TD class=schedulectr>5-11 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>210 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>1 </TD><TD class=standard>New Mexico State </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>- </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>90 </TD><TD class=standard>Klecko, Dan </TD><TD class=schedulectr>DT </TD><TD class=schedulectr>5-11 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>275 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>5 </TD><TD class=standard>Temple </TD><TD class=schedulectr>W-06 (NE) </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>99 </TD><TD class=standard>LaCasse, Ryan </TD><TD class=schedulectr>DE </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-2 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>257 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>2 </TD><TD class=standard>Syracuse </TD><TD class=schedulectr>TR-06 (BALT) </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>45 </TD><TD class=standard>Lawton, Luke </TD><TD class=schedulectr>RB </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-0 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>240 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>1 </TD><TD class=standard>McNeese State </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>- </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>40 </TD><TD class=standard>LeJeune, Norman </TD><TD class=schedulectr>DB </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-0 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>207 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>2 </TD><TD class=standard>Louisiana State </TD><TD class=schedulectr>W-07 (MIA) </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>65 </TD><TD class=standard>Lilja, Ryan </TD><TD class=schedulectr>OG </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-2 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>290 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>4 </TD><TD class=standard>Kansas State </TD><TD class=schedulectr>W-04 (KC) </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>68 </TD><TD class=standard>Lobdell, Joe </TD><TD class=schedulectr>OT </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-6 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>288 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>R </TD><TD class=standard>Northern Iowa </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>- </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>18 </TD><TD class=standard>Manning, Peyton </TD><TD class=schedulectr>QB </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-5 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>230 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>10 </TD><TD class=standard>Tennessee </TD><TD class=schedulectr>D1-98 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>98 </TD><TD class=standard>Mathis, Robert </TD><TD class=schedulectr>DE </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-2 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>245 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>5 </TD><TD class=standard>Alabama A&M </TD><TD class=schedulectr>D5a-03 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>92 </TD><TD class=standard>McFarland, Anthony </TD><TD class=schedulectr>DT </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-0 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>300 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>9 </TD><TD class=standard>LSU </TD><TD class=schedulectr>TR-06 (TB) </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>02 </TD><TD class=standard>McGann, Mike </TD><TD class=schedulectr>QB </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-6 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>220 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>1 </TD><TD class=standard>Temple </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>- </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>03 </TD><TD class=standard>McMahan, Kevin </TD><TD class=schedulectr>WR </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-2 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>193 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>1 </TD><TD class=standard>Maine </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>- </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>66 </TD><TD class=standard>Meekins, Ramel </TD><TD class=schedulectr>DT </TD><TD class=schedulectr>5-11 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>284 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>R </TD><TD class=standard>Rutgers </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>- </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>85 </TD><TD class=standard>Moorehead, Aaron </TD><TD class=schedulectr>WR </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-3 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>200 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>5 </TD><TD class=standard>Illinois </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-03 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>38 </TD><TD class=standard>Morgan, Chris </TD><TD class=schedulectr>RB </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-0 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>210 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>R </TD><TD class=standard>Indiana-PA </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>- </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>94 </TD><TD class=standard>Morris, Rob </TD><TD class=schedulectr>LB </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-2 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>243 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>8 </TD><TD class=standard>Brigham Young </TD><TD class=schedulectr>D1-00 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>16 </TD><TD class=standard>Navarre, John </TD><TD class=schedulectr>QB </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-6 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>240 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>4 </TD><TD class=standard>Michigan </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>53 </TD><TD class=standard>O'Neil, Keith </TD><TD class=schedulectr>LB </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-0 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>240 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>5 </TD><TD class=standard>Northern Arizona </TD><TD class=schedulectr>W-05 (DAL) </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>72 </TD><TD class=standard>Pitcock, Quinn </TD><TD class=schedulectr>DT </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-2 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>299 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>R </TD><TD class=standard>Ohio State </TD><TD class=schedulectr>D3b-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>- </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>95 </TD><TD class=standard>Reid, Darrell </TD><TD class=schedulectr>DT </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-2 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>288 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>3 </TD><TD class=standard>Minnesota </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-05 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>47 </TD><TD class=standard>Robinson, Gijon </TD><TD class=schedulectr>TE </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-1 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>255 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>R </TD><TD class=standard>Missouri Western State </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>34 </TD><TD class=standard>Rushing, T.J. </TD><TD class=schedulectr>DB </TD><TD class=schedulectr>5-9 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>186 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>2 </TD><TD class=standard>Stanford </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-06 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>21 </TD><TD class=standard>Sanders, Bob </TD><TD class=schedulectr>DB </TD><TD class=schedulectr>5-8 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>206 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>4 </TD><TD class=standard>Iowa </TD><TD class=schedulectr>D2b-04 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>63 </TD><TD class=standard>Saturday, Jeff </TD><TD class=schedulectr>C </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-2 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>295 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>9 </TD><TD class=standard>North Carolina </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-99 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>96 </TD><TD class=standard>Schobel, Bo </TD><TD class=schedulectr>DE </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-5 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>264 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>4 </TD><TD class=standard>TCU </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-06 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>73 </TD><TD class=standard>Scott, Jake </TD><TD class=schedulectr>OG </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-5 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>295 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>4 </TD><TD class=standard>Idaho </TD><TD class=schedulectr>D5a-04 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>42 </TD><TD class=standard>Seidman, Mike </TD><TD class=schedulectr>TE </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-4 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>261 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>5 </TD><TD class=standard>UCLA </TD><TD class=schedulectr>UFA-07 (CAR) </TD><TD class=schedulectr>- </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>01 </TD><TD class=standard>Sele, Taylor </TD><TD class=schedulectr>WR </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-0 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>204 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>R </TD><TD class=standard>Boston College </TD><TD class=schedulectr>W-07 (WASH) </TD><TD class=schedulectr>- </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>55 </TD><TD class=standard>Session, Clint </TD><TD class=schedulectr>LB </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-0 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>235 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>R </TD><TD class=standard>Pittsburgh </TD><TD class=schedulectr>D4c-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>13 </TD><TD class=standard>Shelton, Trent </TD><TD class=schedulectr>WR </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-0 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>202 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>R </TD><TD class=standard>Baylor </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>- </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>97 </TD><TD class=standard>Simon, Corey </TD><TD class=schedulectr>DT </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-2 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>300 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>8 </TD><TD class=standard>Florida State </TD><TD class=schedulectr>UFA-05 (PHI) </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>17 </TD><TD class=standard>Smith, Hunter </TD><TD class=schedulectr>P </TD><TD class=schedulectr>6-2 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>209 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>9 </TD><TD class=standard>Notre Dame </TD><TD class=schedulectr>D7a-99 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR class=grayback vAlign=top><TD class=standard>37 </TD><TD class=standard>Smith, Antonio </TD><TD class=schedulectr>DB </TD><TD class=schedulectr>5-9 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>192 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>R </TD><TD class=standard>Ohio State </TD><TD class=schedulectr>FA-07 </TD><TD class=schedulectr>PHOTOS </TD></TR><TR vAlign=top><TD class=standard>48 </TD><TD class=standard>Snow, Justin </TD><TD 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PRINTABLE VERSION IN EXCEL FORMAT
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>


--Colts.com

 

[The General]

Re: INDIANAPOLIS COLTS News and Notes for 2007/2008

Colts Running Back Dorsey Preparing for Increased Role


As far as DeDe Dorsey sees it, last year was one thing.

The Colts’ running game was effective. The players ahead of him were running well. And Dorsey was a rookie learning a new system.

So, not playing on offense all season?

While not Dorsey’s ideal, he said he could handle it.

New season, new story.

Dorsey, after spending last season as the Colts’ third running back, is entering his second NFL season, and is currently participating in summer-school sessions at the team’s practice facility with one goal:

A more high-profile role in one of the NFL’s most potent offenses.

“If I show them that I can operate in this offense, and that I can help, I believe they’ll put me in,” Dorsey said. “We’ll see what happens.”

One thing is certain:

Although Dorsey – who played collegiately at Lindenwood University – has yet to have an NFL carry, Colts personnel officials and coaches believe him capable of an increased role.

“I’m certain that DeDe will be a really good addition to this team,” Colts President Bill Polian said shortly after last month’s NFL Draft. “That isn’t just me. When you talk to the players, the first thing they tell you is, ‘Wow. DeDe Dorsey. Where’d you get him? He’s pretty good. Who’s that 30? Where’d you get him?’’’

Dorsey, after originally signing with the Cincinnati Bengals as an undrafted free agent, was claimed off waivers by the Colts just before the 2006 season.

He impressed coaches and personnel officials in practice throughout last season, and was active in 17 games, including all four of the Colts’ postseason games.

But throughout last season, the Colts played a two-back system of Dominic Rhodes and Joseph Addai. Rhodes, then a six-year veteran, rushed for 641 yards and five touchdowns and Addai – the Colts’ first-round selection in the 2006 NFL Draft – led all NFL rookies in rushing with 1,081 yards and seven touchdowns.

Neither Addai nor Rhodes missed a game.

As a result, Dorsey did not get a carry.

