week 1 | indianapolis colts(0-0) vs. chicago bears (0-0) 1...
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Week 1 | Indianapolis Colts (0-0) vs. Chicago Bears (0-0)1 p.m. (ET) | Sunday, September 9, 2012 | Soldier Field
The Indianapolis Colts open the2012 regular season on the roadagainst the Chicago Bears. Thegame will mark the start of anew era in Colts football led byGeneral Manager Ryan Grigsonand Head Coach ChuckPagano, who were hired in Jan-uary 2012 to lead the franchise.The Colts finished the presea-son with a 2-2 record, recordingwins against St. Louis andCincinnati, both at home. As a
team, the Colts ranked second in the AFC in passing yards(267.5 avg.) and total offense (343.8 avg.). Quarterback An-drew Luck was equally impressive, as he finished the pre-season completing 41-of-66 passes (62.1%) for 522 yards,three touchdowns and a passer rating of 89.3. Luck led theAFC in passing yards, while tying for second in completionsand touchdowns.The Colts and Bears will compete against each other for the41st time overall, as the Colts hold the all-time series edgeat 22-18. The last time these two teams met was in the 2008regular season opener, with the Bears coming out on top,29-13.The Colts will return home for the following two weeks, asthey host the Minnesota Vikings and Jacksonville Jaguarsbefore taking off for their bye week.
Indianapolis Colts outside line-backer Dwight Freeney
Avis Roper - Senior Director of [email protected]
Matt Conti - Football Communications [email protected]
TV coverage: CBSPlay-by-Play: Greg GumbelColor Analyst: Dan DierdorfRadio coverage: WFNI & WLHKPlay-by-Play: Bob LameyColor Analyst: Will WolfordSideline: Kevin Lee
COLTS OPEN REGULAR SEASON WITH BEARS BROADCAST INFORMATION
Monday, September 32 p.m. – Coach Pagano AvailableAfter Coach Pagano – Select Players AvailableTuesday, September 4No Availability – Players’ Day OffWednesday, September 5Noon – Coach Pagano available12:15-1 p.m. – Player Availability1:40 p.m. – Practice (Limited Availability)Thursday, September 6Noon – Coordinators Available12:15-1 p.m. – Player Availability1:40 p.m. – Practice (Limited Availability)Friday, September 711:00 a.m. – Practice (Limited Availability)After Practice – Coach Pagano AvailableAfter Practice – Player InterviewsSaturday, September 8No AvailabilitySunday, September 9Indianapolis Colts at Chicago Bears – 1 p.m. EST
MEDIA AVAILABILITY - SEPTEMBER 3-9
Brett Maikowski - Communications [email protected]
Pam Humphrey - Public Relations [email protected]
Team W L T PCT. PTS. OPP.Houston 3 1 0 .750 101 80Jacksonville 3 1 0 .750 100 117Tennessee 3 1 0 .750 89 67Indianapolis 2 2 0 .500 99 75Week 1 AFC South ScheduleSunday, September 9New England at Tennessee, 1 p.m.Jacksonville at Minnesota, 1 p.m.Miami at Houston, 1 p.m.All times Eastern @NFLColts
COLTS ONLINE
Facebook.com/Colts
2012 FINAL PRESEASON AFC SOUTH STANDINGS
TABLE OF CONTENTS/IMPORTANT DATES
Preseason (2-2)Date Opponent Time Result8/12 ST. LOUIS 1:30 p.m. W, 38-38/19 at Pittsburgh 8 p.m. L, 26-248/25 at Washington 4 p.m. L, 30-178/30 CINCINNATI 7 p.m. W, 20-16Regular Season (0-0)Date Opponent Time Result/Network9/9 at Chicago 1 p.m. CBS9/16 MINNESOTA 1 p.m. FOX9/23 JACKSONVILLE 1 p.m. CBS9/30 BYE10/7 GREEN BAY 1 p.m. FOX10/14 at New York Jets 1 p.m. CBS10/21 CLEVELAND 1 p.m. CBS10/28 at Tennessee 1 p.m. CBS11/4 MIAMI 1 p.m. CBS11/8 at Jacksonville 8:20 p.m. NFL Network11/18 at New England 1 p.m. CBS*11/25 BUFFALO 1 p.m. CBS*12/2 at Detroit 1 p.m. CBS*12/9 TENNESSEE 1 p.m. CBS*12/16 at Houston 1 p.m. CBS*12/23 at Kansas City 1 p.m. CBS*12/30 HOUSTON 1 p.m. CBS** Denotes Flexible Scheduling
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Game Preview/Media Availability........................................1Important Dates/Schedule ..................................................2Head Coach Comparison....................................................3Opponent Information ......................................................4-5Probable Starters/Key Reserves.........................................6Schedule Notes...................................................................7Colts Notes ......................................................................8-9Reggie Wayne Notes ...................................................10-11Dwight Freeney Notes .................................................12-13Robert Mathis Notes .........................................................14Andrew Luck Notes...........................................................15Adam Vinatieri Notes ...................................................16-17Redding, Bethea, Powers Notes.......................................18
TABLE OF CONTENTS
2012 INDIANAPOLIS COLTS SCHEDULE
2012Wednesday, Sunday-Monday, September 5, 9-10Regular Season opens.Tuesday, September 25Priority on multiple waiver claims is now based on currentseason’s standings.Tuesday, October 16NFL Fall League Meeting, Chicago, Illinois.All trading ends at 4:00 p.m., New York time.Tuesday, November 13Signing period ends at 4:00 p.m., New York time, for Fran-chise Players who are eligible to receive Offer Sheets.Deadline for Clubs to sign prior to 4:00 p.m., New York time,their unsigned Franchise Players, including Franchise Play-ers who were eligible to receive Offer Sheets until this date,their Unrestricted Free Agents to whom tender was made onJune 1 and their Restricted Free Agents including those towhom tender was made on August 25. If such players remainunsigned after this date, they are prohibited from playing inthe NFL in 2012.Monday, December 31Clubs may begin signing free agent players for the 2013 sea-son.
2013Saturday-Sunday, January 5-6Wild Card Playoff Games.Saturday-Sunday, January 12-13Divisional Playoff Games.Sunday, January 20AFC and NFC Championship Games.Sunday, January 27AFC-NFC Pro Bowl, Aloha Stadium, Honolulu, Hawaii.Sunday, February 3Super Bowl XLVII, Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana.
IMPORTANT NFL DATES
The Indianapolis Colts media website can be found by goingto http://media.colts.com. You will be required to registerand create a username online before having access to thesite.On the site, you will find all Colts information distributed tothe media, including press releases, transcripts, daily note-books, game releases, team statistics, player bios and mediaschedules/availabilities.
COLTS MEDIA SITE
HEAD COACH COMPARISON
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Coaching Years in NFL: 11th YearColts Head Coach: 1st YearRegular Season: 0-0 (.000)Postseason: 0-0 (.000)The Indianapolis Colts ushered in a newera with the hiring of Chuck Pagano toserve as the team’s new head coach onJanuary 25, 2012. Pagano brings a wealth
of experience, totaling 28 years in the professional and col-legiate ranks. Prior to joining the Colts, Pagano spent four seasons withthe Baltimore Ravens and the last (2011) as the team’s de-fensive coordinator. In 2011, Pagano’s defensive unit fin-ished third in the NFL in total defense (288.9 ypg.), secondagainst the run (92.6 ypg.) and fourth against the pass(196.3 ypg.), on their way to an appearance in the AFCChampionship Game. The Ravens also led the league inforced fumbles (21) and had the third-most sacks in the NFL(48.0), including a franchise record-tying 9.0 in Week 12against San Francisco.Pagano served as the Ravens' secondary coach for threeseasons (2008-2010) before taking the reins of defensivecoordinator. In Pagano’s first season with the Ravens (2008), the sec-ondary ranked second against the pass (179.7 ypg.) as thedefense ranked No. 2 overall in the league, a drastic im-provement from a No. 20 finish in 2007. In addition, theteam led the NFL with 26 interceptions, including Ed Reed’sNFL-high nine picks. Reed, the league’s only unanimous(50 votes) All-Pro in 2008, was also coached by Pagano atthe University of Miami.In 2009, Pagano guided an injury-depleted secondary to aneighth-overall ranking against the pass (207.3 ypg.). Thedefense also finished the year ranked No. 3 overall (300.5ypg.), the seventh-straight top six finish. The defensivebacks tallied 16 of the team’s 22 interceptions and Balti-more’s turnover ratio (+10) was fourth best in the NFL.In his four seasons in Baltimore, Pagano’s defenses allowedthe second-fewest points per game (16.3) and the second-fewest net yards (292.3) in the NFL. The Ravens alsoranked third in the NFL in scoring defense during that span.
Prior to Baltimore,Pagano guided the de-fensive backfields for theOakland Raiders (2005-06) and ClevelandBrowns (2001-04) beforeserving a one-year stintas the defensive coordi-nator for the University ofNorth Carolina in 2007.Pagano also coachedcollegiately at Miami,East Carolina, UNLV,Boise State and USC.
Coaching Background1984-85 USC Grad. Assist.1986 Univ. of Miami Grad. Assist.1987-88 Boise State OLBs1989 East Carolina Secondary1990-91 UNLV Def. Coord./
Secondary1992-94 East Carolina Secondary/
OLBs1995-2000 Univ. of Miami Secondary/
Special Teams2001-04 Browns Secondary2005-06 Raiders DBs2007 North Carolina Def. Coord.2008-10 Ravens Secondary2011 Ravens Def. Coord.2012 Colts Head Coach
Coaching Years in NFL: 17th YearBears Head Coach: 9th YearRegular Season: 71-57 (.555)Postseason: 3-3 (.500)Lovie Smith enters his ninth season as thehead coach of the Chicago Bears, tied forthe second longest tenured head coach
with their current team in the NFC and tied for fourth longestin the NFL. Smith has led the Bears to three division titles,two NFC Championship game appearances and the 2006NFC crown giving the Bears their first Super Bowl appear-ance in 21 years.One of just seven current head coaches to reach the 70-winplateau, Smith’s 74 wins are third most in franchise history,trailing only Hall of Famers George Halas and Mike Ditka.Smith set forth with three stated goals when he was hiredas the 13th head coach in Chicago Bears history on January15, 2004: end the decade of dominance by the Green BayPackers over the Bears, capture the NFC North Division forChicago and win the Super Bowl. The Bears have woneight-of-17 contests against Green Bay during Smith’stenure, contributing to Chicago winning the division in 2005,2006 and 2010. Smith agreed to a contract extension onFebruary 25, 2011 that maintains his position with the teamthrough 2013.Smith, the 2005 NFL Coach of the Year, has successfullylaid Chicago's foundation for success in eight seasons onthe job by establishing his cornerstone of aggressive defen-sive play.Finishing tied for fifth in the NFL in takeaways in 2011 with31, the Bears lead the league with 266 during Smith’s tenureas head coach. The defense has returned 25 of those 266takeaways for touchdowns, including six in 2011, and are18-5 (.782) in such contests. Over the last eight seasons,the Bears have scored 26.9 percent of their points off op-ponent turnovers, fifth-highest in the NFL. Chicago is alsotied for sixth in the NFL with 32 red-zone takeaways duringSmith’s tenure, including six in 2011 which was tied for sec-ond most in the league.Smith entered the league in 1996 as the Tampa Bay Buc-caneers’ linebackers coach, a position he held until 2000.Following that, he took over as the St. Louis Rams’ defen-sive coordinator from2001-03. Before enteringthe NFL, Smith coachedin the collegiate ranks for13 years at Ohio State(1995), Tennessee (1993-94), Kentucky (1992), Ari-zona State (1988-91),Wisconsin (1987) andTulsa (1983-86).
Coaching Background1983-86 Tulsa LBs1987 Wisconsin LBs1988-91 Arizona State LBs1992 Kentucky LBs1993-94 Tennessee DBs1995 Ohio State DBs1996-2000 Buccaneers LBs2001-03 Rams Def. Coord.2004-12 Bears Head Coach
COLTS HEAD COACH CHUCK PAGANO BEARS HEAD COACH LOVIE SMITH
Former Bears:•Offensive line coach Harold Goodwin was the offensive linecoach for the Chicago Bears from 2004-2006. •Colts WR- Kris Adams was signed to the Bears practicesquad in 2011.•Colts OLB- Mario Addison was originally signed by theBears in 2011. He was waived by the team mid-season. Former Colts•Bears DB- Kelvin Hayden was selected by the Colts in thesecond round of the 2005 NFL draft. Hayden was with theteam from 2005-2011.•Bears CB- Tim Jennings was drafted by the Colts in thesecond round (68th overall) of the 2006 draft. Jenningsplayed for the Colts from 2006-2009.Indiana/Illinois connections•Colts T- Anthony Castonzo is from Hawthorn Woods, IL.•Colts TE- Coby Fleener is from Lemont, IL.•Colts S- Tom Zbikowski is from Park Ridge, IL.•Colts QB- Chandler Harnish attended the Northern IllinoisUniversity.•Colts DB- Vontae Davis attended the University of Illinois.•Colts S- Sergio Brown is from Maywood, IL.•Bears QB- Jay Cutler is from Santa Claus, Ind.•Bears TE- Kyle Adams attended Purdue. NFL Connections•Colts C- Samson Satele and Bears RB- Michael Bushplayed together for the Oakland Raiders form 2009-2011.•Colts RB- Mewelde Moore and Bears TE- Matt Spaethplayed for the Pittsburgh Steelers from 2008-2009. •Colts DE- Cory Redding and Bears C- Chris Spencerplayed together for the Seattle Seahawks from 2009-2010. College Connections•Bears LB- Patrick Trahan and Colts CB- Cassius Vaughnwere teammates at the University of Mississippi. •Colts ILB- Moise Fokou and Bears G- Edwin Williamswere teammates at Maryland. Coaching Connections•Colts head coach Chuck Pagano and Bears linebackerscoach Bob Babich were defensive coaches at East Carolinafrom 1992-1993. •Colts quarterbacks coach Clyde Christensen worked withthe Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight ends (1996-98) and quar-terbacks (1999-2000) and Colts wide receivers coach Char-lie Williams held the same position in Tampa Bay whileBears Head Coach Lovie Smith was Tampa Bay’s lineback-ers coach from 1996-2000 and defensive coordinator/asst.head coach Rod Marinelli was Tampa Bay’s defensive linecoach•Bears offensive coordinator Mike Tice and Colts tight endscoach Alfredo Roberts coached together for the Jack-sonville Jaguars in 2001.
THIS WEEK’S OPPONENT: CHICAGO BEARS
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DATE RESULTS9/27/53 13-9 W10/11/53 16-14 W10/10/54 9-28 L11/21/54 13-28 L9/25/55 23-17 W10/16/55 10-38 L9/30/56 28-21 W10/21/56 27-58 L10/5/57 21-10 W11/17/57 29-14 W10/4/58 51-38 W11/16/58 17-0 W10/3/59 21-26 L10/18/59 21-7 W10/2/60 42-7 W11/13/60 24-20 W10/15/61 10-24 L10/29/61 20-21 L10/21/62 15-35 L11/25/62 0-57 L10/6/63 3-10 L
DATE RESULTS11/3/63 7-17 L9/27/64 52-0 W11/8/64 40-24 W11/7/65 26-21 W12/5/65 0-13 L10/9/66 17-27 L12/4/66 21-16 W10/8/67 24-3 W10/6/68 28-7 W11/23/69 24-21 W11/29/70 21-20 W9/21/75 35-7 W9/25/83 22-19 W*12/8/85 10-17 L9/11/88 13-17 L11/17/91 17-31 L11/5/00 24-27 L11/21/04 41-10 W2/4/07 29-17 W9/7/08 13-29 L
Regular Season: Colts lead, 22-18 Home: Colts lead, 11-9 Away: Colts lead, 11-9 Playoffs: Colts lead, 1-0 (Neutral Site)Colts Longest Series Streaks: Won 7, Lost 6Points Scored-Allowed: Colts, 877 - Bears, 825Home: Colts, 426 - Bears, 403Away: Colts, 422 - Bears, 405Sweeps: Colts (5): 1953,57,58,60,64 Bears (4): 1954,61,62,63Splits (5): 1955,56,59,65,66COLTS RECORD vs. BEARS:Memorial: 11-6 Hoosier/RCA: 0-2 Lucas Oil: 0-1 Wrigley Field: 9-7 Soldier Field: 2-2 Dolphin Stadium: 1-0 (neutral)
COLTS-BEARS ALL-TIME RECORDSCOLTS-BEARS NOTABLE CONNECTIONS
COLTS-BEARS ALL-TIME RESULTS
WR-Reggie Wayne had six receptions for 106 yards (17.7 avg.)and two touchdowns on 11/21/04. He also caught 10 passes for86 yards and a touchdown on 9/7/08.DE-Cory Redding made four solo tackles including a sack on11/2/08.OLB-Robert Mathis made six stops (four solo), including onesack on 9/7/08.K-Adam Vinatieri was successful on all four field goal attempts,including a 57-yarder on 11/10/02.QB-Drew Stanton went 16-of-24 for 178 yards and a touchdownfor a 102.4 rating on 12/5/10.RB-Mewelde Moore rushed for 57 yards on six carries (9.5 avg.)and caught six passes for 44 yards and a touchdown on 1/1/06.
NOTABLE PERFORMANCES AGAINST BEARS
Home games in boldPlayoff games underlined*Overtime
COLTS-BEARS SERIES INFO/LAST MATCHUP
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2011 Final Regular Season StatisticsColts (rank) Bears (rank)15.2 (28T) Points Per Game 22.1 (17)286.8 (30) Total Offense Per Game 314.1 (24)99.6 (26) Net Rushing Yards Per Game 125.9 (9)187.2 (27) Net Passing Yards Per Game 188.2 (26)
26:13 Possession Average 30:1326.9 (28) Opponent Points Per Game 21.3 (14)370.9 (25) Opponent Total Offense Per Game 350.4 (17)143.9 (29) Opponent Net Rushing Yards Per Game 96.4 (5)227.0 (15) Opponent Net Passing Yards Per Game 254.1 (28)-12 (26T) Turnover Differential +2 (11T)
2011 STATISTICAL COMPARISON
Leading Passers: Comp. Att. Yards TDs INTs RatingCurtis Painter 132 243 1,541 6 9 66.6Jay Cutler 182 314 2,319 13 7 85.7Leading Rushers: Att. Yards Avg. Long TDsDonald Brown 134 645 4.8 80t 5Matt Forte 203 997 4.9 46 3Leading Receivers: Rec. Yards Avg. Long TDsReggie Wayne 75 960 12.8 56t 4Johnny Knox 37 727 19.6 81 2
2011 REGULAR SEASON TEAM LEADERSGame 1September 7, 2008 Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, INThe Indianapolis Colts fell to the Bears, 29-13, in the 2008 seasonopener. The Colts took an early lead with a 39-yard Adam Vinatierifield goal, but the Bears quickly turned things around less than aminute later as RB-Matt Forte broke a 50-yard run for a touchdown.The Colts managed to kick a field goal and score a touchdown inthe second and third quarters, respectively, but the Bears respondedeach time with scores of their own. In the second quarter, the Coltswere backed up on their own 12-yard line when QB-Peyton Manningtook a sack for a loss of 10 yards. The following play, RB-JosephAddai was stopped on the goal line for a safety. In the third quarter,the Colts cut the Bears lead down to two, but another turnover even-tually put the game out of reach. WR-Marvin Harrison caught a five-yard pass, but lost the ball to Lance Briggs who took it for a 21-yardtouchdown return.SCORING SUMMARY
1 2 3 4 OT FBEARS 7 8 7 7 - 29COLTS 3 3 7 0 - 13
TEAM STATISTICSBears Colts
Total Net Yards 319 293Net Yards Rushing 183 53Net Yards Passing 136 240Total First Downs 17 23Third Down Efficiency 10-16-63% 5-11-45%Punts (Number and Average) 5-35.6 2-49.0Net Punting Average 34.0 36.5Penalties 7-60 6-40Fumbles (Number and Lost) 1-0 1-1Touchdowns 3 1Field Goals (Made and Attempted) 2-2 2-2Red Zone Efficiency 1-2-50% 1-3-33%Time of Possession 31:44 28:16
13-29
SCORING DRIVESTeam Qtr Time Scoring Play CHI INDColts 1 5:52 Vinatieri 39 yd. field goal 0 3Bears 1 4:59 Forte 50 yd. run (Gould kick) 7 3Colts 2 9:38 Vinatieri 34 yd. field goal 7 6Bears 2 4:43 Gould 41 yd. field goal 10 6Bears 2 3:59 Ogunleye safety 12 6Bears 2 0:00 Gould 25 yd. field goal 15 6Colts 3 9:18 Wayne 6 yd. pass from Manning 15 13
(Vinatieri kick)Bears 3 1:52 Briggs 21 yd. opp. fumble return 22 13
(Gould kick)Bears 4 8:56 McKie 1 yd. run (Gould kick) 29 13
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICSRUSHING: Ind. - Addai 12-44; Hart 1-7; Rhodes 2-2. Chi. - Forte 23-123-1; Jones 13-45-0; Orton 1-10; McKie 2-5-1.PASSING: Ind. - Manning 30-49-257, 1TD, 81.8 rating. Chi. - Orton 13-21-150, 83.4 ratingRECEIVING: Ind. - Wayne 10-86-1; Harrison 8-76; Gonzalez 5-48; Rhodes 4-30; Clark 1-8; Tamme 1-6; Addai 1-3. Chi. - Forte 3-18; Clark 2-46; Olsen 2-36; Lloyd 2-26; Davis 2-10; Hester 1-7; Booker 1-7.
LAST COLTS-BEARS MATCHUP
PASSINGG/GS A-C-I Yards TD Rating
Drew Stanton 1/1 24-16-1 178 1 102.4RUSHING
G/GS Att-Yards Avg. Long TDMewelde Moore 5/1 28-163 5.8 33 0Drew Stanton 1/1 5-12 2.4 6 1Donnie Avery 2/2 2-10 5.0 15 0RECEIVING
G/GS Rec-Yards Avg. Long TDReggie Wayne 2/2 16-192 12.0 35t 3Mewelde Moore 5/1 22-180 8.2 24 1Donnie Avery 2/2 4-44 11.0 18 0DEFENSE Tackles
G/GS S-A-Tot Sk-Yds PD INTCory Redding 11/11 21-2-23 3-8 0 0Robert Mathis 2/2 6-2-8 2-18 0 0Antoine Bethea 1/1 5-3-8 0-0 0 0Moise Fokou 3/2 6-1-7 0-0 0 0Tom Zbikowski 1/1 5-2-7 0-0 0 0Dwight Freeney 2/2 4-0-4 2-17 0 0Vontae Davis 1/1 3-1-4 0-0 1 0Justin King 1/0 1-0-1 0-0 0 0RETURNING
PR-Yds Avg. TD KR-Yds Avg. TDMewelde Moore 5-26 5.2 0 1-13 13.0 0KICKING
FGM-A Long XPM-A KO TBAdam Vinatieri 8-8 57 8-8 22 3
CAREER STATS AGAINST BEARS
PROBABLE STARTERS/KEY RESERVES
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WR Reggie Wayne - Has totaled 862 receptions for 11,708 yardsand 73 touchdowns, ranking second in all categories in franchisehistory. Leads all NFL active wide receivers with 145 consecutivestarts and 166 games played.LT Anthony Castonzo - The Colts’ 2011 first round draft pick re-turns for his second season after starting all 12 games he partici-pated in last year.LG Joe Reitz - Returns to the Colts for his second NFL season afterstarting nine-of-11 games in 2011.C Samson Satele - Signed by the Colts as an unrestricted freeagent this offseason and has started 74-of-78 games over thecourse of his career with the Raiders and Dolphins. RG Mike McGlynn - Signed by the Colts as an unrestricted freeagent this offseason and has started 18-of-26 games in his NFL ca-reer with the Eagles and Bengals.RT Winston Justice - Joins the Colts for his first season and hasstarted 31-of-47 career games, all with the Eagles. In 2009, wasnamed to the USA Today All-Joe Team. TE Coby Fleener - Indianapolis’ second round pick in the 2012 NFLDraft, Fleener appeared in 51 games (16 starts) with Stanford andamassed 1,543 yards and 18 touchdowns on 96 receptions. WR Austin Collie - Has totaled 172 receptions for 1,839 yards and16 touchdowns in 41 career games with the Colts. Was named tomultiple all-rookie teams in 2009.QB Andrew Luck - The two-time Heisman Trophy finalist set schoolcareer records for touchdown passes (82) and pass completion per-centage (67.0) at Stanford while logging 713 completions for 9,430yards.F Dwayne Allen - Winner of the John Mackey Award as a senior atClemson. In his collegiate career, started 33-of-41 games andrecorded 93 receptions for 1,079 yards and 12 touchdowns.RB Donald Brown - In 40 career games, has tallied 341 carries for1,423 yards and 10 touchdowns. Set a career-high with 645 rushingyards and five touchdowns in 2011.
OFFENSE
WR Donnie Avery - Signed by the Colts as an unrestriced freeagent on 3/26/12. In 39 career games (28 starts), has totaled 103receptions for 1,308 yards (12.7 avg.) and nine touchdowns.RB Vick Ballard - Selected by the Colts in the fifth round (170thoverall) of the 2012 NFL Draft. Led the team in rushing in the pre-season with 70 yards on 23 carries. Totaled 379 rushes for 2,157yards (5.6 avg.) and 29 touchdowns at Mississippi State.
NOTABLE OFFENSIVE RESERVES
DE Cory Redding - Joins the Colts for his first season and in 131career games (101 starts), has totaled 407 tackles (279 solo), 25.5sacks, one interception, nine fumble recoveries, four forced fumblesand 12 passes defensed. NT Antonio Johnson - The sixth-year veteran has compiled 134tackles, 1.5 sacks, one fumble recovery and two passes defensedin 53 career games (33 starts).DT Fili Moala - In three seasons with the Colts has recorded 65tackles, 2.0 sacks and one pass defensed. In 2011, posted 22 stopsand both of his career sacks. SLB Robert Mathis - A four-time Pro Bowl selection who ranks sec-ond all-time in franchise history with 83.5 sacks. Has four career10.0-plus sack seasons and has compiled 19 multiple-sack contestsand two career three-plus sack games.MIKE Kavell Conner - In two seasons with the Colts, has regis-tered 151 tackles, two forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries andtwo passes defensed.WILL Jerrell Freeman - Signed by the Colts to a reserve/future con-tract on 1/19/12. Played in the CFL for three years (2009-11) with theSaskatchewan Roughriders. Totaled 144 tackles, 13.0 sacks, threeinterceptions, four fumble recoveries and one touchdown.RUSH Dwight Freeney - A seven-time Pro Bowl selection and theall-time franchise leader in sacks with 102.5. Became the 26thplayer to top 100.0 career sacks in 2011. Is the only Colts playerwith seven double-digit sack seasons.LCB Vontae Davis - Acquired by the Colts in a trade with Miamion 8/26/12. In 44 games (36 starts), has totaled 142 tackles (126solo), 32 passes defensed and nine interceptions.SS Tom Zbikowski - Has competed in 53 career games andrecorded 49 tackles, one sack, two interceptions, five passes de-fensed and 58 special teams stops.FS Antoine Bethea - A two-time Pro Bowl choice who has led theColts in interceptions over the last six seasons with 12. Has toppedthe 100-tackle mark in each of the last four seasons.RCB Jerraud Powers - Has started all 34 contests he has partici-pated in and has posted 175 tackles, five interceptions, one forcedfumble, one fumble recovery and 25 passes defensed.
DEFENSE
OLB Jerry Hughes - Selected by the Colts in the first round (31stoverall) of the 2010 NFL Draft. Has played in 24 career games (onestart), totaling 15 tackles (10 solo) and one sack.ILB Moise Fokou - Acquired by the Colts in a trade with thePhiladelphia Eagles on 8/2/02. Has played in 43 career games,making 22 starts and tallying 98 tackles (66 solo), one sack, fourpasses defensed and two forced fumbles.
NOTABLE DEFENSIVE RESERVES
K Adam Vinatieri - Has converted 387-of-467 career field goals (82.9%), which currently ranks 11th all-time in NFL history. Has totaled1,752 career points (including one two-point conversion), which ranks ninth in league annals and first among active players in the AFC.Has made 23 game-winning field goals in the final minute of the fourth quarter or overtime.P Pat McAfee - Set a franchise record with a 46.6 gross punting average in 2011. Posted the second-best total for net punting averagein franchise history with a 39.2 mark last season. Named to the PFW/PFWA and The Sporting News NFL All-Rookie Teams.LS - Matt Overton - Signed as a free agent by the Colts on April 2, 2012. Spent three years in the United Football League (2009-11) withthe Florida Tuskers and most recently the Omaha Nighthawks. Earned recognition as the league’s best long snapper in 2010.
SPECIAL TEAMS
SCHEDULE NOTES
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Date Opponent All-Time Series Home/Road Record Note9/9 at Chicago 22-18 R: 11-9 The Colts open the season with the Bears as they
did in their last meeting in 2008. The Colts last tripto Chicago was successful, ending in a 41-10 winat Soldier Field in 2004.
9/16 MINNESOTA 14-7-1 H:9-0 The Colts look to extend their current three-gamewinning streak and perfect 9-0 home recordagainst the Vikings.
