In the eighth of a series, Indy Football Report Editor John Oehser continues to break down the Colts' roster entering the 2010 offseason . . .
PART EIGHT: THE DEFENSIVE ENDS . . .
As we turn to the Indianapolis Colts' defensive in this position-by-position breakdown, it's fitting, perhaps, that the first stop is at end.
That's because the dynamic of the position has changed in recent days.
The position, which has been one of the strongest not only on the team but one around the league in terms of quality starters in recent seasons, remains that way, with Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis each making a second consecutive Pro Bowl appearance this past season.
It's the depth at the position that likely will be addressed in the coming weeks and months.
Because while Freeney and Mathis, two of the league's premier sack specialists, remain with the team and very much still in their primes, Raheem Brock – a longtime starter and one of the team's most durable, versatile players for the last decade – is no longer with the team.
Brock, a starter at end from 2002-2005 and again in 2008 – he started at tackle in 2007 and 2008 – was released late last week, with John Clayton of ESPN saying this week the move came because Brock asked to be released.
Brock's absence creates something rare at the Colts' end position: at least a measure of offseason uncertainty.
Since 2004, Mathis, Freeney and Brock have played the majority of snaps at the end position, with the lone exceptions being 2006 and 2007, when Brock started at defensive tackle. The Colts during those seasons started Freeney and Mathis at the ends, with Brock starting alongside a variety of players, including Anthony “Booger” McFarland and Ed Johnson.
Brock never really loved the role, but he played it.
And that, as much as anything, will be what the Colts miss in Brock's absence: the willingness and ability to capably fill a role when needed.
Brock may not have been a Pro Bowl selection, but he was what contending teams need – a player willing to play a role, and do it in productive fashion. He was rarity on the Colts' roster – a non-elite level player who stayed with the team past his first contract.
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