SB Nation - Raheem Brock

Week 15: Tuesday Injury Report

shake n bake — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 22:49:11 -0000

First actual report of the week. Everyone that the Colts estimated would have practiced yesterday practiced today, so expect them to go.

"Back" at Practice: Joseph Addai, Gary Brackett, Raheem Brock, Melvin Bullitt, Keyunta Dawson, Kyle DeVan, Ryan Diem, Pierre Garcon, Kelvin Hayden, Tim Jennings, Jacob Lacey, Peyton Manning, Daniel Muir, Jamey Richard, Tom Santi, Clint Session, Chad Simpson, Tony Ugoh, Reggie Wayne

Still Out: Antoine Bethea (foot), Donald Brown (chest), Eric Foster (back), Aaron Francisco (ankle), Dwight Freeney (abdomen), Anthony Gonzalez (knee), Charlie Johnson (foot), Robert Mathis (quad), Jerraud Powers (Hammy), Adam Vinatieri (knee).

Personally I expect most, if not all the guys that missed today to sit, and everyone that practiced today to go.

How the "Going Undefeated v. Resting Starters" argument has been severely dumbed down

BigBlueShoe — Tue, 15 Dec 2009 16:39:25 -0000

More photos » by Michael Conroy - AP

13 days ago: FILE - In this Sept. 6, 2007, file photo, Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning, right, and New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees meet after the Colts won 41-10 Colts in an NFL football game in Indianapolis. Brees was playing at Purdue when he first met Peyton Manning, then in his first couple season with Indianapolis. The two quarterbacks' bond strengthened when Brees began playing for the Saints in the Manning family's hometown. They've had more than a casual interest in each other's success since, which has made this season particularly gratifying for them. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy, File)

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As many of you are well aware of, I tend to take a rather (oh, shall we say) aggressive stance against big media outlets treating me, and other fans, like idiots. For some of you, my opinions on these kinds of issues have gotten old, tired, and predictable. I guess that is the price one pays for trying to be consistent.

However, on the subject of resting starters v. "GO FOR GLORY!" it is disappointing to report that, once again, the debate is getting watered down into two very silly, very unrealistic (and, in many cases, just plain stupid) opinions.

One option is to play all your starters, even those who are hurt, as if you are in a fight-for-your-life deathmatch for the last and final playoff spot. This is seemingly what the Patriots and Giants did two years ago, and both those teams played in the Super Bowl that season.
Another option is to completely shut your starters down until mid-January. Don't expose them to any kind of contact at any time. Let them rest, heal, take a vacation, and re-energize for the playoff run. Shutting it down completely is (supposedly) what the Colts and Titans have done the last few years as high seeds in the playoffs, and they did not win playoff games in those years.

If you watch debates like this on NFL Network, or listen to the demented ogre-in-retirement that is John Madden droning on and on, the points of view in this debate make about as much sense (and offer about as much insight) as debating over whether execution by firing squad or execution by Guillotine is preferred.

To have a true discussion on this topic, one really has to avoid and ignore anything and everything talked about at places like ESPN, NFL Network, and the like. They are dumbing down the discussion, assuming that you are a moron who only thinks in extremes and who knows nothing about what teams truly do when the games at the end of he season are "meaningless." I know this is hard to do, but for your own mental health, I implore you: Stop watching these networks.

We all know that, in the past, that resting starters did not cost the Colts playoff games. If you do truly believe they did, then I cannot help you. Facts and reality-based information have whizzed right over your head, and you have bought the junk bonds sold to you by entertainment networks disguised as news outlets. If you truly, deeply feel that resting starters cost Indy playoff games, kindly review the bulletins after the jump.

You can thank me later for blowing your mind wide open.

If the think resting starters was a big reason why the Colts have lost playoff games in recent years, well, that means...

