No other running back conjures up more horrible memories for the Colts than Michael Turner. Good God! Does this guy own the Colts defense or what? I mean, I damn near threw a goodbye party when Travis Henry smoked his way out of the NFL, because for years he tormented the Colts defense as well. But for some reason, I don't think Turner is as stupid as Travis "What's a condom?" Henry. Atlanta's new running back gained 113 yards on 4 carries. Two of those carries were runs of 52 and 63 yards. To Indy's credit, players like Marlin Jackson were able to run Turner down from behind and keep him, and Atlanta, out of the endzone. Consider also that Atlanta had 318 total yards of offense, with 1/3 of that on Turner's 4 carries.

Michael Turner: You haunt me.
Photo: AP: John Bazemor

I'm not ready to press any kind of panic button with the defense. This is pre-season. Guys are just coming back healthy. Anyone saying "OMG it's just like 2006" is just someone who enjoys worrying. This same group last year was very good against the run. Watching clips of the Turner runs tells me it is a communication thing (guys out of position, taking bad angles, attacking wrong gap, etc.). It is also impossible to judge this defense when it's two best players (Bob Sanders and Dwight Freeney) have not played at all. So relax. Chill. It's only pre-season.

Here are more observations:

• Jim Sorgi was, once again, terrible. All this Sorgi post game love is just smoke and mirrors. I love how people are praising him for conducting a long drive, and that his quarterbacking left everyone with "a nice feeling." Cut the crap! Despite having arguably the most potent offensive weapons at his disposal in the entire NFL, Jim Sorgi failed to score a TD against a team that last year ranked 29th in scoring defense, giving up an average of 26 ppg. I'm sorry, but if Sorgi can't get this Colts team into the endzone under those conditions, HE CAN'T DO IT PERIOD! I'm not saying Quinn Gray or Jared Lorenzen have distinguished themselves much (because they haven't), but consider that those two guys have played a helluva lot better with the second and third string guys than Jim Sorgi ever did when he QBed the back-ups. Since Peyton is unlikely to return for next week's dress rehearsal game in The Lube, why not see what Quinn Gray can do throwing to Marvin Harrison? I'm tired of seeing Sorgi. He sucks, and if he makes this roster it is because he's got naked pictures of Chris Polian with a donkey, or something.
• OMFG! Kenton Keith caught a pass last night! I did not see the play, but the box score clearly shows he caught a pass.

  

  I'm also told that he got a first down with that catch. Bravo Kenton! Ah, but one problem: K2 was playing with the fourth stringers. That does not bode well for last year's primary back-up to Joseph Addai. PhilB noticed it as well:

  Based on the substitution patterns, Mike Hart looks like he's got a spot on this team as a running back. Same with Garcon as a receiver/returner. That doesn't bode well for running back Kenton Keith and wide receiver Devin Aromashodu, among others. Clifton Dawson even played before Keith.

  Bye-bye Kenton. We all have pretty much known for months that you are getting cut. You run like a demon, dude. But RBs in this league must catch the football. If they can't, they're garbage. Utter garbage.
• I'm going to do a lot of special teams praising in this recap. So please, bear with me. Writers like Colts Homer, the Zombie bros, and bamock have done great jobs recapping the offense and defense. So, I feel as though I'm just treading over what's already been said if I state that Mike Hart looked good again (which he did) or Marcus Howard was a 5th round steal (which he was).
• Pierre Garcon did some good things returning punts and kicks. His 27 yard kick return (his only one of the night) showed me something. Between Garcon and T.J. Rushing, who has been very impressive in camp and pre-season, the Colts might have a couple of  good returners for 2008. Those are potent weapons for a team that sports a scary offense. 
  