“Nobody dreams of watching the games from the sidelines,” Dorsey said, “but last year, that was my role. I was a little behind in the offense, so that set me back, learning the offense. Then, with Dominic and Joe having such great success, why mess that up?

“I understood all of that. Last year watching, yes, it was hard. But this season, with the off-season workouts and coming up to training camp, hopefully, I can prove to them that I belong on the field as well.”

Dungy said Dorsey went a long way toward proving that last season.

While Dorsey did not play in any games, he played extensively in practice, typically as the scout team running back. During practices, Dungy runs the scout team. He said sometimes a coach can get a feel for when a player will succeed based on practice. Dorsey, Dungy said, played well enough in practice last season to indicate he was such a player – and to indicate that with Rhodes having signed as a free agent with the Oakland Raiders, he can be part of a two-back rotation with Addai.

“We sure think he can,” Dungy said. “We never got to see him run live in a game, but what he did in practice really gives you every indication he can be.”

Said Dorsey, “If you go full speed in practice, that will translate into the game.”

Dorsey said the confidence of Polian and Dungy has given him confidence. He also said that although many outside the organization expressed surprise when the Colts did not select a running back in last April’s NFL Draft, the organization’s belief that he can fill the role matters far more than the opinions of analysts and observers.

“It motivates me, but at the same time, it’s kind of cool flying in under the radar,” Dorsey said. “If the team has this much confidence in me, it doesn’t matter what outside the locker room says.”

But confidence, Dorsey said, isn’t a huge issue, anyway.

At Lindenwood, we was an NAIA All-America selection as a senior, when he rushed for 1,600 yards and 18 touchdowns.

That was his second season at Lindenwood. After transferring from Ottawa (Kan.) Junior College, he was an All-America defensive back as a junior, when he had seven interceptions before switching to running back the last four games of the season.

“Anytime I step on the field, I feel like I’m ready to go and ready to perform,” Dorsey said. “I’m confident whenever I step up to the line.

“The way I feel is if you doubt yourself, you’re not going to have any results. If you have confidence in yourself, and confidence in your ability and go out there and play like it, that’s when you get the big results.”


The Official Website of the Indianapolis Colts

 

[The General]

Re: INDIANAPOLIS COLTS News and Notes for 2007/2008

Colts Quarterback Sorgi Confident Entering Fourth Season



Early this off-season, Jim Sorgi noticed the difference.
When he reported to the off-season workout program in April, Sorgi - the Colts' backup quarterback - sensed a few things had changed.

His confidence on the field. His comfort level in the offense. The way he was treated by teammates.

He felt, he felt . . .

Well, at 26, he felt older and he said it was a case where getting older isn't so bad.

“It's actually a great feeling,” Sorgi said during the Colts' summer-school sessions, which are continuing with three practices this week at the team’s practice facility.

Sorgi, who will enter his fourth NFL season next season, has spent each of the last three seasons as the backup quarterback behind Peyton Manning.

That, Sorgi said, is hardly a role that leads to immediate gratification, but Colts Head Coach Tony Dungy said the team’s confidence in Sorgi is high.

“Every time he has gotten to play, he has played well,” Dungy said. “His passer rating in the games he has played is excellent. When he has played with our regulars, which hasn’t been all that much, he has moved the ball and scored points.

“Everything you see in practice is so positive.”

And that’s where Sorgi - sometimes to his frustration – mostly has been seen in three seasons.

In nine NFL seasons, Manning never has missed a start, and has missed just one snap because of an injury. That was in 2001.

The situation was particularly tough last season, Sorgi said. Whereas in his first two seasons the Colts clinched their playoff position before the season finale, allowing Sorgi significant playing time late in the season, last season the Colts did not.

He played in just one regular-season game and did not throw a pass, creating a situation that Sorgi said was – in one sense – “horrible.”

“The first couple of years I didn’t play a lot during the season, but I got some significant playing time toward the end of the season and played well,” Sorgi said. “But this past year, I kind of waited and waited. At first, it looked like it was going to be like the first two years and we were going to clinch everything out and I’d get some playing time.

“Then, we kind of went on a downward slope there a little bit. It was like, 'Well, hopefully, things will work out so we’ll lock it up and I’ll get some playing time.’ That didn’t work out. It was one of those years that as a backup, you’ve got to take with a grain of salt and know that it’s been a while since you played football, but you’re still getting that experience of watching Peyton – who’s the best in the game – play the game.”

Sorgi, the Colts’ sixth-round selection in the 2004 NFL Draft, said not having played in the regular season made the entire season difficult in the way any season is difficult for a backup.

“It was tough, because you win the Super Bowl and you want to play a part in it,” Sorgi said. “But the film, the breakdown of the other defense – that helps me feel like I had a part in preparing Peyton to play.

“That makes me feel like I had something to do with the Super Bowl win.”

Sorgi said the film work and meeting time had another effect, too – that of enabling him to continue to learn one of the league’s most complex offenses to the point that “it starts to come easily.”

That’s a hard-earned status to reach, and one Sorgi said has given him added confidence.

“You put in your time,” Sorgi said. “I’ve spent countless hours watching our offense and watching other defenses. Going into my fourth year, you’ve got to know it and you know it inside and out.

“Certain things you had to really concentrate on in years past, you kind of know and you put back in your mind. You concentrate on evolving and learning more and more and more about the offense.”

While Sorgi’s time was limited this past season, he played extensively in several games in his first two seasons. As a rookie in 2004, he played all but one series of the team’s season-ending loss to the Denver Broncos, completing 16 of 25 passes for 168 yards and two touchdowns.

In 2005, he completed 22 of 31 passes for 237 yards and a touchdown in a loss at Seattle on December 24, then completed 20 of 30 passes for 207 yards and two touchdowns with an interception the following week in a season-ending victory over Arizona.

“I’ve tried to play well to put myself in that position, to ease everybody’s mind, to let them know that, 'Hey, it’s been a while, but we know if something does happen he can go in there and do the job,’’’ Sorgi said. “Hopefully, I did that early in my career to where now they feel real comfortable with me if I have to go in there.”

Sorgi, who recently re-signed with the team after entering the off-season as a restricted free agent, said he doesn’t know what the future holds after this season, but said, “I like it in Indy. I like where I’m at.”

“I like backing up the best quarterback in the NFL,” he said. “I think that makes me better. Whenever my time comes to play, to move on to play or whatever, I feel like being here has gotten me ready for that.

“Four years in the same system, you should know what you’re doing by now. I feel like I’m on the verge of knowing a lot of it.”

And mostly, he said, he liked the feeling has gotten so far this off-season, a feeling that – despite not playing as much as he would have liked in his first three seasons – he has the respect of his teammates that comes with experience.

“Before this year, I really didn’t,” he said. “It’s just a year older, a year wiser. I’m not 22-23 years old anymore. I’m 26. You’ve got to handle yourself and carry yourself like a four-year veteran. That’s what I am. I’m one of the older guys on this team, which is kind of surprising, but I got to see another year of football.

“Coming in in the off-season, being with the older guys, especially now that some of the guys have left, I am kind of one of the older guys.

“You’ve got to take on that role. You have to fit that role.”




THE QUARTERBACKS


Peyton Manning
10th NFL season
6-5, 230
Tennessee
Acquired: First round, 1998 (No. 1 overall)
A two-time NFL Most Valuable Player, and the MVP of Super Bowl XLI, he has made the Pro Bowl in seven of his first nine NFL seasons. . . . He has started 144 of a possible 144 games in eight NFL seasons, the most consecutive starts at the start of a career for a quarterback in NFL history. . . . He has completed 3,131 of 4,890 passes for 37,586 yards and 275 touchdowns with 139 interceptions for a career rating of 94.5. . . . He set NFL records with 49 touchdown passes and a 121.1 passer rating in 2004. . . . He completed 362 of 557 passes for 4,397 yards and 31 touchdowns with nine interceptions for a 101.0 passer rating last season . . . He has a 92-52 record as a starter.


Jim Sorgi
Fourth NFL season
6-5, 196
Wisconsin
Acquired: Sixth round, 2004
Played in one game last season, and did not throw a pass. . . . Played in five games in 2005, completing 59 of 90 passes for 444 yards and three touchdowns. . . . In three seasons, he has played in 10 games in relief of starter Peyton Manning, completing 59 of 90 passes for 619 yards and five touchdowns with one interception for a passer rating of 99.3. . . . He played extensively in two games in 2005, leading the Colts to a victory in their season finale against Arizona. . . . In three seasons, he has established himself as one of the NFL’s top young backup quarterbacks.


Josh Betts
First NFL season
6-2, 217
Miami-Ohio
Acquired: Free agent, 2006
Spent his rookie season of 2006 on the Colts’ practice squad. . . . A two-year starter at Miami-Ohio who started 24 of 38 career games in college. . . . He completed 541 of 929 passes in college for 7,029 yards and 54 touchdowns with 30 interceptions . . . He completed 248 of 434 passes for 3,178 yards and 27 touchdowns with 13 interceptions as a senior.



