Colts wide receiver Donte Moncrief will play this Sunday for first time since week two

Though the focus today is on guys who won’t play this weekend, there’s a very significant player who will make his return to the field for the Colts: wide receiver Donte Moncrief.

He returned to the practice field this week, and all week the Colts have sounded very optimistic about him being able to play, even talking at points as if it were a given. And today, head coach Chuck Pagano made it clear: “He’s going to play.”

It will be the first game action for Moncrief since he suffered a fractured scapula early on in the team’s week two game against the Denver Broncos, so it will be a welcome return for the Colts’ number two wideout.

“He is a heck of a player and he can make plays and he has and he has demonstrated that,” offensive coordinator Rob Chudzinski said Thursday. “He can catch the ball down the field, he is good in the short game, he is a big, strong guy that can make plays on top of guys even when he is covered.”

The absence of Moncrief has clearly had a significant impact on the Colts’ offense, but Andrew Luck has just continued to play at a very high level anyway. Now, he’ll be getting his number two wideout back, and that’s a good thing.

“He is a dynamic player and an incredibly good receiver,” Luck said this week. “He has made a bunch of plays in the past. He is big, fast, strong and physical. He is a playmaker. We welcome him back with open arms into the fold.”

Moncrief will return to the field, and it’s expected that Phillip Dorsett will be back as well after missing last week’s game. Add those two to T.Y. Hilton - who’s among the NFL’s leaders this year and is having a career year - and Jack Doyle - who’s been very impressive and has stepped up into a go-to guy for Luck - and the Colts have a pretty good group of pass catchers.