9/23 JACKSONVILLE 15-7 H:8-3 After losing both games of the season series toJacksonville for the first time in franchise historylast season, the Colts will look to bounce back andimprove on their 8-3 record at home.
10/7 GREEN BAY 20-20-1 H: 12-8-1 The Packers will make their first trip to Lucas OilStadium. C-Jeff Saturday will return to Indianapolisafter spending the last 13 years with the team.
10/14 at N.Y. Jets 40-26 A: 21-12 The Colts will travel to MetLife Stadium for the firsttime. In their last meeting, the Jets kicked a game-winning field goal with :03 remaining in regulationto end the Colts season in the Wild Card round.
10/21 CLEVELAND 12-14 H: 5-9 The Colts will host the Browns for the second con-secutive year and try to improve on their 5-9 homerecord. The Colts have won five of the last sixmeetings between the teams.
10/28 at Tennessee 21-13 A: 8-7 The Colts are 3-3 playing in Tennessee over thelast six seasons. The Colts have swept two of thelast three season series dating back to 2009.
11/4 MIAMI 24-44 H:13-21 The Colts look to extend their current three-gamewinning streak over the Dolphins. Nine of the last11 games have been decided by a touchdown-or-less.
11/8 at Jacksonville 15-7 A: 7-4 The Colts have not won in Jacksonville since 2009,a 35-31 win. The Colts had a two-game winningstreak going into the finale last season, but wereunable to overcome the 19-6 fourth-quarter deficit.
11/18 at New England 28-44 A: 12-24 At 72 regular season meetings, the Colts haveplayed the Patriots more than they’ve played anyother team. This will mark the 10th straight seasonthe two teams have gone up against each other.
11/25 BUFFALO 30-35-1 H:17-14-1 Since the 2000 season, the Colts have gone 6-1against the Bills. Buffalo will make its first-ever tripto Lucas Oil Stadium.
12/2 at Detroit 20-18-2 A: 9-9-1 The Colts will look to add to their three-game win-ning streak over the Lions. With a victory, the Coltswould tie their longest winning streak over Detroit.
12/9 TENNESSEE 21-13 H: 13-6 The Colts picked up their first win of the 2011 sea-son at home against the Titans. The Colts havewon their last four home games against Tennessee.
12/16 at Houston 17-3 A: 7-3 The Colts have lost two consecutive games inHouston after going 7-1 the previous eight sea-sons.
12/23 at Kansas City 10-8 A: 5-4 The Colts have won 10 of the last 12 gamesagainst the Chiefs. Last season, the Colts wereunable to hold a 24-7 lead, as they fell, 28-24.
12/30 HOUSTON 17-3 H: 10-0 The Colts will look to remain perfect on their 10-0home record against the Texans. Last season, theColts scored a touchdown with 0:19 remaining inregulation for their second win of the season.
COLTS NOTES
8
96Consecutive regular season games in which wide receiverReggie Wayne has caught at least one pass.
5Consecutive seasons wide receiver Reggie Wayne has ledthe team in receiving (2007-11).
42.5The number of sacks defensive end Dwight Freeney hasregistered in his last 61 regular season games.
41.5The number of sacks defensive end Robert Mathis has reg-istered in his last 61 regular season games.
130Consecutive regular season games in which kicker AdamVinatieri has scored at least one point.
CURRENT STREAKS ENTERING 2012 SEASON
THE COLTSRanked second in the AFC in passing (267.5 ypg) and totaloffense (343.8 ypg).Ranked first in the NFL in third down efficiency (29-59-49.2%).Finished with a plus-one turnover margin, tied for fourth inthe AFC.Scored a touchdown on 8-of-11 (72.7%) possessions in thered zone, which ranked third in the AFC and fourth in theNFL.Finished fourth in the AFC with 78 first downs. Also rankedfourth in the AFC in first downs allowed (69).Averaged 6.26 yards per play on first down, which rankedsecond in the AFC and third in the NFL.Finished a perfect three-of-three on field goals and 12-of-12on extra points.QB-ANDREW LUCKFinished the preseason completing 41-of-66 passes (62.1%)for 522 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions for a89.3 passer rating.Ranked first in the AFC in passing yards, tied for second incompletions and touchdowns, fourth in attempts and fifth inaverage gain.QB-CHANDLER HARNISHFinished the preseason completing 27-of-47 passes (57.4%)for 406 yards, two touchdowns and one interception for a91.3 passer rating.Ranked second in the AFC in average gain, fourth in passingyards and eighth in passer rating.WR-GRIFF WHALENLed the team in receiving with 12 receptions for 125 yards(10.4 avg.) and one touchdown.Tied for fifth in the AFC in receptions.WR-LAVON BRAZILLFinished second on the team in receiving with 10 receptionsfor 109 yards (10.9 avg.).RB-VICK BALLARDLed the team in rushing with 74 yards on 24 attempts.P-PAT McAFEEAveraged 47.9 yards per punt, which ranked third in the AFCand seventh in the NFL.OLBs-JERRY HUGHES and MARIO ADDISONTied for fourth in the AFC with 3.0 sacks apiece.ILB-MOISE FOKOULed the team with 22 tackles (13 solo).
2012 PRESEASON NOTES
September 3-Signed to practice squad: RB-Alvester Alexander and T-DarrionWeems-Released from practice squad: S-Latarrius ThomasSeptember 2-Signed to practice squad: CB-D.J. JohnsonSeptember 1-Claimed off waivers: S-Sergio Brown, OT-Mike Person and NT-Martin Tevaseu -Waived: S-Jermale Hines, CB-D.J. Johnson and OT-Ty Nsekhe-Signed to practice squad: DT-Chigbo Anunoby, OLB-JerryBrown, G-Hayworth Hicks, TE-Kyle Miller, WR-Kashif Moore andS-Latarrius ThomasAugust 31-Waived: DT-Chigbo Anunoby, T-Steven Baker, OLB-Jerry Brown,RB-Darren Evans, G-Hayworth Hicks, ILB-Greg Lloyd, TE-KyleMiller, WR-Kashif Moore, WR-Jeremy Ross, DT-Jason Shirley,TE-Andre Smith, LS-Justin Snow, C-Zane Taylor, T-Mike Tepperand S-Latarrius Thomas-Waived-Injured DE-James Aiono, OLB-Tim Fugger, RB-DejiKarim, CB-Brandon King and S-Mike Newton-Placed on Injured Reserve: CB-Korey Lindsey and WR-JabinSambrano-Released from Injured Reserve: OT-George Foster
RECENT TRANSACTIONS
Since 2000, the Colts have enjoyed success on opening day,posting an 8-4 mark over the last 12 seasons. Here’s a look at theresults over those years:Year Opponent Result Year Opponent Result2011 @Houston L, 34-7 2005 @Baltimore W, 24-72010 @Houston L, 34-24 2004 @New England L, 27-242009 Jacksonville W, 14-12 2003 @Cleveland W, 9-62008 Chicago L, 29-13 2002 @Jacksonville W, 28-252007 New Orleans W, 41-10 2001 @N.Y. Jets W, 45-242006 @N.Y. Giants W, 26-21 2000 @Kansas City W, 27-14
OPENING DAY SUCCESS
COLTS NOTES
9
Colts General Manager Ryan Grigson and the organizationwere busy this offseason upgrading the roster and welcomingmany new faces. Among those joining the Colts for their firstyear are six unrestricted free agents:
Wide Receiver Donnie AveryAvery has seen action in 39 games (28starts) in his NFL career with the St. LouisRams (2008-10) and Tennessee Titans(2011). He has compiled 103 career recep-tions for 1,308 yards (12.7 avg.) and ninetouchdowns and has contributed with 14rushes for 99 yards and one touchdown.Guard/Center Mike McGlynnMcGlynn will enter his fifth NFL season afterspending previous years with the Philadel-phia Eagles (2008-10) and Cincinnati Ben-gals (2011). He has competed in 26 careergames with 18 starts.
Nose Tackle Brandon McKinneyMcKinney enters his seventh NFL season.In 61 career games (six starts) with the SanDiego Chargers (2006-08) and BaltimoreRavens (2008-11), he has totaled 82 tackles(42 solo), one forced fumble, one fumble re-covery and two passes defensed.Defensive End Cory ReddingRedding enters his 10th NFL season havingspent time with the Detroit Lions (2003-08),Seattle Seahawks (2009) and BaltimoreRavens (2010-11). In 131 career games(101 starts), he has totaled 407 tackles (279solo), 25.5 sacks, one interception, ninefumble recoveries, four forced fumbles and12 passes defensed.Center Samson SateleSatele will enter his sixth NFL season. Heplayed two years (2007-08) with the Dol-phins before being traded to the OaklandRaiders (2009-11). Satele has competed in78 career games (74 starts) and was a full-time starter the last two years with theRaiders.Safety Tom ZbikowskiZbikowski enters his fifth NFL season afterspending the last four years with the Balti-more Ravens (2008-11). He has competedin 53 career games (14 starts) and has to-taled 49 tackles (41 solo), two interceptions,one sack, five passes defensed and 58 spe-cial teams stops. Zbikowski has also con-
tributed with 14 kickoff returns for a 21.8 average and 16 puntreturns for a 6.3 average.
Andrew Luck, Quarterback (First Round, 1st Overall)A two-time Heisman Trophy finalist in 2010 and 2011 at Stan-ford. Started all 38 games he played in at Stanford and com-pleted 713-of-1,064 passes (67.0) for 9,430 yards, 82touchdowns and 22 INTs. Set school records for touchdownpasses and pass completion percentage.Coby Fleener, Tight End (Second Round, 34th Overall)Appeared in 51 games and totaled 1,543 yards and 18 touch-downs on 96 receptions. Earned first-team All-America hon-ors as a senior. Finished his collegiate career tied for fifth onthe school record list with 18 touchdown catches.Dwayne Allen, Tight End (Third Round, 64th Overall)Recorded 93 receptions for 1,079 yards and 12 touchdownsat Clemson and was the school’s first recipient of the JohnMackey Award in 2011. Earned first-team All-America honorsfrom numerous media outlets.T.Y. Hilton, Wide Receiver (Third Round, 92nd Overall)Holds Florida International records for receptions (229), re-ceiving yards (3,351) and touchdowns (24). Also contributedwith 498 rushing yards and seven touchdowns on 69 carries.Josh Chapman, Nose Tackle (Fifth Round, 136th Overall)Produced 88 tackles (44 solo), 2.5 sacks, 13.5 tackles forloss and four passes defensed during his 54-game collegiatecareer at Alabama. Was part of two national championshipteams in 2009 and 2011.Vick Ballard, Running Back (Fifth Round, 170th Overall)Totaled 379 rushes for 2,157 yards and 29 touchdowns whileadding 30 catches for 293 yards and two touchdowns at Mis-sissippi State. Registered 2,450 all-purpose yards with anaverage of 98.0 yards per game.LaVon Brazill, Wide Receiver (Sixth Round, 206th Overall)Appeared in 41 games at Ohio and finished his career with187 receptions for 2,515 yards and 18 touchdowns and 31carries for 239 yards and one touchdown. Earned All-Macsecond-team honors in 2011.Justin Anderson, Guard (Seventh Round, 208th Overall)Started 26-of-40 games at Georgia and was named to theFreshman All-SEC team. Received one of the team’s MostImproved Player Awards on offense in 2011.Chandler Harnish, Quarterback (Seventh Round, 253rd Overall)At Northern Illinois, threw for 8,944 yards and 68 touchdownswhile adding 538 carries for 2,983 yards and 24 TDs. Wasnamed the MAC Offensive Player of the Year in 2011.
MEET THE DRAFT PICKSUFAs IN THE FOLD
REGGIE WAYNE NOTES
10
#87Colts wide receiver Reggie Wayne enters the 2012 campaignranked third in franchise history in yards from scrimmage with11,708. He trails team leader, Marvin Harrison, who accumu-lated 14,608 yards in his 13 seasons with the team andEdgerrin James who totaled 12,065 yards in seven seasonswith the Colts. Wayne is 357 yards shy of tying James for thesecond spot and 2,900 yards from matching Harrison atopthe list. In 2011, Wayne finished the season with 960 yardsand moved past Lenny Moore (11,213) for fourth place.
Indianapolis’ All-Time Scrimmage Yards Leaders
Rec. Yards Rush. Yards Scrim. Yards14,580 28 14,608
Rec. Yards Rush. Yards Scrim. Yards2,839 9,226 12,065
Rec. Yards Rush. Yards Scrim. Yards11,708 0 11,708
WIDE RECEIVER REGGIE WAYNE6-0 - 198 Pounds - Miami
12th NFL Season• Named to five Pro Bowls (2006-10).• Associated Press NFL All-Pro First-Team in 2010.• Has totaled seven 1,000-yard seasons (2004-10).• Ranks second in team history in receptions (1,102),
receiving yards (14,580) and receiving touchdowns (128).• Ranks third in franchise history in all-time yards from
scrimmage (11,708).
Harrison
James
Wayne
In 2011, Reggie Wayne led the Coltsin receiving yards (960) and tied Mar-vin Harrison’s record for the mostconsecutive seasons leading theteam in receiving yardage with five.Wayne will not only look to take thetop spot with his sixth straight seasonin 2012, but he will look to move upthe NFL’s all-time receiving yardagelist. Currently, his 11,708 yards ranks22nd in the NFL and third among ac-tive receivers. Wayne is 127 yardsshy of surpassing Don Maynard (11,834) and 197 yards shortof topping Michael Irvin for the 20th spot.Wayne has been one of the team’s most sure-handed re-ceivers since his NFL debut in 2001. Over his 11 seasonswith the Colts, the veteran has totaled 862 receptions. Withhis eight catches against the Jaguars in the 2011 seasonfinale, he tied Jimmy Smith (862) for 15th place on theNFL’s all-time receptions list.
LINE OF SCRIMMAGE
MOVING UP THE CHARTS
REGGIE WAYNE NOTES
11
Wide receiver Reggie Wayne needs 100 receptions to be-come the fourth player in NFL history with four 100-catchseasons in a career. Wayne can join former teammate MarvinHarrison as well as Jerry Rice and Wes Welker as the onlyplayers with four 100-reception seasons
Reggie Wayne’s Top Reception SeasonsYear Receptions Yards TDs2010 111 1,355 62007 104 1,510 102009 100 1,264 10
Reggie Wayne has been one of the most productive wide re-ceivers in franchise history. Since his rookie campaign in2001, the Colts have reaped the benefits of Wayne’s highlevel of play and the results have shown in the win/loss col-umn. Below are Indianapolis’ record totals when Waynereaches a certain milestone in single games.
When Wayne Records 100-Plus Receiving YardsOn 38 occasions, the Colts are 27-11
When Wayne Records Eight-Plus ReceptionsOn 28 occasions, the Colts are 18-10
When Wayne Scores At Least One TouchdownOn 64 occasions, the Colts are 51-13
When Wayne Totals At Least a 15.0 Yards Per Catch Av-erage (Min. Five Rec.)
On 29 occasions, the Colts are 22-7
Since 2004, Wayne leads all NFL receivers in receptions andreceiving yards while ranking fifth in touchdowns. Below arethe totals.
Most Receptions in the NFL from 2004-2011Player ReceptionsReggie Wayne 718Larry Fitzgerald 693Tony Gonzalez 681
Most Receiving Yards in the NFL from 2004-2011Player YardsReggie Wayne 9,809Larry Fitzgerald 9,615Andre Johnson 8,680
Most Touchdowns in the NFL from 2004-2011Player TouchdownsRandy Moss 76Antonio Gates 74Larry Fitzgerald 73Terrell Owens 72Reggie Wayne 62
Vs. JaguarsPlayer CatchesWayne 117Clark 54Harrison 54
After finishing with eight receptions against Jacksonville in2011 season finale, Reggie Wayne has accumulated 117 ca-reer catches against the Jaguars, which tied his record forthe most receptions by one Colts receiver against any NFLteam in club history (Houston). When looking at the rest ofthe AFC South Division, Wayne also leads the franchise with90 receptions against Tennessee. He remains 10 catchesshy of topping 100 against the Titans, which will make himone of eight NFL receivers to total 100-plus career catchesagainst three or more teams. Those who have reached theplateau include: Tim Brown (four), Chris Carter (four), AndreReed (four), Art Monk (three), Jerry Rice (three), Rod Smith(three) and Hines Ward (three).Colts Top Three Reception Leaders Vs. AFC South Opp.
Vs. TitansPlayer CatchesWayne 90Harrison 84Clark 51
Vs. TexansPlayer CatchesWayne 117Harrison 80Clark 71
REGGIE’S RESULTS 100-CLUB
LEADING THE PACK
LONG DIVISION
WAYNE’S CAREER BEST GAMESReceptions Receiving Yards15, at Jacksonville (10/3/10) 200 vs. Dallas (12/5/10)14, vs. Dallas (12/5/10) 196 at Jacksonville (10/3/10)12, two times 184 vs. Green Bay (9/26/04)Last vs. San Francisco (11/1/09)
Long Reception Receiving Touchdowns71t, at Denver (1/2/05) 3 at Denver (10/29/06)66t, at Cincinnati (11/20/05) 2, seven times65t, two times Last vs. New England Last at Jacksonville (12/17/09) (11/15/09)
Receiving Avg. (Min. five receptions)26.4 (five rec.) at Jacksonville (12/17/09)24.4 (five rec.) vs. Carolina (11/27/11)24.0 (seven rec.) at Carolina (10/28/07)
DWIGHT FREENEY NOTES
12
#93Outside Linebacker Dwight Freeney
6-1 - 268 Pounds - Syracuse11th NFL Season
• Named to seven Pro Bowls (2003-05, 2008-11).• Became the 26th player in NFL history to top 100.0 career
sacks in 2011.• Was the first member of the Colts to lead the league in
sacks with 16.0 in 2004.• Compiled a franchise record with nine consecutive games
with at least one sack dating from 2008-09.
In 2011, outside linebacker Dwight Freeney became 26thplayer in NFL history to reach 100.0 sacks for his career andenters the 2012 campaign with 102.5. The 11-year veteranis the franchise’s all-time sack leader, ranks third in the NFLamong active players and is currently tied for 23rd in leaguehistory. Below is a breakdown of Freeney’s quarterback takedowns:• Has totaled quarterback takedowns in 76-of-150 career
games and 67-of-130 starts.• Owns 25 career multiple-sack games.• Has produced sacks against 50 different quarterbacks• Has sacks against 26 of 31 NFL teams.
NFL Career Sack Leaders (Active Players)112.0 John Abraham105.0 Jared Allen102.5 Dwight Freeney
Dwight Freeney’s Sacks By Opponent15.5 Houston13.0 Tennessee10.0 Jacksonville7.0 Cleveland6.5 Cincinnati5.5 Pittsburgh4.0 Baltimore, Dallas, Miami3.0 Minnesota, New England, N.Y. Jets,
Carolina2.5 Arizona, Denver2.0 Buffalo, Carolina, N.Y. Giants, San Diego,
San Francisco1.5 Kansas City1.0 Oakland, Philadelphia, St. Louis, Seattle0.5 Tampa Bay0.0 Atlanta, Detroit, Green Bay,
New Orleans, Washington
100-CLUB
DWIGHT FREENEY NOTES
13
Colts outside linebacker DwightFreeney, the team’s all-timeleader in sacks, increased hiscareer total to 102.5 at the com-pletion of the 2011 season. Heremains the only player in fran-chise history with seven double-digit sack seasons (2002-05,08-10). Freeney topped 100.0career sacks with two herecorded against Baltimore inWeek 14 and improved his mul-tiple-sack game total to 25. In
2004, he posted 16 sacks to become the first Colts player tolead the NFL in the category. Freeney earned a Pro Bowlberth for his performance in ‘04 and has nabbed the honoron six other occasions (‘03, ‘05, ‘08, ‘09, ‘10, ‘11).
Indianapolis Colts All-Time Sack LeadersRank Player Sacks
1. Dwight Freeney 102.52. Robert Mathis 83.53. Duane Bickett 50.0
The Indianapolis Colts have witnessed much success whenDwight Freeney is at his best on the defensive line. The teamholds an impressive 56-20 record when Freeney tallies atleast one sack and a 26-8 mark when he forces a fumble.The records date back to his rookie season in 2002.Freeney’s 102.5 sacks rank second in the NFL since 2002while his 43 forced fumbles rank first. Teammate RobertMathis ranks second on the league’s list with 39 forced fum-bles in his career.
Most Sacks in NFL from 2002-2011Rank Player Sacks
1. Jared Allen 105.02. Dwight Freeney 102.53. Jason Taylor 100.0
Julius Peppers 100.0Most Forced Fumbles in NFL from 2002-2011
Rank Player FF1. Dwight Freeney 432. Robert Mathis 393. Jason Taylor 374. Julius Peppers 365. John Abraham 30
Leonard Little 30Osi Umenyiora 30
FREENEY’S CAREER BEST GAMESSacks Forced Fumbles3.0, three times 3, two timesLast vs. Cincinnati (12/18/06) Last vs. Cincinnati (12/18/06)
Fumble Recoveries Passes Defensed1, three times 2 vs. Jacksonville (9/18/05)Last vs. Atlanta (12/14/03)
Outside linebackers DwightFreeney and Robert Mathis alwayspose a threat considering the 173.0combined sacks between the two(starting in 2003, Mathis’ rookieyear). The combined sack totalranks first among a pair of team-mates in the NFL dating back to‘03.
Both Freeney and Mathis have aknack for stepping up in clutch situ-ations, as the two have eachrecorded their highest amount ofsacks on third downs. In 2011, nineof the 18.0 sacks between the twoplayers have come on third down.Below is a career sack listing bydown for both players.
Dwight Freeney Career Sacks By Down1st - 30.52nd - 30.03rd - 41.04th - 1.0
Total - 102.5Robert Mathis Career Sacks By Down
1st - 24.52nd - 18.53rd - 39.54th - 1.0
Total - 83.5
SACKING THE TOP IN THE CLUTCH
FREENEY PRODUCES WINS
ROBERT MATHIS NOTES
14
#98Outside Linebacker Robert Mathis6-2 - 245 Pounds - Alabama A&M
10th NFL Season• Named to four Pro Bowls (2008-11).• Ranks second in franchise history with 83.5 sacks behind
teammate Dwight Freeney (102.5).• Has recorded four career 10.0-plus sack seasons, includ-
ing a team-leading 11.0 in 2010.• Has compiled 19 multiple-sack games and two career
three-plus sack contests.
MATHIS’ CAREER BEST GAMESSacks Forced Fumbles3.0, two times 3 vs. Houston (11/14/04)Last vs. Baltimore (10/12/08) 2, two times
Last vs. Seattle (10/4/09)
Fumble Recoveries Passes Defensed1, 14 times 2 at New England (11/5/06)Last at Jacksonville (1/1/12)
Robert Mathis has totaled 83.5 career sacks in his nine-yearcareer with the Colts, which ranks second in club history be-hind Dwight Freeney’s 102.5. In 2005, he registered a sackin 11-of-13 games and set an NFL record with sacks in eightconsecutive contests to start a season. Mathis has 19 multi-ple-sack games in his career and two three-plus sack games.He had a streak of three consecutive multiple-sack gamesin 2008 at San Diego (11/23), at Cleveland (11/30) and vs.Cincinnati (12/7). Dating back to his rookie season in 2003,Robert Mathis leads the Colts defense in forced fumbles with39, topping his counterpart on the opposite end of the defen-sive line, Dwight Freeney who has 34. Dating back to ‘03,Mathis has competed in two more games than Freeney. In2011, both players combined for five forced fumbles as Indi-anapolis ranked tied for 10th in the NFL and tied for sixth inthe AFC with 14.
Dating back to the start of their careers, Robert Mathis andDwight Freeney have totaled 11 seasons with 10-plus sackscombined. In four of those years (2004, ‘05, ‘08 and ‘10) bothrecorded 10-plus sacks each.Indianapolis Colts 10-Plus Sack Seasons (since 1982)
Player Sack Total YearDwight Freeney, DE 16.0 2004Dwight Freeney, DE 13.5 2009Dwight Freeney, DE 13.0 2002Chad Bratzke, DE 12.0 1999Robert Mathis, DE 11.5 2008Robert Mathis, DE 11.5 2005Johnie Cooks, LB 11.5 1984Dwight Freeney, DE 11.0 2003Dwight Freeney, DE 11.0 2005Vernon Maxwell, LB 11.0 1983Robert Mathis, DE 11.0 2010Robert Mathis, DE 10.5 2004Tony Bennett, LB 10.5 1995Dan Footman, DE 10.5 1997Dwight Freeney, DE 10.5 2008Jon Hand, DE 10.0 1989Dwight Freeney, DE 10.0 2010
USE THE FORCE
DOUBLE TROUBLE
ANDREW LUCK NOTES
15
#12Quarterback Andrew Luck6-4 - 234 Pounds - Stanford
1st NFL Season• A two-time Heisman Trophy finalist in 2010 and 2011.• Named the Maxwell Award, The Walter Camp Football
Foundation and Pac-12 Conference Player of the Year.• Set Stanford records for touchdown passes (82) and
completion percentage (67.0).• His 31 collegiate victories are the most by a Stanford
starter.
In nearly 60 years of action for theColts, only a handful of quarter-backs have earned the opportunityto lead their team onto the field inWeek 1 of their rookie season. AsAndrew Luck prepares to face theChicago Bears in the first week ofthe 2012 season, he is set to be-come just the fifth quarterback inColts history earn that honor. Luckwill also have the opportunity to join George Shaw as theonly rookie quarterbacks in Colts history to produce a victoryin the opening week of the season.Year Result Player Att-Comp Yards TDs INTs1955 W George Shaw 7-12 97 1 01982 L Mike Pagel 7-15 71 0 11990 L Jeff George 13-24 160 1 01998 L Peyton Manning 21-27 302 1 3
OFF TO A FAST START
Five rookie quarterbacks have been named the opening daystarter for their respective team this year. This marks themost rookie quarterbacks to start a team’s opening gamesince at least 1950. The previous high was three in 1968(Dan Darragh, Buffalo; Greg Landry, Detroit; Dewey Warren,Cincinnati) and 1969 (Greg Cook, Cincinnati; James Harris,Buffalo; Roger Staubach, Dallas).Listed below are the projected opening day rookie quarter-back starters:Player Team 2012 Draft PickAndrew Luck Indianapolis 1st overallRobert Griffin III Washington 2nd overallRyan Tannehill Miami 8th overallBrandon Weeden Cleveland 22nd overallRussell Wilson Seattle 75th overall (3rd round)Luck will also join eight other first overall draft picks startingin Week 1:Player Team Draft YearCam Newton Carolina 2011Sam Bradford St. Louis 2010Matt Stafford Detroit 2009Alex Smith San Francisco 2005Eli Manning N.Y. Giants 2004Carson Palmer Oakland 2003Michael Vick Philadelphia 2001Peyton Manning Denver 1998
ROOKIE QUARTERBACKS OPENING THE SEASON
#4ADAM VINATIERI NOTES
16
Following his 16th NFL season, Adam Vinatieri holds an 82.9career field goal percentage having converted 387-of-467kicks. His total currently ranks 11th all-time in the NFL in thecategory.
NFL’S Most Accurate Kickers in the Regular Season(Minimum 100 FGM)
Pct. Name Team FGM FGA86.5 Nate Kaeding San Diego 173 20086.5 Mike Vanderjagt Dallas 230 26686.3 Rob Bironas Tennessee 189 21985.9 Shayne Graham Miami 214 24985.8 Robbie Gould Chicago 187 21884.4 Stephen Gostkowski New England 141 16784.0 Matt Bryant Atlanta 200 23883.7 Matt Stover Colts 471 56383.2 Ryan Longwell Minnesota 361 43483.1 Phil Dawson Cleveland 276 33282.9 Adam Vinatieri Colts 387 467
Vinatieri has totaled 1,752 career points (including one two-point conversion in 1998), which ranks ninth in the NFL. In2011, he surpassed Nick Lowery (1,711) for the ninth spot.With four field goals made against Houston in the second tolast week of the 2011 campaign, Vinatieri also moved pastLowery (383) for the eighth spot on the league’s all-time fieldgoals made list.
Colts kicker Adam Vinatieri has recorded a streak of 130 con-secutive regular season games in which he has scored atleast one point. The streak dates back to September 14,2003 in a contest at Philadelphia where he totaled one fieldgoal and added four extra points. Since the streak, Vinatierihas been part of one Super Bowl championship, earned onePro Bowl nomination and has totaled nine game-winning fieldgoals.
