PFW on Replacing Saturday

The news that Pro Bowl C Jeff Saturday should miss at least 6-7 weeks after tearing the medial collateral ligament in his right knee comes as a blow to a team that has endured more preseason injuries than any other team in the league. Saturday is considered the linchpin of the line, and his rapport with Peyton Manning along with responsibility in calling out the pre-snap adjustments for the line cannot be replaced easily. The silver lining, however, is that the Colts are high on the trio of collegiate centers they drafted in April, particularly Mike Pollak and Steve Justice. Although Pollak's the more highly regarded of the two, we're hearing Justice has the inside track on the job because the team is grooming Pollak to be a future stalwart at guard. Having him fill in at center would stunt his maturation at guard, the team fears.