John Navarre
Fourth NFL season
6-6, 240
Michigan
Acquired: Free agent, 2007
A four-year NFL veteran, Navarre was originally a fourth-round selection by the Arizona Cardinals in the 2004 NFL Draft. . . . He played in two games in three seasons for the Cardinals, completing 32 of 64 passes for 342 yards and two touchdowns with four interceptions. . . . He hade only career NFL start against on December 5, 2004, against Detroit, when he threw one touchdown pass and four interceptions. . . . He started three seasons at Michigan, starting 41 games and throwing for 9,254 yards and 72 touchdowns.


Mike McGann
First NFL season
6-5, 225
Temple
Acquired: Free agent, 2007 Currently assigned to NFL Europe, where he is the backup quarterback for the Hamburg Sea Devils. . . . He started 34 games at Temple, throwing for 5,967 career yards and 25 touchdowns.

--colts.com

 

[The General]

Re: INDIANAPOLIS COLTS News and Notes for 2007/2008

Running Back Keith Looks to Make Transition from CFL to NFL

INDIANAPOLIS ? The time is now for Kenton Keith.

The coming months may not exactly be a ?now-or-never? scenario, but for the former Canadian Football League standout, it?s not far off.

Keith, who spent the last four seasons playing for the Saskatchewan Rough Riders of the CFL, signed with the Colts this off-season as a 26-year-old free agent running back.

He will turn 27 in July, two weeks before training camp.

Hardly ancient, even in professional football years, but as a guy trying to make an NFL roster, it?s old enough to present what he considers a logical deadline.

?If I had to come back next year, I don?t think I would do it,? Keith said during the Colts? summer-school sessions, which continued this week at the team?s practice facility. ?I think I would be too old.?

As it is, Keith said he believes it may be the perfect time to make the jump from the CFL to NFL.

He?s young enough to be in his physical prime.

And old enough to benefit from his experience.

And it?s that experience that Keith said may be his greatest strength in trying to make the Colts? roster.

?I think a lot of the things a college player goes through ? the speed, the quick calls, the changes and the audibles ? a lot of that stuff is something you can?t really learn or teach it,? Keith said. ?You have to go through it and experience it ? to know the tempo, when you can be patient.?

Keith, who played collegiately at New Mexico State, said that experience is about knowing how to play professionally, something he learned the last four years.

After spending the 2002 season on the Saskatchewan practice squad, he rushed for 709 yards and five touchdowns in 2003, then signed with the New York Jets that off-season before being waived in June ? before training camp began.

?I didn?t think I was ready at the time, but I still tried it,? Keith said. ?I learned a lot and when I went back to Canada, I took some of those tools and I was a lot better running back.?

In 2004, Keith had his first 1,000-yard season, rushing for 1,154 yards and nine touchdowns on 190 carries, and he followed that with 911 yards and five touchdowns on 151 carries in 2005 and 1,037 yards and two touchdowns on 167 carries this past season.

Keith, who said he might have tried the NFL again after the 2004 season had he not been under contract, signed with the Colts after this past season.

Immediately, he said he realized it was a unique situation.

?I?m the oldest running back here,? he said with a laugh.

That?s because Dominic Rhodes, who played with the Colts the past six seasons, signed with the Oakland Raiders as an unrestricted free agent after last season, leaving second-year veteran Joseph Addai as the lone back on the Colts? roster with an NFL carry.

The transition, Keith said, thus far has been a comfortable one. Addai has been one reason, and another has been the friendships he has formed in the locker room.

?I?m learning the things I thought I would, and I think I?m learning things a little more quickly than the college guys just because I?ve been playing on the professional level for while,? Keith said. ?It feels good to be, not a young guy, but basically a learner again. Joseph?s been teaching me a lot. At the same time, I teach him a lot, just from being a veteran.

?A lot of it is kind of similar to Canada. For me to hear it one or two times, I can pick it up, so I?m comfortable right now.?

Part of that comfort level, Keith said, is because of his position. The CFL and NFL, for some positions such as cornerback and wide receiver, are vastly different because the CFL allows more pre-snap motion. But for running backs, the leagues are comparatively similar, Keith said.

?You get the 3-4 and the 40 fronts, and it?s just, ?Let?s play ball,??? Keith said.

Another reason, Keith said, is because he is more mature than during his months with the Jets.

?When I came out of college, I wanted to show my speed almost every play,? Keith said. ?You try to run fast and you mess up your technique. Now, I can worry about technique instead of trying to do everything too fast.?

Playing in Canada, he said, ?helped me a whole lot mentally.

?If there?s anything I learned is this game is 90 percent mental,? Keith said. ?Everyone up here is an athlete. It?s just about making the right decision and when you choose to make that decision.?

Being a veteran has helped the transition off the field, too.

?Coming from college, they?re not used to sitting in meetings all day,? Keith said. ?A lot of people get cut for not going to treatment, not doing just the little things that matter when you?re a veteran. Me going into this league now, I know what to do and what not to do and I know how to be patient.

?I know it?s not always about speed. Once you get the ball, then it?s about speed, but you have to take care of your responsibilities first.?

And that, Keith said, is one part of his task at hand. And while that task may not be far off from a now-or-never scenario, it?s one for which Keith said he is prepared.

?They?ve taken me in real well,? Keith said. ?When I went to the Jets, I didn?t know anybody. It was kind of hard to make friends and I was a little nervous. But they?ve accepted me real well here.

?I feel good about it. I have a good feel for the team. Me and (running backs coach) Gene (Huey), we get along real good.

?If it doesn?t happen for me, it will be me that messes it up.?



THE RUNNING BACKS


Joseph Addai

Second NFL season

5-11, 214

Louisiana State

Acquired: First round, 2006 (No. 30 overall)

The Colts? first draft selection in 2006, he led all NFL rookies in rushing last season despite not starting during the regular season. . . . He rushed for 1,081 yards and seven touchdowns on 226 carries, including a season-high 171 yards and four touchdowns in a November victory over Philadelphia. . . . Scored the game-winning touchdown on a 3-yard run in the Colts? 38-34 AFC Championship Game victory over New England. . . . Started all four postseason games and is expected to enter the regular season as the starting running back after the off-season departure of last year?s regular-season starter, Dominic Rhodes. . . . Also caught 40 passes for 325 yards and a touchdown last season.





DeDe Dorsey

Second NFL season

5-11, 196

Lindenwood

Acquired: Waivers, 2006

He spent last season on the Colts? roster, playing in 13 games, mostly on special teams. . . . He played mostly on kickoff returns as a rookie. . . . He originally signed with the Cincinnati Bengals as a collegiate free agent after the 2006 NFL Draft, then joined the Colts off waivers shortly before last season. . . . Originally a cornerback in college, he had seven interceptions as a junior before switching to running back. . . . He rushed for 1,600 yards and 18 touchdowns as a senior, when he was an NAIA All-American. . . . He also was an NAIA All-American defensive back as a junior, when he scored three defensive touchdowns.




Luke Lawton

Second NFL season

6-0, 245

McNeese State

Acquired: Free agent, 2007

He signed with the Colts as a free agent on February 6, 2007. . . . A fullback, he has spent time on the practice squads of Buffalo, the New York Giants, Atlanta and the New York Jets. . . . He participated in four games on special teams with the Jets in 2005. . . . He started three seasons at McNeese State, rushing for 1,114 yards and 22 touchdowns on 246 carries.





Kenton Keith

First NFL season

5-11, 198

New Mexico State

Acquired: Free agent, 2007

Keith, who played the past four seasons with the Saskatchewan Rough Riders in the Canadian Football League, signed with the Colts on January 16, 2007. . . . He has rushed for 3,811 yards and 21 touchdowns on 610 carries in the CFL. . . . After signing with the New York Jets in 2004, he was released in June of that year. . . . He twice rushed for more than 1,000 yards with Saskatchewan. . . . He also is a threat as a receiver, having caught 126 passes for 1,178 yards and eight touchdowns. . . . He rushed for 2,134 yards in 39 games at New Mexico State, scoring 13 touchdowns as a senior.





Clifton Dawson

Rookie

5-10, 212

Harvard

Acquired: Free agent, 2007

Dawson, the all-time leading rusher in Harvard history, signed as a free agent shortly after the 2007 NFL Draft. . . . He started 39 of 40 games and for his career, he rushed for 4,841 yards and 60 touchdowns on 958 carries. . . . He also caught 80 passes for 759 yards and four touchdowns. . . . He finished as the Ivy League record-holder for career rushing yards (4,841), career rushing touchdowns (60), career touchdowns (66), career points (398) and career all-purpose yards (6,138). . . . He was named first-team All-Ivy League four times.




Chris Morgan

Rookie

6-0, 210

Indiana-Pa.

Acquired: Free agent, 2007

A prolific runner in college, he signed with the Colts as a collegiate free agent after the 2007 NFL Draft. . . . A four-year starter, he moved from free safety to running back as a freshman, starting 36 of 40 games. . . . He rushed for 3,817 yards and 34 touchdowns on 680 carries and also caught 41 passes for 416 yards and two touchdowns.


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[The General]

Re: INDIANAPOLIS COLTS News and Notes for 2007/2008

Veteran Defensive Tackle McFarland Says Summer School Important Time


Just because he’s a veteran, and just because he has played his entire career in the same defensive system, that doesn’t mean he knows all.

Anthony “Booger” McFarland said he doesn’t know everything.