AMONG THE BEST
INTO THE HUNDREDS
Kicker Adam Vinatieri6-0- 206 Pounds - South Dakota State
17th NFL Season• Two-time Pro Bowl selection in 2002 and 2004.• Only kicker in NFL history to record successful field goalsin four Super Bowls (XXXVI, XXXVIII, XXXIX and XLI) andis the only kicker in league history to have played in five.• Has converted 387-of-467 career field goals for an 82.9percentage, which ranks 11th all-time.• Has totaled 1,752 career points (including one two-pointconversion), which ranks ninth in league history and firstamong active players in the AFC
Below is a look at the 23 victories in which Adam Vinatierihas kicked game-winning field goals in the final minute of thefourth quarter or overtime.Opponent Date Yards Time Scorevs. Jacksonville 9/22/96 40 12:24 28-25 OTvs. NY Jets 9/14/97 34 06:57 27-24 OTat New Orleans 10/4/98 27 00:03 30-27vs. San Francisco 12/20/98 35 00:03 24-21at NY Jets 9/12/99 23 00:03 30-28vs. Indianapolis 9/19/99 26 00:35 31-28vs. Cincinnati 11/19/00 22 00:03 16-13at Buffalo 12/17/00 24 00:19 13-10 OTvs. San Diego 10/14/01 44 10:55 29-26 OTat Buffalo 12/16/01 23 09:15 12- 9 OTvs. Oakland 1/19/02 23 06:31 16-13 OTvs. St. Louis 2/ 3/02 48 00:00 20-17+vs. Kansas City 9/22/02 35 10:20 41-38 OTvs. Miami 12/29/02 35 12:57 27-24 OTat Houston 11/23/03 28 00:40 23-20 OTvs. Carolina 2/1/04 41 00:04 32-29#at Pittsburgh 9/25/05 43 00:01 23-20vs. Atlanta 10/ 9/05 29 00:17 31-28at Denver 10/29/06 37 00:02 34-31vs. Kansas City 11/18/07 24 00:03 13-10at Minnesota 9/14/08 47 00:03 18-15at San Diego 11/23/08 51 00:00 23-20 vs. Tennessee 1/ 2/11 43 00:00 23-20*All FGs 1996-2005 came while with New England+Super Bowl XXXVI#Super Bowl XXXVIII
AT THE BUZZER...
Following his 16th NFL season, Adam Vinatieri has accumu-lated 1,752 points as a member of New England and Indi-anapolis. With his current total, he leads the entire AFC inscoring among active players.
Player Seasons PointsAdam Vinatieri, Ind. 16 (1996-2011) 1,752Sebastian Janikowski, Oak. 12 (2000-2011) 1,271Phil Dawson, Cle. 13 (1999-2011) 1,155
ACTIVE IN THE AFC
VINATIERI’S CAREER BEST GAMESField Goals Made Field Goal Attempts5, Two Times 6 vs. Jacksonville (9/22/96)Last vs. Buffalo (11/14/04) 5, Five Times
Last vs. Houston (12/22/11)
Extra Points Made Extra Points Attempted6, Five Times 6, Five TimesLast at Baltimore (12/9/07) Last at Baltimore (12/9/07)
Longest Field Goal57 at Chicago (11/10/02)55 at St. Louis (12/13/98)54 vs. Cleveland (12/9/01)
ADAM VINATIERI NOTES
17
Opponents Home (With Patriots) Home (With Colts) Home (Total) Road TotalFG-FGA FG-FGA FG-FGA FG-FGA FG-FGA
Buffalo 18-28 1-1 19-29 11-19 30-48Miami 20-23 2-2 22-25 14-16 36-41New England 0-0 3-4 3-4 3-5 6-9New York Jets 16-17 1-1 17-18 18-20 35-38Baltimore 5-5 1-1 6-6 4-4 10-10Cincinnati 3-3 5-5 8-8 2-3 11-12Cleveland 5-8 4-4 9-12 4-6 13-18Pittsburgh 3-3 2-2 5-5 9-10 14-15Houston 0-0 15-16 15-16 9-13 24-29Indianapolis 14-15 0-0 14-15 11-11 25-26Jacksonville 7-8 3-4 10-12 10-12 20-24Tennessee 3-5 9-9 12-14 9-11 21-25Denver 2-3 1-1 3-4 15-18 16-20Kansas City 9-10 7-6 16-19 3-5 19-24Oakland 1-1 0-0 1-1 5-6 6-7San Diego 6-8 0-0 6-8 4-7 10-15Dallas 4-4 0-0 4-4 2-2 6-6New York Giants 4-5 1-1 5-6 5-5 10-11Philadelphia 0-0 1-1 1-1 5-6 6-7Washington 3-4 3-3 6-7 3-6 9-13Chicago 1-1 2-2 3-3 5-5 8-8Detroit 0-0 1-1 1-1 5-5 6-6Green Bay 2-2 0-0 2-2 0-1 2-3Minnesota 1-2 0-0 1-2 3-4 4-6Atlanta 1-1 0-0 1-1 3-3 4-4Carolina 0-0 1-1 1-1 3-3 4-4New Orleans 1-2 2-2 3-4 3-3 6-7Tampa Bay 1-2 2-2 3-4 1-2 4-6Arizona 1-2 0-0 1-2 4-5 5-7St. Louis 1-1 0-0 1-1 8-8 9-9San Francisco 1-2 0-0 1-2 0-0 1-2Seattle 3-3 2-2 3-3 0-0 3-3Totals 136-168 70-75 206-243 181-224 387-467Percentage 81.0 93.3 84.7 80.8 82.9
Opponents 0-19 20-29 30-39 40-49 50+ Totals Pct.Home (w/ Patriots) 3-3 53-54 39-47 36-56 5-8 136-168 81.0Home (w/ Colts) 2-2 19-19 28-29 18-20 3-5 70-75 93.3Away 4-4 69-73 56-71 48-64 4-12 181-224 80.8Totals 9-9 141-146 123-147 102-140 12-25 387-467 82.9
VINATIERI VS. NFL
REDDING, BETHEA & POWERS NOTES
18
#41Safety
Antoine Bethea5-11 - 196 Pounds - Howard
7th NFL Season
#90Defensive EndCory Redding
6-4- 315 Pounds - Texas10th NFL Season
As a sixth-round draft pick in 2006 by the Colts, AntoineBethea was quickly inserted into the lineup and has startedall 91 games he has participated in dating back to his rookiecampaign. The Savannah, Georgia native has totaled 691tackles, 12 interceptions, 34 passes defensed, five forcedfumbles, three fumble recoveries and half of a sack. Betheahas also earned two Pro Bowl nominations (2007, ‘09) in histenure with the team.Along with topping 100-plus tackles for the last four years,Bethea has also paced the Colts in interceptions over thelast six seasons since he took over the starting role. Belowis a look at Bethea’s leading numbers over the course of hiscareer.
Bethea’s Tackle Totals2011 - 139 (80 solo)2010 - 106 (77 solo)2009 - 120 (75 solo)2008 - 126 (83 solo):
Colts Interception Leaders (2006-11)1. Antoine Bethea 122. Kelvin Hayden 93. Melvin Bullitt 7
In 2011, Bethea accumulated 139 tackles (80 solo), whichranked second on the teamand ninth in the NFL whileadding seven passes de-fensed, two forced fumblesand one fumble recovery.With 10 tackles against Jack-sonville in the season finale,Bethea set a new career-highin stops with 139. He also seta new career-high in passesdefensed (seven) after total-ing his last in Week 14 vs.Baltimore. In each of the lastfour seasons, he has toppedthe 100-tackle plateau.
Cory Redding enters his 10th NFLseason and his first as a member ofthe Indianapolis Colts. In 131 ca-reer games (101 starts), he has to-taled 407 tackles (279 solo), 25.5sacks, one interception, nine fum-ble recoveries, four forced fumblesand 12 passes defensed. He com-piled a string of 66 consecutivestarts from 2004-08 with the DetroitLions as well as being named a team captain for the Lions in2006-07.Redding’s experience, persona and playing style make himan instant leader for the defensive unit. He is currently oneof the top 15 most tenured defensive ends in the league with131 games played. Arizona’s Vonnie Holliday tops the listwith 198 games played in 14 seasons (1998-2011). Datingback to his second year in the NFL (2004), Redding has onlymissed six games (one game per season from 2009-11 andthree games in 2008).
A LEADER ON THE LINE MR. DEPENDABLE
#25Cornerback
Jerraud Powers5-10- 187 Pounds - Auburn
4th NFL Season
Since being selected by the Colts in the third round of the2009 NFL Draft, Jerraud Powers has stepped in and madean immediate impact. Over the past three seasons, Powershas started in all 34 games he’s played in and totaled 169tackles (131 solo), 25 passes defensed and five interceptionsfor 31 return yards and a touchdown. During that span, Pow-ers leads the team in passes defensed and is tied for the leadin interceptions with safety Antoine Bethea.
POWERS IN THE SECONDARY
Underlined = Rookie in 2012
WR 87 Reggie Wayne 13 T.Y. Hilton 81 Kris Adams
LT 74 Anthony Castonzo 60 Mike Person
LG 76 Joe Reitz 73 Seth Olsen
C 64 Samson Satele 62 A.Q. Shipley
RG 75 Mike McGlynn
RT 69 Winston Justice 72 Jeff Linkenbach
TE 80 Coby Fleener
WR 17 Austin Collie 11 Donnie Avery 15 LaVon Brazill
QB 12 Andrew Luck 5 Drew Stanton 8 Chandler Harnish
F 83 Dwayne Allen 46 Dominique Jones
RB 31 Donald Brown 33 Vick Ballard 26 Mewelde Moore34 Delone Carter
DE 90 Cory Redding 91 Ricardo Mathews
NT 99 Antonio Johnson 68 Martin Tevaseu
DT 95 Fili Moala 94 Drake Nevis
SLB 98 Robert Mathis 92 Jerry Hughes
Mike 53 Kavell Conner 54 Mario Harvey
Will 50 Jerrell Freeman 58 Moise Fokou 51 Pat Angerer
Rush 93 Dwight Freeney 97 Mario Addison 55 Justin Hickman
LCB 23 Vontae Davis 21 Justin King
SS 28 Tom Zbikowski 38 Sergio Brown
FS 41 Antoine Bethea 35 Joe Lefeged
RCB 25 Jerraud Powers 32 Cassius Vaughn 27 Josh Gordy
P 1 Pat McAfee
PK 4 Adam Vinatieri 1 Pat McAfee
H 1 Pat McAfee
LS 45 Matt Overton
KR 15 LaVon Brazill 13 T.Y. Hilton 35 Joe Lefeged26 Mewelde Moore 20 Cassius Vaughn
28 Tom Zbikowski
PR 15 LaVon Brazill 13 T.Y. Hilton 28 Tom Zbikowski
Colts Pronunciations
DB - Antoine Bethea (buh-THAY) DB - Jerraud Powers (juh-ROD)
RB - Delone Carter (deh-LON) OT - Joe Reitz (Rights)
ILB - Moise Fokou (Moses) (FOE-koo) C - Samson Satele (saw-tell-EE)
DB - Joe Lefeged (lah-FEJ) NT - Martin Tevaseu (tay-vay-SAY-eww)
DT - Fili Moala (FEE-lee) (Muh-wa-luh) K - Adam Vinatieri (vin-uh-TARE-ee)
RB - Mewelde Moore (Muh-WELL-dee) S - Tom Zbikowski (Zi-buh-kow-ski)
DT - Drake Nevis (NEVV-iss)
2012 INDIANAPOLIS COLTS UNOFFICIAL DEPTH CHART
BASE OFFENSE
BASE DEFENSE
SPECIALISTS
9/3/2012
QUARTERBACKS (3) DEFENSIVE LINE (7)
No Name Pos HT WT Exp College No Name Pos HT WT Exp College
8 Chandler Harnish QB 6-2 220 R Northern Illinois 61 Josh Chapman^ NT 6-0 316 R Alabama
12 Andrew Luck QB 6-4 234 R Stanford 68 Martin Tevaseu NT 6-2 325 2 UNLV
5 Drew Stanton QB 6-3 243 6 Michigan State 99 Antonio Johnson NT 6-3 310 6 Mississippi State
91 Ricardo Mathews DT 6-3 310 3 Cincinnati
RUNNING BACKS (4) 95 Fili Moala DE 6-4 310 4 USC
No Name Pos HT WT Exp College 94 Drake Nevis DT 6-1 310 2 LSU
33 Vick Ballard RB 5-10 217 R Mississippi State 90 Cory Redding DE 6-4 315 10 Texas
31 Donald Brown RB 5-10 210 4 Connecticut
34 Delone Carter RB 5-9 238 2 Syracuse LINEBACKERS (10)
26 Mewelde Moore RB 5-11 209 9 Tulane No Name Pos HT WT Exp College
97 Mario Addison OLB 6-3 257 2 Troy
WIDE RECEIVERS (6) 51 Pat Angerer ILB 6-0 236 3 Iowa
No Name Pos HT WT Exp College 53 Kavell Conner ILB 6-0 243 3 Clemson
81 Kris Adams WR 6-3 194 1 UTEP 58 Moise Fokou ILB 6-1 236 4 Maryland
11 Donnie Avery WR 5-11 200 5 Houston 50 Jerrell Freeman ILB 6-0 234 1 Mary Hardin-Baylor
15 LaVon Brazill WR 5-11 191 R Ohio 93 Dwight Freeney OLB 6-1 268 11 Syracuse
17 Austin Collie WR 6-0 204 4 Brigham Young 54 Mario Harvey ILB 6-0 264 1 Marshall
13 T.Y. Hilton WR 5-9 183 R Florida International 55 Justin Hickman OLB 6-2 258 1 UCLA
87 Reggie Wayne WR 6-0 198 12 Miami 92 Jerry Hughes OLB 6-2 254 3 TCU
98 Robert Mathis OLB 6-2 245 10 Alabama A&M
TIGHT ENDS (3)
No Name Pos HT WT Exp College DEFENSIVE BACKS (9)
83 Dwayne Allen TE 6-3 255 R Clemson No Name Pos HT WT Exp College
80 Coby Fleener TE 6-6 252 R Stanford 41 Antoine Bethea S 5-11 196 7 Howard
46 Dominique Jones TE 6-3 255 R Shepherd 38 Sergio Brown S 6-2 210 3 Notre Dame
23 Vontae Davis CB 5-11 205 4 Illinois
OFFENSIVE LINE (10) 27 Josh Gordy CB 5-11 195 2 Central Michigan
No Name Pos HT WT Exp College 21 Justin King CB 5-11 197 5 Penn State
79 Justin Anderson* G 6-5 342 R Georgia 35 Joe Lefeged S 6-0 205 2 Rutgers
74 Anthony Castonzo T 6-7 315 2 Boston College 25 Jerraud Powers CB 5-10 187 4 Auburn
69 Winston Justice T 6-6 317 7 USC 32 Cassius Vaughn CB 5-11 195 3 Mississippi
72 Jeff Linkenbach T 6-6 323 3 Cincinnati 28 Tom Zbikowski S 5-11 200 5 Notre Dame
75 Mike McGlynn G 6-4 327 5 Pittsburgh
73 Seth Olsen G 6-5 305 3 Iowa SPECIALISTS (3)
60 Mike Person T 6-4 299 2 Montana State No Name Pos HT WT Exp College
76 Joe Reitz G 6-7 322 2 W. Michigan 1 Pat McAfee P 6-1 220 4 West Virginia
64 Samson Satele C 6-3 299 6 Hawaii 45 Matt Overton LS 6-1 254 1 Western Michigan
62 A.Q. Shipley C 6-1 309 1 Penn State 4 Adam Vinatieri K 6-0 206 17 S. Dakota State
*Physically Unable to Perform; ^ Non-Football Injury
COACHING STAFF HEAD COACH: Chuck Pagano
Bruce Arians (Offensive Coordinator), Greg Manusky (Defensive Coordinator), Marwan Maalouf (Special Teams Coordinator),
Roy Anderson (Safeties Coach), (James Bettcher (Special Assistant to Head Coach), Brant Boyer (Assistant Special Teams Coach),
Clyde Christensen (Quarterbacks Coach), Gary Emanuel (Defensive Line Coach), Jeff FitzGerald (Linebackers Coach),
Joe Gilbert (Assistant Offensive Line Coach), Mike Gillhamer (Secondary Coach), Frank Giufre (Offensive Quality Control Coach),
Harold Goodwin (Offensive Line Coach), Richard Howell (Assistant Strength & Conditioning), Roger Marandino (Strength & Conditioning),
Alfredo Roberts (Tight Ends Coach), David Walker (Running Backs Coach), Brad White (Defensive Quality Control Coach),
Charlie Williams (Wide Receivers Coach).
2012 COLTS PLAYERS BY POSITION
9/3/2012
YEAR DRAFTEES FREE AGENTS TRADES/WAIVERS
2001 Reggie Wayne (1)
2002 Dwight Freeney (1)
2003 Robert Mathis (5)
2006 Antoine Bethea (6) Adam Vinatieri (UFA-NE)
2008 Antonio Johnson
2009 Donald Brown (1)
Fili Moala (2)
Jerraud Powers (3)
Austin Collie (4)
Pat McAfee (7)
2010 Jerry Hughes (1) Jeff Linkenbach
Pat Angerer (2) Joe Reitz
Ricardo Mathews (7)
Kavell Conner (7)
2011 Anthony Castonzo (1) A.J. Edds* Mario Addison (W-CHI)
Ben Ijalana (2)* Brandon King* Seth Olsen (W-MIN)
Drake Nevis (3) Joe Lefeged
Delone Carter (4) Scott Lutrus*
2012 Andrew Luck (1) Kris Adams Sergio Brown (W-NE)
Coby Fleener (2) James Aiono* Vontae Davis (T-MIA)
Dwayne Allen (3) Chigbo Anunoby^ Moise Fokou (T-PHI)
T.Y. Hilton (3) Donnie Avery (UFA-TEN) Josh Gordy (T-STL)
Josh Chapman (5)* Jerry Brown^ D.J. Johnson (T-PHI)^
Vick Ballard (5) Jerrell Freeman Winston Justice (T-PHI)
LaVon Brazill (6) Mario Harvey Deji Karim (W-JAX)*
Justin Anderson (7)* Justin Hickman Kory Lindsey (W-ARZ)*
Tim Fugger (7)* Hayworth Hicks^ Kashif Moore (W-CIN)^
Chandler Harnish (7) Dominique Jones Mike Person (W-SF)
Justin King Drew Stanton (T-NYJ)
Mike McGlynn (UFA-CIN) Martin Tevaseu (W-NYJ)
Brandon McKinney (UFA-BAL)* Cassius Vaughn (T-DEN)
Kyle Miller^
Mewelde Moore
Mike Newton*
Matt Overton
Cory Redding (UFA-BAL)
Jabin Sambrano*
Samson Satele (UFA-OAK)
A.Q. Shipley
Darrion Weems^
Griff Whalen*
Tom Zbikowski
^practice squad, *injured reserve, reserve physically unable to perform & reserve non-football injury
HOW THE 2012 COLTS WERE BUILT
9/3/2012
NO NAME POS HT WT DOB AGE EXP COLLEGE HOMETOWN HOW ACQ. GP/GS/DNP/IA
81 Adams, Kris WR 6-3 194 9/4/1987 25 1 UTEP Fort Worth, TX FA-1297 Addison, Mario OLB 6-3 257 9/6/1987 25 2 Troy Birmingham, AL W-11 (CHI)83 Allen, Dwayne TE 6-3 255 2/24/1990 22 R Clemson Fayettville, NC D3-1251 Angerer, Pat ILB 6-0 236 1/31/1987 25 3 Iowa Bettendorf, IA D2-1011 Avery, Donnie WR 5-11 200 6/12/1984 28 5 Houston Houston, TX UFA-12 (TEN)33 Ballard, Vick RB 5-10 217 7/16/1990 22 R Mississippi State Pascagoula, MS D5-1241 Bethea, Antoine S 5-11 196 7/27/1984 28 7 Howard Newport News, VA D6-0615 Brazill, LaVon WR 5-11 191 3/15/1989 23 R Ohio Lantana, FL D6-1231 Brown, Donald RB 5-10 210 4/11/1987 25 4 Connecticut Atlantic Highlands, NJ D1-0938 Brown, Sergio S 6-2 210 5/22/1988 24 3 Notre Dame Maywood, IL W-12 (NE)34 Carter, Delone RB 5-9 238 6/22/1987 25 2 Syracuse Copley, OH D4-1174 Castonzo, Anthony T 6-7 315 8/9/1988 24 2 Boston College Hawthorn Woods, IL D1-1117 Collie, Austin WR 6-0 204 11/11/1985 26 4 Brigham Young El Dorado Hills, CA D4-0953 Conner, Kavell ILB 6-0 243 2/23/1987 25 3 Clemson Richmond, VA D7-1023 Davis, Vontae CB 5-11 205 5/27/1988 24 4 Illinois Washington, DC T-12 (MIA)80 Fleener, Coby TE 6-6 252 9/20/1988 23 R Stanford Lemont, IL D2-1258 Fokou, Moise ILB 6-1 236 8/28/1985 27 4 Maryland Cameroon, Africa T-12 (PHI)50 Freeman, Jerrell ILB 6-0 234 5/1/1986 26 1 Mary Hardin-Baylor Waco, TX FA-1293 Freeney, Dwight OLB 6-1 268 2/19/1980 32 11 Syracuse Hartford, CT D1-0227 Gordy, Josh CB 5-11 195 2/9/1987 25 2 Central Michigan Warthen, GA T-12 (STL)8 Harnish, Chandler QB 6-2 220 7/28/1988 24 R Northern Illinois Bluffton, IN D7-1254 Harvey, Mario ILB 6-0 264 8/10/1987 25 1 Marshall Chatham, VA FA-1255 Hickman, Justin OLB 6-2 258 7/20/1985 27 1 UCLA El Paso, TX FA-1213 Hilton, T.Y. WR 5-9 183 11/14/1989 22 R Florida International Miami, FL D3-1292 Hughes, Jerry OLB 6-2 254 8/13/1988 24 3 TCU Sugar Land, TX D1-1099 Johnson, Antonio NT 6-3 310 12/8/1984 27 6 Mississippi State Leland, MS FA-0846 Jones, Dominique TE 6-3 255 8/15/1987 25 R Shepherd San Diego, CA FA-1269 Justice, Winston T 6-6 317 9/14/1984 27 7 USC Long Beach, CA T-12 (PHI)21 King, Justin CB 5-11 197 5/11/1987 25 5 Penn State Pittsburgh, PA FA-1235 Lefeged, Joe S 6-0 205 6/2/1988 24 2 Rutgers Germantown, MD FA-1172 Linkenbach, Jeff T 6-6 323 6/9/1987 25 3 Cincinnati Sandusky, OH FA-1012 Luck, Andrew QB 6-4 234 9/12/1989 22 R Stanford Houston, TX D1-1291 Mathews, Ricardo DT 6-3 310 7/30/1987 25 3 Cincinnati Jacksonville, FL D7-1098 Mathis, Robert OLB 6-2 245 2/26/1981 31 10 Alabama A&M Atlanta, GA D5-031 McAfee, Pat P 6-1 220 5/2/1987 25 4 West Virginia Plum, PA D7-0975 McGlynn, Mike G/C 6-4 327 3/8/1985 27 5 Pittsburgh Austintown, OH UFA-12 (CIN)95 Moala, Fili DE 6-4 310 6/23/1985 27 4 USC Buena Park, CA D2-0926 Moore, Mewelde RB 5-11 209 7/24/1982 30 9 Tulane Hammond, LA FA-1294 Nevis, Drake DT 6-1 310 5/8/1989 23 2 LSU Harvey, LA D3-1173 Olsen, Seth G 6-5 305 12/17/1985 26 3 Iowa Omaha, NE W-11 (MIN)45 Overton, Matt LS 6-1 254 7/6/1985 27 1 Western Washington Tracy, CA FA-1260 Person, Mike T 6-4 299 6/17/1988 24 2 Montana State Glendive, MT W-12 (SF)25 Powers, Jerraud CB 5-10 187 7/19/1987 25 4 Auburn Decatur, AL D3-0990 Redding, Cory DE 6-4 315 11/15/1980 31 10 Texas Houston, TX UFA-12 (BAL)76 Reitz, Joe G 6-7 322 8/24/1985 27 2 W. Michigan Fishers, IN FA-1064 Satele, Samson C 6-3 299 11/29/1984 27 6 Hawaii Kailua, HI UFA-12 (OAK)62 Shipley, A.Q. C 6-1 309 5/22/1986 26 1 Penn State Beaver County, PA FA-125 Stanton, Drew QB 6-3 243 5/7/1984 28 6 Michigan State Okemos, MI T-12 (NYJ)68 Tevaseu, Martin NT 6-2 325 10/7/1987 24 2 UNLV Booneville, CA W-12 (NYJ)32 Vaughn, Cassius CB 5-11 195 11/3/1987 24 3 Mississippi Memphis, TN T-12 (DEN)4 Vinatieri, Adam K 6-0 206 12/28/1972 39 17 S. Dakota State Rapid City, SD UFA-06 (NE)87 Wayne, Reggie WR 6-0 198 11/17/1978 33 12 Miami (FL) New Orleans, LA D1-0128 Zbikowski, Tom S 5-11 200 5/22/1985 27 5 Notre Dame Park Ridge, IL UFA-12 (BAL)
40 Alexander, Alvester RB 5-11 204 10/17/1990 21 R Wyoming Houston, TX FA-1278 Anunoby, Chigbo DT 6-4 324 1/4/1989 23 R Morehouse Jefferson City, MO FA-1257 Brown, Jerry OLB 6-4 265 10/20/1987 24 R Illinois St. Louis, MO FA-1265 Hicks, Hayworth G 6-3 336 10/3/1988 23 R Iowa State Palmdale, CA FA-1243 Johnson, D.J. CB 6-1 191 11/7/1985 26 3 Jackson State Texas City, TX T-12 (PHI)86 Miller, Kyle TE 6-5 260 4/18/1988 24 1 Mount Union Elida, OH FA-1214 Moore, Kashif WR 5-9 180 11/21/1988 23 R Connecticut Burlington, N.J. W-12 (CIN)67 Weems, Darrion T 6-5 320 9/4/1988 24 R Oregon Winnetka, CA FA-12
68 Aiono, James DE 6-3 305 1/23/1989 23 R Utah West Valley, UT FA-1252 Edds, A.J. ILB 6-4 256 9/18/1987 24 3 Iowa Greenwood, IN FA-1158 Fugger, Tim OLB 6-4 250 7/1/1989 23 R Vanderbilt Oak Brook, IL D7-1271 Ijalana, Ben G 6-4 337 8/6/1989 23 2 Villanova Hainesport, NJ D2-1139 Karim, Deji RB 5-8 209 11/18/1986 25 3 Southern Illinois Oklahoma City, OK W-12 (JAX)37 King, Brandon CB 5-10 185 1/28/1987 25 2 Purdue Warner Robins, GA FA-1142 Lindsey, Korey CB 5-10 194 2/3/1989 23 1 Southern Illinois Baton Rouge, LA W-12 (ARZ)56 Lutrus, Scott ILB 6-3 247 4/23/1988 24 1 Connecticut Brookfield, CT FA-1196 McKinney, Brandon NT 6-2 345 8/24/1983 29 7 Michigan State Dayton, OH UFA-12 (BAL)38 Newton, Mike S 5-10 207 11/11/1987 24 2 Buffalo Pasadena, MD FA-1285 Sambrano, Jabin WR 5-11 175 3/12/1990 22 R Montana Temecula, CA FA-1284 Whalen, Griff WR 5-11 185 3/1/1990 22 R Stanford Sylvania, OH FA-12
79 Anderson, Justin G 6-5 342 4/15/1988 24 R Georgia Ocilla, GA D7-12
61 Chapman, Josh NT 6-0 316 6/10/1990 22 R Alabama Hoover, AL D5-12
COACHING STAFF HEAD COACH: Chuck PaganoBruce Arians (Offensive Coordinator), Greg Manusky (Defensive Coordinator), Marwan Maalouf (Special Teams Coordinator), Roy Anderson (Safeties Coach),James Bettcher (Special Assistant to Head Coach), Brant Boyer (Assistant Special Teams Coach), Clyde Christensen (Quarterbacks Coach), Gary Emanuel (Defensive Line Coach), Jeff FitzGerald (Linebackers Coach), Joe Gilbert (Assistant Offensive Line Coach); Mike Gillhamer (Secondary Coach),Frank Giufre (Offensive Quality Control Coach), Harold Goodwin (Offensive Line Coach), Richard Howell (Assistant Strength & Conditioning), Roger Marandino (Strength & Conditioning), Alfredo Roberts (Tight Ends Coach), David Walker (Running Backs Coach), Brad White (Defensive Quality Control Coach), Charlie Williams (Wide Receivers Coach).
