Colts Gab

John Clayton of ESPN is reporting today that there could be a reunion of sorts with the Colts, as the team is talking about bringing back running back Dominic Rhodes.  The former Colt was released by the Raiders after the team drafted Darren McFadden with the 4th pick in Saturday’s draft.  Rhodes was with Indy from 2001 to 2006, and had a shining moment back in the Super Bowl two seasons ago when he went over 100 yards vs the Bears.  The team did draft Michael Hart in the 6th round of Saturday’s draft.

Jason Cole of Yahoo has broken down this past weekends draft, and has handed the Colts a “B” – here is the breakdown. 

Picks: OT Mike Pollak, LB Philip Wheeler, TE Jacob Tamme, LB Marcus Howard, TE Tom Santi, C Steve Justice, RB Mike Hart, WR Pierre Garcon, G Jamey Richard
Positives: Pollak, Tamme and Howard
Negatives: Wheeler
Bottom line: B. OK, any criticism of this draft is a matter of being pretty picky. Colts president Bill Polian is always a step or two ahead of the pack. Last year, he traded away his first pick to get Tony Ugoh, a starting left tackle. This year, he’s looking ahead to keeping the line solid with Pollak, a guy who fits the Colts’ system perfectly. Likewise, Tamme gives the Colts another receiving tight end to work the middle of the field. Wheeler is a little stiff for what the Colts do on defense, but he’s still a solid player. Howard is a great experiment at either LB or DE.

Colts running back Kenton Keith has been charged with a misdemeanor count of criminal trespassing for a weekend incident.  Keith allegedly refused police orders to leave the parking lot after the Cloud 9 night club closed early Sunday morning.  He is scheduled to make an initial court appearance at 8:30 a.m. today.  Police had preliminarily charged the 27-year-old with four crimes, including public intoxication.  Keith played in all 16 games during his first season with the Colts in 2007 after a football career in Canada.

The Indianapolis Colts’ 2008 Regular Season Schedule was released today at 1 PM Central. The game times below are listed in Central Time:
WEEK 1 8:15PM Sunday, Sept. 7 Chicago Bears @ Indianapolis Colts
WEEK 2 3:15PM Sunday, Sept. 14 Indianapolis Colts @ Minnesota Vikings
WEEK 3 12:00PM Sunday, Sept. 21 Jacksonville Jaguars @ Indianapolis Colts
WEEK 4 BYE
WEEK 5 12:00PM Sunday, Oct. 5 Indianapolis Colts @ Houston Texans
WEEK 6 12:00PM Sunday, Oct. 12 Baltimore Ravens @ Indianapolis Colts
WEEK 7 3:15PM Sunday, Oct. 19 Indianapolis Colts @ Green Bay Packers
WEEK 8 8:30PM Monday, Oct. 27 Indianapolis Colts @ Tennessee Titans
WEEK 9 8:15PM Sunday, Nov. 2 New England Patriots @ Indianapolis Colts
WEEK 10 3:15PM Sunday, Nov. 9 Indianapolis Colts @ Pittsburgh Steelers
WEEK 11 12:00PM Sunday, Nov. 16 Houston Texans @ Indianapolis Colts
WEEK 12 8:15PM Sunday, Nov. 23 Indianapolis Colts @ San Diego Chargers
WEEK 13 12:00PM Sunday, Nov. 30 Indianapolis Colts @ Cleveland Browns
WEEK 14 12:00PM Sunday, Dec. 7 Cincinnati Bengals @ Indianapolis Colts
WEEK 15 12:00PM Sunday, Dec. 14 Detroit Lions @ Indianapolis Colts
WEEK 16 8:15PM Thursday, Dec. 18 Indianapolis Colts @ Jacksonville Jaguars
WEEK 17 12:00PM Sunday, Dec. 28 Tennessee Titans @ Indianapolis Colts

The Indianapolis Colts are without a first round pick in this year’s draft. But that doesn’t worry HC Tony Dungy, who told the Journal Gazette, “We’ve been good and have gotten really, really good players second round, third round and down the line. We feel good about our ability to do that. We have some extra picks in the sixth round because of the supplemental system, so we feel we are going to get seven or eight really good players.”

On the draft, the Colts have nine draft selections in six rounds (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 6, 6, 6, 7). Expect the Colts to fill holes on the defensive line, linebacking core, wide receiving and tight end core, and to maybe add an extra running back behind Joseph Addai. HC Tony Dungy has always been a very strategic draft manager, and his strategies have brought him a Championship in 2006 and a 13-3 2007 record.

Restricted free agent safety Matt Giordano re-signed with the Colts earlier today. Terms of the new contract were not disclosed. Giordano has three interceptions in 39 career games, including one he returned 83 yards for a touchdown in a season-opening win over New Orleans last year. The Colts selected Giordano in the fourth round of the 2005 NFL draft out of California.

Not that the Indianapolis Colts don’t get enough exposure already, but the team is slated to receive a national television audience twice during the 2008 preseason; the Colts will play three consecutive road games, including the Hall Of Fame Game at Canton, OH against the Washington Redskins (will be broadcast on NBC), the Detroit Lions and Atlanta Falcons.  The lone home game – against the Buffalo Bills – will also serve as the inaugural game that will be played at the new home of the Colts, Lucas Oil Stadium; it will be televised on NFL Network.

Colts team president, Bill Polian, announced that WR Marvin Harrison could miss the start of training camps this year. Last season, Harrison missed 11 games due to a left knee injury, but this isn’t the cause to why he might miss time in 2008. The hush-hush-on-injuries-Colts and Polian said that Harrison is currently recovering from arthroscopic surgery on his right knee. If true, then Harrison, 36, should be back in time for the 2008 Regular Season, and most likely training camp. If false, then Colts fans should be questioning the truth behind Harrison’s recovery. The Colts are beginning training camps in July, and Harrison’s, like anyone’s, arthroscopic knee surgery should take about a month, not four months to heal. Is there a possibility Harrison had microscopic knee surgery which takes at least four months to heal?