Not even close.

He can still learn techniques.

He can still learn subtleties.

Particularly, he can still learn a lot about his teammates and they can learn a lot about him.

Which is why although he has eight years experience in the “Tampa 2” defense, the Colts’ starting defensive tackle spent the last two weeks participating in the Colts’ summer school sessions.

This was a chance not only to learn, but also to be with teammates.

And it wasn’t a chance he wanted to miss.

“It’s important, No. 1, because this is my first full year here,” McFarland said. “This gives me a chance to see how things are done around here during the summer, how things are being taught.

“Now is when you really learn and get a feel for what you’re going to be doing during the season.”

McFarland, who spent his first seven and a half NFL seasons with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, joined the Colts in a mid-season trade last November.

He immediately became a crucial member of the defense, and during the playoffs, Colts Head Coach Tony Dungy said his leadership was crucial to the defense’s development – and to the Colts’ run to the Super Bowl XLI championship.

McFarland registered 40 tackles and 2.5 sacks with the Colts in 11 regular-season games, then added 12 postseason tackles and two sacks.

Solid numbers, and a solid performance.

But McFarland said because never has spent an off-season with the Colts, being in Indianapolis for the voluntary organized team activities – or OTAs, as they are often called – was critical.

“After seven, eight, nine years in the same system, it doesn’t take you as long to pick it back up,” McFarland said. “But with this being my first year here, I felt like it would be advantageous for me to be here.

“I’m not just a hired-hand to come in. It’s all about getting better. It’s all about trying to go out and be the best you can be.”

McFarland also said this off-season is an important one for the Colts because of the many new faces in new places.

Cato June. Nick Harper. Jason David.

All started last season for the Colts, and all have departed as free agents.

In their place, second-year veteran Freddy Keiaho (outside linebacker) and third-year veterans Kelvin Hayden and Marlin Jackson (cornerbacks) are working as starters during summer school.

That makes the session an important time for cohesion and camaraderie.

“Guys that are going to play have to realize they have an opportunity to go out and work on the game of football when the stakes are low,” McFarland said. “If you make a bad snap or forget the coverage, you’re still going to feel bad, but guess what? It doesn’t cost us the game right now. So now a guy can do that.

“Then, when the stakes get higher, you have confidence, because you’ve done the things over and over that you’re about to do. It gives you confidence.

“Now is what develops confidence and that knowledge for what you’re going to do.”

McFarland, a first-round selection by the Bucs in the 1999 NFL Draft, spent his entire Tampa Bay career playing for Top 10 defenses. He said the off-season personnel losses shouldn’t prevent the Colts from being a quality defense next season.

Off-season losses are a part of the modern NFL, and McFarland said who teams lose isn’t important.

“It’s about who you line up with and who you play with,” McFarland said. “It’s about their attention to detail. Let’s face it. We all have talent at this level. What separates talented players and talented teams, talented defenses, is their ability to perform within the system they play in and perform well.

“That comes down to attention to detail. That’s what you’re trying to develop now.”

McFarland said his focus this off-season is about more than leadership, and more than being in town for young players. Although the Colts and Bucs each play the Tampa 2, and although the schemes are the same, there are subtle differences.

“I’m working with (Colts defensive line coach) John Teerlinck and learning even more about defensive line play,” McFarland said. “It’s a critical time for me, to be able to come in and learn and to do different things. I’m having a blast.

“Thankfully, the systems are fairly similar, but still, the nuances in between are different and I’m learning those. They’re different and similar. The terminology’s different and some of the things they do are different. That’s the biggest deal.

“But we’re learning. We’re having fun and we’re definitely moving forward.”


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Gonzalez Continues to Make NFL Adjustment.


Anthony Gonzalez's short-term goal is a clear one.

And he figures if he's going to achieve it, now is the time to start working toward it.

That's because the Colts rookie wide receiver’s goal involves training camp. Specifically, it is about maximizing his performance when camp begins at the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology on July 29.

Gonzalez wants perfection, at least when it comes to what he can control, and if it’s going to happen, he said he needs to work now.

Really, really work.

“My thing is I kind of challenged myself a while back not to have any mental errors when training camp opened,” Gonzalez said Tuesday as the Colts’ continued their summer-school sessions at their practice facility.

“We’re still a ways away from that and I’m a ways away from that goal. At the same time, you have to find little gimmicks and clues as to how you’re going to pick up different things and what each word means and how it translates to a route or play.”

That, Gonzalez said this week, is what the last few weeks have been about, and what the next few weeks will be about, too:

Picking up routes.

Honing timing with quarterback Peyton Manning.

Learning the subtleties of a new offense.

Gonzalez, who spoke to the Indianapolis media Tuesday for the first time since the Colts’ summer-school session began on May 22, made it to professional football by focusing on such details, Colts Head Coach Tony Dungy said Tuesday.

And Dungy said he sees no signs of that focus blurring.

“Anthony, I think, is going to be a very good player for us,” Dungy said. “He’s a guy who really pays attention to details. That’s unique for a young guy. Most young people who come in are really just trying to learn what they’re supposed to do and learn their assignments and the basics of them.

“He wants to know what’s going on and he wants to learn every little detail of what he’s supposed to do. I think that’s probably why he was a good player in college and why I think he’s going to be a good player (here).

“We knew he could catch the ball and had quickness in and out of breaks, and the things you need to do to be a good receiver, but his mindset is very, very impressive.”

Gonzalez, the No. 32 overall selection in the April NFL Draft, caught 87 passes for 1,286 yards and 13 touchdowns at Ohio State. The Colts drafted him with the idea he can replace former wide receiver Brandon Stokley, who played in the slot receiver position the last four seasons.

Gonzalez said he has begun the process of studying the Colts’ offense to fully understand the slot receiver’s role.

“I’ve looked a good deal at it,” he said. “My approach is I’ll look at a game a day. I’ve seen a decent

amount. Obviously, I have more to look at. I have a ways to go. I’ll get there. I have time. That’s the good thing.

“There’s no substitute for experience, and in my situation, I’m just trying to get as many experiences as possible, trying to get with Peyton as often as possible to go over signals and go over routes, how he wants certain things run.”

Gonzalez, who attended the Colts’ three-day rookie camp a week after the draft, missed the team’s mini-camp in mid-May because of a league rule requiring he attend Reebok’s NFL Player Rookie Premier in Los Angeles.

“I feel like I’m a little bit behind,” Gonzalez said. “It was a rule that was imposed on me and a few of the other guys. We had to go to the rookie premiere. It was one that I obviously wasn’t crazy about, but it’s what it is. You’ve got follow all the rules, so that’s just how it works.

“You catch up by doing a little bit extra every day. That’s something that has always come natural to me. I’m not the type of guy who shows up as late as humanly possible and leaves as early as humanly possible. That’s never been how I’ve gone about my business.

“Really, it’s just putting in a little extra work. That’s all very natural.”

Said Dungy, “He’s behind a little bit, but we tell them all that we’re not really trying to get ready for August 1 or July 4. We’re trying to get ready for September and he has a long time to catch up, as will the other guys.”

Something else happened last week, too, Gonzalez said. For the first time, he said he realized the difference between the speed of the NFL and college football.

“It’s a lot faster,” he said. “It’s a little bit different. It’s something you adjust to. It was nothing that was overwhelming. It was just something that I noticed.”

For the most part, Gonzalez said his early days in the NFL have gone as expected. Yes, there were some initial nerves working with Manning and yes, the speed is an adjustment, but not one he can’t handle.

“The last couple of days, I’ve really progressed,” Gonzalez said. “Last week, I thought I made some strides.”

Gonzalez said he has approached the adjustment period the only way he knows how - by pouring himself into learning one of the NFL’s most complex, advanced offenses.

And by striving for as much perfection as he can control.

“This is the time, really, when a lot of the vets are around and it’s probably a little bit slower in terms of what they put in offensively,” Gonzalez said. “In that way, it’s a lot like being a young college football player. At the same time, they can’t slow up too much. So, you do have to get in your playbook. You have to study at night. You have to take care of everything you can take care of so when you get on the field you can move as quickly as possible.”


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Moorehead Plays Dual Role in Summer School Sessions.


The way Aaron Moorehead sees it, he has two jobs during the next few weeks.

One, he said, is no more important than the other.

Moorehead, a veteran wide receiver for the Colts who recently re-signed with the team as a free agent, wants to continue to improve personally and to contribute more than last season, when he emerged as a consistent threat in the postseason.

Then there?s the other job.

That of the veteran, the teacher, the voice of experience.

It?s an unusual position for Moorehead.

But it?s one he said is important, and one he very much likes.

?I?ve always had that coach?s mentality,? Moorehead said recently during the Colts? summer-school sessions, which continue this week at the team?s practice facility.

?As (veteran) guys taught me in the past, you?ve got to get (younger) guys up to speed. I?m really trying to help these rookies out.?

For Moorehead these days, assisting the youth in the Colts? receiving corps is a big part of his role ? and a part that is critical considering the summer-school presence of first-round wide receiver Anthony Gonzalez and fifth-round wide receiver Roy Hall.

Those players are spending summer school learning the Colts? complex offense, earning the trust of Colts quarterback Peyton Manning.

