A few weeks ago, when Gary Brackett was a guest of 1070 The Fan's John Michael Vincent, we got the impression that Brackett had told (or, at least, strongly suggested) to JMV that rookies like Anthony Castonzo and Ben Ijalana, both unsigned due to the lockout, were participating in the Colts 'secret' player workouts.
Today, Jeffri Chadiha of ESPN confirmed that Castanzo is indeed working out with Colts players.
Rookie offensive tackle Anthony Castonzo knows he's fortunate to be the first-round pick of the Indianapolis Colts this year. He has spent the past two weeks working out with Pro Bowl quarterback Peyton Manning and listening to tips from veteran offensive linemen, such as center Jeff Saturday. He has gotten a jump on learning a playbook that is about as easy to master as a course in nuclear physics. Castonzo even saved money by staying with Colts wide receiver Anthony Gonzalez after arriving in town for team workouts.
Castonzo clearly realizes that the current NFL lockout could be stifling his development at this very moment. Instead, he's gaining some advantages that other first-year players might not have.
"It is a great situation for me because I'm so close," said Castonzo, who played at Boston College and grew up three hours away from Indianapolis in Hawthorn, Ill.
This is more encouraging news on a day full of encouraging news.
Again, as Mike Silver, Paul Kuharsky, and everyone else with a brain has said, if the players did not stupidly make these workouts so 'secretive,' we would have known Castonzo was working with the team earlier and, thus, we'd have had some nice, positive news (for a change) about the Colts rookies. The lack of OTAs and a rookie mini-camp could dramatically affect the usefulness of these rookies in 2011. So, it's nice to hear Castonzo is working with the vets.
Would have been nicer to have that confirmed a month ago.