• Nice to see the defense generating turnovers. 5 turnovers, including 2 INTs for Brannon Condren and 1 INT for Kelvin Hayden, who returned it for the game's only TD. The play looked very similar to his Super Bowl 41 prance into the endzone. The defense also did not allow a TD, and was getting good pressure all night.
• Despite jumping offsides a lot, Curtis Johnson did some good things last night. Colts Homer was especially impressed. Johnson needs to make a name for himself rushing the passer though. Stopping the run is great, but guys like Josh Thomas are very good at stopping the run. Indy needs pass rushers.
• As bad as Indy's starting offense looked last night, at least it wasn't as bad as Jacksonville's or Tennessee's. Jacksonville's offense was shut out well into the third quarter in its pre-season game against Miami Saturday, with the passing game looking particularly dreadful. And Tennessee? Well, let's just say the natives are getting restless with Vince Young (aka they are booing him at home). Vince went 4-13 for 37 yards against the Raiders, and it could have been worse; the Raiders dropped a couple of gimme INTs. As bad as Sorgi has played, at least he hasn't been Vince Young bad. On the flip-side, Houston's offense looked impressive.
  
• More Adam Vinatieri love: The guy is destroying his kickoffs. His next one might make a sonic boom, or hit the Met Life blimp, or something. Adam had 4 of his 5 kickoffs go into the endzone, and one was a touchback. He also had a FG.
  
• For the third straight game, the Colts special teams coverage units looked damn good. I talked to MasterRWayne after the game, and he said it best. This kind of stuff is something you can walk away with in pre-season. If your special teams are good in pre-season, chances are they will be good in the regular season, because the same guys playing now will play when the games matter.
  
• Jacob Tamme = stud. I think he just passed Gijon Robinson on the depth chart.
• That was 5 WR look I saw in the game, with an empty backfield. Nice play design, Tom Moore!
• Good to see Indy using the reverse with Dallas Clark. I'd like to see them run it with Marvin or Gonzo. Heck, maybe even Matt Giordano could com in and run it.

All in all, the areas that were weaknesses last year (special teams, pass rush, depth at WR) have continued to look strong in pre-season. Next week we'll get a much better gauge when the Defensive Player of the Year and The Fright return from the PUP.

Based on camp reporters from TheMatic and Aerostar193; articles posted on the Tribune Star and Indy Star websites, ESPN's own "blog"; and camp reports posted on ColtFreaks.com, I'll do my best to piece together early observations of players many of you have questions about. I'll cite the sources at the end of article:

• Philip Wheeler hurt is knee yesterday. After practice he was seen on the sideline with an ice wrap around his knee. This is a somewhat positive  sign that the injury is not too bad because if it was a pulled or torn tendon or ligament, he likely would not have been on the practice field sideline with ice on the knee. Apparently, the knee is "sore." Dungy elaborated on the injury (somewhat):

  "Wheeler has just irritation in the knee and [it’s] a condition he’s had that flared up. We’re hoping that it’s not too serious. Melvin Bullitt did have a little sprained thumb that they’re going to have to work on. He’s probably going to miss a few days, but nothing that should hold him out more than a week," the Colts coach said, adding that he doesn’t know how long Wheeler may be sidelined.

  
  
• Day 2 saw the running backs stand out as the players put the pads on for the first time in weeks. The backs working with the starting unit are Addai, Rhodes, and Mike Hart. Noticeably absent from working with the starting unit: Kenton Keith. They are using Hart the way the used James Mungro from 2002-2005. Hart is small, but hits the gaps in the line hard and with explosion. He is essentially a hybrid short yardage back, fullback.
  


• Mike Hart got his bell rung by Freddie Keiaho on one play. Fans in the stands cheered "Welcome to the NFL, rookie!"
  


• Most have said Roy Hall has looked impressive. The only person I've read who was not impressed with Hall is Aerostar193, which is not to say Aerostar193 is wrong in his assessment. Everyone else though has raved about Hall.
  


• Equally impressive has been Pierre Garcon. His routes are very crisp and his movement fluid. He is drawing comparisons to a young Marvin Harrison in terms of body type and route running.
  


• Speaking of Marvin Harrison, the early assessment of his work at camp is that the old Marvin is back and the league better "watch out." Roy Hall and Pierre Garcon, two young players, were amazed at how fast and well conditioned Harrison has looked:
  

  "Marvin looked excellent," Hall said. "He didn’t miss a beat. He looked extremely healthy. His knees looked fine. He’s running faster than ever. He looks good. I was excited to see him back out there and happy to see him out there. Marv was just out there being Marv, catching the ball and making big plays. He’ll continue to do that throughout the season."

  "I don’t see anything wrong with him," Garcon noted. "He’s quick and fast, extremely fast."