In such a situation, veteran leadership is key at the position.

?They?re looking at me, because I?m the guy who?s been in the games, and the one with the experience,? Moorehead said. ?They all come to me asking me the questions. It keeps me sharp. It keeps me on my toes. I have to be concentrating.

?Sometimes, Peyton makes it easy for us receivers, so this keeps me sharp and keeps me going. It?s been fun so far.?

The realities of the NFL off-season make the role more important, Moorehead said. Gonzalez and Hall were drafted in late April and after a three-day rookie mini-camp, they joined the Colts on a full-time basis in late May.

They will work with Manning in summer school ? 14 days of organized team activities, or ?OTAs? as they are known league-wide ? but that?s the majority of their on-field work until training camp begins at the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology in late July.

Each off-season, Colts veterans speak of the importance of helping younger players, of passing along the ?Colts Way.? Moorehead said when he was an undrafted rookie free agent in 2003, players such as Brandon Stokley and Troy Walters helped him learn one of the NFL?s most complex offenses.

Now, Stokley and Walters are gone, and Moorehead said he figures it?s his time to play the role.

?Preseason?s coming up pretty quickly and we start camp pretty late,? Moorehead said. ?When those guys come in the game, they?re representing our organization. They need to be out there playing as well as they can and being as comfortable as they can. I?m out there just trying to help them learn the plays and help them learn different things that are going to help their game.

?These guys are going to be counted on during the season at some point. You don?t know if it?s going to be early, late ? it might be in the playoffs. You don?t know. These guys need to catch up with us vets.?

Not that Moorehead?s focus is strictly on others. It?s also about continuing the improvement he showed late last season.

Moorehead, who played collegiately at the University of Illinois, played extensively as an undrafted rookie in 2003, then with Stokley, Wayne and Harrison healthy throughout 2004 and 2005, he played sparingly.

Last season, with Stokley out in late December and the playoffs, Moorehead again played a critical role, catching eight passes for 82 yards and a touchdown in the regular season and five passes for 41 yards in the postseason.

?At the end of last year, I was playing really well and I started feeling like I had a really good rapport with Peyton,? Moorehead said. ?He started to get more confidence in me, throwing me the ball in crucial situations. That?s what you need, the confidence of your quarterback, especially Peyton.

Moorehead said his increased production was mainly a matter of opportunity.

?It was nice to think that all those years of hard work, and not getting down on myself because I wasn?t playing, paid off,? Moorehead said. ?I wasn?t able to crack the lineup as a receiver. That?s frustrating because you know you can play. You know you can be out there making plays and you see them out there making plays. Then, last year Brandon gets hurt and all of a sudden, you have to show, ?Hey, I can come out here and be reliable.?

?As the season went on, it got better and better. Toward the end of the season, in the playoffs and in the last couple of games of the regular season, I was out there a lot, making some big plays and some big first downs. It?s very gratifying to know, ?Hey, I am a person who?s a key contributor on this team and not just a guy who can potentially be a contributor.? It was just a good feeling and going into this year, it has my confidence at a high.

?I want to get back out there and prove it again, that it wasn?t a one-year deal. It?s a consistency-type thing and that?s what the Colts are all about.?

Working toward consistency, Moorehead said, is what summer school is about ? that and looking for future players such as himself, who surprise the experts and make the team as undrafted free agents.

?That?s what you?re looking for ? it?s a fun time,? Moorehead said. ?Every year you look to see who?s going to be that next guy.?

But this year, for Moorehead, suddenly being one of the older receivers also means a new role ? one he considers important and one he?s enjoying very much.

?That?s what this time is ? getting your game back from the off-season rust, but also getting those guys up to speed,? Moorehead said. ?I feel like in the last couple of years, we?ve had guys who have been able to help me: Stokley, Troy Walters.

?Those guys helped me when I needed stuff. You just have to get those guys up to speed, and that?s part of my role now.?





THE WIDE RECEIVERS


Marvin Harrison

Twelfth NFL season

6-0, 185

Syracuse

Acquired: First round, 1996 (No. 19 overall)

One of the premier players in the NFL regardless of position. . . . He has been a critical member of one of the NFL?s top offenses the past eight seasons. . . . He has been a Pro Bowl selection each of the past eight seasons and still the Colts? go-to receiver after 11 NFL seasons. . . . He caught 95 passes for a team-high 1,366 yards and a team-high 12 touchdowns last season. . . . He has had at least 10 touchdown receptions in each of last eight seasons. . . . He has 1,022 receptions for 13,697 yards and 122 touchdowns in 10 NFL seasons.




Reggie Wayne

Seventh NFL season

6-0, 203

Miami

Acquired: First round, 2001 (No. 30 overall)

Wayne continued to emerge as one of the NFL?s top receivers last season, catching 86 passes for 1,310 yards and nine touchdowns, also catching a 53-yard touchdown pass in Indianapolis? 29-17 victory over Chicago in Super Bowl XLI. . . . He made his first Pro Bowl in 2006. . . . He also caught a team-high 83 passes for 1,055 yards and five touchdowns in 2005. . . . The receptions total was a career-high, the sixth time in as many NFL seasons he has set a career-high in the category. . . . He caught 77 passes for 1,210 yards and a career-high 12 touchdowns in 2004 and averaged 15.7 yards a reception that season, also a career-high. . . . He went over the 1,000-yard receiving mark each of the last three seasons, the first three such seasons of his career. . . . He has 390 receptions for 5,474 yards and 37 touchdowns in five NFL seasons.




Anthony Gonzalez

Rookie

6-0, 193

Ohio State

Acquired: First round, 2007 (No. 32 overall)

Gonzalez, a three-year letterman at Ohio State, caught 87 passes for 1,286 yards and 13 touchdowns in three seasons. . . . He started 17 of 33 career games at wide receiver, and forewent his senior season to enter the NFL Draft. . . . He had his biggest college game in one of the biggest games of the season last year, catching eight passes for 142 yards and a touchdown in a nationally-televised victory over Texas.




Aaron Moorehead

Fifth NFL season

6-3, 200

Illinois

Acquired: Free agent, 2003

Moorehead made the team as an undrafted rookie free agent in 2003 and caught seven passes for 101 yards that season. . . . He played in seven games in 2003 and 2004, then played in two in 2005 before playing a career-high 12 in 2006. . . . He caught seven passes for 75 yards in 2005 and caught eight for 82 last season. . . . He has 23 career receptions for 265 yards and one touchdown in four seasons. . . . He caught five passes for 41 yards in the playoffs last season.




John Standeford

Second NFL season

6-4, 206

Purdue

Acquired: Free agent, 2006

Standeford spent much of last three seasons on the Colts? practice squad, then signed to the active roster on December 14 of last season. . . . He spent the final three games of last season and the playoffs on the active roster. . . . He caught 266 passes for 3,788 yards and 27 touchdowns at Purdue. . . . He finished college career as Big 10?s all-time leader in receptions and receiving yards.




Roy Hall

Rookie

6-3, 240

Ohio State

Acquired: Fifth round, 2007

Hall, a four-year player at Ohio State, started seven of 48 games in college, catching 52 passes for 580 yards and three touchdowns. . . . He played behind three eventual first-round draft selections ? Gonzalez, Santonio Holmes and Ted Ginn, Jr. . . . As a senior, he played in 11 games and caught 13 passes for 147 yards and two touchdowns.


Devin Aromashodu

First NFL season

6-2, 200

Auburn

Acquired: Free agent, 2007

Originally a seventh-round selection in the 2006 NFL Draft by Miami, Aromashodu spent much of last season on the Colts? practice squad. . . . He was released by Miami shortly before last season and signed with the Colts shortly thereafter. . . . He played four seasons at Auburn, starting 31 of 51 games and catching 71 passes for 1,333 yards and nine touchdowns.




Kevin McMahan

First NFL season

6-3, 193

Maine

Acquired: Free agent, 2007

Originally a seventh-round selection in the 2006 NFL Draft by Oakland, McMahan spent last season out of the NFL. . . . He signed with the Colts as a free agent in January. . . . He started 12 of 44 games at Maine and was a third-team All-Atlantic 10 selection as a senior. . . . He had 1,995 career receiving yards.




Taylor Sele

Rookie

6-0, 204

Boston College

Acquired: Free agent, 2007

Originally a collegiate free agent with Washington, he signed with the Colts on May 9, 2007, after being waived by the Redskins. . . . He played in 45 games at Boston College, catching 27 passes for 296 yards.




Brian Hare

First NFL season

6-2, 192

Purdue

Acquired: Free agent, 2007

Signed as a free agent with the Colts on May 5, 2006 and re-signed this off-season. . . . He started one of 23 games for Purdue after transferring from Pima (Ariz.) Community College. . . . He caught 25 passes for 436 yards and three touchdowns. . . . He is currently with the Cologne Centurions of NFL Europa.




Trent Shelton

Rookie

6-0, 202

Baylor

Acquired: Free agent, 2007

A collegiate free agent, he started 29 of 46 games at Baylor, catching 155 passes for 1,978 yards and 14 touchdowns. . . . He also rushed for 69 yards and a touchdown on 12 carries. . . . He also had a reception in a school-record 45 consecutive games.




