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2007 Team Report: Indianapolis Colts

Quarterbacks

Starter: Peyton Manning
Backup(s): Jim Sorgi

Starting QB: Although Peyton Manning didn't reach the 50-touchdown mark again last season, he still led the league with 31 touchdown passes. Manning finished the season as the top fantasy point-producing QB for the first time in his career while earning his seventh straight Pro Bowl appearance. Barring injury, it is inadvisable to predict that he will fall out of the top four fantasy QBs anytime in the near future. Manning is the league's best pocket passer and leads the most productive offense in the game. The Colts also boast one of the best offensive lines in football. Most importantly, Manning has never lost time to injury.

Backup QB: Jim Sorgi was the Colts sixth-round draft pick in 2004. In the inconsequential final 2005 regular-season games against Seattle and Arizona, he saw extensive time after Manning started. The Colts split the games while Sorgi passed for 454 yards and three touchdowns. Sorgi played in two games in 2006 but failed to throw a pass or advance the ball a single yard.

Running Backs

Starter: Joseph Addai
Backup(s): Kenton Keith
Fullback(s): Luke Lawton

Starting RB: Joseph Addai is yet another in a long line of complete running backs for the Colts. He is as strong catching the ball and blocking as he is rushing. Addai is a very good receiver out of the backfield and drives the Colts passing attack. To an extent, Addai split time with Dominic Rhodes in 2006. However, breaking down the games, it was Addai who carried the ball in the scoring opportunities, going so far as to exclusively carry the ball on the opponents' half of the field in more than one contest.

Backup RBs: Any notion that Joe Addai would be kept in a committee situation were put to rest when the Colts cut not one, but two of his backups on September 1st. The only other tailback on the 53-man roster is Kenton Keith, a former CFL star who outplayed DeDe Dorsey and Clifton Dawson in the preseason.

Fullback: The Colts are not known for employing the FB as an offensive weapon. Strong powerful blocking is all Luke Lawton will be called upon for.

Wide Receivers

Starters: Marvin Harrison, Reggie Wayne
Backups: Anthony Gonzalez [R], Aaron Moorehead, Roy Hall [R]

Starting WRs: Marvin Harrison made his eighth straight Pro Bowl appearance in 2006. It was also his eighth consecutive season with at least 1,100 receiving yards and double-digit TDs. Barring injury -- he's sat out just two games in the last eight years -- Harrison is a lock to be a top-10 fantasy WR. Harrison was the top scoring fantasy WR in the league last season. Although Wayne was still outproduced by Harrison in receptions, yards, and touchdowns, he finished the season as the third highest fantasy point-producing WR in the league. He might be WR2 on the Colts, but he can easily be a WR1 for any fantasy owner. Manning has repeated for years that Wayne is one of his favorite players on the team.

Backup WRs: Anthony Gonzalez is billed as the replacement for the oft-injured Brandon Stokley. Gonzalez has great hands, quickness, and most importantly for the Colts, is an excellent route runner. He is still raw but couldn't be in a better position than with the Colts. Gonzalez will often be the fourth or fifth key for the defense and will get the opportunity to develop and thrive in the slot. Aaron Moorehead is an interesting player to keep an eye on. Coming to the Colts as an undrafted free agent in 2003, Moorehead made the team and shined in extremely limited duty in 2003. He has size, speed, and is fearless over the middle.

Tight Ends

Starters: Dallas Clark
Backups: Ben Utecht, Bryan Fletcher

In a season marred with a severe knee injury, Dallas Clark finished 2006 as the 15th-best fantasy TE. He has the trust of Peyton Manning and is clearly the starting TE for the Colts. Given the way the Colts exploit what the defense gives them, expect a handful of nice games from Clark this season. His injury history is a bit worrisome though. While he didn't score a single touchdown in 2006, Utecht was very active in almost every game. Should Clark go down to injury, Utecht could become an extremely valuable short-term starter. Fletcher is a capable reserve TE that can play in 2-TE sets if Clark or Utecht are hobbled.

Place Kicker

Adam Vinatieri : In his first year with the Colts, Vinatieri scored 113 points despite missing three games due to injury. Including substitute Martin Gramatica's points, Indianapolis finished fourth in kicker scoring, for their seventh top six finish in eight years. Vinatieri went 25 of 28 (89.3%) on field goals, for the second highest percentage of his career. He was perfect in home games in the dome. Two of the misses were at his old stomping grounds in New England. He also posted career bests on kickoffs, averaging 65.8 yards with 10 touchbacks. CAMP UPDATE: Adam Vinatieri discussed his workload needs during the preseason, "You just know. It's a 'feel' thing. There's not necessarily a gold number for any of us; at least there isn't for me. If you need to keep working on a few things, you hit a few more balls. If it's hot out and you've hit plenty of balls and you feel good, then you shut it down.'' Special teams coordinator Russ Purnell noted, "He doesn't need to be kicking 200 balls every week to stay sharp." Vinatieri saw his first game action of the year against Chicago.

