The Indianapolis Colts have gone through their first week of organized team activities and will now face seven more sessions until veteran minicamp arrives in June.
Though there are no pads worn during OTAs, there are still notes to take away from the practices. Over the next few weeks, there will be storylines to keep an eye on that stem from the first week of OTAs as players compete for spots on the roster and roles on the depth chart.
Here are four takeaways from the Colts’ first week of OTAs:
Andrew Luck is dealing with a calf strain
The Colts are being overly cautious with just about any injury that pops up during the spring, but they will be even more so with the face of the franchise.
Luck was held out of the first week of practices due to a calf strain and will be re-evaluated next week to see if he can return. Spring practices are important in the sense that new concepts are being installed into the offense but not to the extent where Luck’s health should be put at risk.
The calf strain isn’t considered serious, but the Colts are being extremely cautious with their star quarterback, along with the rest of the players also dealing with some ailments.
T.Y. Hilton is a full-go
While Luck and a few others may be taking their time getting back on the field, the speedy wide receiver in Hilton was a surprise participant in OTAs during the first week.
The 29-year-old was expected to be limited after dealing with a high and low sprain on the same ankle during the second half of the season in 2018. Yet, he was out on the field running around the defense as if he’d never dealt with an injury before.
That’s extremely encouraging news for the Colts even though the ankle sprain wasn’t considered to be a long-term issue. It shows Hilton is ready to go and barring any changes to his health, will be a full-go the rest of the way.
Mo Alie-Cox has a big opportunity
How many tight ends the Colts wind up keeping after the final cuts in September remains to be seen, but there’s a good chance Alie-Cox is going to make it. The question for him is more pertaining to how big of a role he can carve out in the offense.
Alie-Cox turned some heads in 2018 during his first season playing in the regular season. His size and athleticism jump out immediately, but he’s still considered raw in terms of the nuances of the position. However, he’s already showing some progress as a route runner and should be a common name heard throughout the spring.
With Jack Doyle and Eric Ebron both out for the remainder of the spring, Alie-Cox can prove he deserves a bigger role in the offense both as a blocker and as a pass catcher.
Run game improvement headlines offensive objectives
The Colts offense was a strong unit in 2018 under the command of first-year head coach Frank Reich while being led by quarterback Andrew Luck, but improving the rushing attack has become priority No. 1 this spring.
With the first week of practices underway, the Colts have made it clear that improving the run game isn’t something they are simply talking about doing. It is becoming an objective the Colts feel needs to be achieved in order for the entire unit to grow.
“But really what is going to set the tone for us is going to be how we run the football. That is not going to change. We have to run the football,” said Reich this week. “Our goal is going to be a top-five rushing football team. That will set up our play-action pass. That will set up all the big chunk plays. To me that will get us where we want to go.”
