Manning Mania, Official Colts Thread

[FGators]

It's Manning Time......Official Colts Thread

Well, I do live in Philadelphia but I have always been an Indianapolis Colts fan. Especially a Peyton Manning fan. The guy gets a bad wrap because he hasn't excelled in the playoffs but he's still young and is on a Hall of fame path.

Here's a little article:
"Three Colts Rookies Still Not in Camp
TERRE HAUTE – The message from Colts President Bill Polian to the agents of two of the team’s three unsigned rookies Sunday was clear and concise:

Take it or leave it.

“You can use that,” Polian said Sunday afternoon after three Colts rookies – first-round selection and tight end Dallas Clark, second-round safety Mike Doss and third-round cornerback Donald Strickland – failed to report for training camp at the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology.

Polian said he was particularly disappointed in negotiations with agents for Strickland and Doss. The Colts extended what Polian said were fair and reasonable offers to both Saturday morning.

On Saturday afternoon and again Sunday morning, Polian said the agents informed the team the offers weren’t good enough.

“They had to have incentives,” Polian said. “We’ve said all along we normally give Pro Bowl (incentives) and stuff like that. We’d consider it. But anything else, no. We’ve never done it and we’re not going to do it now.

“So, they (Doss and Strickland) are out and they’ll be out as long as they’re out. I could care less, to be truthful.”

Polian said not being in camp will hurt the players.

“It’s the players who suffer,” he said.

He also said the team – with veteran safety Cory Bird healthy and ready and Joseph Jefferson, David Macklin and Nick Harper competing at corner opposite veteran Walt Harris – is fine at both positions without the rookies. Polian also said the offers made to those two players were final.

“That’s all they’re getting – whether it’s today or a month (from now),” Polian said. “We have an obligation to be fair to the players. That’s all we have an obligation to do and we’ve done that. We’ve met the standard that we are required by fairness to meet.

“We could choose not to be fair. We could be like some other clubs and low-ball them, but we haven’t done that. The agents just want more. Why? Because they want more.”

Polian said negotiations with Clark’s agent were ongoing, and that his being unsigned was primarily a function of the NFL’s salary cap structure rather than acrimony between the team and agent.

“We’re still talking,” Polian said. “I’m not optimistic anything will get done tonight nor tomorrow. We’re trying.

“That’s probably more a function of a lousy system than anything else. "

I've seen Clark play at Iowa and he's got a chance to be a great NFL player.

I like Mike Doss, obviously the kid can be a leader and a winner. He carried the OSU secondary many times last year.

Let's get them signed.

[FGators]

James Arrives By Bus, Colts Report to Camp
TERRE HAUTE – The bus rolled over the hill. When it stopped, 50 kids emerged – many with blue-and-white, No. 32 jerseys – and it was official.

Edgerrin James had arrived.

Time for training camp to begin at last.

James, the Colts’ fifth-year running back and a two-time NFL rushing champion, arrived at training camp last July in a yellow-and-black taxi. Sunday, he arrived at the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology in a chartered bus, with Colts wide receiver Reggie Wayne and more than 50 children from Indianapolis and his hometown of Immokalee, Fla., also aboard.

“They wanted to see what it was like to come to training camp,” James said, smiling. “I really can’t explain it to them, so I’d rather just let them see for themselves.”

The children will attend both practices Monday, and James said the plan was for them to attend Bad Boys II Sunday night.

“They’re not just coming to drop me off,” James said. “It’s like a field trip so they can have fun before they get ready to go to school.

“They just like to have fun. This gives them a chance to do something they wouldn’t normally do. They were asking a lot of questions about it, so here they are.”

As was the case last season, James’ arrival was the highlight of the Colts’ reporting day, a day in which all players under contract arrived at Rose-Hulman by 2 p.m.