You've forgotten that back in 2002, the Colts played all the way through to the end of the season, needing a win over the Jacksonville Jaguars to secure a playoff spot. They won, and then promptly lost to the Jets 41-0 the next week in the playoffs.
You've forgotten that in 2008, the Colts entered the playoffs on a nine game winning streak. They played starters for part of the game against the Titans in Week Seventeen, and beat them 22-0 (the first shutout for the Colts since 1997, which was pre-Peyton Manning). I mean seriously, it doesn't get much "hotter" than that going into the post-season! The Colts then played the Chargers in San Diego the following week in the playoffs, and lost in overtime.
You've forgotten that in 2005, the then 13-0 Colts played their starters for the entire game against (you guessed it) the Chargers, then quarterbacked by Drew Brees. The Colts had locked up homefield the week before, and were playing the game despite it meaning "nothing" in the standings. Again, with the starters playing, the Colts lost 26-17. The next week, Tony Dungy's son hanged himself in his apartment, creating a horrible (but understandable) distraction for the team and then-coach. The Colts then lost in the division round to the eventual world champion Steelers.
You've forgotten that in 2003 and 2004, the Colts played starters very sparingly in the final games of those two respective regular seasons, only to go on and win playoff games against the Broncos and Chiefs.
You've forgotten that in 2007, the Colts entered the post-season sans Dwight Freeney, who was out for the year with a broken foot. They also had Robert Mathis, Raheem Brock, and Marvin Harrison all humbling with severe injuries. Playing these guys in meaningless games at the end of the season would have been damn near criminal. The Colts lost in the divisional round to (ugh, I'm starting to get sick) the Chargers.

Again, for an entertainment outlet posing as a news network, all these important details simply muddy the waters. They force people to actually think of multiple options (GASP!) when looking at this issue, not simply boil the argument down to resting starters v. "GO FOR GLORY!"

So, when you hear Bill Polian tell people the concept of late-season momentum translating into playoff success is a fantasy, he's right!

Look no further than the 2002 or 2008 Colts as examples. Look at the 2008 Cardinals, who almost won the Super Bowl last year. They looked like one of the worst teams ever to enter post-season play when the playoffs began. Three of their last five games in the regular season were blowout loses to playoff caliber teams, with their only wins in the month of December against the putrid Rams and Seahawks.

So, when some studio nit-whit is jerking your chain about how "momentum is everything" heading into post-season play, kindly take your remote and switch it over to something like Food Network (love that Chopping Block show), History International (I'm a sucker for history docs), or Boomerang (re-runs of Justice League are like small vials of crack for me). All these sports media networks are trying to do is dumb down the discussion and transform it into a "quitters v. winners" debate, which is (of course) not what it is about.

I know this is hard to do. I too have sometimes fallen under the spell of big media dimwittedness. But, the reality is health is everything in the NFL. Momentum is over-rated. Anyone who tells you different is either ignorant or lying to your face. And while I would very much like my team to go 19-0 and etch another notch in the annals of NFL history, any talk of a championship run goes out the window if the team is not healthy.

However, such realistic and nuanced discussion is not for cable media networks. Thus, you see schmucks like Skip Bayless hack their way through soul crushing morning shows, selling you on the insane notion that championship teams always play their starters the entire game, start to finish; even in games that mean nothing. Hell, they even play their hurt starters, but that's what it means to be a "tough guy."

Vomit meets mouth.

A better way to spend your time obsessing about the Colts is to read articles like this from NFL.com's Jason La Canfora, and to stop listening to stupid people who treat you like an idiot.

[UPDATE]: From dmstorm22, in the comments:

2008 – Steelers rested guys (Ben had his concussion on that first drive) won Super Bowl
2006 – Bears and Saints rested starters, met in title game
2005 – Broncos rested guys, beat Pats who were 11-0 in playoffs at the time. Seahawks rested, made it to the Super Bowl.
2004 – Eagles, Steelers and Pats all rest, all make it to at least the title game, two to the Super Bowl, and Pats win.

