With training camp a little more than two weeks away, Indy Football Report Editor John Oehser will spend the final weeks of the off-season examining 21 questions about the Indianapolis Colts entering 2010 . . .
No. 6: Will WR Anthony Gonzalez move into a starting role?
We move today to the sixth part of this series examining 21 questions around the 2010 Indianapolis Colts, this one addressing what has been an oft-debated issue among fans and media since the end of last season: Will WR Anthony Gonzalez into a starting role in 2010?
The answer is it's impossible to project.
But the positive news for the Colts is that he may not need to start for them to have an elite-level wide receiving corps. Such is the level of talent the Colts have at the position.
Gonzalez, a first-round selection in the 2007 NFL Draft, played extensively his first two seasons and entered last season as the Colts' starting outside wide receiver opposite Reggie Wayne. He then sustained a knee injury in a regular-season opening victory over Jacksonville.
He spent the next few months rehabilitating, and pushing to make a return to the lineup, but was placed on injured reserve late in the season having played one game.
He worked at times during the off-season and Colts Head Coach Jim Caldwell said during organized team activities that he liked what he had seen from Gonzalez.
“I’ve had the chance to watch him here the last few weeks actually,” Caldwell said in May. “He’s moving well, and certainly catching the ball well, but also I just think he looks like he’s well equipped to start right where he left off.”
Gonzalez, who caught 94 passes for 1,240 yards in his first two NFL seasons, played extensively in the slot and outside as a rookie, then played mostly in the slot in 2008. He said during OTAs it was his understanding that he would get a chance to compete for the outside receiver opposite Wayne, the spot he earned last training camp.
He also said that the idea of competing for the spot was something he expected, and welcomed, and that he believed from what he saw in the spring that he was capable physically.
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