5 things to watch as Colts being padded practices at training camp
The Indianapolis Colts can officially begin padded practices at training camp on Monday and can now hold their more physical sessions as they prepare for the expected start of the regular season on Sept. 13.
For the last two weeks or so, the Colts have been running around in shirts and shorts with minimal contact during the ramp-up period as the league tries to navigate through the COVID-19 pandemic. It has seemingly worked thus far, but the next step is actually getting physical.
The Colts are allotted 14 padded practices as they try to make up for the lack of preseason games. Whether they will use all of those remains to be seen, but real football is inching closer.
Here are five things to watch at Colts training camp as the pads come on:
Position battles can take shape
While we have covered which position battles are most important for the Colts, it is extremely difficult to gauge the competition without pads on. This is especially true for the more physical positions like linebacker and running back.
But now with the pads on, the Colts can get a better idea of which players are separating themselves from their peers. The mos exciting competition is likely at linebacker where Anthony Walker Jr. and Bobby Okereke will duke it out for the MIKE spot. Both are worthy of starting and leading the defense.
Other competitions to watch include running back, wide receiver and defensive tackle. The running back position will be headed by Marlon Mack and Jonathan Taylor while the wide receiver and defensive tackle positions feature competition for depth roles.
How does Philip Rivers command the offense?
Up until Saturday, the Colts hadn’t done any 11-on-11 work and most of the reps came through individual drills. But the padded practices will allow for more scrimmaging and physicality from both the offense and the defense.
This will give us our first look at what Rivers brings to the offense in terms of command and leadership. We know he has no issues barking out calls and changes at the line of scrimmage, but this will be the first time they go full bore in preparation for the season.
Colts fans should be excited to see Rivers under center as he presents an upgrade over Jacoby Brissett. How much of an upgrade that will be will begin to show during these padded practices.
Rookies adjusting to NFL life
Life can be somewhat easier when running through individual drills with shells on (helmets and shoulder pads). But when the intensity is picked up and the full pads come on, rookies begin to get a taste of NFL speed and how it differs from college.
As the rookies have to work their way through a non-existent offseason, they are theoretically already behind the eight-ball. Though players like Jonathan Taylor and Michael Pittman Jr. are expected to hold significant roles right away, there is still an adjustment period that takes place.
The Colts may only truly be relying on a pair of rookies to begin the season, but it will be vital that the class gets adjusted to league quickly as they may have to step into bigger roles in a moment’s notice.
Flow of the offense
This kind of ties into the part with Rivers commanding the offense, but this is the first time we will get to see the unit working together at full speed and in as much of a game-like situation as possible. Nothing replicates game speed perfectly, but these padded practices will present something similar.
The Colts have raved all offseason about how quickly Rivers will get assimilated into the offense. They claimed he knew roughly 80% of the playbook in May simply because of his history with Frank Reich and Nick Sirianni.
But how well does the offense flow to begin with? It can already take a period of adjustment when new quarterbacks enter the mix, let along having to do so without the benefit of offseason workouts and preseason games.
The Colts have veteran pieces in place to ensure a smooth transition, but it will still be one of the dominating themes to watch.
Will we see a spike in positive COVID tests?
Though fans are likely sick of reading about it, the COVID-related themes won’t be going away, at least for this season. While we would all like to escape into the sports world, we still have to understand what the league is trying to navigate through.
With padded practices and more physical sessions getting underway, it will be interesting to see what happens with the COVID cases. The NFL has surprisingly had a minute percentage of positive tests through the ramp-up period, which is an encouraging sign for the season.
However, the increased physicality of practices raises the question of whether it will also increase positive test results. If nothing else, it will be something to keep an eye on over the next few weeks before the season is expected to begin.