Resting is good, historically, and even recently.

Monday "Practice Estimation"

shake n bake — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 22:20:19 -0000

Thursday night game means that to comply with the leagues requirement of 3 injury reports teams need to give a "Practice Estimation" on Monday, reporting which players they'd expect to hold out of practice if they were conducting a practice today. As you'd expect for the day after a game, the lists are long. Really it's more telling to look at who isn't listed. In the Colts case that list is actually shorter and we'll start with that.

Players Not Listed (count on them playing)

Curtis Painter, Mike Hart, Jacob Tamme, Gijon Robinson, Dallas Clark, Austin Collie, Hank Baskett, Micheal Toudoze, Mike Pollak, Jeff Saturday, Ryan Lilja, Antonio Johnson, Fili Moala, Erwin Baldwin, Philip Wheeler, Freddy Keiaho, Ramon Humber, Cody Glenn, T.J. Rushing, Jaime Silva, Devon Hall, Justin Snow, Pat McAfee, Matt Stover

Players that would've rested (likely playing)

Dwight Freeney, Antoine Bethea

The Injured (who knows?)

Joseph Addai (knee), Gary Brackett (foot), Raheem Brock (back), Donald Brown (chest), Melvin Bullitt (shoulder), Keyunta Dawson (knee), Kyle DeVan (shin), Ryan Diem (hamstring), Eric Foster (back), Aaron Francisco (ankle), Pierre Garçon (knee), Anthony Gonzalez (knee), Kelvin Hayden (knee), Tim Jennings (ankle), Charlie Johnson (foot), Jacob Lacey (Biceps), Peyton Manning (glute), Robert Mathis (quad), Daniel Muir (hamstring), Jerraud Powers (Hamstring), Jamey Richard (Shoulder), Tom Santi (hand), Clint Session (calf), Chad Simpson (back), Tony Ugoh (hip), Adam Vinatieri (knee), Reggie Wayne (foot).

Colts.com link

Week Fourteen Preview: Broncos at Colts

BigBlueShoe — Fri, 11 Dec 2009 16:09:13 -0000

More photos » by David J. Phillip - AP

Indianapolis Colts coach Jim Caldwell. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

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The Denver Broncos and the Indianapolis Colts have significant history between one another. Whether it is nail-biting, smash-mouth-style games played in snowstorms, or playoff blowouts featuring Peyton Manning throwing about a gazillion touchdown passes to then-Colts wide receiver Brandon Stokley, some of the most memorable games for these modern Colts have been against the Broncos.

This Sunday, they renew their rivalry with some new faces.

Gone are head coaches Tony Dungy for the Colts and Mike Shanahan for the Broncos. Replacing Shanahan is the brash and cocky Bill Belichick protege in Josh McDaniels. The new head coach in Indy is the soft-spoken, even-keeled Dungy disciple that is Jim Caldwell. Both have different approaches to the game. Both have gotten a lot out of their football teams of late. And while some players are new to this party, like Brian Dawkins and rookie Knowshon Moreno, other players are very familiar with this rivalry, but are now "playing for the enemy"; namely the before mentioned Brandon Stokely and defensive tackle Darrell Reid. Both play for Denver now.

For the Colts, the lone "defector" in the rivalry is former-Broncos defensive coordinator Larry Coyer. He is now coordinating the Colts defense, and doing a great job.

With the Broncos regaining their form after dropping four straight, this game figures to be like any other match-up the Colts had had to deal with this year: Hard and physical.

The Broncos are a bit of an enigma in that you aren't quite sure what you are going to get when you play them, and that is necessarily by design. During their 6-0 start, they seemed to have a lot of breaks go their way, with the incredibly lucky Brandon Stokley tip-catch-TD at the beginning of the year to beat the Bengals as the best example of said breaks. When they lost four in a row, they seemed to get exposed a bit. Their only meaningful road win was a 43-23 victory over the Chargers, but that win was later avenged by the Chargers utterly dominating the Broncos 32-3. They righted their ship, somewhat, by beating a banged-up Giants team and then later feasting on the small children that litter their division (namely, the Kansas City Chiefs).

