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Answering your twitter questions about the Colts:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr"><a href="https://twitter.com/Coltsfanwilson">@Coltsfanwilson</a> how has D'Joun Smith looked?</p>— Jordan Harris (@Harris2732) <a href="https://twitter.com/Harris2732/status/628718870203764736">August 5, 2015</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Cornerback D'Joun Smith, the Colts' third round draft pick this year, figures to be the team's fourth cornerback behind Vontae Davis, Greg Toler, and Darius Butler. The reps he has seen in training camp would seem to indicate this as well, as he has been playing quite a bit with the second team, along with Jalil Brown. Smith started off camp by having a bit of a rough time against some of the Colts' receivers in coverage drills, as he was beat by Griff Whalen, T.Y. Hilton, Ryan Lankford, and Quan Bray on the first day of practice. He has been beat a few other times since then, but it's really no reason to worry. Smith is still adjusting to the NFL game and is seeing significant reps with the second team defensive unit. Going up against the receivers that the Colts have in practice will certainly help him to acclimate to covering NFL wideouts faster, as the Colts boast a very good receiving group. It hasn't been the smoothest start to camp for Smith, but I'm confident he'll be fine and he does seem to be competing for that fourth cornerback spot with Jalil Brown, though there's still a lot of camp left for others to enter into the competition as well.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr"><a href="https://twitter.com/Coltsfanwilson">@Coltsfanwilson</a> would love to know how Dorsett looks as a returner and how “game ready” he seems to be at WR.</p>— Corey Blevins (@cjblev) <a href="https://twitter.com/cjblev/status/628723159601053696">August 5, 2015</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Phillip Dorsett, the Colts' first round draft pick, looks very good so far. He has really shown off his skills as a receiver, beating corners deep and making nice catches to go with it. The Colts also on Tuesday gave him some looks in quick, short passes, which I think is smart in order to allow him to make plays with the ball in his hands. I've been very impressed with Dorsett so far in training camp as a wide receiver. It's been much harder to tell about Dorsett the returner, but it has been very clear that the Colts like him as a returner, and so far he would seem to be the favorite for the punt return job and perhaps the kick return job (either him or Boom Herron). And with his speed that has been on display at times, it makes a lot of sense. Because of that explosiveness and playmaking ability, I think he could be a good returner, and he's shown nothing so far in camp to suggest otherwise. He might be overshadowed a bit by the impressive play of other wideouts in camp, but make no mistake: Phillip Dorsett has looked good in his first three practices.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr"><a href="https://twitter.com/Coltsfanwilson">@Coltsfanwilson</a> what's your impression of Duron Carter so far ? Would you choose him over moncrief?</p>— Martavis Bryant Fans (@Martavis_Fans) <a href="https://twitter.com/Martavis_Fans/status/628728180459749377">August 5, 2015</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Two of the other receivers that have helped in overshadowing Phillip Dorsett? Donte Moncrief and Duron Carter. The Colts have a stacked wide receiver position, and it has really been evident in camp: T.Y. Hilton, Andre Johnson, Donte Moncrief, Phillip Dorsett, and Duron Carter have looked good, and then even Griff Whalen and Vincent Brown have done a solid job as well. Carter has shown a nice ability to get deep and make plays, as well as nice adjustment skills on the football and nice hands to make some highlight reel catches. The natural talent that we knew he had has been on display so far, and he might be a bit more well-rounded than I expected coming in. With that said, he still is the number five wide receiver for the Colts. The number three receiver spot is really a competition between Donte Moncreif and Phillip Dorsett, and so far in camp it has been clearly Donte Moncrief. He has had a very good camp, and perhaps the most impressive thing about it has been his timing with Andrew Luck - something they obviously have spent time working on and that is paying dividends in the passing game. Moncrief looks more polished as a receiver, and I'd expect him to win the number three wideout spot. From what we've seen in camp, Moncrief should have a pretty significant role this season. So while Duron Carter has been good in camp, he's still the fifth receiver on the team - and everyone ahead of him is having a good camp, too.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr"><a href="https://twitter.com/Coltsfanwilson">@Coltsfanwilson</a> do we really see Geathers making an impact against those TEs that whooped on us last yr ?? Thanks</p>— Grant Irmiter (@grirmiter) <a href="https://twitter.com/grirmiter/status/628731361172570112">August 5, 2015</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