2012 INDIANAPOLIS COLTS ALPHABETICAL ROSTER
RESERVE/PHYSICALLY UNABLE TO PERFORM
RESERVE/NON-FOOTBALL INJURY
RESERVE/INJURED
PRACTICE SQUAD
9/3/2012
NO NAME POS HT WT DOB AGE EXP COLLEGE HOMETOWN HOW ACQ. GP/GS/DNP/IA
1 Pat McAfee P 6-1 220 5/2/1987 25 4 West Virginia Plum, PA D7-094 Adam Vinatieri K 6-0 206 12/28/1972 39 17 South Dakota State Rapid City, SD UFA-06 (NE)5 Drew Stanton QB 6-3 243 5/7/1984 28 6 Michigan State Okemos, MI T-12 (NYJ)8 Chandler Harnish QB 6-2 220 7/28/1988 24 R Northern Illinois Bluffton, IN D7-1211 Donnie Avery WR 5-11 200 6/12/1984 28 5 Houston Houston, TX UFA-12 (TEN)12 Andrew Luck QB 6-4 234 9/12/1989 22 R Stanford Houston, TX D1-1213 T.Y. Hilton WR 5-9 183 11/14/1989 22 R Florida International Miami, FL D3-1215 LaVon Brazill WR 5-11 191 3/15/1989 23 R Ohio Lantana, FL D6-1217 Austin Collie WR 6-0 204 11/11/1985 26 4 Brigham Young El Dorado Hills, CA D4-0921 Justin King CB 5-11 197 5/11/1987 25 5 Penn State Pittsburgh, PA FA-1223 Vontae Davis CB 5-11 205 5/27/1988 24 4 Illinois Washington, DC T-12 (MIA)25 Jerraud Powers CB 5-10 187 7/19/1987 25 4 Auburn Decatur, AL D3-0926 Mewelde Moore RB 5-11 209 7/24/1982 30 9 Tulane Hammond, LA FA-1227 Gordy, Josh CB 5-11 195 2/9/1987 25 2 Central Michigan Warthen, GA T-12 (STL)28 Tom Zbikowski S 5-11 200 5/22/1985 27 5 Notre Dame Park Ridge, IL UFA-12 (BAL)31 Donald Brown RB 5-10 210 4/11/1987 25 4 Connecticut Atlantic Highlands, NJ D1-0932 Cassius Vaughn CB 5-11 195 11/3/1987 24 3 Mississippi Memphis, TN T-12 (DEN)33 Vick Ballard RB 5-10 217 7/16/1990 22 R Mississippi State Pascagoula, MS D5-1234 Delone Carter RB 5-9 238 6/22/1987 25 2 Syracuse Copley, OH D4-1135 Joe Lefeged S 6-0 205 6/2/1988 24 2 Rutgers Germantown, MD FA-1138 Sergio Brown S 6-2 210 5/22/1988 24 3 Notre Dame Maywood, IL W-12 (NE)41 Antoine Bethea S 5-11 196 7/27/1984 28 7 Howard Newport News, VA D6-0645 Matt Overton LS 6-1 254 7/6/1985 27 1 Western Washington Tracy, CA FA-1246 Dominique Jones TE 6-3 255 8/15/1987 25 R Shepherd San Diego, CA FA-1250 Jerrell Freeman ILB 6-0 234 5/1/1986 26 1 Mary Hardin-Baylor Waco, TX FA-1251 Pat Angerer ILB 6-0 236 1/31/1987 25 3 Iowa Bettendorf, IA D2-1053 Kavell Conner ILB 6-0 243 2/23/1987 25 3 Clemson Richmond, VA D7-1054 Mario Harvey ILB 6-0 264 8/10/1987 25 1 Marshall Chatham, VA FA-1255 Justin Hickman OLB 6-2 258 7/20/1985 27 1 UCLA El Paso, TX FA-1258 Moise Fokou ILB 6-1 236 8/28/1985 27 4 Maryland Cameroon, Africa T-12 (PHI)60 Mike Person T 6-4 299 6/17/1988 24 2 Montana State Glendive, MT W-12 (SF)62 A.Q. Shipley C 6-1 309 5/22/1986 26 1 Penn State Beaver County, PA FA-1264 Samson Satele C 6-3 299 11/29/1984 27 6 Hawaii Kailua, HI UFA-12 (OAK)68 Martin Tevaseu NT 6-2 325 10/7/1987 24 2 UNLV Booneville, CA W-12 (NYJ)69 Winston Justice T 6-6 317 9/14/1984 27 7 USC Long Beach, CA T-12 (PHI)72 Jeff Linkenbach T 6-6 323 6/9/1987 25 3 Cincinnati Sandusky, OH FA-1073 Seth Olsen G 6-5 305 12/17/1985 26 3 Iowa Omaha, NE W-11 (MIN)74 Anthony Castonzo T 6-7 315 8/9/1988 24 2 Boston College Hawthorn Woods, IL D1-1175 Mike McGlynn G/C 6-4 327 3/8/1985 27 5 Pittsburgh Austintown, OH UFA-12 (CIN)76 Joe Reitz G 6-7 322 8/24/1985 27 2 Western Michigan Fishers, IN FA-1080 Coby Fleener TE 6-6 252 9/20/1988 23 R Stanford Lemont, IL D2-1281 Kris Adams WR 6-3 194 9/4/1987 25 1 UTEP Fort Worth, TX FA-1283 Dwayne Allen TE 6-3 255 2/24/1990 22 R Clemson Fayettville, NC D3-1287 Reggie Wayne WR 6-0 198 11/17/1978 33 12 Miami (FL) New Orleans, LA D1-0190 Cory Redding DE 6-4 315 11/15/1980 31 10 Texas Houston, TX UFA-12 (BAL)91 Ricardo Mathews DT 6-3 310 7/30/1987 25 3 Cincinnati Jacksonville, FL D7-1092 Jerry Hughes OLB 6-2 254 8/13/1988 24 3 TCU Sugar Land, TX D1-1093 Dwight Freeney OLB 6-1 268 2/19/1980 32 11 Syracuse Hartford, CT D1-0294 Drake Nevis DT 6-1 310 5/8/1989 23 2 LSU Harvey, LA D3-1195 Fili Moala DE 6-4 310 6/23/1985 27 4 USC Buena Park, CA D2-0997 Mario Addison OLB 6-3 257 9/6/1987 25 2 Troy Birmingham, AL W-11 (CHI)98 Robert Mathis OLB 6-2 245 2/26/1981 31 10 Alabama A&M Atlanta, GA D5-0399 Antonio Johnson NT 6-3 310 12/8/1984 27 6 Mississippi State Leland, MS FA-08
14 Kashif Moore WR 5-9 180 11/21/1988 23 R Connecticut Burlington, N.J. W-12 (CIN)40 Alvester Alexander RB 5-11 204 10/17/1990 21 R Wyoming Houston, TX FA-1243 D.J. Johnson CB 6-1 191 11/7/1985 26 3 Jackson State Texas City, TX T-12 (PHI)57 Jerry Brown OLB 6-4 265 10/20/1987 24 R Illinois St. Louis, MO FA-1265 Hayworth Hicks G 6-3 336 10/3/1988 23 R Iowa State Palmdale, CA FA-1267 Darrion Weems T 6-5 320 9/4/1988 24 R Oregon Winnetka, CA FA-1278 Chigbo Anunoby DT 6-4 324 1/4/1989 23 R Morehouse Jefferson City, MO FA-1286 Kyle Miller TE 6-5 260 4/18/1988 24 1 Mount Union Elida, OH FA-12
37 Brandon King CB 5-10 185 1/28/1987 25 2 Purdue Warner Robins, GA FA-1138 Mike Newton S 5-10 207 11/11/1987 24 2 Buffalo Pasadena, MD FA-1239 Deji Karim RB 5-8 209 11/18/1986 25 3 Southern Illinois Oklahoma City, OK W-12 (JAX)42 Korey Lindsey CB 5-10 194 2/3/1989 23 1 Southern Illinois Baton Rouge, LA W-12 (ARZ)52 A.J. Edds ILB 6-4 256 9/18/1987 24 3 Iowa Greenwood, IN FA-1156 Scott Lutrus ILB 6-3 247 4/23/1988 24 1 Connecticut Brookfield, CT FA-1158 Tim Fugger OLB 6-4 250 7/1/1989 23 R Vanderbilt Oak Brook, IL D7-1268 James Aiono DE 6-3 305 1/23/1989 23 R Utah West Valley, UT FA-1271 Ben Ijalana G 6-4 337 8/6/1989 23 2 Villanova Hainesport, NJ D2-1184 Griff Whalen WR 5-11 185 3/1/1990 22 R Stanford Sylvania, OH FA-1285 Jabin Sambrano WR 5-11 175 3/12/1990 22 R Montana Temecula, CA FA-1296 Brandon McKinney NT 6-2 345 8/24/1983 29 7 Michigan State Dayton, OH UFA-12 (BAL)
79 Justin Anderson G 6-5 342 4/15/1988 24 R Georgia Ocilla, GA D7-12
61 Josh Chapman NT 6-0 316 6/10/1990 22 R Alabama Hoover, AL D5-12
COACHING STAFF HEAD COACH: Chuck PaganoBruce Arians (Offensive Coordinator), Greg Manusky (Defensive Coordinator), Marwan Maalouf (Special Teams Coordinator), Roy Anderson (Safeties Coach),James Bettcher (Special Assistant to Head Coach), Brant Boyer (Assistant Special Teams Coach), Clyde Christensen (Quarterbacks Coach), Gary Emanuel (Defensive Line Coach), Jeff FitzGerald (Linebackers Coach), Joe Gilbert (Assistant Offensive Line Coach); Mike Gillhamer (Secondary Coach),Frank Giufre (Offensive Quality Control Coach), Harold Goodwin (Offensive Line Coach), Richard Howell (Assistant Strength & Conditioning), Roger Marandino (Strength & Conditioning), Alfredo Roberts (Tight Ends Coach), David Walker (Running Backs Coach), Brad White (Defensive Quality Control Coach), Charlie Williams (Wide Receivers Coach).
2012 INDIANAPOLIS COLTS NUMERICAL ROSTER
RESERVE/PHYSICALLY UNABLE TO PERFORM
RESERVE/NON-FOOTBALL INJURY
RESERVE/INJURED
PRACTICE SQUAD
9/3/2012
DATE POS. PLAYER TRANSACTION
1/2 Vice Chairman Bill Polian Relieved of duties as Vice Chairman
VP/GM Chris Polian Relieved of duties as Vice President and General Manager
1/4 OT Mike Tepper Signed a reserve/futures contract
DT Ollie Ogbu Signed a reserve/futures contract
OG Matt Murphy Signed a reserve/futures contract
1/5 WR Jeremy Ross Signed a reserve/futures contract
1/7 WR Jarred Fayson Signed a reserve/futures contract
1/11 GM Ryan Grigson Named General Manager
1/17 Jim Caldwell Relieved of duties as Head Coach
RB Darren Evans Signed a reserve/futures contract
1/19 LB Jerrell Freeman Signed a reserve/futures contract
Mike Murphy Retired
Devin Fitzsimmons Relieved of duties as Coaching Assistant
Pete Metzelaars Relieved of duties as Offensive Line Coach
Rod Perry Relieved of duties as Special Assistant to the Defense
Frank Reich Relieved of duties as Wide Receivers Coach
Bill Teerlinck Relieved of duties as Defensive Assistant
John Teerlinck Relieved of duties as Defensive Line Coach
Jon Torine Relieved of duties as Strength and Conditioning Coach
Ron Turner Relieved of duties as Quarterbacks Coach
1/20 LB Mario Harvey Signed a reserve/futures contract
1/26 Chuck Pagano Named Head Coach
1/28 C A.Q. Shipley Signed a reserve/futures contract
1/31 Bruce Arians Named Offensive Coordinator
Harold Goodwin Named Offensive Line Coach
Ricky Thomas Relieved of duties as Tight Ends Coach
Ron Prince Relieved of duties as Assistant Offensive Line Coach
2/2 Greg Manusky Named Defensive Coordinator
Marwan Maalouf Named Special Teams Coordinator
Roy Anderson Named Safeties Coach
Roger Marandino Named Strength & Conditioning Coach
2/7 LB Zac Diles Waived
OG Jaimie Thomas Waived
OT James Williams Waived
2/9 CB Mike Newton Signed a reserve/futures contract
DE Justin Hickman Signed a reserve/futures contract
2/13 DE Brandon Peguese Signed a reserve/futures contract
2/14 Brant Boyer Named Assistant Special Teams Coach
Gary Emanuel Named Defensive Line Coach
Jeff FitzGerald Named Linebackers Coach
Joe Gilbert Named Assistant Offensive Line Coach
Mike Gillhamer Named Secondary Coach
Frank Giufre Named Offensive Quality Control Coach
Alfredo Roberts Named Tight Ends Coach
Brad White Named Defensive Quality Control Coach
Charlie Williams Named Wide Receivers Coach
3/5 DE Robert Mathis Signed a contract extension
3/7 QB Peyton Manning Released
3/8 OL Jake Kirkpatrick Signed a reserve/futures contract
QB Trevor Vittatoe Signed a reserve/futures contract
3/9 RB Joseph Addai Released
LB Gary Brackett Released
DB Melvin Bullitt Released
TE Dallas Clark Released
QB Curtis Painter Released
3/14 OT Winston Justice Traded along with a sixth round pick (187 overall) from the Philadelphia
Eagles for a sixth round pick (172 overall)
DE Cory Redding Signed as an unrestricted free agent
WR Reggie Wayne Re-signed
3/16 DB Tom Zbikowski Signed as an unrestricted free agent
3/19 OL Mike McGlynn Signed as an unrestricted free agent
3/21 C Samson Satele Signed as an unrestricted free agent
3/23 OG Ryan Diem Retired
WR Donnie Avery Signed as an unrestricted free agent
QB Drew Stanton Traded along with a seventh round pick (214 overall) from the New York
Jets for a sixth round pick (187 overall)
4/3 LS Matt Overton Signed as a free agent
David Thorton Named Player Development Coordinator
TE Kyle Miller Signed as a free agent
4/5 DT Brandon McKinney Signed as an unrestricted free agent
4/13 WR Blair White Waived
5/3 DE James Aniono Signed as a college free agent
DT Chigbo Anunoby Signed as a college free agent
T Steven Baker Signed as a college free agent
CB Cameron Chism Signed as a college free agent
OLB Kevin Eagan Signed as a college free agent
CB Antonio Fenelus Signed as a college free agent
G Jason Foster Signed as a college free agent
ILB Chris Galippo Signed as a college free agent
G Hayworth Hicks Signed as a college free agent
CB Buddy Jackson Signed as a college free agent
S Matt Merletti Signed as a college free agent
S Micah Pellerin Signed as a college free agent
WR Jabin Sambrano Signed as a college free agent
P Brian Stahovich Signed as a college free agent
WR Griff Whalen Signed as a college free agent
S Latarrius Thomas Signed as a college free agent
TE Dominique Jones Signed as a free agent
RB Deji Karim Claimed off waivers (JAX)
Ahmad Russell Named Area Scout
Dave Razzon Named Area Scout
T.J. McCreight Named Director of College Scouting
Todd Vasvari Promoted to Assistant Director of College Scouting
Andrew Berry Promoted to Pro Scouting Coordinator
5/4 Jon Shaw Promoted to Pro Scout
5/15 TE Andre Smith Claimed off waivers (CHI)
CB Mike Holmes Waived
5/16 RB Vick Ballard Signed with the Colts
WR LaVon Brazill Signed with the Colts
LB Tim Fugger Signed with the Colts
QB Chandler Harnish Signed with the Colts
5/17 TE Brody Eldridge Waived
QB David Legree Signed with the Colts
G Justin Anderson Signed with the Colts
2012 INDIANAPOLIS COLTS TRANSACTIONS
5/18 C Zane Taylor Claimed off waivers (PHI)
G Matt Murphy Waived
5/22 NT Josh Chapman Signed with the Colts
5/23 OLB Brandon Peguese Waived
OLB Jerry Brown Signed as a college free agent
CB Cassius Vaughn Traded from the Denver Broncos for FB Chris Gronkowski
5/29 FB Ryan Mahaffey Waived
T George Foster Signed as a free agent
5/31 S Micah Pellerin Waived
CB Korey Lindsey Claimed off waivers (ARZ)
6/1 WR T.Y. Hilton Signed with the Colts
6/5 OLB Kevin Eagan Waived
WR Kris Adams Signed with the Colts
6/6 C Jake Kirkpatrick Waived
6/8 CB Justin King Signed as a free agent
6/19 QB David Legree Released
RB Mewelde Moore Signed as a free agent
6/20 QB Trevor Vittatoe Waived
7/10 LB Chris Galippo Waived
7/13 LB Larry Lumpkin Signed as a college free agent
7/19 DT Jason Shirley Signed as a free agent
QB Andrew Luck Signed contract
7/22 CB D.J. Johnson Traded from the Philadelphia Eagles for DT Ollige Ogbu
7/25 TE Dwayne Allen Signed contract
7/27 TE Coby Fleener Signed contract
8/1 G Ben Ijalana Waived/Injured
T Ty Nsekhe Signed as a free agent
8/3 ILB A.J. Edds Waived/Injured
ILB Moise Fokou/Greg Lloyd Traded from the Philadelphia Eagles for CB Kevin Thomas and a
conditional 7th round draft pick
8/3 G Ben Ijalana Placed on Injured Reserve
8/4 ILB A.J. Edds Placed on Injured Reserve
8/11 OLB Tim Fugger Elevated to the active roster from the Physically Unable to Perform List
8/14 RB Alvester Alexander Signed as a free agent
8/15 CB Buddy Jackson Waived/Injured
8/15 ILB Scott Lutrus Waived/Injured
8/15 ILB Mike Balogun Signed as a free agent
8/16 CB Buddy Jackson Placed on Injured Reserve
8/16 ILB Scott Lutrus Placed on Injured Reserve
8/17 CB Buddy Jackson Waived from the Injured Reserve List
8/21 ILB Larry Lumpkin Waived
8/21 CB Josh Gordy Traded from the St. Louis Rams for undisclosed 2014 NFL Draft pick
8/26 CB Vontae Davis Traded from the Miami Dolphins for a second round pick and a
conditional late round pick in 2013.
8/26 CB Cameron Chism Waived
8/26 CB Antonio Fenelus Waived
8/26 CB Terrence Johnson Waived
8/26 CB Chris Rucker Waived
8/26 S Matt Merletti Waived
8/26 S David Caldwell Waived
8/26 LB Mike Balogun Waived
8/26 WR Quan Cosby Waived
8/26 RB Alvester Alexander Waived
8/26 G Jason Foster Waived
8/26 P Brian Stahovich Waived
8/27 T George Foster Placed on Injured Reserve
8/27 NT Brandon McKinney Placed on Injured Reserve
8/27 WR Griff Whalen Placed on Injured Reserve
8/27 G Justin Anderson Placed on Reserve/Physically Unable to Perform List
8/27 NT Josh Chapman Placed on Reserve/Non-Football Injury List
8/28 WR Jarred Fayson Waived/Injured8/28 WR Kashif Moore Claimed off waivers (CIN)
8/29 WR Jarred Fayson Placed on Injured Reserve
8/30 WR Jarred Fayson Waived from the Injured Reserve List
8/31 WR Jeremy Ross Waived
8/31 RB Darren Evans Waived
8/31 TE Andre Smith Waived
8/31 T Mike Tepper Waived
8/31 C Zane Taylor Waived
8/31 T Steven Baker Waived
8/31 DT Jason Shirley Waived
8/31 ILB Greg Lloyd Waived
8/31 TE Kyle Miller Waived
8/31 G Hayworth Hicks Waived
8/31 OLB Jerry Brown Waived
8/31 S Latarrius Thomas Waived
8/31 DT Chigbo Anunoby Waived
8/31 WR Kashif Moore Waived
8/31 LS Justin Snow Waived
8/31 RB Deji Karim Waived/Injured
8/31 DE James Aniono Waived/Injured
8/31 OLB Tim Fugger Waived/Injured
8/31 CB Brandon King Waived/Injured
8/31 S Mike Newton Waived/Injured
8/31 WR Jabin Sambrano Placed on Injured Reserve
8/31 CB Korey Lindsey Placed on Injured Reserve
8/31 T George Foster Released from the Injured Reserve List
9/1 S Jermale Hines Waived
9/1 CB D.J. Johnson Waived
9/1 T Ty Nsekhe Waived
9/1 S Sergio Brown Claimed off waivers (NE)
9/1 T Mike Person Claimed off waivers (SF)
9/1 NT Martin Tevaseu Claimed off waivers (NYJ)
9/1 DT Chigbo Anunoby Signed to the practice squad
9/1 OLB Jerry Brown Signed to the practice squad
9/1 G Hayworth Hicks Signed to the practice squad
9/1 TE Kyle Miller Signed to the practice squad
9/1 WR Kashif Moore Signed to the practice squad
9/1 S Latarrius Thomas Signed to the practice squad
9/1 RB Deji Karim Placed on Injured Reserve
9/1 DE James Aniono Placed on Injured Reserve
9/1 OLB Tim Fugger Placed on Injured Reserve
9/1 CB Brandon King Placed on Injured Reserve
9/1 S Mike Newton Placed on Injured Reserve
9/2 CB D.J. Johnson Signed to the practice squad
9/3 RB Alvester Alexander Signed to the practice squad
9/3 S Latarrius Thomas Released from the practice squad
9/3 T Darrion Weems Signed to the practice squad
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS / PRESEASON / WEEK 5 / THROUGH THURSDAY, AUGUST 30, 2012
WON 2, LOST 2 * RUSHING No. Yds Avg Long TD
08/12 W 38- 3 St. Louis 64,133 Ballard 24 74 3.1 13 0
08/19 L 24-26 at Pittsburgh 54,559 Karim 23 73 3.2 10 1
08/25 L 17-30 at Washington 60,047 Evans 24 58 2.4 7 3
08/30 W 20-16 Cincinnati 65,035 D. Brown 16 38 2.4 21 1
Ind. Opp. Luck 4 18 4.5 9 1
TOTAL FIRST DOWNS 78 69 Carter 5 17 3.4 9 1
Rushing 24 25 Hilton 1 9 9.0 9 0
Passing 49 40 Harnish 5 7 1.4 5 0
Penalty 5 4 Stanton 1 6 6.0 6 0
3rd Down: Made/Att 29/59 25/58 M. Moore 2 4 2.0 3 0
3rd Down Pct. 49.2 43.1 Allen 1 3 3.0 3 0
4th Down: Made/Att 2/4 2/5 Jones 1 3 3.0 3 0
4th Down Pct. 50.0 40.0 K. Moore LG 1 3 3.0 3 0
POSSESSION AVG. 28:55 31:06 Brazill 1 -5 -5.0 -5 0
TOTAL NET YARDS 1375 1265 TEAM 108 305 2.8 21 7
Avg. Per Game 343.8 316.3 OPPONENTS 114 449 3.9 24 1
Total Plays 256 250 * RECEIVING No. Yds Avg Long TD
Avg. Per Play 5.4 5.1 Whalen 12 125 10.4 27 1
NET YARDS RUSHING 305 449 Brazill 10 109 10.9 16 0
Avg. Per Game 76.3 112.3 Hilton 9 116 12.9 31t 1
Total Rushes 108 114 Wayne 9 115 12.8 27 0
NET YARDS PASSING 1070 816 Avery 6 38 6.3 9 0
Avg. Per Game 267.5 204.0 Adams 5 90 18.0 32 0
Sacked/Yards Lost 8/53 8/35 Fleener 5 46 9.2 24 0
Gross Yards 1123 851 Ross 4 132 33.0 59 1
Att./Completions 140/83 128/89 Jones 3 66 22.0 42t 1
Completion Pct. 59.3 69.5 Collie 3 45 15.0 23t 1
Had Intercepted 3 2 Cosby 3 44 14.7 32 0
PUNTS/AVERAGE 19/45.4 20/44.7 Allen 3 41 13.7 23 0
NET PUNTING AVG. 19/40.2 20/42.1 D. Brown 2 72 36.0 63t 1
PENALTIES/YARDS 20/210 29/224 Ballard 2 23 11.5 12 0
FUMBLES/BALL LOST 5/1 5/3 K. Moore LG 2 20 10.0 15 0
TOUCHDOWNS 13 7 K. Moore TM 1 15 15.0 15 0
Rushing 7 1 Smith 1 16 16.0 16 0
Passing 6 5 Karim 1 10 10.0 10 0
Returns 0 1 Miller 1 9 9.0 9 0
* SCORE BY PERIODS Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 OT PTS M. Moore 1 9 9.0 9 0
TEAM 7 52 14 26 0 99 Evans 1 4 4.0 4 0
OPPONENTS 17 27 18 13 0 75 Sambrano 1 2 2.0 2 0
* SCORING TD-Ru-Pa-Rt K-PAT FG S PTS Harnish 0 -4 --- -4 0
Evans 3 3 0 0 0 18 TEAM 83 1123 13.5 63t 6
Vinatieri 0 0 0 0 10/10 2/ 2 0 16 OPPONENTS 89 851 9.6 57t 5
D. Brown 2 1 1 0 0 12 * INTERCEPTIONS No. Yds Avg Long TD
Carter 1 1 0 0 0 6 Rucker 1 31 31.0 31 0
Collie 1 0 1 0 0 6 Bethea 1 6 6.0 6 0
Hilton 1 0 1 0 0 6 TEAM 2 37 18.5 31 0
Jones 1 0 1 0 0 6 OPPONENTS 3 68 22.7 49t 1
Karim 1 1 0 0 0 6 * PUNTING No. Yds Avg Net TB In Lg B
Luck 1 1 0 0 0 6 McAfee 17 815 47.9 39.7 2 6 64 1
Ross 1 0 1 0 0 6 Stahovich 1 47 47.0 48.0 0 0 47 0
Whalen 1 0 1 0 0 6 TEAM 19 862 45.4 40.2 2 6 64 1
McAfee 0 0 0 0 2/ 2 1/ 1 0 5 OPPONENTS 20 894 44.7 42.1 1 9 67 0
TEAM 13 7 6 0 12/12 3/ 3 0 99 * PUNT RETURNS Ret FC Yds Avg Long TD
OPPONENTS 7 1 5 1 7/ 7 8/ 8 1 75 Brazill 5 3 7 1.4 4 0
2-Pt Conv: TM 0-1, OPP 0-0 Hilton 2 1 19 9.5 13 0
SACKS: Addison 3, Hughes 3, Nevis 2, TM 8, Sambrano 2 0 6 3.0 6 0
OPP 8 Cosby 0 1 0 --- --- 0
FUM/LOST: Harnish 3/0, Evans 2/1 TEAM 9 5 32 3.6 13 0
OPPONENTS 12 1 59 4.9 16 0
* KICKOFF RETURNS No. Yds Avg Long TD
Sambrano 4 107 26.8 31 0
Karim 2 36 18.0 21 0
Aiono 1 3 3.0 3 0
Brazill 1 28 28.0 28 0
Hilton 1 22 22.0 22 0
Vaughn 1 23 23.0 23 0
TEAM 10 219 21.9 31 0
OPPONENTS 14 359 25.6 43 0
* FIELD GOALS 1-19 20-29 30-39 40-49 50+
Vinatieri 0/ 0 1/ 1 0/ 0 0/ 0 1/1
McAfee 0/ 0 0/ 0 1/ 1 0/ 0 0/0
TEAM 0/ 0 1/ 1 1/ 1 0/ 0 1/1
OPPONENTS 0/ 0 3/ 3 3/ 3 2/ 2 0/0
Vinatieri: ()(53G)(29G)() McAfee: (31G)()()()
TM: (31G)(53G)(29G)() OPP: (37G)(25G,39G,43G,22G)()(37G,48G,22G)
* PASSING Att Cmp Yds Cmp% Yds/Att TD TD% Int Int% Long Sack/Lost Rating
Luck 66 41 522 62.1 7.91 3 4.5 2 3.0 63t 3/ 18 89.3
Harnish 47 27 406 57.4 8.64 2 4.3 1 2.1 59 4/ 26 91.3
Stanton 27 15 195 55.6 7.22 1 3.7 0 0.0 29 1/ 9 90.8
TEAM 140 83 1123 59.3 8.02 6 4.3 3 2.1 63t 8/ 53 90.3
OPPONENTS 128 89 851 69.5 6.65 5 3.9 2 1.6 57t 8/ 35 94.2
TOTAL SOLO AST SACK YDS INT YDS. PD FF FR S
Moise Fokou 20 12 8 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 0
Jerry Hughes 18 11 7 3 16 0 0 0 0 0 0
D.J. Johnson 16 12 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Jerrell Freeman 15 8 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Cassius Vaughn 15 12 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Kavell Conner 13 7 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Drake Nevis 13 7 6 2 8 0 0 0 0 0 0
Mario Harvey 13 6 7 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0
Antoine Bethea 12 6 6 0 0 1 6 1 0 0 0
Mario Addison 9 7 2 3 11 0 0 0 0 0 0
Jerry Brown 8 5 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Greg Lloyd 7 3 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Justin King 6 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Korey Lindsey 6 5 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Ricardo Mathews 6 1 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Chigbo Anunoby 6 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Mike Newton 6 5 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0
Josh Gordy 6 4 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
Matt Merletti 5 3 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Jerraud Powers 5 4 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0
Antonio Johnson 5 1 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Fili Moala 5 3 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Joe Lefeged 5 4 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0
Brandon McKinney 4 0 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
Tom Zbikowski 4 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
James Aiono 4 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
Jermale Hines 4 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
David Caldwell 3 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Jason Shirley 3 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Justin Hickman 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Antonio Fenelus 2 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Cameron Chism 2 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Latarrius Thomas 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Brandon King 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Larry Lumpkin 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Terrence Johnson 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Robert Mathis 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Dwight Freeney 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Cory Redding 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Chandler Harnish 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Chris Rucker 0 0 0 0 0 1 31 1 0 0 0
TOTALS 259 155 104 8 35 2 37 9 2 3 0
TOTAL SOLO AST FG PAT PUNT
Latarrius Thomas 4 3 1 0 0 0
Mario Addison 4 4 0 0 0 0
LaVon Brazill 3 3 0 0 0 0
Terrence Johnson 2 1 1 0 0 0
Jerry Brown 2 1 1 0 0 0
Mike Newton 2 1 1 0 0 0
Moise Fokou 2 1 1 0 0 0
Greg Lloyd 2 1 1 0 0 0
Quan Cosby 1 1 0 0 0 0
Mario Harvey 1 0 1 0 0 0
David Caldwell 1 1 0 0 0 0
Cassius Vaughn 1 1 0 0 0 0
Justin Hickman 1 1 0 0 0 0
Tom Zbikowski 1 0 1 0 0 0
Mike Balogun 1 1 0 0 0 0
Kavell Conner 1 1 0 0 0 0
Dominique Jones 1 0 1 0 0 0
Brandon King 1 0 1 0 0 0
Vick Ballard 1 1 0 0 0 0
D.J. Johnson 1 0 1 0 0 0
TOTALS 33 22 11 0 0 0
PLAYER
PASSES MISC
2012 COLTS PRESEASON DEFENSIVE STATS (FROM GAMEBOOKS)
SPECIAL TEAMS
PLAYER
DEFENSIVE QUARTERBACK
BLK KICK
2012 COLTS PRESEASON SPECIAL TEAMS STATS
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS ADDITIONAL BIOS
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS ADDITIONAL BIOS
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Sergio Brown #38 Safety 6-2, 210 pounds Notre Dame Claimed off Waivers – 2012 (Patriots) 1st Year with Colts/3rd Year in NFL Born: May 22, 1988
Career Transactions:
• Claimed by the Colts off waivers on September 1, 2012.
