When Colts head coach Chuck Pagano held his press conference earlier this afternoon, he only listed the players who are out for Sunday’s game and said the injury report would update the status of everyone else. The Colts have since released that injury report, including several players who are questionable.
Quarterback Andrew Luck (right shoulder), wide receiver T.Y. Hilton (knee), center Ryan Kelly (shoulder), outside linebacker Trent Cole (back), cornerback Vontae Davis (ankle), safety Clayton Geathers (foot), and safety T.J. Green (knee) are all listed as questionable for the game. The players ruled out are cornerback Darius Butler (hamstring), cornerback Patrick Robinson (concussion), right guard Denzelle Good (back), and wide receiver Donte Moncrief (shoulder).
Obviously, by far the biggest thing that jumps out from this injury report is the fact that Andrew Luck is questionable. It is, indeed, very noteworthy. But he’s still absolutely expected to play, and keep in mind that this year the NFL got rid of the probable designation on injury reports - meaning that if there’s any question, the player needs to be listed as questionable. So when a guy like Luck misses practice on Wednesday and is limited on Thursday, there shouldn’t be any surprise that he’s included on the final injury report of the week with an update on his game status. He’s expected to play, but once again this is just another sign that Luck’s shoulder is worth monitoring. Pagano really didn’t seem to want to talk about Luck’s health today at his press conference so we don’t really know much other than that he’s sore from a physical game (to use Pagano language). Just how concerning the injury is remains unclear, but Luck will play Sunday.
Pagano also seemed to be optimistic about T.Y. Hilton’s chances of playing Sunday even though he was limited yesterday and missed practice today. Also, the fact that Ryan Kelly was a full participant today is a good sign for his game status, while Joe Reitz wasn’t even listed as questionable, meaning that he’ll play.
Along those same lines, another player not listed as questionable is defensive tackle Henry Anderson, meaning we’ll see him make his season debut and return to the field for the first time since tearing his ACL in week nine of last season. That’s a huge boost for the Colts’ defense, and while it’s unfair to expect Anderson to be 100% or as good as he was last year when healthy right away, it’s a big addition for the Colts’ defense. There’s also a chance that they could get another one of their top defenders back, as cornerback Vontae Davis is listed as questionable. That’s in no way a guarantee that he’ll play, but it’s the best chance he’s had yet this year.