  Both Dominic Rhodes and Jeff Saturday, who have played with Marvin Harrison for over 7 years, say Harrison has a big chip on his shoulder because people have written him off because of his age.


• Eric Foster has drawn a ton of praise from both offensive and defensive coaches. He is especially stout against the run. More and more, Foster looks like a keeper and another undrafted rookie gem for Polian.
  


• Rookie DE Marcus Howard and second year LT Tony Ugoh have gone at it the last two days. During drills, the two are battling against each other extremely hard. Ugoh has had trouble dealing with Howard's great speed and Howard has had problems getting past Ugoh's arms. Howard's speed has been the eye-popping "wow" many at camp have noticed. He seems unblockable unless you have someone fast enough to match him.
  


• Clint Session was not at Day 2 practice because of a personal issue. Because Tyjuan Hagler, Philip Wheeler, and now Session were unavailable, the Colts used Ramon Guzman at SAM. Guzman played special teams and DE last season. No details on how he looked.
  


• Jacob Tamme has been practicing his long-snapping for special teams. Tamme has also looked good blocking. Some have even questioned why blocking was a knock on him in college. He has looked solid blocking in drills and scrimmages. Seems the #2 spot is now Tamme's to lose.


• Mike Pollak worked at OG for the starting unit on Friday, but so did Charlie Johnson. PhilB at the Indy Star still think Pollak will win the job. Pollak did not practice Saturday, and Johnson took most of the snaps at OG.
  


• Most media have praised Jim Sorgi and how well he's looked in camp. PhilB still thinks Sorgi holds onto the ball to long, which has always been Sorgi's problem. Still, most have said Sorgi is leaps and bounds better than Gray and Lorenzen, but much of that has to do with Sorgi having known the offense for 4 years.
  


• Tim Jennings has looked good. Damn good, in fact. He appears more comfortable as a Cover 2 corner, making quick reads and reacting fast. The entire Colts secondary has impressed, with Dante Hughes, Michael Coe, Brandon Condren, and TJ Rushing also standing out. The Colts seem to have an excellent secondary this season. Condren had an INT in morning practice on Saturday.
  


• Raheem Brock will move back to DE, and only play DT on passing situations. The Colts are worried that starting Brock at DT every down will indeed wear him down. Expect to see more of Brock starting at DE against teams that like to establish the run first. Robert Mathis will start at DE if teams like to throw early. Keyunta Dawson is now starting at DT along with Big Ed Johnson.


• Dungy is concerned that players are not used to practicing in pads:

  "I told the team afterwards [that] we have to learn how to practice in pads," the Colts coach said. "What we’re trying to do, you know, we’ve gone three months now and then the first two [training camp] practices [in jerseys and shorts]. So we’ve got to learn how to hit, deal with the contact and get done what we need to do without blowing each other up. So that’s something you always have to learn."



• RB Clifton Dawson made several excellent plays during Day 2 practice.  He had two 15 yard sweeps for TDs, and broke several long runs in the morning practice. Joseph Addai and Dom Rhodes also had some excellent long runs in afternoon practice.


• Not a peep about Kenton Keith. Not one single, solitary bit of news about how well (or poorly) he practiced. That's not good for Kenton, especially with the other RBs looking so good.


• Samuel Giguere caught a 45 yard TD from Jared Lorenzen. Giguere has noticeably been working hard.


• Freeney and Sanders have rehabbed while the rest of the team has done drills. Both are running fast. Freeney has been spinning and making moves. Between the two, Sanders looks the most ready to return.


• Rookie TE Tom Santi had the exact same operation on his knee Peyton Manning did, only two weeks earlier. Santi has been seen at camp walking with a limp and a back of some kind on his knee. If Santi is the measuring point, we will likely not see Peyton Manning practice until the week of August 18th. Manning is still not at camp.


• People have raved over Indy's receiving corps. Hall and Garcon were mentioned above, but Devin Aromashodu has also impressed. With so many receivers looking good, the Colts might carry 5 or 6 WRs into the regular season, with two of them (Hall and Giguere, perhaps) possibly playing special teams as gunners.


• No information as yet as to who is returning punts and kicks.