• Waived by the New England Patriots on August 31, 2012.
• Elevated to the Patriots 53-man roster on October 23, 2010.
• Signed to the Patriots practice squad on September 6, 2010.
• Released by the Patriots on September 4, 2010.
• Signed by the Patriots as an undrafted free agent on April 29, 2010. 2011 (PATRIOTS):
• Played in 15 games with three starts, contributing 30 tackles, nine special teams tackles and one interception.
• Saw action on special teams in all three playoff games, making three special teams tackles.
• Recorded his first career interception vs. San Diego (9/18) in his first career start. Picked off Philip Rivers at the New England 17-yard line. Held Chargers tight end Antonio Gates without a reception and added eight tackles.
• Picked up two special teams tackles in the Divisional Playoffs vs. Denver (1/14). 2010 (PATRIOTS):
• Finished the season with nine total tackles, three special teams tackles and one special teams fumble recovery.
• Played in his first NFL game in the 23-20 win at San Diego (10/24), a day after being signed to the active roster. Finished the game with five tackles.
• Recovered a muffed punt return by C.J. Spiller at Buffalo (12/26) late in the fourth quarter for his first career fumble recovery in a 34-3 win.
COLLEGE:
• Played in 44 games with 18 starts and finished with 89 total tackles at Notre Dame.
• After participating primarily on special teams during his first two seasons, became a starter midway through his junior season in 2008.
• As a senior in 2009, started in 12 games and finished with 50 total tackles with one sack.
• As a junior in 2008, started in six-of-13 games and finished with 28 tackles and one sack.
• Played on special teams and as a reserve in the secondary as a freshman and sophomore.
• Saw action in 11-of-13 games as a true freshman in 2006. PERSONAL:
• Born May 22, 1988.
• Majored in marketing.
• Accounted for 710 all-purpose yards and scored four touchdowns as a senior wide receiver at Proviso East High School in Maywood, Ill.
• Also had 41 tackles, two sacks and six interceptions as a senior safety.
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS ADDITIONAL BIOS
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Career Statistics Year GP/GS Solo Asst. Total Sacks PD FF FR INT Yards Avg. LG TD 2011 NE 11/0 7 1 8 0.0 0 0 1 0 0 0.0 0 0 2010 NE 15/3 18 8 26 0.0 1 0 0 1 2 2.0 2 0 Total 26/3 25 9 34 0.0 1 0 1 1 2 2.0 2 0
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS ADDITIONAL BIOS
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Vontae Davis #23 Cornerback 5-11, 205 pounds Illinois TR – 2012 (Miami) 1st Year with Colts/4th Year in NFL Born: May 27, 1988
Career Transactions:
• Acquired by the Colts in a trade with the Miami Dolphins in exchange for a second-round pick and a conditional late-round pick in the 2013 NFL Draft.
• Originally selected by Miami in the first round (25th overall) in the 2009 NFL Draft.
2011 (DOLPHINS):
• Started all 12 games in which he played, finishing the season with 43 tackles (39 solo) and a team-leading four interceptions for 60 yards.
• Tied for first on the team with eight passes defensed and had one sack.
• Finished tied for second on the team in tackles with six stops vs. Houston (9/18) despite missing some of the game with a hamstring injury.
• Finished tied for second on the team in tackles with six stops vs. N.Y. Jets (10/17).
• Had four tackles and one interception vs. Washington (11/13), picking off a Rex Grossman pass and returning it 28 yards.
• Finished second on the team in tackles with five stops and had one interception at Dallas (11/23), picking off a Tony Romo pass and returning it 25 yards.
• Had four tackles including his first career sack vs. Oakland (12/4), tackling Raiders quarterback Carson Palmer for a seven-yard loss.
• Had five tackles and two interceptions at Buffalo (12/18), picking off Bills quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick twice for a total of seven yards in returns, marking his first career game of two-or-more interceptions.
• Inactive four games, with three of those due to a hamstring injury. 2010 (DOLPHINS):
• Started 15-of-16 games, finishing the season with 51 tackles, a team-leading 12 passes defensed and one interception.
• Had six tackles and two passes defensed at Minnesota (9/19), including an interception, picking off a Brett Favre pass.
• Matched against the Patriots' Randy Moss the majority of the game vs. New England (10/4) and helped hold Moss without a catch for only the fifth time in his career.
• Had seven tackles and one pass defensed at Baltimore (11/7).
• Matched against the Titans' Randy Moss the majority of the game vs. Tennessee (11/14) and helped hold Moss to one catch for 26 yards.
• Finished tied for second on the team in tackles with four stops vs. Cleveland (12/5). 2009 (DOLPHINS):
• Started nine games and finished the season with 48 tackles (44 solo) to go along with 11 passes defensed and a team-leading four interceptions that he returned for a total of 64 yards with one touchdown.
• Became the first Dolphin rookie to lead the team in interceptions since safety Louis Oliver had four in 1989.
• One of only two rookie cornerbacks ever to lead the Dolphins in interceptions, along with Lloyd Mumphord, who had five in his rookie season in 1969.
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS ADDITIONAL BIOS
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• His four interceptions ranks tied for fifth among Dolphins rookies.
• Made his Dolphins and NFL debut in a reserve role at Atlanta (9/13).
• Had two tackles and one interception vs. Buffalo (10/4), picking off a Trent Edwards pass and returning it 23 yards for a touchdown, marking both his first NFL interception and his first NFL touchdown.
• Made his first career NFL start and had six tackles and two passes defensed vs. N.Y. Jets (11/1).
• Had six tackles and two passes defensed at New England (11/8), including an interception, picking off a Tom Brady pass and returning it 15 yards.
• Had three tackles and one interception vs. New England (12/6), picking off a Tom Brady pass in the end zone for a touchback.
• Had three tackles, one pass defensed and one interception at Tennessee (12/20), coming when he picked off a Vince Young pass in the first series of the game and returned it 26 yards.
• Finished second on the team in tackles with six stops and added two passes defensed vs. Houston (12/27).
College:
• Started 34-of-36 games played as a three-year starter at Illinois and posted career statistics of 206 tackles (139 solo), seven interceptions, three forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and 22 passes defensed.
• Added nine kickoff returns for 215 yards (23.9 avg.) and returned a blocked punt for a touchdown
• Started 11-of-12 games as a junior in 2008 and was named a consensus All-Big Ten Conference first-team selection after he posted a career-high 78 tackles (53 solo) and tied for second in the conference with three forced fumbles to go along with two interceptions, eight passes defensed and a fumble recovery.
• Started all 12 games as a sophomore in 2007 and was the only sophomore semifinalist for the Jim Thorpe Award.
• Selected All-Big Ten Conference first-team by the league’s coaches and earned second-team honors from the media.
• Recorded 76 tackles (56 solo) and ranked sixth in the league with eight pass deflections and four interceptions.
• Blocked two punts for 31 yards in returns, including a touchdown and added 116 yards on four kickoff returns (29.0 avg.).
• Started 11-of-12 games in which he played as a freshman in 2006 and was honored as a Freshman All-America selection by The Sporting News, Scout.com and Rivals.com.
• Earned honorable mention All-Big Ten Conference honors by both the coaches and the media.
• Named the team’s Rookie of the Year.
• Recorded 52 tackles (30 solo), an interception, a fumble recovery and six passes defensed.
• Majored in speech communications. Personal:
• Attended Dunbar Senior High School in Washington, D.C.
• Selected as a PrepStar AII-America choice and Washington D.C. Gatorade Player of the Year.
• Rated the top recruit in the Washington D.C. area.
• Was named to the Washington Post All-Metro team, in addition to picking up DCIAA West first-team all-conference honors.
• Had eight interceptions and 38 solo tackles as a senior, while adding 25 receptions for 612 yards and recording over 1,000 all-purpose yards.
• Led Dunbar High to a 9-2 record and a win in the Turkey Bowl, the DCIAA city championship game.
• Also lettered in track.
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS ADDITIONAL BIOS
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• Brother, Vernon, played tight end at Maryland and was the sixth overall pick in the 2006 NFL Draft by the San Francisco 49ers, making them the third set of brothers to both be first-round NFL draft choices, joining Eli (2004, QB, 1st overall, San Diego/Traded to New York Giants) and Peyton Manning (1998, QB, 1st overall, Indianapolis) and Jerome (2003, DE, 15th overall, Philadelphia) and Stocker McDougle (2000, T, 20th overall, Detroit).
• Full name is Vontae O. Davis.
• Born in Washington, D.C.
Career Statistics Year GP/GS Solo Asst. Total Sacks PD FF FR INT Yards Avg. LG TD 2011 MIA 12/12 39 4 43 1.0 9 0 0 4 60 15.0 28 0 2010 MIA 16/15 43 8 51 0.0 12 1 0 1 0 0.0 0 0 2009 MIA 16/9 44 4 48 0.0 11 0 0 4 64 16.0 26 1 Total 44/36 126 16 142 1.0 32 1 0 9 124 13.8 28 1
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS ADDITIONAL BIOS
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Moise Fokou #45 Inside Linebacker 6-1, 236 pounds Maryland TR – 2012 (Philadelphia) 1st Year with Colts/4th Year in NFL Born: August 28, 1985
Career Transactions:
• Acquired by the Colts in a trade with the Philadelphia Eagles along with linebacker Greg Lloyd in exchange for cornerback Kevin Thomas and a conditional seventh round selection in the 2013 NFL Draft.
• Originally selected by Philadelphia in the seventh round (230th overall) in the 2009 NFL Draft.
2011 (EAGLES):
• Competed in 11 games (seven starts) and totaled 27 tackles (15 solo) and one pass defensed.
• Ranked second on the team with 10 special teams tackles before being placed on Injured Reserve on November 29.
• Set a season-high seven tackles in the season opener at St. Louis (9/11).
2010 (EAGLES):
• Saw action in all 16 contests (11 starts) and posted 41 tackles (33 solo), one sack, one pass defensed and two forced fumbles.
• Led the team with 19 special teams tackles.
• Started at linebacker and notched his first career forced fumble at San Francisco (10/10).
• Registered his first career sack at the New York Giants (12/19) and contributed with a season-best seven tackles and a team-leading four special teams stops.
• Finished with six tackles in the team’s Wild Card Playoff loss to the Green Bay Packers (1/9). 2009 (EAGLES):
• In his rookie season, played in all 16 games (four starts) and contributed with 30 tackles (18 solo) and one pass defensed.
• Tied for first on the team in special teams tackles (20) and recovered two fumbles on special teams.
• Recovered a fumble on a kickoff return by Domenik Hixon against the New York Giants (11/1), which led to a field goal.
• Started his first NFL game against Dallas (11/8) and recorded four tackles.
• Set a career-high with nine tackles at San Diego (11/15).
• Finished with three tackles in the team’s Wild Card Playoff loss to the Dallas Cowboys (1/9). College:
• Registered 182 tackles in 39 career games at Maryland.
• Was an All-ACC selection as a senior SAM linebacker in 2008 and totaled 77 tackles, a career-best 12 tackles for loss and 5.0 sacks.
• His 5.0 sacks in 2008 were the most by a Maryland linebacker since Shawne Merriman had a team-best 8.5 in 2004.
• Tallied 84 tackles, three forced fumbles and a team-high 17 special teams stops in 2007.
• Was selected to play in the 2009 Under Armour Senior Bowl.
• Started his collegiate career at Division III Frostburg State and registered 70 tackles in 10 games.
• Graduated Maryland with a degree in criminology and criminal justice.
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS ADDITIONAL BIOS
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Personal:
• Attended Bullis (Maryland) High School in Potomac, Md.
• Was an All-IAC and second-team All-Met selection as a senior running back and linebacker. Also garnered team MVP honors that year.
• Founded The Root 53 Foundation, which assists urban youth.
• Pronounced: Moses (FOE-koo).
• Immigrated to the United States in 1990 from Cameroon in central Africa. Career Statistics Year GP/GS Solo Asst. Total Sacks PD FF FR INT Yards Avg. LG TD 2011 PHI 11/7 15 12 27 0.0 2 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 2010 PHI 16/11 33 8 41 1.0 1 2 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 2009 PHI 16/4 18 12 30 0.0 1 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Total 43/22 66 32 98 1.0 4 2 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Career Playoff Statistics Year GP/GS Solo Asst. Total Sacks PD FF FR INT Yards Avg. LG TD 2010 PHI 1/1 3 3 6 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 2009 PHI 1/1 2 1 3 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Total 2/2 5 4 9 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Special Teams Tackles: 49 (2011 – 10, 2010 – 19, 2009 - 20) Additional Statistics: Special teams fumble recoveries: 2 (1 at NYG (12/13/09), 1 vs. NYG (11/1/09))
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS ADDITIONAL BIOS
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Josh Gordy #40
Cornerback 5-11, 195 pounds Central Michigan TR – 2012 (St. Louis) 1st Year with Colts/2nd Year in NFL Born: February 9, 1987
Career Transactions:
• Acquired by the Colts in a trade with the St. Louis Rams in exchange for an undisclosed selection in the 2014 NFL Draft.
• Elevated to the Rams 53-man roster from the practice squad on September 21, 2011.
• Signed to the Rams practice squad on September 6, 2011.
• Released from the Green Bay Packers on September 3, 2011.
• Elevated to the Packers 53-man roster from the practice squad on December 1, 2010.
• Signed to the Packers practice squad on September 15, 2010.
• Released by the Jacksonville Jaguars on August 31, 2010.
• Signed as an undrafted free agent by the Jaguars on April 26, 2010. 2011 (PACKERS/RAMS):
• Played in 14 games (nine starts) with the Rams and totaled 42 tackles (32 solo), five passes defensed, three interceptions and a fumble recovery.
• Recorded six tackles (three solo) at Dallas (10/23).
• Tallied an interception in his first career start when he picked off Drew Brees against New Orleans (10/30). Finished the game with a career-high seven solo tackles.
• Notched his second interception of the season when he picked off Andy Dalton and returned it 30 yards against Cincinnati (12/18).
• Recorded an interception in his second consecutive game after picking off Charlie Batch at Pittsburgh (12/24).
2010 (JAGUARS/PACKERS):
• Appeared in two regular season games with the Packers.
• Made a special teams tackle in his NFL debut against San Francisco (12/5).
• Played in three preseason games with the Jaguars before being waived prior to the start of the regular season.
College:
• Appeared in 47 games (45 starts) at Central Michigan, totaling 212 tackles (134 solo), 37 passes defensed and 10 interceptions.
• Earned second-team All-MAC honors as a senior after leading the team with 14 passes defensed and three interceptions.
• Started 11 games and posted 47 tackles (30 solo), seven passes defensed and an interception his junior season.
• Appeared in 10 games (eight starts) and posted a career-high four interceptions as a sophomore on his way to being named CMU’s Most Valuable Defensive Back.
• As a freshman, started all 14 games and led the secondary with a career-high 66 tackles (41 solo).
• Named the MAC West Division Defensive Player of the Week after returning an interception 100 yards for a touchdown against Akron (9/16).
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS ADDITIONAL BIOS
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Personal:
• Lettered three times in football and four times in track and was an all-state and all-area selection at Washington County (Warthen, Ga.) High School.
• Posted 69 tackles, six interceptions (two returned for touchdowns) and 2.0 sacks for his career.
• Returned an interception 101 yards for a touchdown in the state semifinals at the Georgia Dome as a senior.
• Member of the state champion 4x100 relay team in 2004 that set a school record of 41.45 seconds.
• Cousin, Robert Edwards, was a first-round draft choice of the New England Patriots in 1998.
• Born in Augusta, Ga. Career Statistics Year GP/GS Solo Asst. Total Sacks PD FF FR INT Yards Avg. LG TD 2011 STL 14/9 36 17 53 0.0 5 0 1 3 37 12.3 30 0 2010 GB 2/0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Total 16/9 36 17 53 0.0 5 0 1 3 37 12.3 30 0
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS ADDITIONAL BIOS
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Mike Person #60 Offensive Tackle 6-4, 299 pounds Montana State Claimed off Waivers – 2012 (San Francisco) 1st Year with Colts/1st Year in NFL Born: June 17, 1988
Career Transactions:
• Claimed off waivers by the Colts on September 1, 2012.
• Waived by the San Francisco 49ers on August 31, 2012.
• Selected by the 49ers in the seventh round (239th overall) in the 2011 NFL Draft. 2011 (49ERS):
• Inactive for all 16 regular season games and both postseason contests. College:
• Started all 42 games on the offensive line for Montana State.
• Earned first-team All-Big Sky Conference honors in 2010, starting all 12 games and helping lead MSU to a Big Sky Conference Championship and the FCS Playoffs. The Bobcats led the Big Sky in scoring offense, total offense, passing offense, and first downs.
• As a junior in 2009, started all 11 games at right tackle and earned first-team All-Big Sky honors.
• As a sophomore, started all 12 games and earned honorable mention all-conference honors, while helping the Bobcats lead the Big Sky in most rushing yards and fewest sacks allowed.
• Named the team’s Most Inspirational Player in the Spring of 2008.
• As a freshman, started first eight games at right tackle before an injury ended his season.
• Redshirted in 2006. Personal:
• Attended Dawson County (Glendive, Mont.) High School and was a three-time all-league choice, earning Class A all-state honors as a junior and senior.
• Selected team MVP as a senior.
• Two-time state discus champion.
• Father, Jim, played football at Montana Tech (1969-73), while uncles Dennis Lowney (Western Montana) and Jerry Person (San Diego State) also played college football.
• Born Michael Sean Person in Glendive, Mont.
• Graduated with a degree in history.
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS ADDITIONAL BIOS
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Martin Tevaseu #68 Nose Tackle 6-2, 325 pounds UNLV Claimed off Waivers – 2012 (N.Y. Jets) 1st Year with Colts/3rd Year in NFL Born: September 30, 1985
Career Transactions:
• Claimed off waivers by the Colts on September 1, 2012.
• Waived by the New York Jets on August 31, 2012.
• Elevated to the Jets 53-man active roster on October 22, 2011.
• Signed to the Jets practice squad on October 18, 2011.
• Released by the Jets on October 18, 2011.
• Elevated to the Jets 53-man active roster on October 12, 2011.
• Signed to the Jets practice squad on September 5, 2011.
• Released by the Jets on September 4, 2011.
• Elevated to the Jets active roster on January 22, 2011.
• Signed to the Jets practice squad on September 7, 2010.
• Released by the Jets on September 4, 2011.
• Signed by the Jets as a free agent on July 20, 2010.
• Released by the Cleveland Browns on June 15, 2010.
• Signed by the Browns on May 17, 2010. 2011 (JETS):
• Saw action in five games, collecting one tackle.
• Spent the first five weeks of the season on the practice squad before joining the active roster in Week 6.
2010 (JETS):
• Signed prior to training camp and spent the entire regular season and first two playoff games as a member of the Jets practice squad.
• Signed to the active roster before the AFC Championship Game at Pittsburgh (1/24/11) and saw action on defense.
College:
• Posted 48 tackles and two sacks as a two-year starter at UNLV.
• Named Defensive MVP and team captain as a senior.
• Enrolled at Santa Rosa (Calif.) Junior College and earned first-team all-league honors in his freshman year after collecting 40 tackles, five sacks and three passes defended.
• Re-enrolled at Santa Rosa JC in 2007. Personal:
• Full name is Martin Tauamanu Tevaseu.
• Married to the former Leah Guerrero.
• Earned a spot on the Dean’s Honor List in 2008 en route to Academic All-MWC honors.
• Named school’s athlete of the year as well as Anderson Valley High School student body president.
• Was first-team all-conference and team MVP in basketball as a senior in high school.
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS ADDITIONAL BIOS
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Career Statistics Year GP/GS Solo Asst. Total Sacks PD FF FR INT Yards Avg. LG TD 2011 NYJ 5/0 0 1 1 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0 Total 5/0 0 1 1 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 0 0
INDIANAPOLIS COLTS FEATURE CLIPS
Castonzo realizes good fortune blocking for Luck
Chicago Tribune
Dan Pompei
August 23, 2012
INDIANAPOLIS — Protecting the blindside of Andrew Luck might entail a little more stress than protecting the blindside of Curtis Painter or Dan Orlovsky. Anthony Castonzo, the Colts' second-year left tackle out of Boston College, knows what it feels like. "It's a big responsibility keeping (Luck) healthy," he said. "He's obviously a very good player we are going to need. So keeping him healthy is my biggest job." But blocking for Luck has its benefits for Castonzo, who went to Lake Zurich High School. Luck is pretty adept at avoiding pressure if a pass rusher happens to slip by an offensive lineman. "Different quarterbacks do things differently," Castonzo said. "Andrew slides around a lot. He moves around and kind of makes me right no matter what I do from a blocking standpoint. He's able to move around real well." Luck might have to be on the move a lot because he is playing behind an unproven offensive line. The Colts have three new starters on the right side in tackle Winston Justice, guard Mike McGlynn and center Samson Satele. Castonzo is the linchpin. "I think the line is coming together well," Castonzo said. "We are communicating really well. I think we're building something good." Castonzo never got to block for Peyton Manning because Manning sat out all of Castonzo's rookie year. But like everyone around the Colts, Castonzo has been impressed with his new quarterback. "He is a great leader," Castonzo said. "He's very even keeled which is great to have in a quarterback. He keeps his cool. After we went down 14-0 (to the Steelers) the other day, he comes back to the huddle confident, with a smile on his face. He's ready to get us pumped up and get us going. To get that leadership from a rookie is pretty awesome." Now that Castonzo is a starter in the NFL, he no longer moonlights as a delivery man at his parents' Italian restaurant in Hawthorn Woods. He said his father and mother sold the eatery so they could travel to all of his games.
Rookie Fleener ‘ready to roll’ with Colts
Chicago Tribune
Dan Pompei
August 23, 2012
INDIANAPOLIS -- Andrew Luck isn’t the only high draft pick from Stanford going through his first NFL training camp with the Colts. Luck’s college teammate Coby Fleener is in the same boat. Fleener, a Lemont native who went to Joliet Catholic, likely will be in the starting lineup for the Colts’ season opener against the Bears at Soldier Field. “He’s coming along,” Colts general manager Ryan Grigson said of the 34th pick of the April draft. “He is a very gifted, gifted guy. When the lights come on, he’s ready to roll. There is a process to becoming a pro. Every day he is learning.” Fleener came to the Colts with the reputation as a special receiving tight end who needed work on his blocking. The Colts have made it a point of emphasis that he improve his blocking. "We know what his strengths are, but to be a complete player he has to become a better blocker,” Grigson said. “But the other things he has are things you can’t teach, and that’s why he’s here in the first place. The way to sum him up in a nutshell is to say he is a king-sized wide receiver who plays above the rim. But he also can become that and a well-rounded tight end. He’s working hard at it.” Fleener had a decent block on a 1-yard Donald Brown touchdown run against the Steelers on Monday. He talked about being a “complete” tight end. “You don’t want to just be a glorified wide receiver sitting on the end of the line,” Fleener said. There is a lot more to it than catching balls.” Catching balls hasn’t always been easy for the rookie either. He uncharacteristically dropped a few in camp. “It’s partially a lack of concentration,” he said. “It was one of those things where you need to focus on every catch before you start running upfield. It was frustrating to say the least, especially being looked at as one of the better receiving tight ends.” Fleener said his biggest transition has been learning the playbook. It’s starting to click in, but he still has a lot to learn. Figuring out the Colts offense quickly has been one of Luck’s strengths. Fleener has marveled at how his college teammate has been able to transfer what he has learned in the classroom to the field. “It’s not just knowing his position, it’s understanding the things around him that affect his position,” he said. Luck is doing more than feeding Fleener passes. He’s even driving him to work until Fleener gets a car. Their relationship is a definite advantage for both of them. "It’s an advantage in that we started with a pretty good sense of each other’s timing,” Fleener said. “Now our real advantage is knowing how to talk to each other to help each other understand as quickly as possible any changes that need to be made.”
Tom Zbikowski is a good fit for Indianapolis Colts
Chicago Tribune
Dan Pompei
August 23, 2012
INDIANAPOLIS — Chuck Pagano coached Tom Zbikowski for four years in Baltimore, so when he had a chance to run his own team in Indianapolis, one of his first moves was to bring Zbikowski with him. "He is invaluable because he played in the scheme," Pagano said of the safety. "He's another voice. He reinforces everything. Players take to other players. Here is what they are talking about. Sometimes they can put it into terms they understand better. They pound the message home. If there is any doubt, trust the system, play the technique, it will work out." Zbikowski helps set the tone with the Colts that made the Ravens an AFC powerhouse. "You are expected to play full tilt here every play," Zbikowski said. Pagano said Zbikowski, who grew up in Arlington Heights and went to Buffalo Grove High School before playing collegiately at Notre Dame, earned the respect of his teammates by working hard in the offseason. So now Zbikowski is the Colts' starting strong safety and one of the building blocks of Pagano's new regime. In four years with the Ravens, Zbikowski played mostly on special teams and in defensive packages. He came into training camp last year with the inside track to start, but lost out to veteran Bernard Pollard. In the previous offseason during the NFL lockout, Zbikowski had returned to his first love — boxing. He had three victories in Madison Square Garden, the MGM Hotel in Las Vegas and the Boardwalk Hotel in Atlantic City. Zbikowski had a blast, but looking back on it he wasn't sure it was the best thing for his football career. "It's not that I wasn't focused last offseason," he said. "But this offseason when I spent every waking minute thinking about this season, I understand I wasn't as focused then as I am now. "It was a lesson learned. You need to step away from football sometimes, but I don't think your focus needs to be on another sport. Some of the best advice I got from (my father Ed): You have to miss football to be good at it because you have to be hungry. You do have to step back. "But my focus wasn't where it should have been. I think I was riding a little too high from a couple of knockouts." Still, Zbikowski has no regrets about his time in Baltimore. He said he enjoyed learning from seasoned pros like Ray Lewis, Ed Reed, Terrell Suggs, Haloti Ngata, Derrick Mason and Anquan Boldin. "As much as I didn't enjoy being in a backup role, it was an apprenticeship well served," he said. "And it was four years of not taking too much physical abuse." Now he is ready to take his NFL career to the next level. As was the case with the Ravens, Zbikowski feels he is surrounded by teammates who love to play the game and buy into the team concept. For the time being, Zbikowski has put his boxing gloves in storage. "Out of sight, out of mind," he said. "Every once in awhile I'll catch myself throwing some punches. It helps you keep loose. It's a good workout for cross training. I really wanted to spar, but I made a conscious decision to keep it at a distance. It's too addictive, get a little taste of it, then I get a little adrenalin rush." Someday though, chances are very good he will return to the ring. "I tell myself I won't," he said. "But I don't see myself staying away forever.