Michael DePriest

Rookie

6-0, 185

Texas Christian

Acquired: Free agent, 2007

A collegiate free agent, he played in 45 games at Texas Christian, catching 50 passes for 785 yards and five touchdowns. . . . He also had a 17.1-yard average on eight kickoff returns.




Craphonso Thorpe

First NFL season

6-0, 187

Florida State

Acquired: Free agent, 2007

Originally a fourth-round selection in the 2005 NFL Draft by the Kansas City Chiefs, Thorpe has spent time on the practice squads of the Chiefs, the Houston Texans and the Detroit Lions the past two seasons. . . . He was on the Chiefs? active roster for one game in 2005. . . . He started 21 of 48 career games at Florida State, catching 123 passes for 2,153 yards and 18 touchdowns.

--Colts.com

 

[The General]

Re: INDIANAPOLIS COLTS News and Notes for 2007/2008

Addai Preparing for Second NFL Season Same as He Did First


Joseph Addai’s not given to bold statements.

So, despite leading all NFL rookies in rushing last season, when Addai is asked about his prospects for his second season, his answers are modest.

Is he ready for a full-time role?

Can he carry the load?

Is he ready for prime-time?

Addai, the Colts’ first-round selection in the 2006 NFL Draft, said he is confident entering his second season, and he also said he expects to build on his rookie season.

But as for predictions . . .

Well, those aren’t really Addai’s way.

“That’s a thing to ask me at the end of the season,” Addai said at the Colts’ summer-school sessions, which will conclude next week with four practices at the team’s practice facility.

“That’s what we’re looking forward to now, if I can carry the load or whatever.”

Addai, who rushed for 1,081 yards and seven touchdowns on 226 carries despite not starting a regular-season game as a rookie, likely will enter next season as the starter. He also will enter it for the first time without his friend and backfield mate, Dominic Rhodes.

“If you don’t have a challenge, I don’t know why you’re out there playing,” Addai said. “That’s the biggest thing. Now, you have a challenge.”

Addai and Rhodes shared carries last season, with Rhodes starting all 16 regular-season games and Addai starting all four post-season games.

Now, Rhodes is gone, having signed with the Oakland Raiders as an unrestricted free agents.

That means a new role for Addai, Colts Head Coach Tony Dungy said.

And one Dungy said he can handle.

“We have that in a couple of positions,” Dungy said recently. “Joseph obviously knows he’s going to have the more extended role, and (safety) Bob Sanders knows he’s going to be the senior guy in the secondary now.

“You see guys like that, who understand the leadership falls on them a little more. I remember having a talk with (tight end) Dallas (Clark) when we let Marcus Pollard go. I said, ‘You’re not going to be able to look around and see from someone else. You have to be the guy in the meeting rooms.’ I think Joseph will end up doing that.

“I think we’re going to see much, much more of Joseph Addai and I think he’s going to be get better and better.”

One reason for the interest in Addai’s full-time, feature-back role next season is he rarely has played it in his past.

Addai, despite finishing his career at Louisiana State University as the school’s fifth all-time leading rusher, started 19 of 51 games there. He started 12 of 13 games as a senior and six games as a sophomore, and was an All-America quarterback in high school.

But Addai said those who are wondering if he can be the lone back in an offense may be approaching the question wrong.

With Rhodes gone, DeDe Dorsey has worked extensively as the backup in summer school and mini-camp. Colts President Bill Polian and Head Coach Tony Dungy each have said in recent weeks Dorsey can be effective in a two-back system.

The Colts also early this off-season signed Kenton Keith, who has twice rushed for more than 1,000 yards in the Canadian Football League. The Colts, Addai said, aren’t short on backs, and the backfield likely won’t be a solo situation.

“We never know the situation,” Addai said. “We have a lot of good running backs behind me trying hard to get

a spot, so I didn’t know if I will have to carry the load.

“The best thing is to win games. That’s the thing we have to do now.”

What Addai is focusing mostly on this off-season is continuing to learn. Dungy often has said players typically make their biggest jump from their rookie seasons to their second seasons, and Addai said although he grasped the Colts’ offense last season, there is plenty to study.

Being the starter, he said, his mindset is a bit different than last season, “but at the same time,” he said, “I think I have to do what I did last year, just come in and take small steps.

“I’m still just a young player,” he said. “Last year it was all, ‘Can we replace (former Colts running back) Edge (Edgerrin James)?’ I don’t think we did it. This is my second year, but I think I did well for myself my first year. The biggest thing is just starting over again, forget what I did last season and just start fresh again.

“Last year, I was coming in trying to take in everything. Now, I’m kind of starting over, but I’ve got a lot of information in. It’s not as much trying to get everything in. Now, it’s pretty much trying to pick up from where you left off.

“That’s the biggest thing, just going out and learning the small things and working on my techniques.”

Among Addai’s most important tasks this off-season, he said, is to continue to improve as a pass receiver. He caught 10 passes for 66 yards in the Colts’ 29-17 Super Bowl XLI victory over the Chicago Bears, and finished the regular season with 40 receptions for 325 yards, but in summer school and mini-camps, he has run routes extensively with the Colts’ receivers.

“It’s a real credit to Joe for being here this whole off-season,” Colts quarterback Peyton Manning said. “I think that’s where he’s really trying to expand his game – by putting him in the slot or putting him out wide. He’s worked on his route-running. To me, that’s important. The running part, he’s got that in pretty good shape, but he’s saying, ‘How can I get better?’’’’

Addai said it’s simply a matter of seeing where he can improve.

“I’m more relaxed and I’m enjoying myself,” Addai said. “Last year, it was ‘What do I do on this play? What do I do on this play?’ Now, the questions are, ‘What are the receivers doing now? What are the tight ends doing?’ Now, I’m learning about what everybody else is doing.

“It’s still early. You want to try to open up all your options. Just going out and catching with the receivers helps me understand what’s going on when I come out of backfield, so I know their blocks and I know their routes, so when I’m out there running my routes, I know where to be.”

And as for the coming season, and the questions others may ask, he said he doesn’t see it that way. He said he won’t change his approach much, and as for the questions, for now, they’ll have to be patient.

“On the outside looking in people might say that, but I don’t look at it like that,” Addai said. “I think if I keep on doing what I’ve been doing. I’m going to start over, keep doing the same thing and try to get better every day. I think I’ll be all right.

“Each game, I was getting comfortable. I was getting more relaxed, so if I stay in that mind-frame I’ll be all right. I think that’s the biggest thing, is understanding what’s going on so you can do out there.

“That’s half the battle, understanding what you’re doing, then putting your will upon them.”

--colts.com

 

[The General]

Re: INDIANAPOLIS COLTS News and Notes for 2007/2008

Veteran Glenn Happy to Help Rookie Tackle Ugoh




The way Tarik Glenn approached the situation surprised the rookie.

Tony Ugoh, the Colts' second-round selection in the recent NFL Draft, didn?t know exactly what to expect from Glenn, a three-time Pro Bowl selection.

The Colts drafted Ugoh with the idea he could be the left tackle of the future.

Since his arrival, Ugoh said Glenn ? the Colts? starting left tackle since 1998 ? has worked with him extensively on the field, and taken time to help him off the field, answering questions, offering advice. Just being there, basically.

?I was kind of surprised it was like that,? Ugoh said, but Glenn said the rookie shouldn?t have been surprised.

As far as Glenn sees it, there?s really no other way.

?I?ve been a Colt my whole career,? said Glenn, the No. 19 overall selection by the Colts in the 1997 NFL Draft and a Pro Bowl selection following the past three seasons. ?I?d like nothing more than to finish my career here, but at the same time, to help build for the future. I?m committed to that.

?This organization has done nothing but do well by me. They?ve been with me through a lot of the good times as well as the hard times, personally. I can honestly say I?ll do whatever I can to help build this organization and to help build this team ? not only for this year, but for years to come.

?If that means to get the second-round draft pick focused not only on the field, but off the field, I?m willing to be committed to doing that.?

Glenn, who will enter his 11th NFL season next season, said his approach is far from unusual around the Colts? locker room these days. Veterans, he and Colts Head Coach Tony Dungy said, help rookies, with the idea being to pass down the Colts Way.

When Dungy was a player with the Pittsburgh Steelers, veterans helped younger players ? even players at their own positions ? and the result was a team that won four Super Bowls from 1974-1979.

?That?s something I tried to instill in this team,? Dungy said. ?When I got there, it was like, 'Hey, you know what? We need everybody to win and everybody?s going to help you be as good a player as you can be because nobody?s worried about who plays the most or whatever: at some point, we?re going to need you and you have to be ready if you?re going to win.?

?That?s the way championship teams think. Our team over the years has begun to think like a champion, so I?m not surprised at all. I think that?s very important.?

Glenn said it wasn?t always that way. When he was a rookie in 1997, he said he felt shunned by older veterans on the offensive line. That made life difficult at times.

Finally, a player came to him and eased the transition.

That player wasn?t an offensive lineman.

Instead, it was wide receiver Marvin Harrison.

Harrison, then in his second season, had been drafted No. 19 overall the previous off-season. Immediately, the two formed a bond, one that exists a decade later.