In terms of standard stats, the Broncos defense is tied with the Colts, giving up exactly 16.8 points per game. The Broncos have 34 sacks, are about even with the Colts in terms of run defense, and sport a dangerous return threat in Eddie Royal.

The big reason the Broncos are 8-4 is their defense. Though Josh McDaniels has done a good job with a Denver team many felt would only win 3 games this year, the fact is McDaniels has nothing to do with the Broncos defense. He doesn't coach it, scheme it, or call plays for it on gameday. Mike Nolan, the current Broncos defensive coordinator and former head coach of the 49ers, runs Denver's D.

The standard stats for the defense are impressive, but when you factor in shake n bake's ever lovable, huggable DVOA stats, the Denver defense is top notch. They are ranked #4 in DVOA.

Meanwhile, the Broncos offense is ranked 21st in the league using standard scoring stats (20 points per game) and 19th in DVOA. The also rank in the bottom half of the league on third down completion percentage.

OK, those were the stats. now, we move to the keys:

A key match-up in the game is between Denver's outstanding left tackle, Ryan Clady, going up against all-world defensive end Dwight Freeney. Clady is as good as they come. But, then again, so were potential future Hall of Famers like Jonathan Ogden and Walter Jones. Freeney routinely ate those guys for lunch, and unless Denver plans to give Clady help he could be another "skull on the pile" for Freeney. Gil Brandt of NFL.com has a write-up on this match-up.
Pressure on Denver Broncos quarterback Kyle Orton is very key. Last year, Orton (who played his college ball at Purdue following Drew Brees leaving for the NFL and just prior to Curtis Painter's tenure) walked into the grand opening of Lucas Oil Stadium and lit the place up. He was able to do this because his pocket was clean and he was rarely, if ever, pressured. That, and he had Matt Forte galloping all over the field for him. The Colts cannot allow Orton to gain any kind of comfort zone. They must get into his face, and pressure him into mistakes.
The other key match-up for the game is Peyton Manning v. Brian Dawkins and the Broncos secondary. The DBs in Denver are rather geriatric by NFL standards. Dawkins has been in the league 14 years. Starting corner Champ Bailey has played for 11 years while nickel corner (and longtime Colts nemesis) Ty Law, who signed with the Broncos a few weeks ago after a long absence from the NFL, has played 15 years. Denver will likely look to mix coverages, allowing their corners to play one-on-one with safety help against Reggie Wayne and Dallas Clark. This is the tactic the Patriots used a few weeks ago. This means players like Pierre Garçon and Austin Collie must continue to step it up. Denver coach Josh McDaniels acknowledged the development and growth of Garçon and Collie is a recent press conference they have as part of Colts.com's weekly Colts Up-Close, Online Edition.

As always, the Colts must take the field this Sunday against a hungry, playoff situated team that is looking to solidify their post-season chances. Just like most other "experts," I too am very surprised by Denver's current 8-4 record. But, you have to give them credit. I personally think much of the credit should go to Mike Nolan, but McDaniels deserves some props for hiring Nolan and for making some strong personnel moves this off-season along with new Broncos GM Brian Xanders.

Obviously, there are elements of McDaniels personality and coaching style that leave one feeling that he is a little bit of a punk. Though we've been bashing him for a few weeks now, Yahoo! Sports "expert" Michael Silver did write an interesting article this week detailing how "ugly" McDaniels has acted and carried himself this season. However, despite the slime trail McDaniels seems to leave behind him, you cannot discount that he has done a better job with the 2009 Denver Broncos than Mike Shanahan did with the 2008 Denver Broncos.