Brown, Colts, Aiming to Improve with a Little ‘Luck’
The Two River Times
By Vincent Landolfi, Jr. A new era dawned in Indianapolis last week with the start of the Colts 2012 training camp held at Anderson University in Anderson, Indiana. For the Hoosier faithful all across the state, the day had finally arrived when they would get to see, in action, their new general manager, head coach, and quarterback, who happened to be this year’s #1 overall pick in the NFL draft. With so much excitement in the air, you would really have to be paying attention to notice the running back now at the top of the team’s depth chart. Donald Brown (RBC Class of 2005) is occupying that spot right now, and given the amount of effort and level of commitment it took to get there, he might be doing so until it is pried from his old, retired hands. And, per usual, the sincerity and humility that are a part of the Colt’s 2007 first-round pick’s persona is evident when he speaks from the heart. “It doesn’t matter where I am on the depth chart. Always prepare like you’re the starter, and whatever opportunity comes – make the most of it. I’m very excited about this year.” Brown told me, standing in the end zone after coming off A.U.’s turf game field at the conclusion of the first morning’s walk through practice. “I am prepared for any possible situation for this season whether it’s getting a majority of carries or on special teams, whatever it may be I’ve prepared for it and I’m ready for it.” Many people agree. And some, like season-ticket holder, and Donald Brown fan James Stoots, from Plainfield, IN, think he is “set for a breakout year.” One reason is because preparation has been a long suit in Mr. Brown’s repertoire going all the way back to his days as a schoolboy standout on the fields of the Shore Conference. “He was the hardest worker I’ve ever seen,” said New England Patriots scout Frank Edgerly, then the head football coach at Red Bank Catholic H.S., Brown’s alma mater. “He out-lifted the strong guys, outran the speed guys, and was the first one ready to go again.” Fast forward to the summer of 2012, where we find the former UConn star, not visiting his family and the beaches of his boyhood home at the Jersey Shore, but two states down in Terrapin country. Eschewing vacation, Donald decided to spend several weeks working out and honing his skills at The University of Maryland, where former Huskies Head Coach Randy Edsall is now the head coach. “Physically I feel like this is the best shape I’ve been in, in a very long time”, Brown said, as a result of his off-season activities. Along with the Colts new regime, come many new players, a new system, and new playbook with new terminology. In order to have a successful season, general manager Ryan Grigson, head coach Chuck Pagano, and the entire staff must meld all of these components into one, harmonious unit. I asked Brown about the progress of this process. “At the end of the day, every playbook’s the same; it’s the terminology that’s different. But this is probably the fifth time we’re hearing it with O.T.A.s (organized team activities) and mini-camps so we are a lot more comfortable with it right now. “It’s definitely coming together,” he added. “We’ve been together since early April so guys are getting comfortable with one another and with the system.” When asked about some particular plays offensive coordinator, Bruce Arians, has installed in order to ‘take advantage of his strengths, a smile came over #31’s face. “I love the new system – some downhill, smash-mouth running; it’s what I’m comfortable with. I am excited to get running.” Of course, on the first day of camp, the stallion’s share of the media and fan attention was directed at one of the new faces in Indianapolis, quarterback Andrew Luck. While the powers-that-be are trying to low-ball high expectations from being thrust upon the rookie’s shoulders, the fans’ excitement seemed to have spilled over onto the field, after his 27 for 32 passing performance on day one. “He seems like a seasoned vet,” said Brown, when the fourth-year back was asked about his new signal caller. “He’s a student of the game, and really picking up the offense. He’s very cool, calm, and collected; a great leader. He’s done a phenomenal job, and he’s only going to get better.” In the midst of all this newness, however, there remains a holdover from the previous Colts staff. Not so coincidentally, he is the man who had a lot to do with the resurgence of Indy’s running game at the end of last season, and Donald Brown’s career in the process. “I’m very excited and glad to have Dave back,” said Brown, of running backs coach David Walker, the former Syracuse Orangemen two-time All-Big East runner. “He’s a phenomenal guy, and coach and he’s really helped elevate my game. I’m just very, very happy to have him back.”
Former RBC star Donnie Brown is at the top of the Indianapolis Colts’ depth chart at the running back position. But even a new system, excellent coach, and what Brown calls “a great backfield, with guys that bring many different things to the table” (including second-year Syracuse alum Delone Carter, rookie Darren Evans, from Virginia Tech, and free-agent Mewelde Moore, to name a few), Brown knows that holes need to be opened in order for a running game to succeed. Fear not. Grigson and Pagano have anticipated and addressed this crucial team component in the draft and off-season signings. “We have some big guys up front,” Brown told the media throng, alluding to the size of lineman such as 6’ 3” 300 lb. center Samson Satele, acquired from the Oakland Raiders, rookie Steven Baker at 6’ 8” 301 lb., and 6’ 7” 315 lb. tackle Anthony Castonzo. “There are some horses up there.” So the horses are in the barn, and the table is set for the Colts’ upcoming 2012 NFL season. To what degree a rookie quarterback, managing an explosive passing game, and newly recharged running game, along with an attacking style defense, under a new regime, solidifies is anyone’s guess. Are there specific goals in place for this team to achieve? “Just to get better everyday,” said Brown. “That’s our goal, that’s our mindset, every meeting, every walk-through, every practice. Just get better and take it one day at a time.” It is not surprising, for those of us who have had the opportunity to listen to Donald Brown answer questions in the past, and hear him take the humble, pragmatic approach in his replies. Do not for one-minute make the mistake of thinking humble and desire are mutually exclusive. Lesser men would be on to their next career by now if presented with some of the obstacles Brown has encountered in his NFL life, including injuries to his ankle, shoulder, and torso, and a lack of playing time at the beginning of last season. During some of these more difficult times, some of the sentiment surrounding Brown was that even if he never plays another down in the NFL, he owes no one anything. Here is a professional athlete who stands at only 5’ 10”, but is a legend at his high school and in his community, led the nation in rushing in college while earning his degree on a full scholarship, and has already made a very good living while providing us with some extremely memorable moments in the National Football League. But that scenario does not speak to the heart of Donald Brown. Look up the meaning of the name Donald, and you’ll know exactly what I mean. You see, right now he is occupying the spot at the top of the depth chart, and I think he likes the view from there
Colts camp report: Trust, patience key as new braintrust begins tough task By Pete Prisco | Senior NFL Columnist
Aug. 10, 2012 ANDERSON, Ind. -- Who is Ryan Grigson? When the Indianapolis Colts hired Grigson as general manager last winter, it surprised a lot of people and led many to ask that very question. But it shouldn't have. This is a guy who is 100 percent football. He came up through the scouting ranks -- he was once player-personnel director for an Arena League team -- and a lot of scouts and personnel people I respect think highly of him. "Grinder, loves it, works it, isn't afraid to state his opinion," one personnel man said of Grigson. "They made a good hire." Time will tell, but if his first draft can be used as an indicator, I would say he's off to a good start. Not only did the Colts land quarterback Andrew Luck with the first pick in the draft -- OK, that was easy -- but they also got him two tight ends in Coby Fleener and Dwayne Allen to help rebuild the offense and a speedy receiver in T.Y. Hilton. Grigson is spending this summer on the practice field, but he's also furiously studying other rosters. As the worst team in 2011, he has the first waiver claim on players, which is huge for a young team. He is a big, former offensive tackle from Purdue who is quite a presence, which many of his former coworkers say helped him when he fought for a player in the past. Grigson isn't afraid to go off the grid, which is good. Hiring Chuck Pagano as head coach might not have been the sexiest choice, but the two seem to work well together and seem cut from the same cloth. I like the fact that Grigson was willing to twist the knife a bit about me picking the Colts to go 1-15 -- the first coach, general manager, scout or player in any camp to do so. That speaks volumes to me about a guy's inner core. He is competitive. I respect that, and told Grigson so. I like a fight. He does too. Too many times we forget about the scouts as more and more bean counters take over running teams. It's about football eyes, not Moneyball-like approaches. You might not know this 40-year-old who came up through scouting circles yet, but you should. The Colts have the right guy. Team Objectives • Bring together all the youth. This is a young roster with just seven players left from Tony Dungy's last team in 2008. With a rookie starter at QB, it puts a lot of pressure on veterans like Reggie Wayne to help keep this team focused at times when it may wane. • Establish the physical style that Pagano wants. He comes from the Ravens, a team that used to beat up opponents with a bruising style and the run game. That means the Colts have to change their personality from the past decade, which was a pass-first team. Do they have the makeup to handle this change right away? • Make a smooth transition to the 3-4 hybrid defense. The Colts are changing from their 4-3 defense to one that features more 3-4 looks. That means star pass rushers Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis will be doing more standing up as 3-4 outside linebackers, rather than 4-3 rush ends. Expect Freeney to play a lot like Terrell Suggs did for Pagano in Baltimore. That means he will mostly be going forward, rather than dropping into coverage. Mathis will drop more. Camp Battles
Starting cornerback: Jerraud Powers is solid on one side but the other spot is wide open. Justin King, a former Rams starter, and Cassius Vaughn, who came over from the Broncos, are the leaders right now. There's a good chance the Colts' starting corner could be on another roster right now. Look for a lot of activity when cuts are made. Projected winner: Vaughn. But he will be challenged. Left guard: This looks to be a battle between Joe Reitz and Jeff Linkenbach. Reitz is the more athletic of the two, but Linkenbach is a mauler. This should be a camp-long battle, with Reitz seeming to have the early lead. Projected winner: Reitz. I think he might be the better option in the long run. Third receiver: Wayne is the top guy and Austin Collie is No. 2. So who's third? It appears veteran Donnie Avery, whose career has been slowed by injuries, has the inside track. He did have a minor injury this week that isn't expected to keep him out long. Hilton
might be in the mix, but he has been slowed much of the offseason with a leg injury and is just now rounding into shape. Projected winner: Avery. That's if he can stay healthy. Hilton might have the job later in the season. Somebody to Watch
Freeney has been one of the league's best outside rushers over the past nine years. But his play tailed off some in 2011 and he enters this season making the transition from down end to standup linebacker. But don't expect to see him dropping into coverage. This is a player who will still spend most of the game attacking the quarterback. "We know what he does best," Pagano said. At $15 million for this year, they better hope he gets there a lot. Injury Roundup
• G Ben Ijalana was lost for the season with a torn ACL. It was uncertain whether he would push for time in the rotation anyway. The book is that he might be a bust as a second-round pick in 2011. • DT Josh Chapman. He is on the PUP list after having knee surgery last winter. He might spend the season on IR as a rookie. Watch for him down the road, though. • Avery. He has been having a good camp, but if he misses time it could give some younger receivers a chance to make the team. The Last Word
Colts fans need to understand one word this season: Patience. This is a work in progress, but in Grigson and Pagano they seem to have the right guys for the job. They are building through the draft and did a nice job in their first one. In getting Luck, they have the most important piece. Now comes the task of getting the right people around him. It will take a year or two more, but it's sure nice to know you have the main piece in place. As for this season, don't expect much. It's all about the future in Indianapolis -- one that looks bright with Luck.
Colts lineman, former HSE star Joe Reitz’s long road to the NFL
By Zak Keefer
Indianapolis Star Tribune
August 8, 2012
Lionel Vital’s eyes stayed fixed on the center from Western Michigan, the kid who was too slow, fouled too often and couldn’t get a basket to drop.
But man, Vital thought, does he play hard. The good news for the center: Vital was not scouring the Mid-American Conference basketball tournament for a future NBA lottery pick. A scout for the Baltimore Ravens, he was in town on vacation simply wanting to watch some basketball. He left captivated by a new prospect, a Fishers, Ind., native named Joe Reitz. A year later, after watching Reitz play again, Vital called his head coach, Steve Hawkins. “You have a kid playing the wrong sport,” Vital told him. “I think your center has a future in the NFL.” The road since has hardened Reitz, now an offensive lineman for the Indianapolis Colts, into an NFL anomaly: He doesn’t have college football on his resume. He graduated from Western Michigan as the program's third-leading career scorer and rebounder. But for a 6-foot-7 center who had to play under the basket, the NBA was not an option. Playing professionally overseas, however, was virtually assured. Reitz went for the NFL. “I figured I had nothing to lose,” he says now. “Maybe I could make a career out of it, maybe I could play a year, maybe I get cut the first week. “But I didn’t want to be 40 years old wondering to myself, ‘Could I have made it in the NFL?’”
One way to play
Reitz, 26, retraced his story at his Zionsville home a few weeks before training camp. He glanced at his wife, Jill, and their one-year-old daughter, Juliana. It took more than three years for him to see playing time in the NFL. “There were definitely some hard days and long nights,” he says. “But I’m a big believer in God’s plan, and I know this is exactly where I’m supposed to be right now.” His words are tinged with humility. He knows life in the NFL is fragile. “I’m still chasing the dream,” he says. “It’s the toughest job market in the world. You have to go out and win a job and keep a job every day.” It’s a lifetime, it seems, from his days at Hamilton Southeastern High School, where he was a two-way star in football and a hulking center in basketball. College coaches recruited him in both sports, but he settled on hoops, never figuring he could earn a living one day playing either one. He started 126 games in four years at Western Michigan, branding his game with a brute physicality. "Joe fouls people getting off the bus,” Hawkins joked. “He cannot play anything without being physical. He could probably breathe on a kid and move him three or four feet. It just so happened that was our brand of basketball, so he fit right in.” Hawkins loves to retell the story of Reitz diving into the bleachers in a futile attempt to save a loose ball. Opposing coaches, Hawkins said, later used video of that play to motivate their players. Reitz carried that mentality into his first NFL training camp, in 2008 with the Ravens. He needed it to survive while playing football for the first time since high school, studying a 100-page playbook, seeing fearsome linebacker Ray Lewis across the line of scrimmage.
“By far the most challenging thing I’ve ever done,” Reitz says. Other college basketball players had landed successfully in the NFL without college football, including San Diego Pro Bowl tight end Antonio Gates, who played basketball at Kent State, another MAC school. Yet as much as Reitz fought it, doubt would creep in at times. There were sleepless nights, the seeming absurdity of it all crashing against him in ways a 300-pound defender never could. “Sometimes in the middle of the grind,” Reitz says, “you don’t always see the light at the end of the tunnel.” Jill, back in Kalamazoo finishing her senior year, offered long-distance support. They talked on the phone every night, often praying together for most of the call. “It was really rough,” she remembers. “It was his first taste of the NFL and he’d never been through anything like that before. Sometimes, all I could do was listen.”
The long road home
Dreams of becoming the next Gates vanished quickly. Baltimore’s coaches were blunt: If Reitz had a future in the NFL, it was on the offensive line. "About a week in, they told me to start eating, to start working on my blocking," Reitz recalls. Gaining weight was never a problem. In college, he'd run three miles a day in the summers to keep his weight down for basketball. "So putting weight on for me wasn't as hard as some people might have figured," he says. But progress was slow. He spent two years on the Ravens’ practice squad, adding 70 pounds to his frame, living in the film room, heeding advice from veterans. Reitz spent a third training camp with the team, in 2010, before being cut. Miami claimed him, then cut him three days later to make room for a kick-return specialist. With his NFL dreams hanging by a thread, Reitz planned to return to Baltimore, where he’d battle for a spot on the practice squad. But there was no guarantee how long that would last. Sitting in the Miami airport, he texted Hawkins. “Coach,” he wrote, “I don’t know what I’m going to do.” But before he boarded his flight, his phone buzzed. The Colts wanted him at practice the next day. Reitz called his dad. “You’re never going to believe this ...” he began. Said Dave Reitz, “By the end of our conversation, I had tears in my eyes. To get a chance to play, and play for your hometown team ... it was just the neatest two-minute phone call ever.” Reitz spent 2010 on the Colts’ practice squad before earning a starting spot at tackle for last season’s opener. He remained with the starting unit for nine games before injuries hampered the rest of his rookie year. Healthy and revived for a new season, he figures to play an important role as a young offense meshes with its rookie quarterback. He's currently listed as a back-up at left guard to Jeff Linkenbach but has spent most of this week practicing with the first unit at training camp in Anderson. He’s a full-time football player now, content even if his journey ends tomorrow. “I guess in a way I’ve been able to live out both my dreams,” Reitz said. “I got to play basketball for four years. Now I get to play football for a living.” Said Jill: “I always believed something better would come along. I just never thought it would be this.”
Luck-to-Manning comparisons inevitable, but eerily correct- so far By Pete Prisco CBSSports.com August 6, 2012
ANDERSON, Ind. -- It hit me like a spiral between the eyes. I had been here before at Indianapolis Colts training camp, in the very same spot almost, talking passing game and quarterbacking only two years earlier, only with a different guy getting peppered with my questions.
Then, it was Peyton Manning in the spot, gracious, informative, a football junkie filling up a notebook.
This time, it was Andrew Luck, the man who will try to fill Manning's enormous shoes in Indianapolis. Like Manning, Luck was informative, easygoing, a pro's pro, acting far older than his years and nothing like a wide-eyed rookie.
The No. 18 jerseys that have been so prominent in these parts are now being replaced by No. 12, Luck's number, one that likely will grow to be special just like the quarterback before him.
It's eerie, really, how much Luck and Manning seem alike. Both are big, cerebral, smart, quarterbacks with former NFL passers as dads who seem to be made for the position.
Colts first-year coach Chuck Pagano, who came over from the Baltimore Ravens, sees the similarities as well. It hit him on the practice field last week.
"I was standing behind him [Luck], watching him," Pagano said. "His body language looked just like Peyton. He came to the line, gave the defense a false cadence, tried to get the defense to show its hand, which it did. He changed the protection. He talked to the wideouts, trying to get them in motion. He pointed out the hot sight adjusts and knew how much time was on the play clock. He took the snap from center, and, boom, went to the right spot. It was like watching Peyton orchestrate the whole thing."
Those comparisons are going to come. It's natural. This is a case of a potential can't-miss kid replacing the one who didn't.
Luck said he doesn't really think much about replacing Manning. It's there. But it's not important to him. Winning games. Getting better. That's the priority, not thinking about his predecessor all the time.
Problem is, we bring it up.
"As far as Peyton stuff goes, I don't pay too much attention to it," Luck said. "I would ask the question, too, if I were a bystander or a football fan. I completely understand it. I don't get personally vested in it. It's never one person's team."
Maybe not, but the Colts were close to that because of Manning. It can be argued that he saved the team in Indianapolis. Along the way, he won a Super Bowl and helped build a fancy new stadium, which attracted a Super Bowl to the city.
That's a tough act to follow. But the Colts have the right kid to try it.
Like Manning, Luck loves the game. Lives it. Breathes it. Watching his father Oliver helped prepare him for this moment. I joked with Andrew that he has been readying for this his entire life, being the son of a quarterback.
"I don't think I was thinking what I was doing in the backyard back then would one day help me with training camp," he said with a laugh.
But, much like Manning, he has been conditioned to be an NFL passer for a long time. It's in the genes. That doesn't mean there are shortcuts. Manning's work ethic is legendary. Luck is cut from the same cloth.
When asked about being a rookie leader, he gave a long, thought-out answer, something Manning also would do.
"The locker room has been very receptive, which is great as a young player to come into, I think, where you don't feel you have to force things and say certain things," he said. "I think, you know, everyone's very comfortable acting within their own personality, and that's something I try and never do, is force a speech or something outside of your personality or force being quiet or force yelling if
you're a quiet guy, whatever that may be. As a quarterback, you know you're talking every play in the huddle, so you naturally assume some air of leadership, but it's a process. You've just got to build the trust, build the confidence."
It killed Luck that he couldn't take part in a lot of the Colts offseason work because his class at Stanford didn't graduate until later than most. NFL guidelines kept him away, but he put his nose in the playbook as much as he could and he went to Miami to work with veteran receiver Reggie Wayne on his own.
That's another Manning-like move. So what about the comparison, Reggie?
"You know, it's kind of hard for me to answer that question," he said. "I mean, Andrew's going to be good, he's going to be really good. He's really smart, he knows what's going on around him, he understands the concept, he understands the terminology. But I can't compare the two, that won't be fair. Like I said earlier, you've just got to sit back and see what happens."
There is no stopping it, though. And to see Luck work on the practice field only strengthens the argument that he is a lot like the man he is replacing. He sees it fast, has a nice release, throws a good, catchable ball and seems to have a real command of the offense.
Rookies aren't supposed to look like this. Only the special ones do, and the Colts seem to have another.
How lucky can one franchise get? They get one of the all-time greats for 14 years, and then when he's on his way out they happen to land the next great thing?
I won't say Luck is a can't-miss -- he doesn't like that much, by the way -- but I will say my initial reaction after talking to him and seeing him live is that he's darn close.
Indianapolis coach getting accustomed to new job
Associated Press
Mlive.com
August 4, 2012
ANDERSON, Ind. (AP) — Colts coach Chuck Pagano is just trying to be himself.
He's resisting the urge to flip his baseball hat backward and sneak over to the defensive position drills as he's done for more than two decades.
This year he's handing off duties to assistant coaches, spending more time with the offense and the media, less at positional drills and tugging at the bill of his cap over his forehead. It's a big change for the 51-year-old who is finally running his own team.
"The hardest part is administrative. You're delegating, you're trying to get guys in practice in the right spots, make sure everything is working from an organizational standpoint," Pagano said. "At the same time, you want to get hands on. That's the biggest thing is you got to stay involved, and you want to stay close to coaching and teaching as best you can."
Of course, there will be times Pagano can get back to those basics.
On Friday, when safeties coach Roy Anderson left training camp at Anderson University because of a death in the family, it was Pagano who filled in as the position coach.
The Colorado native knows that cannot be the norm if he's going to make a successful transition from longtime assistant to first-time head coach. Some have made the jump seamlessly, and others excelled when given enough time. But the league is littered with assistants who have failed to make that jump, especially on their first attempt.
Pagano may wind up being one of the lucky ones.
Team owner Jim Irsay has spent much of the offseason pleading with fans for patience after presiding over the franchise's biggest housecleaning project in more than a decade. Besides hiring Pagano, Irsay brought in a first-time general manager (Ryan Grigson), oversaw the release of Peyton Manning, the hiring of new offensive and defensive coordinators, adding a new franchise quarterback and changing at least seven offensive starters.
That's the predicament Pagano walked into in Indy.
The longtime defensive guru is already attempting to put his stamp on the Colts (No. 32 in the AP Pro32) by bringing more balance to the offense and more aggressiveness to the defense.
Tony Dungy, who turned Tampa Bay from one of the league's worst franchises into a Super Bowl contender, believes Pagano is on the right path because he's sticking to his principles.
"(The key) really is probably just being resolute more than anything else," Dungy said after visiting Colts camp last weekend at Irsay's invitation. "You think it's going to go well, you believe you've got the answers, you really believe in what you're doing. I thought that too, and we started out 1-8 (at Tampa Bay). So whether you start out 8-1, or 1-8, you know what you want to get done. I just sense that from Coach Pagano; that he has a plan and he's not going to deviate from it."
Pagano understands.
His father, Sam, won 164 career games and three state titles as the head football coach at Fairview High School in Colorado. His brother, John, is now the San Diego Chargers defensive coordinator.
And growing up in a coaching family came with some hard lessons.
"It was a special deal, kind of like me when I was growing up watching him run the show for so long and all the things you learned along the way," Pagano said after his father watched Saturday's afternoon practice. "I had an opportunity, growing up, around what I think is the greatest team sport in the world."
Dad's advice: "Don't mess it up."
By all accounts, Chuck Pagano is a player's coach.
Defensive lineman Cory Redding said when he and Pagano were in Baltimore, Pagano listened to the players' concerns and addressed any of them. It was one of the reasons Redding, defensive tackle Brandon McKinney and safety Tom Zbikowski left one of the league's top defenses to help rebuild the Colts.
So far, they've seen the same, old guy.
"I've seen him step back and let the coaches do their jobs," Redding said. "Every once in a while, you'll see him grab a ball, roll up his sleeves, put his hat on backwards and run some drills."
Those with longer ties to Pagano have detected a difference.
When receiver Reggie Wayne arrived at the University of Miami in the late 1990s, Pagano, the secondary and special teams coach, was loud, direct and demanding. While those traits still exist, Wayne said Pagano has a found a way to send messages a little less vocally to pro players.
"He's toned down totally. This is a different Chuck Pagano than the college days. At the same time he's still fun, he still loves the game, still loves to teach, still gets a kick out of guys improving and getting better each day," Wayne said. "That's always good. As long as he keeps that edge I'll take any Chuck Pagano any day."
Pagano's unassuming personality and folksy comments seem to be a perfect fit in Indy, too.
Irsay likes something else — player reaction.
Defensive players have embraced Pagano's motivational techniques and earthy approach to the game. Offensive players like seeing all those defensive looks, which is giving rookies such as Andrew Luck an opportunity to learn the ropes of NFL defenses before next weekend's preseason opener.
Irsay knows it's a combination that can work.
"I think that our players were always with Tony. Their great respect for him automatically gave him a lot of capital and a lot of credibility when he addressed things with them," Irsay said. "It's the same thing with Chuck. You talk to those guys in Baltimore, Ray Lewis and Ed Reed and those guys, the trust and the admiration that they have in Chuck was tremendous. That's something that they both have and bring into the room when they get with the players because a leader is followed a lot of the times from the heart and from the deep belief."
Pagano insists that part and his desire to win won't change.
What will? How he runs the team.
"I try to get around and show my presence, have my presence at all the individual drills," he said. "I'm going to gravitate to the defensive side just naturally. I've got to watch myself in that regard because that's my background, that's what I've done my whole life, my whole coaching career."
Colts kicker Adam Vinatieri takes ‘big game’ literally
By Mike Chappell
Indianapolis Star Tribune
August 4, 2012
In the den of his home in Carmel, Adam Vinatieri is surrounded by antelope, a musk ox and a menacing grizzly bear on its haunches.
A warthog's head pokes out of a wall. The rugs? They came from a black bear and zebra.
To the Indianapolis Colts kicker, "big game" isn't just what happens on a football field. It relates to his passion: hunting, often in exotic global destinations, always with family and friends.
Vinatieri has hunted in Alaska, Africa, Argentina, Costa Rica, Canada's Northwest Territory and the Arctic tundra, not to mention prime sites in this country.
The animals that fill his den are taxidermal trophies, sure. But they're also memories, snapshots of a family tradition instilled in him as a child in South Dakota.
Most came from hunting trips Vinatieri took with his father Paul, brothers Chad and Beau, and brother-in-law Tony Erickson.
"Every one of them has a story or an experience behind it,'' Vinatieri said. "I remember who I was with, where I was. ... Each one of them has a special memory. It's kind of cool."
Vinatieri, 39, is entering his 17th NFL season, his seventh with the Colts. To football fans, he's known for his Super Bowl-winning field goals with the New England Patriots and as an instrumental part of the Colts' 2006 Super Bowl championship season.
But seeing Vinatieri in his den, it's clear how much he values his non-football trophies -- the African gazelle, the bison, the animals with less unfamiliar names: klipspringer, springbok, nilgai. One animal in particular carries special significance. It is a bushbuck, an African antelope, and Vinatieri can't even count it as one of his own kills. His cousin, Tony, bagged it along with four others several years ago.
But before the five animals arrived in the United States, Tony Vinatieri and his wife died in a plane crash. He and his family took one bushbuck each.
"When I look at mine," Vinatieri said, "I'm reminded of (Tony)."
Nilgai steaks
Vinatieri understands there are those who turn an angry eye at his collection and attraction to big-game hunting.
"I know there are people that think it's rude or crude or whatever,'' he said, slowly nodding his head. "But anything I can bring back, we eat."
Whenever the Vinatieris cook on the grill, including when neighbors visit, it's not your normal backyard menu.
"We've learned to like venison a lot -- one of our favorites,'' said Valerie, Adam's wife. "He just brought home nilgai."
That's an antelope indigenous to India that also can be found in Texas.
"We grilled up four nice nilgai steaks the other night,'' Adam said. "They were awesome."
Valerie agreed, but has her limits.
"I'll try anything once,'' she said, "but I'm a little skeptical of some of the stuff."
When it's not possible for Vinatieri to bring the meat home, it's given to the local base camps in southern Africa, Argentina or wherever that offseason's hunting took him.
He notes that big-game hunting boosts local economies. Kolobe Safaris services South Africa, Mozambique, Namibia and Zimbabwe and offers packages that range from $2,050 (blesbuck, impala and warthog) to $75,700 (male lion, female lion, buffalo bull, hippo bull and sable).
"Everything has a price tag and a lot of people don't understand how that money goes right back into the economy there," Vinatieri said. "And we don't take the meat home ... it goes right back to the villagers. Nothing is wasted.
"I know people say, 'Oh, how can you (kill big-game animals)?' It's much more humane than stockyards and places like that. It's all organic and free-range stuff, and damn good eating."
It's also the Vinatieri way.
Paul introduced Adam, Chad and Beau to hunting, as his father had done with him. Paul once told The Indianapolis Star, "As soon as they were out of diapers, they were going hunting with my father and me."
"I'm a South Dakota kid," said Adam, born in Yankton. "I was born with a shotgun in my hand, chasing pheasant through the cornfields. My dad probably started taking me out when I was 4, 5 or 6 years old.
"I remember being so covered up with clothing, sitting in a duck blind, trying not to freeze my butt off. But I was out there with my dad. It doesn't get any better than that, trust me."
Family tradition
Now it's Adam's turn to pass along the love of the outdoors and hunting.
Nine-year-old son A.J. already has four or five trophies, ones he shot, in his bedroom. On a recent father-son trip to Lake Okeechobee in south Florida, A.J. used a crossbow to kill an 11-foot alligator.
"I had never done that,'' Adam said, shaking his head.
The gator is being processed and soon will find its final resting place on a floor in the Vinatieri household.
"That's an experience I'll remember all of my life and A.J. and I will talk about all of our lives,'' Adam said. "I can't wait till my youngest is old enough to go with us."
Gabriel, 2, is running around the house using a stick as a gun.
"Pow, pow, pow!'' Adam said, mimicking Gabriel. "He's getting the hang of it."
Six-year old daughter Allison recently recorded her first kill.
"She's not in love with hunting,'' Valerie said. "She likes the idea of wanting to be, but she's just a girlie girl."
Of herself, Valerie said, "I'm not a hunter. I didn't grow up in a family of hunters."
But she embraces Adam's need to be outdoors as much as his NFL career allows. Every big-game hunter has a "bucket list'' that consists of a big five: elephant, rhinoceros, buffalo, lion and leopard.
"I know I'm going to shoot a buffalo," Adam said. "I know I'm going to shoot a leopard."
He also wants to add to his collection a Lord Derby eland, the world's largest antelope, which roams the plains of central Africa.
"Eighty percent of the reason I love hunting is I get to spend time with the people I love,'' Adam said. "It's not so much, 'Hey, that's a pretty animal on the wall.' It's that it brings me back to a memory of a fun time I had with family and friends.
"It's a 3D postcard."
Redding brings ‘big’ leadership to Colts
By Reggie Hayes
Ft. Wayne News Sentinel
August 3, 2012
ANDERSON – Indianapolis Colts coach Chuck Pagano got right to the point with free agent Cory Redding.
“Cory,” Pagano said, “I need you.”