Kick and Punt Returners

Kick Returners: T.J. Rushing; Anthony Gonzalez; Roy Hall; Joseph Addai

The Colts did not re-sign WR Terrence Wilkins, their leading kickoff and punt returner last year. CB T.J. Rushing will get the first shot at the return specialist role. He was used sparingly last year, averaging 33.5 yards on two kickoff returns. Rookie WR Anthony Gonzalez averaged 12.3 yards on 11 career kickoff returns at Ohio State. WR Roy Hall, the other rookie from Ohio State, averaged 18.4 yards on seven career kickoff returns. RB Joseph Addai occasionally returned kickoffs for LSU.

Punt Returners: T.J. Rushing; Anthony Gonzalez; Roy Hall

Although T.J. Rushing's strength is kickoff returns, the departure of Terrence Wilkins leaves an opening on punt returns and Rushing could end up doing both. Anthony Gonzalez had even less experience on punt returns in college, averaging 8.0 yards on three returns. Roy Hall also had special teams experience at Ohio State, although not in a ball handling role on punts. If T.J. Rushing, nor any of the other inexperienced contenders pan out on returns, the Colts could again resort to bringing in a veteran later in the preseason.

Offensive Line

Projected Starters: LT Tony Ugoh [R], LG Ryan Lilja, C Jeff Saturday, RG Jake Scott, RT Ryan Diem
Key Backups: Charlie Johnson, Dylan Gandy, Tarik Glenn [Retired]

The Colts were dealt a major blow just before training camp when LT Tarik Glenn, a starter for most of the decade, announced his retirement. The team wasn't counting on the loss of their most experienced outside lineman, and will now start rookie Tony Ugoh in his place. The team also has 2nd year pro Charlie Johnson as a possible option if Ugoh struggles as we suspect he might. On a brighter note, the rest of the line returns intact including center Jeff Saturday, one of the best in the business. Left tackle is the only question on an otherwise proven, cohesive unit.

Team Defense

The 2006 Super Bowl Champion Indianapolis Colts seemed to take a step backwards last year on defense. They went from the 29th ranked team in total defense in 2004 to 11th in 2005, back to 21st last year. They went from fifth in the league with sacks in 2005 with 46 to tie for 30 th in the league in 2006 with only 25. They were dead last in the league in rushing defense and only nine teams gave up more points. It's any wonder they were as successful as they were. DE Robert Mathis was the only player on the team with more than 5.5 sacks. His counterpart, Dwight Freeney, may still be the premier sack specialist in the NFL, but statistically he took a big step backwards. He remains young, fast and athletic though so count on Freeney to bounce back. It's noteworthy that he had five sacks in his last eight games. Mathis continues to surprise many with his propensity to make plays and has averaged double-digit sacks in the last three seasons. Bob Sanders was injured most of the season but, when healthy, hits like a linebacker and headlines an aggressive secondary. They've had some coverage problems in the secondary and that might not go away anytime soon. Their linebacking corps is young and undersized but with great speed. They lack in depth, though, and the loss of Cato June could hurt. Other losses on defense include Nick Harper, Montae Reagor, Mike Doss, Booger McFarland, Corey Simon and Jason David. The Colts still play a version of the Cover-2 defense. They play a 4-3 defense with a variety of bodies tossed out there from play to play.

Defensive Line

Starters: DE Dwight Freeney, DE Robert Mathis, DT Raheem Brock, DT Ed Johnson
Backups: DE Josh Thomas, DT Darrell Reid, DT Dan Klecko, DT Quinn Pitcock

Starting DL: DE Dwight Freeney is the foundation and heart of this defensive unit. Unfortunately, Freeney took a big step backwards with his worst professional year in 2006. One of the league's foremost sack artists, Freeney has double digit sacks in each of his four NFL seasons before dipping to 5.5 last year. He still forces a lot of fumbles, including four last year. Few others match his closing burst on the QB. He had five sacks in the last eight games and look for Freeney to bounce back to double-digit sacks in 2007; particularly now that he's the highest paid defensive player in NFL history. DE Robert Mathis continued his pattern of success, especially at rushing the QB. He led the team with 9.5 sacks and added a career-high 65 tackles. The more the Colts can get Mathis on the field the better, although they'd like to rest him as much as possible to keep him fresh. Raheem Brock is a solid, versatile lineman who has had several consistent and productive seasons with the team. He is very quick and has 16 sacks in the last three seasons. The loss of Booger McFarland could be a devastating one for a team already weak against the run. For now, Ed Johnson takes his place but expect the Colts to rotate several live bodies into that spot.

