More photos » by Darron Cummings - AP

3 months ago: Indianapolis Colts head coach Jim Caldwell watches from the sidelines as his team plays the Minnesota Vikings in the first quarter of an NFL preseason football game in Indianapolis, Friday, Aug. 14, 2009. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)

Browse more photos »

Before we get to the notes about the morning practice, we'll recap a few roster moves that happened today:

• OG Brandon Barnes, who was signed to a two-year deal this off-season, was cut.
  
• Colts used the open roster spot to sign DT John Gill, 6'3, 302 pounds. Gill is an undrafted rookie out of Northwestern. Gill was recently cut by the Detroit Lions.
• DT Raheem Brock is out for 3 weeks with a fractured hand. He is having surgery.
  

The Gill signing is to have a warm body in camp while Brock recovers. Cutting Barnes seems to indicate that the Colts are confident in Ryan Lilja's health. Signing Barnes this past off-season made little sense if Lilja was healthy, but since there were all kinds of questions about Lilja's surgically repaired knee the Colts needed someone if Lilja were done. So, while I wish Barnes all the best, his releasing might be a good sign. We shall see.

John Oehser at IFR provided some great notes today from the morning practice. Several Colts players returned to practice after sitting out some last week, or not playing in the Friday pre-season opener against the Vikings. Mike Hart, Anthony Gonzalez, Charlie Johnson, Sam Giguere, Dallas Clark, Jacob Tamme, Kelvin Hayden, Melvin Bullitt, Marlin Jackson, and Antonio Johnson all returned for the morning practice. Antoine Bethea returned for the afternoon one.

Again, as I said this past weekend, the Colts don't give a stinking crap about pre-season. It is my suspicion that all of these guys could have played. Why didn't they? Because the Colts don't give a crap. They know what each and every one of those guys can do.

Check after the jump for camp notes from 8/17/09.

• In 7 on 7 drills, rookie CB Jerraud Powers intercepted a deflected ball intended for TE Jamie Petrowski. Powers strolled down the sideline for a TD.
• Charlie Johnson is still the starting LT... for now. If Ugoh continues proving the obvious (that he is leaps and bounds more superior at LT than Charlie), then the coaches will continue to look like boobs for making this dumb and obnoxiously silly change.
• Morning practice was in full pads.
• Austin Collie continues to work solely in the slot. Pierre Garcon is working as an outside receiver.
  
• Collie had a TD pass this morning in practice, as did Garcon in 7 on 7 drills.
• Clint Session, looking like Kimbo Slice, is fully entrenched at WILL backer.
  
• Gijon Robinson got hit hard in the morning practice. He did not return for the afternoon one. Don't know yet who hit him.

We'll have an article up tomorrow discussing Peter King's very interesting conversation with Peyton Manning while at training camp, but until then, check out this very tastey quote straight from Big P himself:

I'm gonna kind of whisper this because I don't like rookies to read anything I say. But I think [third-round BYU receiver] Austin Collie's got a chance. He can run. He can really run. He is working the slot only. We haven't had anyone since Brandon Stokley to work the slot only. That's all he practiced. He doesn't have to worry about anything but the slot.

"The other young guy, Pierre Garcon, can run, too. He's an outside receiver only. What we're doing a better job of with the young guys is we're saying, 'This is your position. You don't have to learn everything.' Garcon is like Marvin; after he takes five steps, he's so fast, you'd better let it go.

Very, VERY high praise for two young men from a guy who rarely, if ever, praises young, unproven players. Let's just lock it in stone now, because when Big P talks, it's pretty much law around Colts Land: Collie is the slot receiver; Garcon is Reggie Wayne's back-up.