Simple words. Straightforward. Redding, who had spent two seasons playing for then defensive-coordinator Pagano with the Baltimore Ravens, recalls those words clearly many weeks later. It wasn't just the phrase, but the tone in Pagano's voice.
“When I heard that voice coming from him, and the sincerity in his voice, that made me (say), 'Forget all the others, I'm going with you Chuck,” Redding said Thursday. “I know how important it is to you, and it's important to me and I want to be part of that change.”
There's a good chance those words – “Cory, I need you” – might have been the most important ones uttered by Pagano during the offseason.
Redding could be the most important player on the Colts' defense, and perhaps in the locker room, during training camp at Anderson University and into the 2012 season.
When Pagano called Redding, he not only hired a defensive end/tackle, he hired a man who understands the 3-4 defense and who exudes leadership in all facets of the game.
Redding would not fit the category of quiet leader.
His persona is one of volume, and the perfect fit for a Colts defense, and team, seeking to crank up the intensity.
“Guys know who are the leaders in this league,” Redding said. “When I walked in the locker room, it was understood. It wasn't like I was walking in, cracking a whip and saying this is who I am. They accepted me because of who I am.
“People can fake it to a certain point, but after that, they can't do it,” Redding continued. “This is me all day, uncut, raw, I'm never going to change. Accept who I am or get behind me.”
Pagano helped recruit Redding, along with safety Tom Zbikowski and defensive tackle Brandon McKinney, because he needed an experience, confident leader for his defense.
Pagano knew he was inheriting some valuable defensive players in pass rushers Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis, linebacker Pat Angerer and defensive backs Antoine Bethea and Jerraud Powers. But the transition from a 4-3 scheme with the “Cover-2” emphasis to a 3-4 with more man-to-man secondary responsibilities will be a transition.
Redding is a big man up front (6-foot-4, 315 pounds), and has the potential to be a huge influence in the locker room.
“He's just an individual, a big man that's playing a big game,” Colts defensive coordinator Greg Manusky said. “And he's a big leader amongst the guys on the defense because he's been in the system, he knows what it is and he's pulling them all together.”
Redding is loud and “on” all the time. He contributed some heavy vocals during 11-on-11 situations in full pads Thursday, and the intensity kicked up a notch. There were even two slight fights. Redding wasn't directly involved, but he's bringing some Ravens style defensive swagger.
“I'm all about team and that's what this thing is all about,” Redding said. “That's what I'm preaching about Chuck to these guys. It's all about team. No one person is biger than the other.”
Asked what the defense might end up looking like, Redding rattled off the answer with what one reporter thought was an evangelist's fervor.
“What you see out there every day – running around, flying to the rock, hitting guys, challenging every ball in the air, not letting the offense get a blade in the grass,” Redding said. “That's our mindset.
“…The canvas is not complete,” he said. “There's still a lot of room to grow. We're painting that brush every day.”
Redding said he can't stress enough the importance of being a good run defense first, then adding that pass rush to the mix.
“Pudding is pudding,” he said. “You can mix it up and put everything else in there – vanilla wafers, banana pudding – but it is what it is. It's stil pudding. That's the basis of this defense. You can't do anything unless you stop the run.”
If the Colts are going to grow into a defensive-oriented team, quite a swing from the past, then Pagano made a good call: Redding might be just what they needed.
Colts rookie QB Chandler Harnish anything but irrelevant to hometown
Phil Richards
IndyStar.com
July 28, 2012
BLUFFTON, Ind. -- So how did your Indianapolis Colts rookie quarterback spend his final summer evenings before reporting to training camp?
In an Indiana cornfield with his girlfriend and family, picking 300 dozen ears of sweet corn in the steamy dark to earn a few extra bucks to see him through.
"My dad taught me everything I know," Chandler Harnish said, "especially hard work."
Harnish is the "other" quarterback. The Colts took Andrew Luck with the first pick of the draft. They harvested Harnish with the last; he's No. 253, "Mr. Irrelevant."
He's as Hoosier as they come.
"Harnish Homestead, 1868" proclaims the sign on the big white barn behind the family home. The barn's concrete floor has a glassy finish, the better to complement the basketball goal that hangs above it.
The Harnish's mailing address is Bluffton, pop. 9,929, but the family more closely identifies with Markle, Ossian, Craigville and the country folk scattered across the vast, flat farm fields southeast of Fort Wayne. That's how it is with outliers.
Harnish sits on the deck out back. A .22 caliber pump rifle rests at ready on the table before him. Cornfields wall in the homestead on three sides, and the Harnishes don't suffer varmints in them gladly.
Harnish had just returned from the 37th annual "Irrelevant Week," an exercise in lighthearted irreverence in Newport Beach, Calif. He was showered with gifts and honored with a parade, a visit to Disneyland and a banquet at which he was roasted and awarded the Lowsman Trophy, a clear play at contrast with the Heisman Trophy.
The Lowsman is a bronze football player fumbling a football.
The event got extensive coverage in the Bluffton News-Banner. Residents are still beaming. That was evident at the Wells County Courthouse, whose tall stone clock tower dominates downtown Bluffton.
"I think he'll probably give Luck a run for his money," gushed Geof Gilbert, a visitor to the courthouse who plays pickup basketball with Harnish's older brother, Mitch, 26, at the city gym down the street.
It was evident in a parking lot a mile up Main Street, where Harnish's sister, Carlee, 17, sold the sweet corn picked by the family the night before out of the back of a pickup truck.
"I'll be watching this fall," Ronda Thornton said as she handed Carlee $4 for a dozen ears. "I just know he's a great player."
Harnish is fully confident and fiercely competitive, but he has no illusions. He knows Luck is the man. Harnish wore No. 12 through high school and college. So who's going to get the number with the Colts, the first draft pick or the 253rd? Luck, of course.
Harnish is working to make the Colts' 53-man roster, to make Luck better. The eight-man practice squad is not an unlikely destination for him. Still, he is enjoying the ride.
"That's probably been the best part of the whole thing so far," he said, "the community excitement, family and friends kind of growing closer, being so close to home and being able to spend some time at home.
"It's a smaller community. It's tightknit. Everybody knows everybody. I'm so proud to represent these people every day I put the uniform on."
When the Colts drafted Peyton Manning in 1998, Harnish was 10. He had to look no farther for a hero. He painted his bedroom walls Colts colors and papered them with Manning posters. While Manning was quarterbacking the Colts to the world championship during the 2006 season, Harnish was quarterbacking the Norwell High School Knights to a Class 3A state runner-up finish.
Harnish always has been underestimated. Ball State didn't recruit him. Indiana and Purdue looked but didn't offer. Harnish signed with Northern Illinois. He took the Huskies to four bowl games and as a senior last season was triggerman on their first Mid-American Conference title team in 28 years.
Only eight players exceeded Harnish's 328.2-yard total offense average in 2011. No quarterback topped his 106.3-yard rushing average and he was a 61.7 percent passer with 28 touchdowns and six interceptions.
Harnish earned his business degree with a 3.68 grade-point average and as a fifth-year senior completed half of his MBA requirements. He was one of 16 honored as National Football Foundation scholars and he won the foundation's mental toughness award.
The Colts know. Coach Chuck Pagano pronounced Harnish out for two to three weeks after he suffered a knee injury during organized team activities. Harnish missed a single practice.
"That shows his toughness, his perseverance, his resiliency," Pagano said. "He's a really tough kid."
He was a hungry 23-year-old kid as he sat alongside Tanya Rachan, his girlfriend of 3 1/2 years, at a table in The Corner Depot, a Bluffton eatery, one day last week, waiting for lunch.
"We struggled for a while with our relationship because Chandler didn't know what to put first: football, school or family," said Rachan, from Lowell, Ind., a four-year varsity gymnast at NIU who will start dental school at Southern Illinois this fall.
Rachan grinned at Harnish.
"It's roses now," he said, smiling back.
How else to explain a Sunday night date in a dark cornfield? Rachan drove the Bobcat. Chandler, Carlee, younger brother Piercen, 16, and their dad, Ron, a former Little All-American defensive tackle at Manchester College, heaped the Bobcat's front-end bucket full of sweet corn.
Back at The Corner Depot, lunch was served. Harnish inhaled a couple of chicken breasts. He finished Tanya's salad. He pushed away his plate. Time to go.
Carlee was down the street, still selling corn out of the pickup, now in blazing afternoon heat. It was Chandler's turn; time to relieve her.
Bob Kravitz gets Andrew Luck to open up on the beard, his Go phone and what he thinks of Indy
By Bob Kravitz
Indy Star
June 26, 2012
So far, Andrew Luck has answered all the normal, boring questions:
How long will it take you to perfect your knowledge of the playbook?
How does it feel to be stepping into the shoes of Peyton Manning?
How much pressure do you feel as the No. 1 overall pick? Blah blah blah. Truth is, we don’t know much about Luck beyond the fact he was a model student athlete and a heck of a football player and wore a regrettable neck beard for stretches of his college career. I’m here to rectify that. With help from my Twitter followers, who helped produce questions they’ve always wanted to ask Luck, I sat down with the Colts’ new franchise quarterback and peppered him with all kinds of nonsensical questions whose answers might help you get to know him a bit better:
OK, what’s the deal with the beard, which has grown back since the Stanford commencement in all its straggly, unkempt splendor? “I realize it’s not a good look,’’ he said, laughing. “I know it’s not. It’s just laziness. People tell me to shave it all the time. A lot. Which is their right. I don’t mind. I’m actually going to shave the whole thing (Monday night), totally unrelated to this.’’ Will he have it when the season begins? “Everything is subject to change, but I think I’ll have a couple of days’ growth before the first game,’’ he said. “You know, chafing, razor burn.’’
What was going on in the Stanford graduation photo? Based on what you were wearing under the gown – a sleeveless orange shirt – you looked like you were on your way to a NASCAR race. At least you shaved. "I should give you a snippet on that,’’ he said. “We have a tradition at Stanford called the Wacky Walk where we dress up in costumes under our gown, so I had that shirt on with no sleeves. It was pretty tame compared to other costumes out there. I hope nobody got the impression I was disrespecting commencement. Then we get dressed up for graduation in our programs."
Now about that flip phone ... You realize everybody’s got a Smart Phone now. What’s an upwardly mobile person with Silicon
Valley roots doing with a Samsung flip phone? Before answering, he showed it to me. It’s a beauty. “I paid $10 for it,’’ he said. “I had a history growing up of sort of breaking them or losing them, so in my mind it was logical not to get a nice phone because I’d break it or spill water on it. If you really want to go deep, I think subconsciously it’s a way of getting away from the internet, social media and email. It’s a `go’ phone. You pay as you go, but I have a plan. I’m sophisticated enough to do that having been around Silicon Valley.’’
You don’t tweet. You don’t do anything with your Facebook page. Didn’t you go to school in the epicenter of social media? “I’ve never really gotten into it,’’ he said. “I don’t know why. I wouldn’t call myself a Luddite; going to school there, I have a deep appreciation for technology, but I just choose to have a regular phone.’’ (A brief aside: It took 30 years in the business before I heard an athlete not only use the term “Luddite,’’ but use it correctly). “I do have an iPad, though,’’ he said. “It’s the best travel companion you can have besides a person.’’
What’s on the iPad, besides the Colts playbook?
“The Kindle app, that’s my favorite,’’ he said. “Flipboard, that’s how I’ve started to consume my news. I have `Risk,’ the old board game. The usual banking apps so I can see my accounts. I have the MLS soccer app because my dad (Oliver) used to work for them. That’s one of the best sports apps I’ve come across.’’
What’s the quality you admire most in a person? Very interesting question. Honesty. Definitely honesty.
And the one you most dislike, dishonesty? I’d say that’s true.
What would you do if you could do anything for a free weekend? "I couldn’t because the flight’s so long, but I’d love to go to Germany and watch a soccer game,’’ he said. “I haven’t been there for a long time (Luck spent some of his formative years in Germany). Or I’d go see my folks in Morgantown, West Virginia."
You’ve only been here a few weeks, but you’ve spent a lot of time with the other rookies learning the city. Any first
impressions? "Incredibly friendly people," he said. "Just sort of that Midwestern culture of friendliness. The city is clean, beautiful, and it’s easy to get around, which I appreciate after living in the Bay Area. Downtown is nice, lots of nice neighborhoods. I’m excited to learn more about it." (An aside: He’s found a place he wants to live, but chose not to share that information – which is understandable).
A lot was written about your old Honda Accord you shared with your sister at Stanford. I know you haven’t signed a contract
yet, but have you upgraded? "I’m close. Maybe in the next few days. Either a Ford or a Chevy. I’m thinking a small SUV."
What’s on your iPod? “Music,’’ he said. Funny guy. "Classic rock," he said. "(Bruce) Springsteen is my favorite. The Boss is number one in my mind. The Stones, U2, I’ve gotten into some alternative rock. Some country, some hip hop, but they’re not in my top 25 of most-played songs. I do have a lot of Springsteen."
You must answer this question correctly -- best Springsteen album. “Well, I like 'Nebraska' because I like the song “Johnny 99,’" he said. "I think your generation, you grew up buying and listening to entire albums. Mine, we grew up with iTunes, so we like individual songs." (For the record, the answer is "Darkness On The Edge of Town." I will not listen to any arguments to the contrary. I will also be buying Luck the CD so he knows what an epic album sounds like. Kids these days.) Favorite books? “I loved 'Papillon,' reading that when I was growing up,’’ Luck said. “I just read Steve Jobs biography; that was really interesting. I’d say historical fiction is my favorite genre. Bernard Cornwell, he’s written several books about King Arthur and the Holy Grail, the Saxons, the Viking invasion, the Napoleonic Wars. They’re about real events with made-up protagonists. Right now, though, I don’t have much time for reading.’’
What’s the best piece of life advice you’ve received? The best was from my dad, to respect people and more often than not, they’ll return it in some form of fashion.
How comfortable are you with fame? At Stanford, you stood out, but that’s a school of high achievers where a football player isn’t that big a deal. How do you handle it now?
“It’s like a lot of things in life, you have to learn how to handle it, how your personality handles it. It’s something I struggled with my first few years at Stanford, and it wasn’t like a Big 12-, Big 10-, SEC- type of atmosphere. But the last few years I got a fair amount of it. I’ve come to realize it’s part of the game. And I wouldn’t trade my situation for anything. I won’t complain about it at all. If you can make a fan’s day, especially a child’s day, by signing something, that’s a good thing.’’
Who’s your favorite architect? "A Japanese guy named Tadaeo Ando. (He used a) lot of concrete, simple lines, but very powerful. But I find myself drawn to stadium and arena architecture."
Have you thought about the mark you want to make philanthropically? "I don’t think that’s something that’s an overnight thing, but I’ve always loved doing camps for kids,’’ he said. “And architecture. Habit for Humanity, Architecture for Humanity. Those are the things that immediately come to mind."
Can you act? "No," he said with a laugh.
So we’ll never see you on 'Saturday Night Live'? I would never say never, but I know I wouln’t be as good as Peyton and Eli.
What’s your most annoying personal habit? "I’ve been told that sitting in car or in a lecture hall I like to spread my legs very wide and move them around, that seems to annoy people."
That’s the worst you can come up with? "No," he said, smiling, "there are worse, but that’s the one I’m going to go with."
Favorite movies... Again, I like historical fiction. 'Saving Private Ryan,' 'Gladiator,' great sort of war dramas. I just got around to seeing 'Legends of the Fall'; that was excellent. And I enjoy the comedies -- 'The Hangover', 'Animal House.'" Favorite actors... Russell Crowe and Tom Hanks. Especially Tom Hanks. He can do everything.
Favorite chick flick... "You know what’s really good?" he said without hesitation. "'Love Actually.' I liked that a lot."
You’ve spent the last week or so exploring the city. Where have you been? “We went to St. Elmo’s,’’ he said. “The shrimp cocktail is spicy, but they said it was kind of mild. The day we went, they said at this time of year, the radishes get mild. I’ve driven through downtown, walked around. Mostly, I’ve gotten to know West 56th Street.’’
Can you walk around downtown without being besieged? “Yeah, I can,’’ he said. “It depends. Sometimes I can go a whole day and nobody will come up to me and other days, people will say hello. But they do it very discreetly, tell me `good luck,’ or, sort of under their breath, `You better live up to the hype. You have big shoes to fill.’” He laughed. “People have actually been very nice, very cool. They say it half jokingly; of course, there’s some truth behind it. But they’ve been very receptive, very kind. They’ve given me a lot of space to go around and discover the city on my own.’’ So there you have it, in all its disjointed and nonsensical glory. Stuff you now know about Andrew Luck. We’ll learn more these next 15 years or so. Frankly, he had me at Springsteen.
Andrew Luck fits perfectly into Colts’ new team-first culture
By Albert Breer
NFL.com
June 15, 2012
INDIANAPOLIS -- Hundreds of fans, many already wearing the No. 12 jerseys that hit stores in late April, were waiting for autographs about 20 feet away. High above were the video boards that had shown his every move through a 150-minute practice. Near that hung the banners from two Super Bowl trips directed by the man Luck's succeeding, Peyton Manning.
You can't be a bigger star without taking a snap than Andrew Luck is right now.
The scrutiny couldn't be more intense. The spotlight couldn't be brighter. The stakes couldn't be higher.
And yet, easy as it can be to forget, Luck is a rookie. And if you think that's lost on him, ask him how he feels about being the most famous guy on the Indianapolis Colts roster, even though he doesn't turn 23 until September.
"We've still got Dwight Freeney and Reggie Wayne -- those are some pretty high-profile players," Luck said, carefully navigating a loaded question on carrying the team's highest profile. "I realize there's a certain notoriety that comes with playing the quarterback position, but that's all for naught if you can't produce on the field. So I approach every day like I'm fighting for a job, trying to get better and hopefully it all takes care of itself that way."
If they had a test for these things, Luck aced it with that answer, as if he was going through a checklist:
• Pay homage to teammates.
• Chalk fame up to outside forces.
• Emphasize how it doesn't matter if you don't perform.
And now you get an idea why GM Ryan Grigson and coach Chuck Pagano feel so comfortable putting their professional futures on the broad shoulders of the ex-Stanford star.
Ultimately, replacing Manning will boil down to just how good a player Luck becomes. Everyone knows that. But how he gets there will involve his ability to handle all the ancillary elements that go with being considered the best quarterback prospect in a generation, replacing the last guy to carry that tag (and one who delivered on all that promise), and serving as front man for a major organizational overhaul.
Nothing tangible has been accomplished in Indianapolis yet. But one thing Grigson does feel like he and Pagano have done is instill what the GM calls a "Team -- Small Me" culture that emphasizes the group over individual. And though it had been a fait accompli that Luck would wind up being the first overall pick, the Colts brass saw it as a pretty nice bonus that the obvious pick just so happened to embody their new ideals.
"Let's just say this: He is the genuine article," Grigson told NFL.com. "He's strong when he needs to be strong. He listens when he needs to listen. He's just a natural. Nothing's forced with him. He's not afraid to take charge of the huddle. But also, if a college free agent from who-knows-where asks him a question, I believe he'll take the time with that guy to explain it to him in a non-demeaning or condescending way, because he's Andrew Luck. He epitomizes the word 'team' to me."
That also means Luck knows his place now. On Tuesday, in his first full day with the vets, his new No. 1 receiver, Reggie Wayne, stared down the assembled media en route to practice and belted out, "Everybody's here to see my new quarterback!" Moments later, massive defensive lineman Cory Redding pointed at the press and yelled across the field to Luck, "Hey 12, they're all here, homes!"
But when work started, the laughter quieted. Luck can already make adjustments and checks at the line, and he spent considerable time attached to Wayne's hip on both days. He's well aware he's got a ways to go. Pro-ready as he is, as much as any quarterback has been since Manning, offensive coordinator Bruce Arians speaks a different football language than Luck did at Stanford. Terminology will be key, as will learning hot reads and sight adjustments, which he and rookie receiver Griff Whalen emphasized at Stanford the past five weeks, as both finished their degrees.
"I know it's terribly cliché, but (I have to improve) everywhere," Luck told NFL.com. "I always try to get better in all aspects and then just learning the offense and getting reps. Getting reps is so important and trying to get as many game-speed reps is sort of my main focus."
Luck has time. He'll be with the other rookies at the Colts facility the next two weeks, playing catch-up after missing all but six days of the offseason program. He did get to see counterpart Robert Griffin III on TV, working with the Washington Redskins while he was unable to do the same with Colts.
"I'm happy for him that he got to be there," Luck said of Griffin. "It was frustrating in general not to be with the team. But I wasn't looking at it, 'Oh, this guy gets to be here and that guy gets to be there, why don't I get to be there?' I knew the situation I was in."
Opening Day is still almost three months away. And yet the Colts can already see the return on their investment coming. The fresh, proletariat ethos on 56th Street in Indianapolis has its standard-bearer. Because much as he might be anything but just another rookie, Luck certainly is doing his best to play the part of one.
"He fits like a glove because he is not a 'me' guy," Grigson said. "He is all about the team. You can go back to Stanford, his early days just starting and being a young guy there. You're not going to see a difference here. That's who he is. He's not trying to be someone he's not. He's out here to win and to improve every day. He has things to learn, he hasn't seen a different color jersey yet. But he understands it as well. He knows Rome wasn't built in a day."
After Wednesday's practice at the stadium, Freeney, now the third-most tenured Colt, laughed when it was posed to him that the quarterback wouldn't be getting special treatment from the vets when the time comes for rookies to stand on tables and sing songs. "Exactly," Freeney said. "It'll be me doing it to him."
But there's another, more serious message Freeney will send his new teammate, too, after spending the past decade as part of Indianapolis' Manning Show.
"You know what? We're gonna let him know, he doesn't have to do anything extra," Freeney said. "It's going to be hard, because everybody has all these expectations for him. As long as you go out there and do your job and control the huddle, that's all that you can do. And if things happen to progress and take off from there, so be it. But it has to start somewhere. 'Don't feel like you have to take on the world.' "
It's easy to see that Luck's employing that approach already. Ready to take on the world? Maybe not. But judging by his early days in Indy, Luck's uniquely prepared for just about anything it throws at him.
Colts general manager Ryan Grigson keeps digging for talent
By Phil Richards
Indy Star
June 12, 2012
General manager Ryan Grigson faced a daunting challenge this offseason. Nearly one-third of the Indianapolis Colts salary cap is tied up in "dead" money, prorated bonuses not yet counted against the cap but paid to players such as Peyton Manning, Dallas Clark, Gary Brackett and Joseph Addai who are no longer with the team. Grigson couldn't go about rebuilding the Colts by spending. He had to go about it by digging. "I feel like digging is one of my strong suits, digging and not caring what anybody else thinks or what the perception is," said Grigson, whose team this morning begins a three-day minicamp in which quarterback Andrew Luck will participate, whether or not he is signed. Grigson desperately needed a right tackle, a cheap one. He dug up Winston Justice, a Philadelphia Eagles spare part, but one Grigson knew; as the Eagles' director of college scouting, he drafted Justice in 2006. Grigson operates with what he calls "eye confidence." He believes he knows what he's looking at and he trusts what he sees. Videotape is truth. He stuck in tape of the lone game Justice started last season, against Washington. "From the very first pass set, for what's out there, for what I had to spend, for what I'm going to actually get, I see a big, long, monstrous guy that has rare athletic ability and he's busting his butt," Grigson said. Grigson got Justice (6-6, 317), a 47-game starter, along with the Eagles' pick in the sixth round of the draft, for the Colts' No. 2 selection in the same round. A few days later, Denver traded quarterback Tim Tebow to the New York Jets. That made Drew Stanton, the Jets backup, expendable. Grigson was watching. He needed a backup. He got Stanton and the Jets' seventh-round pick for the sixth-round pick the Colts had received from the Eagles. The Colts didn't even have to pay Stanton the $500,000 signing bonus his contract dictated. The Jets paid it for them. By trading down 30 spots from their original sixth-round position, the Colts had acquired a starting right tackle, a veteran backup quarterback and kept their draft pick. Grigson used it on draft day to grab Tim Fugger, an outside linebacker who backs up Dwight Freeney. If you want an early take on Grigson, 40, and a first-time GM, it's this: He doesn't sit still, and he has a feel for a deal. When he's not digging, he's not idling. "You troll," he said. "It's like casting a thousand times. Finally, you get a little bite and you set the hook." The Colts are desperately in need of help at cornerback. Grigson knew the Denver Broncos were awash in them because it's his job to know. The Broncos had Champ Bailey and signed free agents Tracy Porter and Drayton Florence. They also had Cassius Vaughn, Chris Harris, Syd'Quan Thompson and draftee Omar Bolden. So Grigson baited up and trolled. The Broncos bit. They got Chris Gronkowski, a tough, competent fullback the Colts didn't need. The position doesn't figure in Bruce Arians' offense; Ryan Mahaffey, the only other fullback on the roster, was cut a few days later. The Colts got Vaughn for nothing. He figures to be in the mix at corner, on special teams and in the return game. No wonder owner Jim Irsay tweeted: "GM Grigs still tweaking roster, he's a deal maker who looks 4 hidden gems." They have yet to prove gem-quality, but Grigson also snatched a pair of inexpensive free agents. Wide receiver Donnie Avery has been one of the bright spots of the Colts' offseason program and organized team activities. He brings exceptional speed. Guard Mike McGlynn has moved into the right guard slot in the lineup and into the leadership void left by the departure of free agent center Jeff Saturday in the O-line meeting room.
Both Avery and McGlynn will make veterans minimum this season. They represent little risk and the potential for considerable reward. "I figured I'd just grind and grind and grind and out-scout people," Grigson shrugged. "That's what you have to do when you're strapped." There's another area in which Grigson has made a quick impact on the cheap. They say speed kills. What they mean in the NFL is speed wins. Avery is a flyer. So are receivers T.Y. Hilton and LaVon Brazill, Colts picks in the third and sixth rounds. Second-round pick Coby Fleener has elite tight end speed. Vaughn and free agent signee Justin King, another cornerback, are bullet fast. "Speed is an extreme priority," Grigson said. "You either have it or you don't and the guys that don't usually wash out unless they do something exceptionally well. . . . "At the end of the day you want people to be fast but also to play fast, and those guys play fast." The Colts are rebuilding. They're coming off a 2-14 season burdened by the oppressive heft of all that dead money. No matter; the guy in charge isn't sitting still. It will be interesting to see what he does next year, when ESPN projects he will have some real wherewithal, $43 million in cap space,
the most in the NFL. Unearthing players Primary Colts player acquisitions and re-signings under general manager Ryan Grigson (Does not include unsigned draft picks, QB Andrew Luck, first round; TE Coby Fleener, second round; TE Dwayne Allen, third round. UFA=unrestricted free agent): June 8: CB Justin King signed/UFA, undisclosed contract. May 31: WR T.Y. Hilton signed/third-round draft choice, four years. May 23: CB Cassius Vaughn trade for FB Chris Gronkowski, signed, one year. May 22: NT Josh Chapman signed/fifth-round draft choice, four years. May 19: T Justin Anderson signed/seventh-round draft choice, four years. May 16: QB Chandler Harnish signed/seventh-round draft choice, four years; LB Tim Fugger signed/seventh-round draft choice, four years; WR LaVon Brazill signed/sixth-round draft choice, four years; RB Vick Ballard signed/fifth-round draft choice, four years. April 4: NT Brandon McKinney signed/UFA, two years. March 23: QB Drew Stanton trade with sixth-round pick in 2012 for seventh-round pick in 2012, signed, two years; WR Donnie Avery signed/UFA, one year. March 21: C Samson Satele signed/UFA, three years. March 19: G/C Mike McGlynn signed/UFA, two years March 17: S Tom Zbikowski signed/UFA, three years. March 14: T Winston Justice trade for 6th-round pick in 2012, signed, one year; DE Cory Redding signed/UFA, three years. March 13: WR Reggie Wayne re-signed/UFA, three years. March 5: LB Robert Mathis (LB) designated franchise player; Mathis re-signed, four-year extension.
Freeney all-in despite uncertain future
By Alex Marvez
FoxSports.com
May 6, 2012
Indianapolis Colts outside linebacker Dwight Freeney says he’s more Magic Johnson than LeBron James.
But whether one of the NFL’s top all-time pass rushers gets to finish his football career with the same team that drafted him is hardly a slam dunk.
After 10 seasons with the Indianapolis Colts, Freeney has no interest in taking his athletic talents elsewhere, as James did when he bolted the Cleveland Cavaliers to sign with the Miami Heat. Freeney, though, knows his days in Indianapolis may be numbered.
The Colts are adopting a new defensive system, and Freeney’s lucrative contract expires at the end of the 2012 season. This raises the possibility of a trade, even though team management has stuck with Freeney during the early stages of retooling the roster.
Asked about his Colts future during a Tuesday night interview with me and co-host Bill Polian on Sirius XM NFL Radio, Freeney said: “I’m kind of old-school when it comes to that thought. I’m not LeBron trying to leave the team. I’m more like the era of Magic and (New York Giants linebacker) Lawrence Taylor, who stayed with that same team for their entire careers win, lose or draw. They were married to the city they were drafted in. You go through the tough times and great times with them, and that’s it. That’s what I’m looking forward to.
“You don’t know what’s going to happen. I can get traded. They may want to go in a different direction. Maybe I can’t handle the (defensive) scheme. You have all those possibilities. But, personally, I would love to stay.”
The Colts’ decision to keep Freeney is somewhat surprising considering the change in defense and how many other veterans the club released this offseason. The bloodletting included plenty of Freeney’s contemporaries, including quarterback Peyton Manning. The 32-year-old Freeney also is due to collect a $14 million base salary in the final year of his contract.