I recently said in this Mile High Report FanPost that Nolan was able to take a defense with, roughly, the same players that Mike Shanahan had and transform them into a top flight D.

Turns out, I was wrong.

According to Broncos fans (and it's reasonable to trust them on this), only Elvis Dumervil, Champ Bailey, and D.J. Williams are holdovers starting from last year's defense. Everyone else appears new, and they are buying in to the Broncos "Pats West-style" 3-4 defense.

Many thanks to Broncos fans at MHR for an excellent series of FanPosts, allowing communities from both blogs to interact. In the three FanPosts created (two on MHR, one here) we had close to 700 comments from Broncos and Colts fans alike with much of the discussion focused solely on football and the game itself.

In fact, our FanPost had less trash talk than the Tweets between Raheem Brock and Darrell Reid.

These Q&As between writers and readers might one of the best weeks we've had with another blog all season. Special thanks to ANGELSFAITH and John Bena.

This should be a hard fought game between two teams who might meet again in the post-season. We shall see.

All the silly love for Sean Payton and the Saints compared to the hate towards Jim Caldwell and the Colts

BigBlueShoe — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 17:30:41 -0000

More photos » by Darron Cummings - AP

17 days ago: Indianapolis Colts head coach Jim Caldwell reacts following a touchdown by Indianapolis during the second quarter of an NFL football game against the Tennessee Titans in Indianapolis, Sunday, Dec. 6, 2009. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)

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I'm not going to list articles and writers just to bash them for their stupidity on the subject of resting starters because, apparently, many of you out there are sick of me pointing a bright light on "bad journalism" topics. I'm also not going to go into any log diatribe on the silly, over-discussed topic of sitting or resting starters during meaningless games. This is all you need to know on the subject:

The press are going to absolutely LOVE Sean Payton and the Saints if they attempt to go for an undefeated regular season record, even if they lock up homefield weeks before the regular season ends.

Why? Because it gives them a story.

An undefeated regular season provides them something fun and tangible to write about. Of course, if during those meaningless games we see Drew Brees re-injure his shoulder (as he did in a meaningless game to close out the 2005 season when he was with the Chargers) or if Pierre Thomas blows out his ACL, then all this "love" the press are giving to the Saints will evaporate when a team like the Vikings or the Cardinals walk into the Super Dome and beat the Saints because they aren't healthy enough.

But hey, why worry about the future? Go for greatness now (aka, give us something to write about now, not in a month!).

Meanwhile, on the other side, the press will predictably boo and bemoan Jim Caldwell for resting starters because A) That's boring for them to report, and B) Because it makes the Colts' late season match-ups less exciting. Forget that in 2003 and 2004, the Colts rested players prior to the playoffs and went on to win playoff games in dominating fashion. The press and other media will claim that when the Colts rested starters in other years (2005 and 2007, specifically) they lost their first game in the playoffs to supposedly inferior teams. Left out of the discussion, conveniently, is the fact that in 2005 Tony Dungy's son hanged himself in late-December, creating a horrific distraction for the team just prior to the playoffs, likely contributing to their Division Round loss to the eventual world champion Pittsburgh Steelers. Also left out is the fact that in 2007, the Colts limped into the post-season without Dwight Freeney (gone for the year) and with a severely injured Robert Mathis, Marvin Harrison, and Raheem Brock.

Little details like these tend to get pushed aside by media who are simply wanting "a good story."

Bottom line here is the media will praise the team that tries to go undefeated and bash the one that looks to keep players fresh and healthy for a post-season run. The irony behind all of this is for all the bile the media has thrown at the NFL for their polices to keep players healthy in terms of concussions, they seem perfectly fine exposing healthy (or even injured) players to injury in meaningless games that affect nothing in the standings.

In the end, the teams that are the healthiest are usually the ones that make it to the Super Bowl, and playing important players in meaningless game is not a formula for keeping the team healthy come playoff time.