This is a good question, because I think Clayton Geathers could end up having the biggest impact of any Colts rookie in 2015. The team really likes his potential at safety, and so far he has been seeing a lot of reps with the second team unit. With that said, however, we have also seen Geathers play some linebacker in dime packages. In other words, there figure to be ways in which Geathers will see the field in 2015, and he could contribute significantly to the defense. As for the specific question you asked, I do think that Geathers could factor into the coverage of tight ends that really hurt the Colts a year ago. The Colts bring him in when they need an extra defensive back, and with him then at the linebacker spot in dime packages, he would be a perfect candidate to cover the tight ends. I wouldn't be surprised if we saw the Colts start to use Geathers more in that role when they need an extra defensive back and substitute him in for someone like D'Qwell Jackson, who really struggles in coverage. That way, the Colts would have another player who can cover in the game, and I think Geathers could end up having an impact in that way - such as covering tight ends. So yes, I think he could impact that area of the game, as well as others, for the Colts in 2015, and he's absolutely a player to watch closely.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr"><a href="https://twitter.com/Coltsfanwilson">@Coltsfanwilson</a> Henry Anderson?</p>— matt hensley (@spartancolt) <a href="https://twitter.com/spartancolt/status/628744803363233792">August 5, 2015</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
It's really hard to tell much about offensive and defensive linemen during camp, especially when they're not in pads like the first two days (and they were only in shells on the third day). So a lot of what we can tell from defensive linemen like Henry Anderson, the Colts' third round pick, is more about playing time and fit in the defense rather than how he's doing - but in both of those areas, Anderson is doing quite well. He has seen a lot of time with the second team defensive line and looks like he's already fitting in perfectly with the unit. When he was drafted, many noted that he was a great fit for the Colts' system, and while we haven't really seen him be able to make plays yet, he seems to have fit in nicely and is getting a good amount of reps with the second unit.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr"><a href="https://twitter.com/Coltsfanwilson">@Coltsfanwilson</a> has there been a Ben Heenan sighting?</p>— Chad Miller (@cj721miller) <a href="https://twitter.com/cj721miller/status/628743695831928832">August 5, 2015</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Once again, it's really hard to tell much about the offensive line from training camp, but when it comes to Ben Heenan, he has had a very quiet training camp. He has seen some reps, but he really hasn't seen significant reps because of the Colts working with other players at guard. He has worked there some because of the rotation the team has, but Heenan hasn't had as big of a role in training camp as some may have liked. I still think that Heenan could end up being a good player, but it's clear that his role, at least right away, won't be anything too big. But, like I said, we'll see once the pads come on a bit more of how Heenan is doing.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-conversation="none" lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr"><a href="https://twitter.com/Coltsfanwilson">@Coltsfanwilson</a> Adongo, should I still be this intrigued? <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ColtsCamp?src=hash">#ColtsCamp</a></p>— Michael Wallace (@MWally21) <a href="https://twitter.com/MWally21/status/628734183024795648">August 5, 2015</a></blockquote> <script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
If I'm being honest: not really. I'm rooting for Daniel Adongo, to be sure. I tend to root for players more than anything else, and he's a likable guy with a great story - he was a rugby player in Africa who was signed by the Colts and had to learn the game (I remember watching him need help to put his pads and helmet on). His first year he played special teams, and then last year he was injured in preseason right when he was starting to show significant improvement. I was very encouraged by him last year in training camp (mainly in the area of pass rush), but unfortunately that was cut short. So far in this year's training camp, Adongo really hasn't stood out much. He has come a long way from where he was when he started out with the Colts, but I still think he has an uphill battle to make the roster. I'm not saying don't root for him (because I am) and I'm not saying to stop paying attention to him (because I am), but I am saying to temper your expectations and be realistic about the outside linebacker.