Freeney said he still hasn’t adjusted to all the new faces the Colts have added.
“I feel like I’m in a whole other dimension,” a laughing Freeney said. “I’m used to walking in the locker room and there’s Peyton’s locker to the right and all these other guys who were there. Now, it’s like everything has shifted around.
“I got lost in the locker room today. They built a locker right where I always walk to get my laundry clothes. I almost walked into the locker. It’s completely different. But I do understand what this game is. Things have to change eventually. It’s never the same team (annually), regardless of whether it’s four or five guys or 20. That’s the nature of the beast, especially when you don’t win.”
A 2-14 record in 2011 was the impetus for a massive Colts overhaul that included the firing of Polian as team president and Jim Caldwell as head coach. Caldwell’s replacement, Chuck Pagano, is installing the same style of 3-4 scheme that he ran last season as the Baltimore Ravens' defensive coordinator. Freeney and Robert Mathis will shift from being traditional 4-3 defensive ends to outside linebackers aligned in various spots, with occasional coverage responsibilities.
Freeney is in the early stages of that transition with the Colts having opened their offseason program last month.
“For me, it’s just getting familiar with all those nuances,” said Freeney, whose 102.5 career sacks rank behind only Atlanta’s John Abraham (112) and Minnesota’s Jared Allen (105) among active players. “My line of sight, walking around (pre-snap), dropping into coverage — I’m doing those things. It’s going to take a little time at the beginning to get used to and as comfortable as I have been having my hand in the ground (at end) and being in one position.”
Freeney hopes those efforts ultimately pay dividends by making it more difficult for opposing offenses to game plan against him. Polian said Freeney and Mathis were recipients of double-teams on 83 percent of the Colts’ offensive snaps over the past couple of seasons.
“This is probably going to benefit me because I’m not in a ‘blackboard position’ where (offenses) know exactly where I am and what we’re going to do,” said Freeney, who was selected by Polian as a 2002 first-round draft choice because he fit the profile of an ideal speed rusher in a “Tampa-two” defense.
“We’re going to be coming with various blitzes from different sides. I’ll be moving around, so I’ll be harder to find.”
Freeney won’t be stealth when it comes to helping the Colts compensate for the leadership lost when Manning was released. Pagano
told FOXSports.com in March that he considers Freeney, Mathis and 12-year wide receiver Reggie Wayne the “three pillars” of the team’s locker room.
“It’s, obviously, very tough to fill in all the things that Peyton did,” Freeney said. “We all know the on-the-field, but there was a lot of leadership stuff off the field. Just making sure everybody was on the same page and being a presence in the offseason to make sure you’re around and the younger guys see that you’re working hard and it’s OK to do that.
“Those are the intangibles that people don’t know that Peyton was great at. Those were some of the things we loved him for. Obviously, with him leaving, it creates that void. It’s really going to take all of us (veterans) to fill that void and try to groom these young guys so they understand what Colt ball is all about.”
Helping the Colts get back on track is another one of Freeney’s biggest goals — even if he might not still be there by the time that foundation is done being laid.
“Yeah, we lost a lot of guys, but we’re not laying down for anybody,” he said. “Everybody likes to throw around this ‘rebuilding.’ For us, we’re going out like it’s 2005, ’06, ’07 and ’08. We’re going to give everybody our best. That’s what we do.”
Antoine Bethea returns to where it all started at Denbigh
By Norm Wood
Daily Press
May 6, 2012
NEWPORT NEWS – Nothing seemed out of place to Antoine Bethea as he walked the same halls at Denbigh High he used to cruise a decade ago, and ran around on the same practice field he and his teammates used to refer to as "the pit."
He's now a two-time Pro Bowl safety in the National Football League with the Indianapolis Colts, and the owner of a Super Bowl ring, but on Saturday, Bethea had the opportunity to give a little of his time to about 215 kids at his second annual football camp at Denbigh.
"I was walking around the school reminiscing a little bit," said Bethea, who during his rookie season in 2006 was a member of the Super Bowl-winning Colts, and who made it to the Pro Bowl in the '07 and '09 seasons. "It's all fun, but it just makes me think about how I was a lot like these kids back then."
Bethea worked with the 8-to-14-year-old kids on fundamentals and drills, and spoke to them about the importance of getting an education. He was joined by several camp counselors that included Darryl Blackstock, a former Heritage High standout and Virginia linebacker who now plays for the Oakland Raiders.
"The kids and even the parents will walk away from this camp with smiles on their faces," Bethea said. "Maybe they won't remember the camp, but hopefully the ones that do remember the camp will remember…what I talked about – hard work and dedication. I know they'll get something out of it."
Though he signed a four-year contract extension in '10 with the Colts worth $27 million, Bethea isn't the kind to take it for granted. Perhaps his attitude has something to do with the unlikely path he took to the NFL.
"I'm trying to conserve that money as much as possible," Bethea said. "Life after football is going to be a lot longer than the time I'm playing in the league."
Coming out of Denbigh, he wasn't an elite recruit, spurning opportunities to play at Norfolk State, Christopher Newport or Randolph-Macon to accept a football scholarship to Howard.
He was good enough at Howard to draw attention from some NFL teams, but again, he wasn't seen as a hot commodity.
Indianapolis drafted him in the sixth round. It didn't take him long to make an impression. He started 14 games as a rookie, and has been a regular starter every since, collecting 595 career tackles and 12 interceptions.
"I still think I have a lot to prove," Bethea said. "I still consider myself the underdog. When people talk about the best safeties, I want them to mention my name. All the time, that doesn't happen, so that still means I have some learning to do, some growing to do."
When he gets back on the field this season with Indianapolis, which tied for the worst record in NFL last season at 2-14, it'll be with a much different team that will be led by first-year coach Chuck Pagano. The most obvious change will be at quarterback without No. 18.
After 13 years as Indianapolis' starter, including 11 Pro Bowl seasons, neck surgery kept Peyton Manning off the field last season. He was released in March and signed with the Denver Broncos. Now, Indianapolis heads into this fall with No. 1 overall draft pick Andrew Luck as its quarterback.
"It's going to be different (without Manning)," Bethea said. "It's a change I don't think anybody expected at the start of last season. Then again, it just goes to show you the business side of it. Sometimes change is good. We've yet to see that, but I believe with the new regime we have around the facility, there's a very good spirit.
"I'm not going to say it's refreshing, because a lot of the people that brought me in are gone. It's not a good thing to see, and a lot of my boys are gone, but we have new coaches that are going to teach us new things. That's going to make me a better player."
Andrew Luck – like father, like son
By Elizabeth Merrill
ESPN.com
April 26, 2012
WHEELING, W.Va. -- On the last Interstate 70 stop before West Virginia mountains give way to Ohio green, a tall man with perfectly swept hair works the White Palace ballroom. He is charming, almost presidential, which is good because this is a heavy-hitter crowd. The governor of the great state of West Virginia is here, as well as a roomful of bankers, lawyers and schmoozers. A prayer is said before their supper of sautéed chicken and green beans, and cocktails are poured in plastic cups. They have gathered on this late-April night to see Oliver Luck, a man whose bio in the Wheeling Chamber of Commerce dinner program fills an entire single-spaced page. Luck is all over the West Virginia map these days, dining with Boy Scouts and rubbing elbows with Rotarians, because this is what the athletic director for West Virginia University does in the springtime. He does not rattle off his résumé, which sounds as if it could be a "world's most interesting man" script. Former NFL quarterback. Rhodes Scholar finalist. World traveler. Former president and CEO of NFL Europe. Ran a Major League Soccer team that won a couple of championships. Oh, and he has a law degree, which he picked up taking night classes while in the NFL. But Luck taught his kids to be humble, which is why you'll hear very little about any of this tonight.
He steps to the center of the stage to give his speech about West Virginia athletics, and breaks code a bit, probably to break the ice. "You know," Luck says as he grabs the microphone, "there's a whole page here dedicated to my bio. And if you go on Wikipedia right now, what you'll see under my name is simply, 'Andrew's dad.'" The crowd laughs. "That's who I've become, and I'm very proud of it." On Thursday night in New York City, in one of the most anticlimactic starts to an NFL draft, the Indianapolis Colts will select Andrew Luck as the No. 1 pick. And the professional career of the most hyped quarterback since Peyton Manning will begin. What can you say about this 22-year-old? That Oliver Luck's oldest boy has seemingly zero flaws, that he is so polished he would've been No. 1 in the 2011 draft, that he is so good his arrival has jolted the quarterback landscape in three NFL cities? Oliver can wax on about the Big 12, coal mining and West Virginia's economy, but generally, he holds off on saying much about his son. Hyperbole is not the Lucks' thing. He will recognize that this is a big deal. The Lucks are about to become just the seventh known father-son quarterback combination in the NFL, following a distinguished group that includes the Manning family. For years, analysts have broken down the genetic success of Archie, Peyton and Eli, comparing arms, speed and size. But most of the time, a father's influence goes way deeper than any kind of metrics. Oliver Luck's influence is somewhat intangible. It's there in the huddle where, no matter the situation, Andrew is seemingly unflappable. It's the reason Oliver's son, an All-American at Stanford who is about to get his degree in architectural design, is so well-prepared and grounded. The elder Luck, of course, wants nothing to do with any chip-off-the-old-block conversations. Talk to his mother, Luck says, because Kathy plays just as big of a role in the making of Andrew Luck. A few days after the grip-and-grin in Wheeling, as Oliver is driving to Charleston, W.Va., he says he's talked to Kathy -- and sorry, she has politely declined to be interviewed. She likes being in the background. "Have you ever heard of the book 'Freakonomics'?" Oliver says. "So there's these two economics professors, and they're really interesting guys, and they wrote these books. And it's really all about sort of false thinking. They try to go in and look at a number of different phenomenon. Does A really cause B? You know, causation. "They wrote a chapter in the book about major league baseball players. What characteristics at what age would be an indicator that the kid is really going to make it to the major leagues? Is it when they were born? … Is it size?" At the end of the chapter, he says, the authors tell the reader that none of these factors comes close to the only important one, which is having a father who also played major league baseball. So maybe it's just in the genes. Luck is a voracious reader, by the way. He has no problem talking about that. Oliver is currently tackling a book on the history of Spain. He's read it before. In the hundreds of interviews Andrew has done since arriving at Stanford, he is occasionally asked about his favorite thing to do besides football. His answer is usually the same.
Reading, he says. The origins of Andrew
Andrew Austen Luck was born Sept. 12, 1989, in Washington D.C., the first of many addresses for a son born to two lawyers. There was a "Monday Night Football" game on the night father, mother and soon-to-be son were in the hospital, and Oliver recalls at some point looking up to catch the score. He says he's fairly certain that former West Virginia quarterback Jeff Hostetler was playing that night, but you'd have to check to make sure. Of course he's right. The couple went on to have four kids -- their daughter, Mary Ellen, plays volleyball for Stanford -- so it's fuzzy as to who first put a football in Andrew's hands. It didn't really matter. "My wife and I didn't raise our kids to be anything except what each one ultimately wants to do," Oliver says. "I can't imagine raising a child with a goal of that child being a baseball player or a lawyer or whatever. Odds are, they'll be something else. In this world, there are a lot of opportunities." Oliver Luck did not possess the physical gifts of his 6-foot-4, 234-pound son. He was a tall and skinny quarterback from St. Ignatius High School in Cleveland who went to West Virginia because he fell in love with the school and community. The scouting report on Luck went something like this: smart, talented, good arm, not-so-good runner. But tough. If Luck threw an interception -- he didn't throw many -- he didn't float backward and get out of the way. He went after the guy running with the ball. His first two years with the Mountaineers yielded back-to-back losing seasons. It wasn't for lack of effort. Luck stayed in Morgantown every summer, training with his teammates while working eight hours a day doing odd jobs at a coal mine. In 1980, the Mountaineers' fortunes changed when Don Nehlen took over as head coach. Nehlen was not overwhelmed with confidence when he met Ollie Luck. "When I first looked at him," Nehlen says, "he had that big Adam's apple and that big nose and skinny shoulders. And I'm saying, 'Oh my gosh.' I told my wife, 'Don't unpack.' "But Ollie had it all. He gave us the ability to be a pretty good football team. Believe it or not, we won six games that first year and nine the second. If we don't have Oliver Luck, we don't win. He's one of those guys the kids really rally around. He made the other 10 better than they really were. And all the great quarterbacks do that." Oliver Luck's draft day was far less heralded than his son's. He was selected in the second round by the Houston Oilers, after Art Schlichter and Jim McMahon. He did not play his rookie year, then was inserted as a starter during a disastrous 2-14 campaign in 1983. Luck threw eight touchdowns and 13 interceptions that year. And the following season, the Oilers signed Warren Moon from the Canadian Football League. Luck spent the better part of the next three seasons carrying a clipboard behind a future Hall of Famer. But Luck was still competitive while helping Moon in whatever way he could. "He always had a smile on his face," Moon says. "He was one of the smarter guys that I've been around at quarterback. He was so well-rounded. He knew different languages. Some guys come off as smug because they're intelligent and think they're more intelligent than everybody else. But he was never that way. The guy had such an easygoing personality that you would never know that side of him unless you really got into an in-depth conversation with him." After his fifth season, Luck sized up his situation, realized he wasn't going to play much, and decided to call it quits. He was 26 years old. It was different back then, he says. The desire to hang on wasn't necessarily there. Luck could walk into a law firm and make nearly as much as he did as an NFL backup. Most important, he could still walk. Asked if he regrets leaving the game so early, he says "no" three times in rapid-fire succession. His kids wouldn't get the chance to see him play, but that didn't matter. Luck had a lot to do. The cultural influence There was the failed bid for Congress in 1990, when Andrew was just a baby, and a job in Germany as general manager of the Frankfurt Galaxy in the fledgling World League of American Football. Luck dabbled in just about everything, and he spent more than a decade overseas running football teams and eventually becoming president and CEO of NFL Europe. The jobs were nice, but the Lucks loved the opportunity to pile their kids in a car and take them from Frankfurt to the Eiffel Tower in five hours. They'd ride on the autobahn and be fluent in German, English and whatever else they wanted.
"There's a whole body of literature on the culture of kids," Luck says, "kids who grew up outside of their home culture. I don't want to necessarily summarize all the literature, but ultimately, I think [those] kids are a little bit more tolerant because they can see there are different ways of living. "I think they're a little more inquisitive. And they get exposure to some things that make them think a little more about different places, different cultures and different languages." The exposure has helped Andrew Luck in many ways. For starters, he played soccer as a boy, which no doubt helped his footwork. He saw beautiful stadiums and wanted to become an architect. When the world became smaller for young Andrew, nothing seemed too big. "He walked on campus different," says David Shaw, his college coach at Stanford. "A lot of times, even our best players and our best students still have a transitional period. And there was never a transitional period for Andrew. "Being as well-traveled as he is, he doesn't just have his immediate surroundings as his only context to life. He doesn't approach the world with blinders on. He doesn't get fazed. He's seen a lot, and he's been through a lot." Learning the game
Oliver Luck jokes that his long list of titles just means that he was never able to hold on to a job for very long. The family moved back to the U.S. in 2001, when he was named CEO of the Houston Sports Authority. It was a chance to get back to Texas, and an opportunity for his son to test his chops in the biggest football state in the country. Much like his dad, young Andrew did not wow anyone at first sight. "He was a 14-year-old kid," says Stratford High coach Eliot Allen. "He wasn't the guy you see now. But I think you saw then the kind of person he was." The younger Luck was smart and polite and made 10 guys look better. His father did not show up at practice, Allen says. He didn't talk X's and O's with his son. He wanted him to learn and grow from his coaches. So Andrew did, and threw for 7,139 yards and 53 touchdowns at Stratford. He was co-valedictorian for the Class of '08. Oliver taught Andrew about leadership and being mentally strong, Allen says. "And don't forget his mother," Allen says. "She's pretty influential, too. We'll never hear about her because she's behind the scenes. But she has her law degree." Kathy, according to John Hardesty, one of Oliver's close friends, is a quiet, strong and smart woman. She holds the family together. When Oliver took the West Virginia athletic director job in 2010, he was living in a small condo in Morgantown while his family finished business in Houston. He'd catch red-eye flights to Houston and Stanford to watch Andrew play. They made sacrifices but have rarely had regrets. One Saturday last year, when West Virginia had a late game and Andrew was playing on the West Coast, Oliver sat in his office, in the dark, trying to find the game on the Internet. "Here's a guy, his son's the Heisman Trophy candidate, and he and I are watching the game, 11:30 at night on the computer in his office," says John Garcia, an old college teammate of Oliver's. "Here we are watching it in the dark because he can't get to the game. "People don't know the commitment that he's made. I think that says something about him." The expectations
There is significance to Oliver Luck's stop in Wheeling the week before the draft. Because it is right off the interstate, on the way to Indianapolis, he'll be driving by it a lot. He tells the crowd that he plans to buzz by here during the fall for the next 15 years. He believes his kid could have that kind of staying power. Colts owner Jim Irsay must believe it, too. Andrew will shrug and say that it does not put any extra pressure on him, and pops will reaffirm that. Every player on an NFL roster is under pressure, Oliver says. He can probably substantiate that with the help of some book he's read. So no, Oliver Luck is not worried about his son living up to these rare expectations. He will celebrate with him in New York, then go back to work in West Virginia. He knows Andrew will be fine, and that his football dream will last longer than his dad's. In the offseason, in sort of a full circle moment, Warren Moon worked with Andrew. "The kid doesn't have any weaknesses," Moon said. It reminded Moon, in many ways, of Oliver.
Maturity, background will help Luck
By Bob Glauber
New York Daily News
April 23, 2012
Living up to the legacy of Peyton Manning would be difficult enough for most quarterbacks, but Andrew Luck just might be different. After all, he already has emerged from the shadow of a big-time quarterback: his own father.
Growing up as the son of former West Virginia star and Oilers backup Oliver Luck presented its own set of challenges, but Andrew had no problem developing into a star in his own right. His background surely will come in handy now that he's ready to handle an even more daunting task: replacing future Hall of Famer Manning, who was released last month to set the stage for Luck's arrival.
"Peyton was my hero growing up. He was my football hero," said Luck, who is expected to be taken by the Colts with the first overall pick in Thursday's draft. "That's who I modeled myself after in high school, middle school, whatever it was. You never truly replace a guy like that."
Maybe not, but Colts fans will surely expect a lot from their next quarterback. Especially after Manning delivered so many memorable moments during a 14-year run in Indianapolis that ended after last season because of continued neck problems. The Colts parted ways with Manning in early March, and he signed with the Broncos.
Not to worry, says Luck.
"I set fairly high expectations for myself," said Luck, the Heisman Trophy runner-up the last two seasons. "I don't really get involved in what other people set for me, aside from my parents, family, people I truly care about."
But if there was ever a quarterback made to weather the difficulties that lie ahead in a city used to quarterback brilliance, it's Luck. Growing up in a family in which football was always a primary pursuit, Luck has flourished at every level by maintaining his focus, carefully building the skills required for excellence, and transforming himself into an elite quarterback who appears ready for greatness in the NFL.
"[Luck] is a great player," said Colts general manager Ryan Grigson, who said last week that the team has settled on its pick, although he declined to say Luck was the choice. "The last guy in the last row of any stadium can tell you that he's a heck of a quarterback, a heck of a person, intelligent kid. He's got a lot to offer."
This will not be an easy transformation, though. Just as Manning had to mature during his rookie season, when the Colts went 3-13, Luck will have his work cut out. He joins a team that not long ago was of championship caliber but has been taken apart piece by piece by injuries and salary-cap concerns. Two days after the Colts announced Manning's release, they said goodbye to four other longtime stars: tight end Dallas Clark, running back Joseph Addai, linebacker Gary Brackett and safety Melvin Bullitt.
But growing up in Oliver Luck's house and playing for former NFL quarterback Jim Harbaugh at Stanford should go a long way toward helping Luck lead the Colts back to the playoffs before long.
"He's got all the qualities, mentally and physically," said Harbaugh, the 49ers' coach. "He's as prepared as anybody that you're going to find. He's really good. He's got a lot of talent."
Harbaugh thinks Luck is uniquely suited to face the comparisons to Manning.
"Fair or unfair, it's the nature of the business," Harbaugh said. "But he's very equipped to deal with it. He's one of the finest football players I've ever been around and an even better person."
And perhaps the greatest compliment of all from Harbaugh: "I'm not going to like playing against him. I'm not looking forward to that."
At least the 49ers don't have to face him this season. Then again, by the time Luck does face his former coach, he'll be that much more comfortable in his new uniform, the one he'll put on Thursday.
New Colts coach Chuck Pagano seemed destined for the job, his family says
By Phillip B. Wilson
Indy Star
January 27, 2012
In one of the proudest moments of his life, Sam Pagano had a flashback from four decades ago, when his 9-year-old son, Chuck, scurried around a football sideline and squirted water in the faces of the Fairview High School Knights.
The father, who coached teams in Boulder, Colo., to three state titles, knew then his son's destiny.
"He is football. He loves it," Pagano said via phone about Chuck, now 51 and introduced Thursday as the new Indianapolis Colts head coach in a news conference at the team's Northwestside complex.
Chuck Pagano stood at the lectern and conceded almost immediately that this opportunity was a dream job come true.
"Now I'm at the top of the pinnacle," he said. "I've spent 28 years of my life in coaching waiting for this opportunity."
It's been quite the January for the Pagano family. Sam's younger son, John, became the San Diego Chargers' defensive coordinator Jan. 5.
"We've had so much good news this month," said Sam, 73, who is retired from coaching. "God, we're so excited for Chuck. He's worked so hard for this."
The passion was to be expected from the sons. They saw football take their father around the world. In the 1990s, Sam coached in France, Italy and Germany. Even now, the sons come home each summer to help out at the father's Mile High Football Camp.
John, 42, also grew up idolizing his brother. He had a premonition Chuck would land the Colts job if given an interview. He told family and friends the Baltimore Ravens soon would be losing a defensive coordinator.
John was scouting a Senior Bowl practice in Mobile, Ala., when his older brother called with the good news. "I wanted to start crying," John said.
The Paganos are more about toughness than tears -- Chuck was once a hard-hitting safety who played college ball at Wyoming. But there is humility, too. And a lot of emotion.
Pagano's wife, Tina, and two of their three daughters made the trip for the announcement. The girls confided afterward that their dad has a softer side.
"He's tough, and that shows through his coaching," said Taylor, 21. "He gets up there (at the lectern) and does that like it's a breeze. But he's not like that at home.
"I think him being around us girls, there's a lot of estrogen in the house. It's worn off on him. He's emotional -- that's just how he is. We all are."
Tori, 17, described him as "a loving father."
Chuck Pagano's players learn from his old-school discipline and demanding nature. Imagine what these big, strong NFL guys would think if they saw how their coach interacts with his girls.
"He's not afraid to braid their hair," Tina said. "He does more braids than I do. When they were little, he braided their hair a lot."
His family taught Pagano the importance of building relationships. Sam said Chuck's work ethic came from his mother, Diana, and the coaching from him.
It's the same with John. If the Pagano name sounds familiar to Colts fans, it should. John was on Jim Mora's Colts staff as a defensive assistant from 1998 to 2001. Mora met the Paganos while coaching at the University of Colorado.
"It's a great family," Mora said. "I've known them for a long time. It's a fabulous opportunity, and they got themselves a good man. That football background, that's good training for a guy. I think Chuck will do a great job. He's 100 percent football."
If there's one thing that gets John going, it's talking with Chuck about the game.
"He's been my number one guy, my number one best friend," John said. "There's only one person I truly talk X's and O's with, and that's him. Our relationship is so special. You guys have got yourself a winner there."
Colts guard Joe Reitz, who spent 2008-09 on the Ravens practice squad, is excited about the hiring.
"He would always go out of his way to say hello to me even though I was a lowly guy on the practice squad," said Reitz, a local fan favorite from his days as a Hamilton Southeastern High basketball star.
"He really cares about all of his players. A couple of my best friends in Baltimore, they're defensive backs, they would rave about him, how they loved to play for him."
Pagano was the Ravens' secondary coach for three years before being named defensive coordinator in 2011.
"I know the guys in Baltimore would talk about how he would instill confidence in them, how they could just go out and play with that confidence," Reitz said. "The guys love playing for a guy like that."
When reviewing Pagano's resume, one might question the Colts hiring a man who has never been a head coach and had only one year as an NFL defensive coordinator.
"He's got a lot of work to do, but I'm sure he'll do it with vigor, enthusiasm and great spirit," Sam Pagano said. "People may look at that (lack of head coaching experience), but believe me, he's ready."
Those closest to Chuck Pagano know the former water boy has worked an entire life to earn this opportunity.
"It's what he was born to do," Tina said.
New intensity: Colts get their man
By Mike Chappell
Indy Star
January 26, 2012
Reggie Wayne is no stranger to Chuck Pagano, named Wednesday the 11th head or interim head coach in the Colts' Indianapolis era.
"Great dude," Wayne said. "Great dude."
Wayne developed into a standout receiver at the University of Miami from 1997-2000 during which time Pagano handled the Hurricanes' secondary and special teams.
"Chuck's an intense guy, loves the game of football," Wayne said.
Don't take his word for it.
"(Ravens safety) Ed Reed says (Pagano) is ready," Wayne said, "and that's good enough for me. He's a great hire and I believe he'll bring excitement to the team."
Pagano, 51, is the latest cornerstone set in place in the Colts' major restoration project. He replaces Jim Caldwell, fired Jan. 17, three weeks after the team closed the 2011 season with a 2-14 record.
A news conference is scheduled for 3 p.m. today.
"It's difficult to leave the Ravens, but I couldn't pass up on this great opportunity,'' Pagano said in a statement released by the Ravens. "I'm just thrilled and so excited."
Owner Jim Irsay and general manager Ryan Grigson settled on Pagano following a search that was extensive but spanned only nine days.
Irsay's enthusiasm was evident on his Twitter account: "Indy,we got one hell of a football coach with fire in his eyes! When I said,coach,r u ready 2b The Colts head coach,he said, 'Let's hunt.' "
The Colts' gain is the Ravens' loss. Pagano had been with Baltimore the past four seasons, and in 2011 was the coordinator of an aggressive defense that ranked No. 3 in the NFL in fewest yards and points allowed and was tied for third with 48 sacks.
"They're getting a great coach and we're losing one," Ravens veteran outside linebacker Jarret Johnson said. "That sucks for us, but good for them.
"I don't have enough good things to say about Chuck. From a personality standpoint, the guys over there are going to love him. He's got a fiery personality, but he's really funny. He can be defined as a players' coach, but he knows football."
Safety Chris Carr played for Pagano at Oakland before joining him in Baltimore in 2009. Like Johnson, he hates that he's losing his coach but glad Pagano is taking that next step.
"Great football IQ," Carr said. "(The Colts) are getting a coach who's 51 years old, but he seems a lot younger. He's a guy who can relate to players with different personalities.
"This isn't an older guy who is out of touch with the world."
Pagano is the fourth former Ravens defensive coordinator to be named an NFL head coach, joining Marvin Lewis (Cincinnati Bengals), Mike Nolan (San Francisco 49ers) and Rex Ryan (New York Jets).
The Ravens' foundation is an aggressive, disruptive defense. They're a 3-4 bunch -- three down linemen, four linebackers -- that's always in attack mode.
The Colts, meanwhile, have been an offense-driven team behind quarterback Peyton Manning and have followed a more passive defensive scheme. The defense ranked No. 25 in the league during an injury-ravaged 2011 and has ranked among the top 10 only twice since 2002.
Pagano's hiring was embraced by a few Colts defenders.
"I like it," perennial Pro Bowl end Robert Mathis wrote on his Twitter account.
And this tweet from safety Antoine Bethea: "New Head Coach in town!! Hope he brings that Raven style of defense with him!!"
That remains to be seen. In Baltimore, Pagano leaned on a Pro Bowl-saturated lineup that included Reed, linebackers Ray Lewis, Terrell Suggs and Johnson, and tackle Haloti Ngata.
Bethea is a former Pro Bowler, but the Colts' only true difference-makers on defense are Mathis and end Dwight Freeney. It's debatable if they have the required talent in the front seven to play a 3-4.
"What Chuck's going to do is look at the players in the room and fit the defense he runs around the talent he has," Johnson said.
"People say we were a straight 3-4, but we really were a hybrid. We play a little bit of everything."
Pagano inherits a team coming off its worst season in two decades and must help Irsay decide whether Manning is part of the comprehensive rebuilding that's taking place. Manning still is rehabilitating from Sept. 8 neck surgery that forced him to miss the 2011 season. He is due a $28 million option bonus by March 8 that, if unpaid, makes him an unrestricted free agent.
Also, the Colts hold the first overall pick in the April draft that likely will deliver Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck. Other significant personnel decisions loom.
Speculation in Baltimore has Pagano perhaps bringing with him defensive line coach Clarence Brooks and linebackers coach Dean Pees from the Ravens staff, although Pees might be in position to succeed Pagano as coordinator. He also might consider Butch Davis, with whom he has a long relationship.
Rookie offensive tackle Anthony Castonzo is taking a wait-and-see approach, with a caveat.
"My first reaction, I know he's an Italian guy," Castonzo said. "His last name ends with an 'o,' and my last name ends with an 'o.' Beyond that, I don't know anything about him."