Backup DL: The team needs a DT to step up and Darrell Reid seems the likeliest candidate. He's a high motor, aggressive player who has made significant contributions on specials teams the last two seasons. His next step will be proving himself with the regular unit. Dan Klecko is another option at DT behind the starters, who is a reasonable alternative and also plays a little on offense as a fullback. Rookie DT Quinn Pitcock excels against the run and will see plenty of time in the rotation with Reid and Klecko.

Linebackers

Starters: MLB Gary Brackett, LB Rob Morris, OLB Freddy Keiaho
Backups: LB Rocky Boiman, LB Keith O'Neill, LB Tyjuan Hagler

Starting LBs: Gary Brackett had another fine year for the Colts, getting 120 total tackles in 14 games with six of those games in double-digit tackles. He has nice speed and range, with good instincts and is a solid tackler. He's not the biggest LB and sometimes gets pushed around a little bit, but he fits the team defense perfectly and should get another 120+ tackles in 2007. Rob Morris was once the starting MLB for the Colts and even produced back-to-back 100 tackles seasons. Fast forward to today and Morris once again finds himself fighting for a starting position but this time on the outside. Morris surprised many by playing very well on the outside in the playoffs and look for him to be given a long, serious look at being the opening day starter there. He remains a smart player and a solid tackler. With Cato June's departure, the coveted weak side job is Freddy Keiaho's to lose. Although he's more natural in the middle or on the strong side, the team will look for him to play on the weakside in June's stead. Keiaho is more physical than Cato June and does not possess the same speed, but opportunity is often all that is needed.

Backup LBs: Tyjuan Hagler has played mainly on special teams after missing his entire rookie season with a sports hernia injury. He has some upside and could backup in the middle or play on the outside because of his speed. Rocky Boiman played mostly on special teams last year, but he could find himself more in the mix this year, possibly competing for the vacant weakside role. He's got good size, especially compared to his Colt peers, and will remain focused on special teams.

Defensive Backs

Starters: SS Bob Sanders, FS Antoine Bethea, CB Kelvin Hayden, CB Marlin Jackson
Backups: CB Tim Jennings, S Matt Giordano, CB Daymeion Hughes, S Brannon Condren, CB T.J. Rushing

Starting DBs: Bob Sanders is a star on the rise and the most destructive hitter on the team. Although he is smallish, he hits like a linebacker. The problem here, and it's a significant one, is that he just can't stay on the field. He has missed half of his games as a pro because of injury. When healthy, he's a difference maker. Safety Antoine Bethea came out of relative obscurity to have a breakout season in 2006. Some knee problems during training camp didn't stop Bethea from earning a starting spot on opening day. A sixth round pick from a Division 1-AA school, Bethea played more like a savvy veteran and ended the season with 90 total tackles. Look for even more from Bethea in 2007 with a year under his belt. In the past, the team contemplated whether or not to move Marlin Jackson to safety. But at this point, look for Jackson to go where the team needs him most and that's at corner. Jackson was the team's first round draft pick in 2005 and has the size and cover skills to succeed at corner. However, his professional experience there is minimal. Playing a mix of all DB positions, Jackson accumulated a total of 82 tackles in 2006. Kelvin Hayden was a second round pick a couple years ago and has played mostly on special teams. The team needs Hayden to pick it up this year. He has good size for a corner and is physical in run support, but lacks top end speed.

Backup DBs: Safety Matt Giordano has excellent speed and stepped up last year with a couple nice games when pressed for duty. With Mike Doss gone and the injury propensity of Bob Sanders, Giordano could find himself on the field plenty more this year with a shot at making his mark for his future. Giordano has excellent instincts and a dependable tackler. He doesn't have the size or strength to play close to the line like Sanders, but few people do. Tim Jennings was signed in the second round in 2006. He's smallish but plays surprisingly big for his size and loves to help out in run support. But Jennings didn't show much as a rookie and the Colts need more out of him with the departure of Harper and David. Rookie CB Daymeion Hughes ran a slow 40-yard dash, but the Colts believe he fits nicely into their system. He should compete with Tim Jennings to backup the starting corners. Rookie Brannon Condren will compete with Giordano for playing time behind the starters.

Last modified: 2007-09-01 22:34:25