Professor

Colts defense shows it still needs work | IndyStar.com

excerpt:

IRVING, Texas -- If the Indianapolis Colts' defense is a work in progress, Thursday night's venture into Texas Stadium served a purpose.
The "D'' got plenty of work against the Dallas Cowboys in the teams' preseason opener, and it's evident more is needed in the wake of the Colts' 23-10 loss. That was in stark contrast to the Peyton Manning-led No. 1 offense, which took the field for the opening series, then took a seat.
Coach Tony Dungy insisted the first step into the preseason constituted a step forward for a defense that was missing six players who started in the Super Bowl XLI victory over Chicago seven months ago.
"I think we did (take a step forward),'' he said. "We had some young guys, especially . . . some defensive linemen that got into the fray a little bit and made some things happen. Some of our secondary guys learned.
"All in all, some things to build on.''
That the defense would be in a rebuilding mode as the Colts attempted to repeat as world champions was assured during a revolving-door offseason. Free agency subtracted three starters from the roster: linebacker Cato June and cornerbacks Nick Harper and Jason David.
Injuries further depleted the ranks. Safety Bob Sanders (shoulder) and end Robert Mathis (knee) were held out of the game. Tackle Anthony "Booger'' McFarland was placed on the season-ending injured-reserve list after undergoing knee surgery.
The Colts were short-handed on defense and paid the price. Young players got plenty of exposure; probably too much to suit the coaching staff.
Dallas dominated the football and everything that went with it. The Cowboys mounted huge edges in total plays (65-49) and time of possession (37:06-22:54). They finished with 309 net yards, including 143 on 39 rushes.
"We didn't make the plays on third down in the first half,'' Dungy said, pointing to Dallas' ability to convert four of its first six third-down situations.
Dallas' first two drives generated only six points on field goals by Martin Gramatica (24 yards) and Nick Folk (25). The damage, though, was in their duration: a combined 28 plays that drained 17 minutes, 26 seconds off the clock.
Manning and the No. 1 offense got a little done in their abbreviated appearance. Manning completed 3-of-5 passes for 37 yards, including a 28-yarder to Marvin Harrison that set up Shane Andrus' 40-yard field goal.
Despite what amounted to a cameo, Manning considered his time on the field a success. The opening drive stalled when Manning overthrew Harrison in the end zone.
"It would have been nice to get a touchdown down there,'' he said, "but it's always nice when you come out of that first drive by avoiding that three-and-out. That means you're treating practices like a game and you're getting something out of practice.''
Running back Joseph Addai finished with just 5 yards on two carries but, like Manning, chalked it up as a positive experience.
"Other running backs kept telling me that I just needed that first hit to get me back into the groove,'' Addai said. "Once I got hit, I felt comfortable. You need to get that one hit.''
The loss extended a preseason trend under Dungy. The Colts now have posted an 8-14 record since 2002, and have lost 10 of their last 11.

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Manster

The loss means nothing it is how the game was played that matters. First hardly any flags on the ground is a good but uncommon thing for a preseason game. The defence did have some players missing with the release of Simon and the Booger on IR they do not have any real guys with size and playing time. The main loss was st safety while Sandrs is a little undersized the defs came on last year when he came back and the Colts must be hoping that it will so the same again. That being said the Colts do not ask their defense to controll the game just to do enough so the offence can out score the other team.

That being said the biggest worry has to be the play of the OLine. Glenn retired this offseason and the team is hoping that Ugany(sp) a second round draft pick this past draft can take his spot. He had troubles with Ware even when Dallas was not running anything special at them and had to have help. The good thing other than the games against the Ravens,CHargers, ant Pats, I forgot what NFC team they face, they do not go against too many teams with someone like Ware on them. Manning has had problems with 3-4 defense and that might get worse this year.

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Professor

Ugoh could be good, but He can't be a leader that fast and eliminates all depth as well

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bnorth1

I think preseason wins are a bit more important than Manster seems to imply. I have been a season ticket holder for the Colts for 7 years now, which means they make you go to two preseason games as part of the package. There is definitely a sluggish entry to the season with Dungy's preseason approach. That was probably most evident when Edge refused to play preseason and took two or three games to get up to speed.

On your other points, I think Howard Mudd will get the O line put together. It may mean that Clark spends a bit more time blocking on the weak side, but I'm not worried about the offense. I think the playoff run and superbowl win made everyone forget about the defensive performance during the regular season. That's what I am worried about. Here's hoping Sanders has a quick recovery and they find a replacement for Booger.

Go Colts.