“It (training camp) is a necessary evil,” said defensive end Dwight Freeney, who set a franchise record with 13 sacks as a rookie last season. “The thing about (Colts Head Coach) Tony (Dungy) is he runs a good camp. He doesn’t run or beat us into the ground. Guys come to training camp now with a little more of a positive outlook because of the way Tony does things.”

Said Colts quarterback Peyton Manning, “This is the official beginning, although I really feel like it happened back in April. Last season is over with. This is a new team with new players. They have a new attitude and new goals.

“This is the official beginning of the 2003 season and I hope we will make it a good one.”

Three players – all rookies – remained unsigned as of Sunday: first-round selection Dallas Clark (tight end, Iowa), second-round selection Mike Doss (safety, Ohio State) and third-round selection Donald Strickland (cornerback, Colorado).

The Colts reached agreements with five of their eight draft selections last week.

Dungy, entering his second season as the Colts’ head coach, said camp this year should be less about acclimating players to a new system than last year’s, something he said should help preparations.

“It’s different, because I know the lay of the land,” Dungy said. “I think I know our players a little better and they know what to expect. We’re going to have veteran guys who can show the rookies how to do things. We’ll be a little more comfortable and that should make us more efficient.

“You can’t look back at last year, other than to see how you can improve. I love this time of year. This is when you determine how you’re going to be as a football team, if you’re going to get the chemistry down. I’m excited to be here.”

Said defensive tackle Josh Williams, “We’re going to have a great season. He’s a great coach and it’s a great group of guys. We just have to keep that confidence through the preseason.”

James’ arrival was news because of its nature, but it was also important because he is entering his second season since rehabilitating a knee injury that kept him out of the last 10 games of 2001. He rushed for 989 yards and two touchdowns on 277 carries last season, but has said since that he was hampered not only by the knee but by two high-ankle sprains.

James’ backup, Dominic Rhodes, is expected to be limited in practice early after missing all of last season with a torn anterior cruciate knee ligament.

Rhodes is one of three Colts veterans expected to practice on a once-a-day basis early in training camp. Fullback Detron Smith (ankle) and wide receiver Brandon Stokeley (foot) are also expected to be limited early.

“I’m looking to help anyway I can,” said Stokeley, who signed with the Colts as a free agent from the Baltimore Ravens and who was unable to participate in the Colts’ off-season workouts because of the injury.

“I’m just looking forward to contributing and to getting healthy. I’m looking forward to the season.

[FGators]

Here's the schedule:

Aug 9 at Chicago 8:00 PM
2 Aug 15 Seattle 8:00 PM
3 Aug 25 at Denver 8:00 PM
4 Aug 29 Cincinnati 9:00 PM


COMPLETE SCHEDULE & RESULTS
WK DATE OPPONENT TV TIME (ET)
1 Sep 7 at Cleveland CBS 1:00 PM
2 Sep 14 Tennessee CBS 1:00 PM
3 Sep 21 Jacksonville CBS 1:00 PM
4 Sep 28 at New Orleans ESPN 8:30 PM
5 Oct 6 at Tampa Bay ABC 9:00 PM
6 Oct 12 Carolina FOX 1:00 PM
7 BYE WEEK
8 Oct 26 Houston CBS 4:15 PM
9 Nov 2 at Miami CBS 1:00 PM
10 Nov 9 at Jacksonville CBS 1:00 PM
11 Nov 16 NY Jets CBS 4:05 PM
12 Nov 23 at Buffalo CBS 1:00 PM
13 Nov 30 New England CBS 1:00 PM
14 Dec 7 at Tennessee CBS 1:00 PM
15 Dec 14 Atlanta FOX 1:00 PM
16 Dec 21 Denver ESPN 8:30 PM
17 Dec 28 at Houston

[FGators]