Whew! Folks, this is the most information I've ever received about any stretch of training camp. Now, more than ever, people have a vested interest in what is going on at Terre Haute, and their desire to report that info back to fans is unrelenting. Special thanks to people like Aerostar193 and TheMatic for giving us first hand accounts just for Stampede Blue readers. Sources for all information bulleted are below. Click the links and read more:

ColtFreaks.com

IndyStar Blog

Tribune Star Article #1

Tribune Star Article #2

Colts.com

Areostar193's Fan Post

TheMatic's Twitter Fan Post

If you go to the Colts.com message board, a member has found a way to access pre-written "fluff" articles written by Colts.com writer John Oehser. Basically, Oehser writes these articles weeks in advance and has them in the site's content bank. It's not an uncommon practice. Heck, many SB Nation writers use a nifty feature we have now with the 2.0 platform that allows us to write stuff and designate a time when it gets published.

That said, it is a bit humorous that Colts.com would actually post many of these articles (dated several weeks in advance) and try to hide them. That's not to say the articles are bad. They're not. Fluffy? Sure, but it's Colts.com. Do you expect them to trash their own players?

Of the articles, there's one on Freddie Keiaho and one on Roy Hall that are interesting. One theme that has come through each and every one of these player profile-like articles is summed up best by Freddie Keiaho:

“The difference in the comfort level between this year and last year is night and day,” Keiaho said during the Colts’ organized training activities, 14 days of onfield workouts that concluded recently at the team’s training facility.

“I’m pretty sure that’s true for everybody across the board.”

We've heard this consistently all throughout the off-season, with players like Brannon Condren, Roy Hall, Ed Johnson, and others saying they went into last season "lost." They didn't know what to do, weren't comfortable, and had to play through it. The result was a 13-3 record, another AFC South title, and a defense ranked #1 in scoring. This year, players say they feel more comfortable; the systems are quicker to grasp; they are in better shape, etc.

Be afraid, opponents. Be very, very afraid.

Players can often make a big leap from year one to year two, which is one reason why I often take shots at Vince Young. Players like Manning, Brady, McNabb, and Palmer all started showing signs they were elite players by year two. Vince is supposed to be in that category. If not, why was he drafted #3 overall in 2006? Rookie to second year jumps are not just common; they're expected. It's why teams sign rookies to two or three year contracts. You've either got it or you don't, and if you don't you can go somewhere else and "develop."

Players like Keiaho, Matt Giordano, Kelvin Hayden, Joseph Addai, and Antoine Bethea made huge strides from year one to year two. This year, the expectation falls on Roy Hall the hardest. Tony Ugoh, Keyunta Dawson, and Quinn Pitcock all showed promise last season. They have high expectations as well, but with Hall the expectation is greatest. He hasn't shown anything. This year, he must justify his roster spot. Bill Polian has been quick to point out Hall's improvement. This is significant as Polian will never compliment someone's improvement unless they actually improve.

After listening to many of you, there are several areas of this team that fans are interested in when training camp opens. While I love 18to88 and the Zombie brothers, they did say something interesting that I take bit of issue with:

With all due respect to the good guys over at Stampedeblue.com (who I enjoy), I'm not interesting in parsing out who will be the 5th receiver. I'm not curious to see who makes the roster. I'm only very mildly interested in who wins the right guard slot. These things are nice distractions, I guess, but they aren't very satisfying. I'm ready for football season.

Now, of course, speculating whether Mike Pollak or Charlie Johnson will win the RG spot is not as satisfying as watching an actual game. However, I don't think most fans share Desmond Zombie's interest (or lack thereof). Many care who the 4th or 5th WR is because tht player is one injury away from starting. If last season told me anything, you absolutely must have solid, starter-like quality depth behind most positions if you want to win a Super Bowl. Teams must be creative and innovative in finding this depth, but it must be there. We can speculate all we want about how losing Dwight Freeney and Marvin cost Indy a chance to repeat, and it did. If Freeney and Marvin were healthy, we'd have a 2007 trophy to go with 2006.

However, the other side to that is Indy should have had someone compitent to step up and take their places. Not dominant. Not all-world. Not Aaron Moorehead and Jeff Charleston. Just good, competent players who know what to do. This year, I get the sense that Indy has that depth. And yes, just like Desmond, I'm ready for the season to start already.