?I didn?t get that same embrace by the majority of the guys,? Glenn said. ?I remember Marvin pulling me aside and being one of those guys who kind of embraced me. Even though we don?t play the same position, he just taught me the ropes and what it meant to be a professional, and how to practice and not really take stuff for granted.

Harrison?s gesture made a lasting impression, Glenn said.

?Ever since then, I vowed I would try to be that kind of leader for guys who come in and hopefully give some kind of wisdom and words of encouragement,? Glenn said. ?If I have anything technique-wise and fundamental-wise that I can give them to become a better player, I?m going to do that.?

Glenn said the idea Ugoh may eventually start for the Colts at his position did nothing to change his thinking.

?A lot of people, with him coming in here, could look at it as controversial,? Glenn said. ?Whenever you?re trying to build a team, you have to believe in the way you want to do it. There is some time down the line they were going to have to prepare and make sure each position is secure not only in the short team but in the long-term.?

The approach is particularly important on the offensive line, Glenn said. The Colts typically carry only seven-to-eight offensive linemen, and often in recent seasons, young players have played key roles early. Last season, rookie right tackle Charlie Johnson played much of Indianapolis? Super Bowl XLI victory in place of veteran Ryan Diem.

?(Offensive line coach) Howard Mudd always has been that kind of coach, and always encouraged that in our room,? Glenn said. ?For the most part, our guys ? the guys who have been here the longest ? understand that that is the way we want it. The legacy we want to leave is that when you come into our room, there are no prima donnas. Everybody works as hard as the next man and if you have something to give, you don?t hold it back because if you hold back anything, all it does is it hurts the whole.

?I saw it when (former starting right tackle) Adam Meadows transferred from starter to backup to not being here. He embraced Ryan Diem and really encouraged him. It made us better as a team unit. Everybody didn?t agree with some of the decisions that were made, but it wasn?t about agreeing with the decisions as much as it was about building for the future.

?More than our personal gains, we want that unit to be cohesive and do whatever it takes to win games.?

Glenn said the approach involves more than football. He said it?s more about life.

And because of that, he said he really sees no other way.

?A lot of it has to with my faith, and my values,? Glenn said. ?What I believe got me here isn?t a self-centered, selfish mentality or way of thinking.

?It?s more, ?Whatever you receive, you give that much more.???

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[Tesco Vee]

Re: INDIANAPOLIS COLTS News and Notes for 2007/2008

 

[The General]

Re: INDIANAPOLIS COLTS News and Notes for 2007/2008

As hard as it is to do, I'd like to see the Colts defend the title and get back 2 back SUPER BOWL RINGS. :houra

Very tough task though.

 

[The General]

END OF SESSION

END OF SESSION

Dungy Pleased with Colts' Summer-School Period



All in all, Tony Dungy saw about what he wanted.

Rookies learned from veterans.

Veterans practiced with intensity and focus.

And overall, progress was made.

As far as Dungy, who is entering his sixth season as the Colts? head coach, is concerned, that?s pretty much what he wants from a summer-school session.

?I?m excited about our guys, just the way we?re working,? Dungy said.

The Colts, the four-time defending AFC South Champions and defending Super Bowl champions, finished their four-week summer school this week. Wednesday morning marked the last of the team?s 13 organized team activities ? OTAs, as they are known ? for the 2007 off-season.

The Colts? off-season conditioning program began a few weeks later than normal, and Dungy said the work was scaled back to provide a chance to recover from a fifth consecutive playoff appearance.

But quality was the goal, Dungy said. Not quantity.

And he said quality was what the Colts gave over the last month.

?We scaled it back a little bit and condensed the work, but when it was time to work, these guys did a great job,? Dungy said. ?Our veterans did a good job of setting the pace and our young guys did a great job of following.

?It was good and I think we got accomplished what we need to.?

The Colts, 29-17 winners over the Chicago Bears in Super Bowl XLI in February, visited the White House in late April, and on Wednesday night, they received their Super Bowl rings in a private ceremony.

Those are just a few of the off-field events in which Colts players have participated in the four-and-half months since returning from Miami, but Dungy said the players have maintained focus on the 2007 season.

?You always wonder with a new situation, and there was so much outside . . . I don?t want to call them distractions, but fun things,?? Dungy said. ?We had guys, I know, get asked to a lot of things. I can tell just by the number of things I was asked to do what?s come to them.

?I think they kept it all in perspective and did it and had fun with it. When it was time to work, they worked and the concentration was there.?

Forty previous teams have won Super Bowls, and of those, eight have repeated as Super Bowl champions. The last team to repeat was New England in 2004, and before that, Denver won back-to-back Super Bowls following the

1997 and 1998 seasons.

Colts kicker Adam Vinatieri played on the 2003 and 2004 Patriots teams, and defensive tackle Anthony McFarland played for Tampa Bay in 2002 when the Buccaneers won the Super Bowl. The presence of such experience has helped this off-season, Dungy said.

?I think the key is having solid guys who have been there ? guys like Adam and Anthony McFarland, who have come off it and understand and are able to talk to other guys about it,? Dungy said. ?But then, there are guys where that?s just what they do. We have so many guys where they only know one way to go and everyone follows that lead.?

Dungy said that sort of player has been typified this off-season by veteran left tackle Tarik Glenn. A three-time Pro Bowl selection, he has worked extensively on and off the field with rookie offensive lineman Tony Ugoh, the team?s second-round draft selection.

That approach is something Dungy said he discussed in his final summer-school meeting with the team Wednesday.

?That?s part of the whole process, getting everybody as good as they can be,? Dungy said. ?Last year at this time, I don?t know that we would have sat here and said, '(Offensive tackle) Charlie Johnson, (safety) Antoine Bethea and (cornerback) Kelvin Hayden are going to play critical roles in the last game of the year, so we better get them ready.

?Everybody just takes the approach that whoever?s here is going to help us. We all just get them ready.?

Dungy said his belief is that such an approach is the mark of a championship team, as is the ability to prepare and maintain focus throughout the off-season. While the summer-school session ended Wednesday, the team?s voluntary off-season conditioning program did not.

Dungy said participation in the program has been critical in the past, and he said he expects that to continue, too.

?Everybody?s got to handle it individually, but I reminded them Wednesday that historically the guys who have had the most success are the guys who have stayed with (Strength and Conditioning Coaches) Jon (Torine) and Rich (Howell) and worked here,? Dungy said. ?That?s the ultimate ? the best chance for being in great condition and staying away from injuries.

?If not, they?ve got get with them, get individual programs and do what we ask them to do. We have guys who do that, too. It?s really what?s best for that individual guy, knowing what he has to do to get himself ready.?


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[The General]

Re: INDIANAPOLIS COLTS News and Notes for 2007/2008

Off-Season Has Been Productive and Positive, Polian Says



As far as Bill Polian is concerned, there was much to like about the off-season.

Injuries stayed at a minimum.

The draft class performed to expectations.

And, perhaps most importantly, Polian ? Colts? President ? said the team has shown no negative aftereffects of February?s Super Bowl Championship.

?It?s been business as usual,? Polian said Friday. ?But that?s the way we?ve always been. It hasn?t changed an iota from what it was a year ago.?

Polian, entering his 10th season as the Colts? President, on Friday discussed the team?s recently completed summer-school session, along with several topics concerning the organization?s first off-season as Super Bowl champions in 36 years.

Overall, Polian said, he is ?very pleased.?

?I think we did a good job working with our young people, getting them up to speed,? Polian said of the summer-school period, 13 days of organized team activities that concluded with a practice Wednesday at the Colts? Training Facility.

?The veterans did a terrific job of leadership. We?ve been working hard to improve in some areas. The conditioning looks terrific. From an injury standpoint, we had our best summer-school session ever. We?re very pleased. I hope we can keep it up.?

Polian said while rookie cornerback Antonio Smith has a collarbone injury, veterans such as recently-acquired tight Mike Seidman, 2005 Pro Bowl safety Bob Sanders and 2004-2006 Pro Bowl defensive end Dwight Freeney should be ready for training camp.

The Colts are scheduled to report to training camp at the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology in Terre Haute on July 29.

?There will be some guys who will be on one-a-day programs, but that?s just precautionary,? Polian said. ?Other than that, we?ll be ready to go.?

The top priorities before training camp, Polian said, are reaching a long-term agreement with Freeney, and establishing the groundwork to sign the team?s nine selections in this past April?s 2007 NFL Draft.

?That becomes the immediate focus right now,? Polian said of Freeney, who is currently designated the team?s Franchise Player.

?Not that it will get done overnight, but we?ve been talking and will continue.?

Polian said there may be several roster moves before training camp and said one could involve running back James Mungro, who played with the Colts from 2002-2006. He missed much of last season with a knee injury and has not yet been re-signed.

?The question is how do we structure the roster and that?s related to how we shore up the positions where we?re going to need people to take reps in training camp and the preseason,? Polian said. ?We have a number of one (practice)-a-day guys at those positions. It?s not quite as easy as saying, ?We?re going to re-sign James.?

?We only have 80 spots and you have to make sure you?re in a position to be protected at all of those spots. If it?s possible, we?d like to do it.?

