The Indianapolis Colts have now gotten through two weeks of training camp at the Grand Park Sports Campus in Westfield.
With the preseason opener against the Buffalo Bills less than a week away, the Colts have continued to ramp up the intensity as they prepare for the start of the regular season.
Through Sunday’s practice, the Colts have put on the pads three times out of their seven live sessions. It’s likely they do so at least once more before the preseason opener Saturday in Buffalo.
Throughout the second week, we have kept up with the takeaways from each practice session, which are listed below. You can also take a look at what we learned during the first week of camp. While you’re here, we also predicted the 53-man roster following the first two weeks of camp.
- Takeaways from Day 4 (link)
- Takeaways from Day 5 (link)
- Takeaways from Day 6 (link)
- Takeaways from Day 7 (link)
Without further ado, here are 13 things we learned from the second week of Colts training camp:
1
Matt Ryan spreading the love
Ryan continued his seamless transition into the Colts offense with another strong week of throwing the football leading the entire unit. His intensity and high tempo have the Colts working quickly and efficiently through the first two weeks of camp.
What has been notable is the way Ryan spreads the ball around. It’s no surprise that his favorite target is wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr., who leads the team in receptions from Ryan, but the veteran quarterback is spreading the rock all over the field.
It has been a strong start for Ryan through the first two weeks of camp, and he’s gotten plenty of pass-catchers involved.
2
Phillip Lindsay still the RB3 favorite
We are finally starting to see Lindsay take a hold of the RB3 role in the backfield. He’s been the favorite all along, but the competition has been intense to begin camp. He made some strides Sunday by putting together multiple plays with the second-team offense.
The Colts could very well keep four backs on the roster, and Lindsay’s lack of special teams work is partly the reason for that. But going into the first preseason game, the RB3 role appears to be his to lose.
3
Alec Pierce getting trial by fire
If you’ve been around athletes long enough, the phrase “Iron sharpens iron” is plastered somewhere in a team’s facility—most likely on the way to the weight room. The rookie wideout has seen plenty of reps against cornerback Stephon Gilmore, who has given the second-round pick a trial by fire early in camp.
Pierce feels that while it may lead to some incompletions in practice, it will be for the better in the long run.
“It’s great. Just running routes, a lot of times he knows what route I’m running before I even run the route just off of splits and how I’m stemming and stuff like that so that’s wild,” Pierce said this week. “I always try to pick his brain, see what he’s seeing. But yeah, it’s wild. It’s really crazy, you know how smart he is as a player.”
4
Andrew Ogletree quickly becoming a star of camp
While third-round pick Jelani Woods got all of the hype coming out of the draft, the star of camp for the rookie class has been Ogletree. During the second week of camp, the sixth-round pick has climbed the depth chart quickly after stacking several strong days in a row.
It’s unlikely that Ogletree will take the starting role from Mo Alie-Cox, but he has seen more reps with the first-team offense than Woods has. At this point, it wouldn’t be a surprise if Ogletree leap-frogs Woods as the No. 3 tight end.
5
Starting OL intact?
While there have been plenty of competitions taking place at Colts training camp, one of them has been extremely lopsided. At left tackle, it has become clear that Matt Pryor is going to be the starter until further notice. Meanwhile, Danny Pinter is clearly the favorite to take over the starting right guard spot.
With that known, the starting offensive line in Week 1 may already be intact with Pryor, Quenton Nelson, Ryan Kelly, Pinter and Braden Smith.
6
Dayo Odeyingbo lining up everywhere
Entering his second season, Odeyingbo is getting his first taste of what training camp is truly like. He spent his rookie season rehabbing from Achilles reconstruction surgery. And the Colts haven’t been shy about moving him around.
The versatile defender has been lining up both at the defensive tackle and edge rusher spots through the first two weeks of camp, and he has made a noticeable improvement during each practice. Odeyingbo is quickly solidifying himself as the fifth defensive lineman and likely the first man up when the Colts go into their packages against obvious passing situations.
7
Edge rushers making noise
Yannick Ngakoue has given a new definition to the term “high motor” while Kwity Paye looks like a player ready to break out in Year 2. But some of the depth pieces on the edge have been making noise as well.
Former second-round pick Ben Banogu has put plenty of flashes on the field in Gus Bradley’s new defensive front. It’s clear his skill set meshes well with the aggressive nature of the scheme. Ifeadi Odenigbo also has made plenty of plays in the backfield when the pads come on. He’s fighting for a roster spot and is showing he won’t go down quietly.
Tyquan Lewis is still working his way back into full reps after missing the second half of the season due to a torn patellar tendon, but the fact that he’s participating is encouraging in its own right.
8
UDFA LBs flashing upside
There are four undrafted rookie linebackers on the current roster, and anyone of them has a case to make the initial 53-man roster. All of them have had their moments, but it appears Jojo Domann out of Nebraska is leading the charge. He’s put some impressive moments on the field and is probably the favorite for the final spot in the linebacker room.
However, Sterling Weatherford has intriguing upside, and he’s also made some plays. The same goes for James Skalski and Forrest Rhyne, both of which have had some moments during camp.
9
CB depth coming into shape?
It’s anyone’s guess who the final cornerback will be when roster cuts come around. The preseason games should help weed out the competition there. However, some developments have been taking place.
Tony Brown seems to be the slight leader for the No. 5 cornerback role after a solid start to camp. Chris Wilcox has also made a few nice plays while Marvell Tell II is showing why the Colts drafted him in the first place.
Then, there are the cases of rookies Rodney Thomas II and Dallis Flowers, both of which haven’t made much noise. But there is still time for that with a full slate of preseason games coming up.
10
Safety competition heating up
The starting strong safety job is still Nick Cross’ to lose, but veteran Rodney McLeod isn’t going down without a fight. During the second week of camp, McLeod started to see more work with the first-team defense as he works his way back from a minor offseason knee procedure. Both players will have a role starting in Week 1, but the classic rookie vs. veteran battle is starting to take place.
11
Kicker battle gaining steam
The kickers finally commenced their battle during the second week of camp. Blankenship is fighting to keep his spot for the third season in a row while Jake Verity has given him some competition. It’s Blankenship’s job to lose, but Verity has some range with that leg.
12
Stephon Gilmore is showing out
While it shouldn’t necessarily be a surprise that Gilmore is thriving in Gus Bradley’s defense, it’s encouraging to see him get off to such a hot start while getting acclimated with a new team.
Gilmore has been nearly perfect throughout training camp, and that development took another step forward during the second week of practices. The impression has already been made on head coach Frank Reich.
“I can just tell you from a quarterback’s perspective, he’s the kind of cornerback you fear because (the) way he sees the game. He knows what’s coming before it’s coming. He’s so quick to recognize routes, concepts and then he has the ability to make plays on the ball and turn it over. That’s what we’ve seen from start to finish,” Reich said. “Love him. Love the player, love the person, love how he’s fitting in with this team. I really feel like he’s helping our defense and helping our secondary to kind of elevate it to a new level for us.”
13
Injury updates
There is still no update on the timetable for linebacker Shaquille Leonard, who is recovering from offseason back surgery. He seems to be in good spirits, though. The same goes for wide receiver Mike Strachan, who had knee surgery during the spring. Both players started camp on the PUP list and have remained there.
Defensive tackle Chris Williams has been seen in a boot for the entire second week of training camp. Offensive tackle Dennis Kelly is dealing with a knee injury. Their return dates are unclear.
Other players like safety Armani Watts, linebacker Brandon King, and running backs D’vonte Price and Ty’Son Williams have missed practice due to undisclosed injuries.