Raheem Brocks Tweets about possible Dominic Rhodes return to Colts

BigBlueShoe — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 23:45:38 -0000

Raheem Brock, who is oftentimes hilarious with his Tweets ("Maaaaan! Its cold as sh*t outside! Lol where's my triple fat down goose jacket wit the suede sleeves. Lol"), might have let the cat out of bag about something in his most recent entry:

How nice would it be to have domenic rhodes back returning kicks?? What yall think?

It's been a loooooooong time since Dominic Rhodes returned kicks for Indy (2005). Rhodes was recently brought in for a workout, but was not signed. Rhodes was last on the Buffalo Bills roster, but was cut prior to the start of the regular season. The current kick returner is T.J. Rushing, but he has been battling back from last season's knee injury.

Tip to LovinBlue

Quick Recap: Colts 35 - Texans 27

BigBlueShoe — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 21:17:11 -0000

More photos » by David J. Phillip - AP

24 days ago: Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Pierre Garcon (85) makes a 9-yard touchdown reception as Houston Texans safety Bernard Pollard, right, defends during the second quarter of an NFL football game Sunday, Nov. 29, 2009 in Houston. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

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Like so many games this year, this was a tale of two halves. The first half, the Houston Texans had their way with the Dwight Freeney deprived Colts. Matt Schaub utilized the play-fake nearly to perfection, and on two well executed first quarter drives, the Texans were up 14-0. They tacked on a field goal and were leading 17-0. Peyton Manning looked mortal. The Colts pass rush was atrocious. Tackling was awful. Defensive line was getting blown off the ball. Schaub was winking to his coaches on the sideline. And longtime blog contributors Colt Homer and metal_militia were all but conceding the game, openly wondering how much the Colts would get blown out by, posting in full, fledged freakout mode (it's OK you two, I forgive you)*.

Then, the Colts woke up.

Indy went on a 35-3 run, including 28 unanswered points in the third and fourth quarter. It started with an amazing 9 yard TD catch by Pierre Garçon. After that, the Colts feasted off Schaub turnovers (2 INTs, one fumble). Things got so bad for the Texans that when Schaub was intercepted by Clint Session in the fourth quarter, and the INT returned for a TD at the 8:09 mark, Texans fans emptied out the stadium!

Chad Simpson, on a very tough run, scored on a 23 yard run to make it a two score game with 2:52 left. The Texans added a TD late, but simply ran out of time. Without Dwight Freeney, both Robert Mathis and Raheem Brock really stepped up in the second half, scoring one sack each and consistently pressuring Matt Schaub. And the Clint Session INT for a TD was just one of those WOW! plays that blows your mind.

The game was the 5th consecutive fourth quarter comeback win for the Colts (an NFL record), and it is also the fifth consecutive comeback win by less than 10 points (also an NFL record). If the Jaguars lose later today to the 49ers, the Colts will clinch the AFC South for the sixth time in seven seasons. The Colts have won at least 11 games for the seventh straight season.

Even though they don't want to hear praise from us Colts fans right now, big props to the Texans for coming out swinging. Clearly, their game plan was not something the Colts were ready for. But, if there is yet another lesson to learn from this game, NEVER give up on this team. They just know how to close out opponents, and they never, ever quit.

Here is shake n bake's recap again:

The Colts play 60 minutes. After the Texans raced out to a 17-0 lead in the first 20 minutes and went into the half up 20-7 they were held without another point until a garbage time score in the final 20 seconds down 15. Meanwhile the Colts O (and Clint Session) put up 4 2nd half TDs.

The Colts gained 114 yards on the ground averaging over 5 yards a carry. Peyton Manning converted over 75% of his passes with 3 TDs and 2 INTs (one when his arm was hit on the throw, another in a desperation drive at the end of the 1st half).

On D the Colts made a dramatic turnaround. After allowing back to back TDs in the first, the Colts held the Texans to back to back FGs on their next two drives. The Texans were stopped on their next 5 drives with 3 turnovers and 2 punts. The Texans only 2nd half points came in the final minute, after the game had been put out of reach.

