After Much Doubt, Freeney Will Start For Colts In Super Bowl

What was rumored hours ago is now confirmed: Colts defensive end Dwight Freeney is ready to go. Everyone's favorite NFL news machine, Adam Schefter, tweets:

Colts DE Dwight Freeney active and starting.

Also official: Saints quarterback Drew Brees suddenly has plenty more to worry about.

Pro Football Talk noticed a mention of Dwight Freeney's status during the CBS telecast:

A CBS reporter, the name of whom we can't recall, said during Sunday's Super Bowl pre-game coverage that Colts defensive end Dwight Freeney was spotted earlier in the day walking without a limp.

Needless to say, the health status of the Colts defensive end will factor into Sunday night's Super Bowl significantly. Hopefully he can play at full strength -- if both teams are 100%, it just plain makes for better football.

All week, we've been hearing nebulous reports regarding Dwight Freeney's status. The Colts' indispensable defensive end has been described as "questionable" as well as 95 other synonyms for "questionable."

Now, we have the most definitive report yet. ESPN's Adam Schefter reports that Dwight Freeney is likely to play in the Super Bowl.

Filed to ESPN: Colts DE Dwight Freeney likely to play tomorrow. He'll test ankle in pregame. Barring any setbacks, Freeney will play.

However, we don't know whether Freeney is likely to start, and we also don't know exactly how effective he'll be if and when he does play.

In the meantime, head on over to our Colts blog, Stampede Blue, for more on all things Freeney.

There is no definite news on whether or not Dwight Freeney in Super Bowl XLIV, but Colts head coach Jim Caldwell offered at least a small bit of good news for fans when he addressed the media early Friday morning.

"He's trending in the right direction," Caldwell said. "He's better, but we'll see. It's still a day-to-day situation and we'll see how he is at the end of the day."

Dwight Freeney's ankle has been the focus of most of the media scrutiny this Super Bowl week. And with good reason. I mean, have you seen the pictures of how swollen it is?

But despite what would appear to the naked eye to be a debilitating injury, Freeney told reporters that the pain in his injured ankle is going down and that he still hopes to play on Sunday, according to the AP. Freeney has reportedly been using a hyperbaric chamber, as well as walking barefoot on the Florida beaches, to hasten his recovery. Whether he will be far enough along to play in the Super Bowl -- and be his usual dominating self against the Saints' high-powered aerial attack -- remains to be seen though.

And yes, the next time you go for a walk on the beach barefoot, remember it's doctors orders.

We’re sitting in Jim Caldwell’s press conference at the moment. He’s not done speaking as this is published but I wanted to update the status of Dwight Freeney’s ankle sprain.

Here’s the update: There is no update.

In typical coach speak, Caldwell didn’t give up much.

“If he can’t go – it’s the old mantra that we’ve set time and time again – the next guy’s up,” he said.

However, Caldwell did say that Freeney has been good about getting back on the field sooner than expected.

“He’s been a quick healer,” Caldwell said.

“If he’s not practicing,” he continued, “we’re preparing as if he’s not going to play. If we get him an opportunity to get him to play, then obviously we’ll get him in there.”

After Freeney, popular topics included the South Florida rain (it rained three years ago when the Colts played the Bears) and his relationship with Tony Dungy.

After ESPN’s bombshell yesterday afternoon, the Indianapolis were quick to fan the flames in the wake of Adam Schefter’s report that the team’s most dominant defensive player might miss the Super Bowl. From Indysportsnation.com, the team’s reaction:

The Indianapolis Colts Sunday night refuted a report by ESPN that Dwight Freeney has a torn ligament and is doubtful for Super Bowl XLIV next week.

Team spokesman Craig Kelley told IndySportsNation.com Sunday night that the defensive end has a low “basketball” sprain of his left ankle, and has been rehabbing the ankle this weekend in Miami.

Kelley said that Freeney is still listed as questionable for next Sunday’s game against the Saints.

But of course, as Adam Schefter pointed out this morning, the “third degree, low basketball sprain” that the Colts have confirmed is, by definition, a case of a torn ligament. You say tomato, the Colts say potato, I guess. When asked about the prospects of playing without Freeney, Colts QB Peyton Manning had this to say:

All season long coach (Jim) Caldwell has talked about picking up the bayonet, someone’s got to step up, and if Dwight would not be able to go it would be tough, but somebody else will step up and we’ll feel confident in whoever that is," said Manning.

So will someone else have to pick up the bayonet in Freeney’s absence? Time will tell…