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Many Colts fans would agree that staying healthy has been one of the biggest thorns in our side for a while now. Looking back, some of our biggest playmakers - Bob Sanders, Dwight Freeney, Gary Brackett, Marlin Jackson and several more have caught the injury bug.  As a result, the Colts' roster is beginning to look like an annual defensive backs and defensive tackles convention.  This started a line of questioning that I began to ask myself.  Why are so many players getting hurt?  Is it something our trainers are doing? Is it our practice schedule?  These are all questions that I am in the process of researching, but while doing the research, I came across a list that I though might be interesting: our most durable players.  Note: This list will not include players who are no longer with the Colts. (Marvin Harrison, Hunter Smith, etc.)

Durability is a key component to success.  If you can't play the game, you can't contribute, it's as simple as that. Of course with the season getting longer and longer, it's more difficult to judge how much is attributed to "fragility" and how much just comes from bad luck or extended bouts of abuse. To judge who would be deemed most durable, I calculate the games started and divide it by the number of games that was possible for them to start.  I also do not count seasons in which they have not earned the starting spot (for example, Reggie Wayne playing as a replacement for Ismail or Jeff Saturday playing at OG in place of other injured players). [X divided by X] = appearance rate. Most durable status would require that you have at least a 90% appearance rate with at least four seasons as the full-time starter. So without further ado, I present to you...the durables!

1. Peyton Manning - (100% apperance rate) Just call him Mr. Dependable.  Since being drafted in 1998, ELEVEN years ago, he has started every single regular season game.  That's 176 straight games!  I don't care who you are, you have to give him props for that, and that's not even including regular season games.  He is currently second in consecutive starts by a QB, only bested by Brett Favre, who continues to defy father time.  Although Peyton had a knee problem at the start of the season, he did not let it keep him out of the lineup, and still played admirably.  This is a no brainer for anyone.  Look up durable quarterbacks in the dictionary and there should be a picture of Peyton chasing Brett.

2. Justin Snow (the long snapper) - (100% appearance rate) I know, I know, they only play a couple plays per game, and especially with Peyton at the helm, he doesn't see much action, but props are due when they're due.  Any way you look at it, 144 games started at LS out of 144 games is a heck of a feat.  That's nine complete years of not having to worry about the position.  When he retires, he'll be missed.

3. Jeff Saturday - (96% appearance rate) Mr. Dependable's sidekick.  Jeff Saturday could be one of the most underrated centers in the NFL.  Week in and week out, he does his job and makes the right calls for the offensive line and helps keep Peyton upright.  He has been one of the main components of an offensive line that has enabled Peyton to throw for 25+ touchdown passes and 3000+ yards for an NFL record eleven seasons. Prior to last season, when he missed four games due to an injury, he had only missed two games since winning the starting center job in 2000.  Overall, he has started 138 of the 144 games at center since earning the starting job.

4. Raheem Brock - (95% appearance rate) - Raheem Brock has quite a unique history with the Colts.  He was drafted as a bit of a tweener, his key ingredient being his versatility to play under tackle or end.  He played formidably as a DE for three seasons and then continued his reliability streak as under tackle when there was little other help available.  Brock is a great example of diligence and dependability.

5. Gary Brackett (91% apperance rate) - Brackett barely made it into eligibility, with only having played four seasons as the full-time starter.  LB is a very tough position to play in the NFL, and it appears even tougher to stay healthy at the position.  Yet he has shown a propensity for avoiding costly injuries (excluding the broken leg he suffered last year).  If his streak continues, he will continue to be an every down player for years to come.

6. Reggie Wayne - (90% appearance rate) 115 games out of 128 games started at WR since being drafted at WR.  No games missed since the 2003 season.  Though Reggie started out his career with people labeling him injury-prone, he knew better, and has since shown nay-sayers why the Colts took him in the first round of the 2001 draft.  With 576 receptions for 8,129 yards and 53 touchdowns, Reggie Wayne will most likely rise to second on the Colts' all-time receptions and receiving yards by the end of this season (held by Raymond Berry 631 receptions for 9,275 yards), and continues proving to the NFL that he is one of league's most dangerous receivers.

Honorable Mentions - Ryan Diem (89%), Dwight Freeney (84%), Dallas Clark (82%)

After looking at these players, I came to the conclusion that Bill Polian likes to keep durable players on his team.  I know that's kind of a "duh" type of comment, but if you look at the players that are veterans for the Colts, all of them have started 80% or more of the games since taking hold of the starting position, with the exception of Robert Mathis, who was ineligible under the above guidelines, but should be noted that he has spent very little time being injured since taking a starting role for the Colts.