NUM NAME POS AGE HT WT EXP COLLEGE
7 Brock Huard QB 27 6-4 232 4 Washington
18 Peyton Manning QB 27 6-5 230 5 Tennessee
- Brian Allen RB 23 5-9 209 1 Stanford
32 Edgerrin James RB 24 6-0 214 4 Miami (FL)
23 James Mungro RB 25 5-9 214 1 Syracuse
33 Dominic Rhodes RB 24 5-9 208 2 Midwestern Texas State
42 Detron Smith RB 29 5-10 229 7 Texas A&M
30 Shyrone Stith RB 25 5-8 205 3 Virginia Tech
35 Ricky Williams RB 24 5-7 195 1 Texas Tech
84 Drew Haddad WR 24 5-11 187 2 Buffalo
88 Marvin Harrison WR 30 6-0 175 7 Syracuse
15 Adam Herzing WR 22 6-2 197 1 Cal Poly
83 Brandon Stokley WR 27 5-11 197 4 Louisiana-Lafayette
86 Troy Walters WR 26 5-7 172 3 Stanford
87 Reggie Wayne WR 24 6-0 203 2 Miami (FL)
44 Dallas Clark TE 24 6-3 257 R Iowa
80 Joe Dean Davenport TE 26 6-6 268 2 Arkansas
81 Marcus Pollard TE 31 6-3 247 8 Bradley
85 Mike Roberg TE 25 6-4 263 1 Idaho
48 Justin Snow TE 26 6-3 232 3 Baylor
56 Tupe Peko C 24 6-4 300 1 Michigan State
63 Jeff Saturday C 28 6-2 291 4 North Carolina
78 Tarik Glenn OT 27 6-5 332 6 California
73 Adam Meadows OT 29 6-5 290 6 Georgia
74 Steve Sciullo OT 22 6-5 330 R Marshall
64 Rick DeMulling OG 26 6-4 304 2 Idaho
71 Ryan Diem OG 24 6-6 331 2 Northern Illinois
76 Makoa Freitas OG 23 6-4 307 R Arizona
61 Rob Murphy OG 26 6-5 310 1 Ohio State

Defense
NUM NAME POS AGE HT WT EXP COLLEGE
92 Chad Bratzke DE 31 6-5 270 9 Eastern Kentucky
79 Raheem Brock DE 25 6-4 257 1 Temple
93 Dwight Freeney DE 25 6-1 268 1 Syracuse
68 Joshua Mallard DE 24 6-2 254 1 Georgia
- Robert Mathis DE 22 6-0 231 R Alabama A&M
99 Brad Scioli DE 26 6-3 280 4 Penn State
97 James Cannida DT 28 6-2 305 5 Nevada
67 Hans Olsen DT 26 6-4 294 2 Brigham Young
95 David Pugh DT 24 6-2 270 1 Virginia Tech
90 Montae Reagor DT 26 6-3 285 4 Texas Tech
75 Larry Tripplett DT 24 6-2 314 1 Washington
96 Josh Williams DT 26 6-3 285 3 Michigan
58 J.R. Johnson LB 24 6-0 240 1 Syracuse
94 Rob Morris LB 28 6-2 243 3 Brigham Young
57 Jim Nelson LB 28 6-1 234 4 Penn State
54 Donnel Thompson LB 25 6-0 237 3 Wisconsin
50 David Thornton LB 24 6-2 230 1 North Carolina
53 Marcus Washington LB 25 6-3 247 3 Auburn
52 Keyon Whiteside LB 23 6-0 229 R Tennessee
31 Clifton Crosby CB 28 5-10 179 3 Maryland
25 Nick Harper CB 28 5-10 182 2 Fort Valley State
21 Walt Harris CB 28 5-11 192 7 Mississippi State
29 Joseph Jefferson CB 23 6-1 207 1 Western Kentucky
27 David Macklin CB 25 5-9 196 3 Penn State
30 Donald Strickland CB 22 5-10 187 R Colorado
28 Idrees Bashir S 24 6-2 198 2 Memphis
41 Cory Bird S 24 5-10 213 2 Virginia Tech
20 Rich Coady S 27 6-1 215 4 Texas A&M
34 Jason Doering S 25 6-0 201 2 Wisconsin
37 Mike Doss S 22 5-10 207 R Ohio State
26 David Gibson S 25 6-1 210 3 Southern California
- Cato June S 23 6-0 218 R Michigan