Celebrate 11-0 GO NINERS

Too true. Go Colts!

*Colt Homer and metal_militia are great Colts fans. I'm just ribbin' them because I told them the Colts would come back, which they did. They certainly weren't the only ones disgusted by the first half play. Also, I started Pierre Garçon over Steve Slaton in a fantasy league today. Garçon gave me 12 points, Slaton 9. Me is happy.

Week 12: Wednesday Injury Report

shake n bake — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 22:40:08 -0000

It looks like the Colts have changed the way they use the report and are now listing some players who have injuries, but did not miss any practice time. This, along with a large number of players missing time makes for the longest Colts injury report I've ever seen. Unfortunately the list is not just long but star studded.

Did Not Participate: Antoine Bethea (foot), Keyunta Dawson (knee), Aaron Francisco (Ankle), Dwight Freeney (Abdomen), Anthony Gonzalez (knee), Kelvin Hayden (knee), Ramon Humber (calf), Gijon Robinson (concussion), Jim Sorgi (right shoulder), Adam Vinatieri (right knee), Reggie Wayne (foot)

Limited Participation: Charlie Johnson (foot), Peyton Manning (glute)

Full Participation: Joseph Addai (knee), Raheem Brock (neck), Donald Brown (shoulder), Melvin Bullitt (shoulder), Pierre Garcon (Ankle), Tim Jennings (ankle), Robert Mathis (neck), Jerraud Powers (knee), Tom Santi (hip), Jeff Saturday (calf), Tony Ugoh (knee)

Colts.com link

I'm starting to think Bob Sanders will play against the Titans

BigBlueShoe — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 13:56:58 -0000

More photos » by Darron Cummings - AP

3 months ago: FILE - In this Nov. 2, 2008 file photo, Indianapolis Colts safety Bob Sanders (21) reacts after an interception during the fourth quarter of an NFL football game against the New England Patriots in Indianapolis. Former NFL defensive player of the year Sanders is still the defensive leader of the team. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings, File)

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According to Phil Richards of the Indy Star, and the updates from our own shake n bake, Bob Sanders practiced three times this week. He even practiced on Friday, and if you know the Colts you know that when people practice on Friday, chances are they play on Sunday. In addition, if players do not practice on Friday, it is often a pretty safe bet they will get scratched Sunday.

For the Colts, it looks like both Marlin Jackson and Kelvin Hayden are out for Sunday. Marlin's knee is acting up and Kelvin is still battling his hamstring pull. This means Tim Jennings starting (again) and Jacob Lacey playing nickel back.

With such injuries, the return of Bob would give the secondary, and the defense in general, a big lift. Already, even without Bob, the defense is having fun again. Larry Coyer has added some interesting wrinkles that have many Colts veterans buzzing around like kids wired on candy. From the Indy Star:

"I feel like a rookie right now. I'm running around and having fun," said left end Robert Mathis, a seven-year veteran.

"I'm moving from linebacker to D-tackle to defensive end," defensive lineman Raheem Brock said. "I'm moving all over the place and it's fun for me. The whole D-line is having fun with it."

Now, I realize I've been a bit of a grump with Bob Sanders of late. I don't "hate on Bob." I've just grown tired of the injuries. And not just little bumps and bruises, but injuries that force him to miss significant time. Meanwhile, players like Melvin Bullitt play the exact same position and (shock!) don't get hurt to the same degree as Bob does. In addition, Bullitt's production is on par with Bob's, and the defense overall hasn't missed a beat.

So, yeah. Bob consistently getting hurt is just plain friggin annoying.

But even though I am annoyed with Bob's frequency in the training room, I'm not stupid. Bob Sanders is a difference maker on the field, and if the Colts can get him into a big game, he almost always has a big impact. And if Jim Caldwell has him practicing three times in one week, I think it is likely we will see Bob Sanders make an appearance on Sunday.

