Indianapolis Colts Information
The Indianapolis Colts have been accustomed to being successful in football, even going back to their days as the Baltimore Colts from 1953-1983. The Colts have called Indianapolis home for the last 20 years, and in that time, they’ve managed to win 3 division championships and make 7 playoff appearances. They’ve been to the postseason in 4 out of the last 5 years, and the team is poised to build on their 12-4 season from last year and take the next step in winning a championship.
Tony Dungy made his name known as the leader of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the last 1990s. Dungy build teams on a defensive foundation and in his 5+ years there, he compiled a 56-45 record, the first coach in more than 20 years to accomplish that feat with the Bucs. The team made 4 playoff appearances under Dungy, but they couldn’t win the big game, and the organization decided a change needed to be made. Dungy signed with Indianapolis and brought his winning defensive philosophy to a team known for its high-powered offense. Dungy has managed to improve the defense every year through free agency and the draft, and he’s turned the Colts into a legitimate Super Bowl contender year in and year out.
Peyton Manning is the unquestioned star and leader of the Colts, and it’s fair to say that if the team wins a title in the next 5-10 years, it will be because Peyton took them there. Manning will enter his 7th season in the league out of the University of Tennessee, and he’s thrown for an average of almost 4,150 yards and 28 touchdowns per season thus far in his career, simply stunning numbers to say the least. He’s also quite durable as a player, playing in every game of his young NFL career. He’s had help in keeping defenses honest with Edgerrin James in the backfield along side him. “The Edge” averaged more than 1,600 yards a season in his first two seasons but knee injuries have sidelined him for the better part of the last three years. James still managed to run for 1,259 yards last season despite missing a few games last year. The other star on offense is wide out “Marvelous” Marvin Harrison, a perennial pro bowler every season. Harrison is one of the most soft-spoken players in a league ruled by trash talk and insults, but his play more than speaks for itself. In his 8-year career, Harrison has average more than 1,250 yards a season on almost 95 catches a year. He’s also averaged more than 10 scores a year including almost 12.5 a year over the last 5 seasons.
David Thornton led the team with 140 tackles and 4.5 sacks last season while rookie Dwight Freeney led the team with an astounding 11 sacks and 4 forced fumbles. Nick Harper recorded a team high 4 interceptions, including one returned 75 yards for a touchdown. Mike Vanderjagt, the team’s pro bowl place kicker, recorded a perfect season in 2003. He was 46-46 on point after touchdown attempts and 37-37 on field goals. The longest kick he had to take during the season was 50 yards, and he was 12-12 on attempts ranging from 40-49 yards.
The team had a relatively uneventful draft in 2004. They made a total of nine picks, but they’re first one wasn’t until the 44th pick of the draft, the middle of round two. They chose Robert Sanders, a safety out of Iowa, who could start alongside Mike Doss in the secondary. They only made two offensive picks in the draft, the first being Ben Hartsock, a tight end out of Ohio State University, and the second being quarterback Jim Sorgi out of Wisconsin.