Kicker/Punter
NUM NAME POS AGE HT WT EXP COLLEGE
5 Brett Conway K 28 6-2 208 6 Penn State
13 Mike Vanderjagt K 33 6-5 211 5 West Virginia
17 Hunter Smith P 25 6-2 204 4 Notre Dame

Coaching Staff
NAME
Tony Dungy – Head Coach
Tom Moore – Offensive Coordinator
Ron Meeks – Defensive Coordinator

[FGators]

By John Oehser - Colts.com

Nearly Two Years Later, James Feels Fully Recovered
TERRE HAUTE – Edgerrin James wasn’t quite right Monday. He said he felt sluggish throughout the Colts’ first practice of 2003 training camp and he didn’t feel like himself. That’s the bad news.

The good news?

His problem was he had a cold.

“I don’t feel like I’m really into it,” James said after the Colts’ first practice of training camp, held Monday morning at the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology.

Still, considering what James – the Colts’ fifth-year running back and the two-time NFL rushing champion – has been through physically during past the 21 months, a cold is a manageable problem.

More important to James is the status of his left knee, a knee that kept him out of the last 10 games of 2001 and helped limit him throughout last season. James, who said throughout the off-season the knee was improving enough that he expected to be close to 100 percent when training camp began, said Monday his expectations had been fulfilled.

Training camp opened.

And in terms of his knee, Edge felt like Edge again.

“Everything looks cool,” he said.

“He looks good,” Colts offensive tackle Adam Meadows said Monday. “It’s Day 1, so we are all feeling pretty good, but he looks fine. He was making his cuts. We’re looking forward to getting him back.”

Which is good news for the Colts’ offense.

James, the fourth overall selection in the 1999 NFL Draft, led the NFL in rushing his first two seasons, making the Pro Bowl each season and being named NFL All-Pro each season. He was leading the NFL in rushing in 2001 when during a late October game against the Kansas City Chiefs, he twisted his left knee while being tackled.

James was out for the season, and spent the next 10 months rehabilitating.

He returned in time for training camp last season, but although James said throughout the season he was healthy, afterward he said he felt the aftereffects of the injury – and the extensive rehabilitation – throughout the season.

He also was hampered by two high-ankle sprains, and although he showed flashes of his 1999 and 2000 form, James finished the season with 989 yards and two touchdowns rushing on 277 carries.

Before last year’s training camp, James said he was fully healthy and ready.

This year, he’s saying it again, but he also said it feels a lot truer.

“It’s totally different now,” he said. “I was able to practice last year in training camp, but when you’re injured, you’re not able to do things back-to-back-to-back. Now, I’m able to go out and practice. I can cut and make moves. It’s not an issue.

“Now, practice is so much easier. It’s fun.”

James said late last season he was hampered by fatigue from rehabilitation more than he expected, but said this off-season he has been able to focus more on training. He also said he doesn’t think about the knee as much in practice, that he is more able to react naturally than at any time since the injury.

“I feel like you see it in a little bit of his body language more than anything else,” said Colts Head Coach Tony Dungy, who is entering his second season with the team. “He’s comfortable and has a smile on his face. He’s feeling confident about what he can do out there. I think he’s better. We’re expecting some big things.”

Whatever he does this season he’ll do in the same number he has worn since his rookie season, No. 32. He has worn the number he wore at the University of Miami – No. 5 – in mini-camp and summer school and is wearing it during training camp practices. He has requested to wear No. 5 during the season, but the NFL informed him it is against league policy for a running back to wear numbers outside 20-49.