Brandon Frye Picks Ray Willis Out of a Block, and Other Havoc Created by Dwight Freeney

John Morgan — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 20:55:53 -0000

More photos » by Darron Cummings - AP

On one snap, Dwight Freeney was so dominant, he ran past Brandon Frye, pressured Wallace from the pocket and created a pile that picked Ray Willis. Willis couldn't run past the Frye-Freeney pile, and that allowed Robert Mathis to loop under the pocket and strip Seneca Wallace from behind.

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My wife has the next two days off. I coordinate my half days with her weekend, but luckily, she's a slugabed. I should have another 90 minutes or so before she stirs.

I plan on completing my look at Ray Willis over the next two days. Seattle's inability to sustain a drive coupled with the Colts ability to drive at will meant Willis only participated in ten snaps in the third quarter. The first drive featured a good looking reach block, but little else. Seattle ran a quick pass in which Willis did not factor, then came the reach block, and Seattle finished its drive with a desperate screen pass to Justin Forsett.

Quick passes defined the following drive. Willis had a couple good blocks, handling a stunt, clearing on an edge rush and keeping Robert Mathis in front of him though he was clearly rushing the passer and nothing else.

A brief aside: If Seneca Wallace was trusted to audible and could effectively, this game would have been very different. What killed Seattle out of the blocks is that Knapp game-planned to rush at the Colts undersized defensive line. Any time Mathis edge rushes, he puts himself so out of position, a rusher could easily exploit that short right edge and get a free release into the second level. Indianapolis anticipated this. It was obvious from the personnel they played. Matt Hasselbeck would have seen Raheem Brock at left defensive end and audibled some of those runs into passes. That could have kept Seattle in it early, and kept the rush viable. Seattle could have ran at Mathis and not allowed him to load up for a sack on every play. But it didn't.

Seattle's second drive ended with a forced fumble by Mathis. It was not Willis who allowed the sack, but a combination of Dwight Freeney's dominance, Brandon Frye's weakness, Wallace's slow decision making and Mathis' quickness and agility. Willis was a minor player.

We'll start just after the snap, notice the wide spacing on Indy's line and that Wallace is in shotgun.

Willis has a zone, of course, but we don't always consider the ramifications of that. In this next shot, we see that Willis is initially forced to block both the defensive tackle and the defensive end, because both are attempting an outside rush and therefore both are in Willis' zone. He does a good job and is able to pass the tackle to his guard. We can also see that Wallace is beginning a three step drop after receiving the shotgun snap. Seattle incorporates drops into their shotgun, perhaps a WC modification, perhaps a holdover from Holmgren, but it doesn't always seem wise. After his drop, Wallace is very deep in the pocket.

This next shot is critical. Neither Willis nor Frye has admirable control of their assignment, but the difference between Willis and Frye is stark. Mathis is attempting to loop around Willis and Willis is in decent position to use his momentum against Mathis and chuck him. Freeney is approaching Wallace from in front and facing his back. Frye is attempting to block a man running forward by shoving his side. That isn't likely to succeed.

And it doesn't. This final shot is a step ahead. We see Freeney has mucked up the pocket and effectively taken out both tackles. His pressure forces Wallace to step up (he should have anyway). More importantly, Frye finally does block out Freeney, but at the expense of Willis. Willis is picked out of the play and Mathis can take a long, looping route past Freeney and Frye and to Wallace. Willis has no hope.

Wallace doesn't see or doesn't bother targeting his outlet receiver. He runs forward, double clutches and is stripped before he can complete his wind up. This, in the Seneca Wallace Portfolio of Pocket Killing, is not a stand out example. This is Dwight Freeney so overmatching Brandon Frye that even after Frye has pushed Freeney down, Freeney's influence frees Mathis and Mathis strips and sacks.