Running back, Polian said, could be a key position during camp. Second-year veteran Joseph Addai, the leading rusher among NFL rookies last season, is expected to enter camp as the starter, with second-year veteran DeDe Dorsey, Canadian Football League veteran Kenton Keith and rookie free agent Clifton Dawson among the reserves.

?The one area where the preseason will tell us a lot is at the backup running back spot,? Polian said.

Addai last season shared time at running back with veteran Dominic Rhodes, one of several veterans who signed elsewhere in the off-season as free agents. Rhodes signed with the Oakland Raiders, with linebacker Cato June signing with Tampa Bay, cornerback Nick Harper signing with Tennessee and cornerback Jason David signing with New Orleans.

Such departures ? while unpleasant ? were an expected part of the off-season, Polian said.

?The system we operate under ? the Collective Bargaining Agreement and other facets ? is designed specifically to weaken teams like us,? Polian said. ?We get a double in it because if you are a team that drafts well and whose focus is on the draft and you do well, you are automatically handicapped.

?(Colts Owner and Chief Executive Officer) Jim (Irsay) and I were part of the group that originally constructed it (the CBA) in 1993 and we recognized that. One of the things that (then-NFL Commissioner) Paul Tagliabue spoke to the (NFL Players? Association) union about was that this system would create competitive balance not only because it would give weaker teams the opportunity to sign free agents, but it would in fact weaken the stronger teams, particularly the teams that drafted well. If you draft well, by definition, you?ve hit on second-day players. You can?t keep those second-day players. That?s the bottom line.

?You look at Jason David and Cato June: a fourth- and a sixth-(rounder), respectively. Nick Harper, a free agent signed from (the CFL). The system is designed to let those guys go free and to handicap you. Do we like it? No. Are we inured to it? Yes. Would we be the Super Bowl champions without this system? Without question, we would not. We would probably be akin to a very small-market, uncompetitive, major league baseball team.?

Many of the team?s draft selections have been participating in the team?s off-season conditioning program, and many practiced in the summer-school sessions.

Polian said while it is too early to know exactly what roles the rookies will play, they have shown early that ?athletically, they are what we expected them to be.?

?No surprises,? Polian said. ?As (Senior Consultant to Player Personnel) Dom Anile used to say, ?That?s one of the cornerstones of what our scouting program is all about.? We don?t want any surprises when they step out there on the field. What we tell the coaches they?re going to be is what we hope they will be, and should be. That has been the case. We?ll now find out where they fit once they put the pads on and begin to play preseason games.

?Now, we?ll find out. That?s what training camp and the preseason is all about. Let?s see what slots we?ll fit them into.?

Polian said Friday the Colts won?t approach the 2007 as a team trying to repeat as Super Bowl champions. Last year, he said, is over and every season is its own entity. Colts players, Polian said, already have shown the correct approach to the coming season, dealing professionally with the slew of potential distractions.

?What?s gone on inside this building this off-season is exactly what has gone on the past five years,? Polian said. ?What?s gone on outside is total different. You?re in demand. Everybody in the organization is in demand not only in Indiana, but around the country. All of the other things that go with winning the Super Bowl ? when I sit back and reflect on it, it?s absolutely incredible.?

Polian said he was ?shocked ? totally shocked? by the aftermath of the Super Bowl, but said the off-season approach has been steady and normal.

?(Colts Head Coach) Tony (Dungy), and to a lesser extent myself, have preached to them almost from Day One about perception and reality,? Polian said. ?I think they?ve bought into it. They understand what is perception and what is reality.

?I think you see that reflected in how they prepare and how they go about their business.?


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[The General]

At New Position, Off-Season an Important Time for Linebacker Rob Morris

At New Position, Off-Season an Important Time for Linebacker Rob Morris

INDIANAPOLIS - The veteran took little for granted this off-season.
He didn't approach drills casually. Not that he ever did. But for Rob Morris, his seventh off-season in the NFL had unusual importance for an experienced veteran.

Because in one sense, he?s not so experienced at all.

?There are a lot of things I have to learn,? Morris said during the Colts? recent four-week summer-school program, which concluded this past Wednesday at the team?s Training Facility in Indianapolis.

A learning curve?

For an eight-year veteran?

Absolutely, Morris said, and for a simple reason:

Although Morris, the Colts? first-round selection in the 2000 NFL Draft, is one of the most familiar names and faces on the roster, and although he has started 74 NFL regular- and postseason games, he is in a very real sense, a second-year player.

At his new position, anyway.

Morris, after spending his career as a middle linebacker, moved late last season to the strong side, where he will enter training camp as the Colts? starter.

?Really, for me, it?s not so much the meeting time and the walkthroughs, although those are good,? Morris said. ?For me, it?s being out there out on the field practicing full speed.

?That really helps me the most.?

Morris, who started at middle linebacker from 2001-2004, spent the 2005 season as a backup at the position, then remained a backup for three months last season.

But in December, with the defense struggling to stop the run, Morris was inserted into the lineup at strong-side backer.

He started the last three regular-season games at the spot.

He started all four postseason games there, too.

And in the postseason, the Colts ? who ranked 32nd among 32 NFL teams against the run in the regular season with 173 yards per game allowed ? led the league in rushing defense, allowing more than 100 yards just once in four games.

Safety Bob Sanders was one reason for the improvement.

But Colts Head Coach Tony Dungy and President Bill Polian each said after the season Morris? play was, too.

?He really typifies what you preach as a coach,? Dungy said. ?You preach to give your best and be ready whenever the opportunity arises and really be a team player. Rob has done that. Whatever job he has had, he?s done it very well and really led by example. You can preach that as a coach, but to see it, that means more to the players when you can point and say, 'This is what it?s all about.???

Now, entering his eighth NFL training camp, Morris is starting again.

This time, he?s starting at strong side.

?He?s still learning the new position, and I think we had just the right amount of time with him here,? Dungy said. ?It?s exciting for him, and really a new challenge. He?s really fine-turning what he built on last year. I know it has been fun, and he has had a twinkle in his eye about being here and getting it done.?

Counting the seven games he played there last season, how many games has Morris played on the strong side? Seven, he said with a laugh.

?Never played until last season,? said Morris, the second-most experienced player on the Colts? defense behind defensive tackle Anthony ?Booger? McFarland. ?This is really my first time really practicing at this position.

?There are a lot of things I have to learn. There are some things I?m pretty good at and some things I?m not so good at. This is a good time to work on those things.?

Which is what Morris said he tried to do during the team?s recent mini-camps and summer-school sessions ? that, after missing the team?s last two summer-school sessions. He was unsigned in 2005 and was finishing his degree at Brigham Young University last off-season. This season, he attended to work with a young defense on which he is suddenly very much a leader.

The Colts this off-season lost several veteran leaders. Linebacker Cato June signed with Tampa Bay. Cornerback Nick Harper signed with Tennessee. Defensive tackle Montae Reagor signed with Philadelphia. Cornerback Jason David signed with New Orleans.

How much the departures will impact a defense that improved drastically in the postseason Morris said he?s not sure.

?We?re young,? Morris said. ?We?re real young. A lot of people say, ?Well, they?re young and that?s a bad thing.? I?m not so sure it?s a bad thing. (Cornerbacks) Kelvin (Hayden) and Marlin (Jackson) have big-game experience ? the biggest game experience. (Safety) Matt Giordano has played a lot. (Safeties) Bob (Sanders) and Antoine (Bethea) have played.

?We have young guys, but we don?t have a lot of inexperience. We have a lot of youth. There?s a difference.?

Just how much Morris said he will still have to learn when the season begins, he said he?s not completely sure. On the one hand, it?s a new position.

On the other hand, he said, he did play seven games there last season.

?I think the novelty has worn off, with going through the playoffs,? Morris said of the new role. ?Even if the year would have ended last year and we hadn?t made that (postseason) run, I think it would have not sunken in yet. I started seven games, and that?s almost half a season. I feel like I got some experience, but it will be a learning process for me.

?I don?t look at it any different for me than playing the mike (middle) or being the backup and playing special teams. You prepare the same way for whatever happens.?

That approach, Morris said, helped him the past two seasons, which were at times difficult ones. After starting four seasons, he moved into a backup role in 2005, developing into one of the team?s top special teams players. It was a role he continued to play last season. During those two seasons, Morris ? who averaged 114 tackles from 2001-2004 ? had a total of 63 tackles on defense.

But at the same time, he had 42 special teams tackles ? 21 in each season ? and led Indianapolis in the category last season.

?You see it all over the league, and to some extent on this team: the up-and-down guys, they?re not here anymore,? Morris said.

Now, he is not only still with the Colts, with the off-season departure of cornerback Nick Harper, he became the only defensive player to predate the 2002 arrival of Dungy.

As for whether that?s a good or bad thing, Morris said he?s not sure, and neither is it something he goes around discussing much.

?I guess that?s good,? he said with a laugh. ?That means somebody likes me. It?s good for me. I don?t want to say anything to anyone, because they may think about it and say, ?Let?s get rid of that guy.? The only thing I think of is some of these young guys don?t know how good they?ve got it here.

?I think I do. That?s why I?ve been so happy to stick around in whatever capacity.?


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