Still, James said that’s a minor issue compared to what he considers his major issues – that of getting to the Super Bowl and getting back to feeling like Edge again.

“I feel like I’m just me,” James said. “I had to overcome a lot last year and that’s one thing I’ve always been able to do – overcome tough situations. It’s nothing new to me. It’s just something that I want to continue to do, keep working hard and take care of those things. Everything else will take care of itself.

[FGators]

By John Oehser - Colts.com

Cornerback Harper Confident, Taking Nothing for Granted
TERRE HAUTE – Nick Harper worked with the starting unit at cornerback Monday, as he often has during training camp. That’s great, he said and it’s what he wanted, but he also said something else.

It doesn’t mean much. Not yet.

Harper, entering his third season with the Colts, is competing for the starting cornerback spot opposite veteran Walt Harris. Throughout the first week of camp, he worked with the starters as much as any player competing. Still, Colts Head Coach Tony Dungy said Monday the position is very much an open competition between Harper, two-year starter David Macklin, second-year veteran Joseph Jefferson and rookie Donald Strickland.

Macklin is currently listed as the starter at the position.

“We’re trying to start over every year, to find out who our best 22 players are,” Colts Head Coach Tony Dungy said between practices Monday at the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology. “Everybody’s kind of focused on that position, but there are a lot of other spots open on defense, too. But there, we have great competition.

“I’m anxious to see these guys play in the preseason games, because it’s going to be who can make big plays and who can play within the structure of the defense.”

Harper considers the spot open, too.

“Everyday I come out and compete,” Harper said. “Nothing is set in stone. You’ve got to come out and compete everyday. The coaches expect you to compete everyday. You can’t go out and relax. No one can. I don’t look at it as if it’s mine. I look at it as if I have to compete in order to keep it.

“Now that they put me out there, I want to stay out there.”

Harper said the competition at the position between he and Macklin is competitive, yet friendly.

“When we do one on ones, we both want to go with the number one guys,’’ Harper said. “You don’t want to downplay the other guys, but you still want to work against the better receivers. We still do that.”

Also in Colts camp, the team returned to practice Monday after a day off following the first week of training camp. The team went through its third special teams practice of this year’s camp in the afternoon practice and worked on blitz and blitz pickup in the morning.

“Overall, I thought it was good after having a day and a half off,” Dungy said.

After an intrasquad scrimmage Saturday morning, the team had Saturday night off before reconvening for a team meeting Sunday night. The Colts will play the Chicago Bears in a preseason game Saturday at 7:05 p.m. in Champaign, Ill.

“It’s a little different,” Dungy said. “It’s a game week, but we have the first half of the week where we want to focus on fundamentals and get better as a team. At the end of the week, we’ll start focusing on Chicago.

“We don’t really game plan, but we’ll look at them and talk about things we want to do. We’ll structure it, but it really is still training camp.”

Dungy said it’s important for the Colts not to think of the game early in the week.

“That will come toward the end of the week,” Dungy said. “We’ve got a lot of stuff still to go in defensively and offensively. There are a lot of things we’re working on, so it’s really just taking in information at this point.

“About Thursday or Friday, we should start getting ready.”

Among the areas of interest entering the preseason: third-team quarterback, where Jim Kubiak and James MacPherson are competing for the position.

“So much of this offense for young guys is absorbing it and being able to manage the game,” Dungy said. “Both of these guys are smart guys, and they’re doing that well, so the preseason games I think will determine that No. 3 spot.”

Also Monday, reserve quarterback Brock Huard remained out because of personal reasons and the team signed cornerback Marcus Smith. Dungy said the signing of Smith was in part because of shoulder injuries currently keeping cornerbacks Donald Strickland and Darrell Rideaux out of practice.

“It was kind of to balance out the numbers,” Dungy said. “Darrell and Strickland both out kind of put us a little short at corner. I doubt they’ll get any activity this week, but they’re both doing better.