With the Indianapolis Colts' 2010 organized team activities sessions ongong at the team's practice facility, Indy Football Report Editor John Oehser takes a daily look at the team's most-pressing issues .
With the Indianapolis Colts' 2010 mini-camp ending Sunday, the Colts have the beginnings of some early impressions about the regular season.
So, let's take a quick look around the team as mini-camp ends.
1. QB Peyton Manning has the same look and feel as always. This may be a bit from the dog-bites-man category, but Manning – the NFL's Most Valuable Player the past two seasons and four times in his career – looks as he always does: very prepared and very much like the driving force of the franchise. If that's not exactly news, it was interesting what several people around the Colts, particularly Head Coach Jim Caldwell, had to say this weekend when the subject turned to how long Manning could continued improving each off-season and playing at a high level. The question was posed to Caldwell that at some point, didn't Manning – entering his 13th NFL season – have to start trending down each off-season rather than up? Caldwell said he didn't think so, and that Manning shows no signs of dropoff, and in fact, Caldwell said he expects the opposite to be true. "He has been fantastic, but every year he has improved and I don’t think this year will be any different,” Caldwell said.
2. It's time to take S Bob Sanders seriously. Not that the Colts ever took him less than seriously, but with Sanders missing 24 games the last two regular seasons, fans understandably have wondered if he'll play at a high level again, and some have wondered if the Colts wouldn't be better off releasing him. Colts President Bill Polian has been firm in his belief that releasing Sanders is unnecessary and has said there's no reason to believe Sanders won't play extensively at a high level next season. Sanders, after being placed on injured reserve last season with a biceps injury, is practicing with the Colts in OTAs, and while he said he's not thinking much about the long-term or anything about the future, he said it's not insignificant that he is working in OTAs. He said more often than not in recent seasons he has been rehabilitating during that period and has been unable to practice. And while fans understandably are reluctant to get excited about Sanders considering his injury history, Sanders being on the field has given his annual will-he-or-won't-he watch a different vibe. This is not to predict a full 16-game season, but Sanders' presence in OTAs has given the situation hope.
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