The Colts are now finished with their offseason work until the start of training camp in late July and are entering this season as everyone's on-paper darlings after the addition of a future Hall of Fame wide receiver in Andre Johnson and running back in Frank Gore.
It's not fun to examine the offensive line issues and the lack of pass rush, and in the offseason, it's not really possible. No one is truly rushing the passer without pads on.
But one thing we can glean is that Luck seems to have a command of the veterans, at least from the outside looking in. NFL Media's Jeff Darlington spoke recently with Johnson and the former Houston Texan standout had this to say: "When (Luck) wants something done a certain way, he's going to come to you to tell you how he wants it done. I think that's what makes him great."
It may sound simple and cliché, but it's also something Geno Smith didn't have when talking to Santonio Holmes. It's something Joe Flacco did when talking to Steve Smith. Make sense?
Some other observations:
» The Colts may do their best to take the pressure off Chuck Pagano. He's entering the final year of his contract and multiple sit downs with owner Jim Irsay have not produced an extension. Still, listening to Irsay makes it sound like an inevitability at some point. That rolls with the organization's push for a new deal for receiver T.Y. Hilton and the sense that this is a team Irsay truly believes in.
» The team is trying to find a solution for life without Robert Mathis, at least in the interim. No one is mincing words when it comes to his rehab, which has seen several pitfalls. Irsay is saying that Mathis won't be ready for the start of training camp, or at least that it'll be a long shot. That's a little different than the way Mathis is seeing things.
» Per Indy Star beat writer Stephen Holder, Johnson has not come off the field much. It sounds like he won't just be a specialized option even though Indy has Duron Carter and Phillip Dorsett to work into the receiving mix as well.
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