News » The Colts officially began their training camp

yesterday as players and staff reported and prepared to get started. With those arrivals came the first media availability and our chance to learn..." />Skip to main contentclockmenumore-arrownoyesStampede Blue homepageHorizontal - WhiteStampede Bluean Indianapolis Colts communityFollow Stampede Blue online:Follow Stampede Blue on TwitterFollow Stampede Blue on FacebookLog in or sign upLog InSign UpSite searchSearchSearchStampede Blue main menuFanpostsFanshotsColtsShopAboutMastheadCommunity GuidelinesStubHubMoreAll 321 blogs on Horizontal - WhiteFanposts Fanshots Colts StoriesScheduleRosterStatsYahoo Colts NewsYahoo Colts Team PageYahoo Colts ReportYahoo Colts Depth ChartYahoo Colts TransactionsYahoo Colts PhotosShop About Masthead Community Guidelines StubHub ✕Breaking NewsAndrew Luck Retires×2019 Colts Training Camp: Sound bites from arrival dayNew Indianapolis Colts Customized Jerseys ,1commentEDTShare this storyShare this on FacebookShare this on TwitterShareAll sharing optionsShareAll sharing options for:2019 Colts Training Camp: Sound bites from arrival dayTwitterFacebookRedditPocketFlipboardEmailPhoto by Zach Bolinger/Icon Sportswire via Getty ImagesThe Colts officially began their training camp yesterday as players and staff reported and prepared to get started. With those arrivals came the first media availability and our chance to learn some of what’s been going on this offseason and get an idea where everyone stands ahead of 2019. With that in mind, here are some talking points from arrival day at the Indianapolis Colts 2019 training camp.Chris BallardBallard began by talking about how much he enjoys training camp and the level of excitement in terms of the team itself. He also shed some light on Reece Fountain’s Non-Football Injury listing, saying he had rolled an ankle and would be ready to go any time. That’s good news for a guy who really needs to have a big camp if he wants to make the roster. Additionally, he talked about Spencer Ware starting camp on the Active/PUP list with a muscle injury that could hold him out about two weeks. That will put him at a disadvantage in a room that will be competing to prove they deserve snaps, but perhaps isn’t as damaging as missing time would be for Fountain. Beyond that, the team is largely healthy.On guys coming back from injuriesOn major position battles for this campBallard isn’t a guy who pulls punches or has ever really been cagey in saying what he means. Mentioning the backup offensive line and defensive lines as the biggest competition spots means that’s where he’ll be watching closely. Additionally, when he mentions wide receiver competition, you shouldn’t be surprised, but it also means he is hoping to see guys emerge and take command of those roles. On the progress of 2018 training camp star WR Deon CainBallard practically gushed about Deon Cain in this interview. It is clear that Cain’s work ethic and the way he responded to adversity has impressed Ballard, and it will be exciting to see if he comes back looking like the same guy that lit up camp last year. On the kinds of leaders this team has On the importance of turnovers and turning them into pointsThe impact of turnovers on a team is huge, and from day one Ballard is making it clear that it will be a focus for them. If they can consistently create turnovers and turn them into points Indianapolis Colts T-Shirts , it’ll bode well for their season.On Darius Leonard’s ability to create turnoversMany of us in discussions with fellow Colts fans drew this same comparison as Leonard just kept finding ways to part ball carriers from the ball. Not a bad guy to be compared with at all.Pierre DesirThis mantra has been echoed all offseason by various players on the Colts. No one will be riding the momentum from last year and expecting to win, it has to be earned.T.Y. HiltonOn whether this is his most anticipation for a season in his careerOn what comes to mind when thinking about Parris CampbellWhen T.Y. is comparing the rookie wide receiver to himself as a rookie, you’ve got a good thing going.Darius LeonardOn how to approach the change in expectations from others for himIt is pretty easy to root for a guy who just won defensive rookie of the year and was an All-Pro, but who is now talking about competing for a starting job. It is a foregone conclusion that Leonard will start, but the attitude of humility and desire to work hard coming from the top of the roster is great for this team.On how he wants to improve as a playerLeonard isn’t content to stay still and DC Matt Eberflus isn’t content to let him. Keep checking back for daily camp updates! INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Jason Garrett and Frank Reich understand the high stakes of Sunday’s game.If Dallas wins, it clinches the NFC East. If Indianapolis wins, it stays in the hunt for the AFC’s final playoff spot and possibly even a division crown.The two coaches and their players will get one more precious late-season chance to see how they stack up against another postseason contender and what can be done to keep playing into January.“Most people call this the dash for cash,” Colts tight end Eric Ebron said. “So you just try to win.”Few teams have done more lately than the Colts (7-6) or Cowboys (8-5).Rather than folding after starting 1-5, Andrew Luck & Co. turned things around with six wins in seven games and tying Baltimore, Miami and Tennessee for the No. 6 seed in the AFC playoff chase.Luck’s comeback has happened during perhaps the best season of his career with 34 touchdown passes, second in the league and six short of his career high https://www.coltsfanshop.com/hats , a career-best completion rate of 67.7 percent and he is 241 yards away from the fourth 4,000-yard season of this career.This time, Luck also is working with an improved defense that has allowed 17.1 points over the past seven weeks and ranks among the league’s top third in sacks and negative plays.The combination has upped the ante for Colts’ opponents.“They attack you a lot of different ways,” Garrett said. “It’s aggressive, it’s attacking and it’s a balanced offense. You have to be ready for a lot of different things.”Dallas also made a dramatic midseason turn.After starting 3-5, the Cowboys made a deal for receiver Amari Cooper and everything suddenly changed.Running back Ezekiel Elliott has charged back into the NFL rushing lead and quarterback Dak Prescott started making more potent plays.Dallas’ defense has climbed to No. 4 in yards allowed and now people around town believe the Cowboys could win their first divisional-round game since the 1995 playoffs — if they make it.One thing is clear: Dallas is all-in.“It will be a great challenge. It’s going to take every person over there, but I think defenses like that challenge,” Reich said when asked about slowing down Elliott. “I know our defense will like that challenge. It’s not going to be easy, they are going to get some runs. If Zeke has 95 yards that might be considered a win.”TACKLING STARSWhile much of the focus this weekend will be on high-profile offensive stars such as Luck and Prescott, rookie linebackers Darius Leonard and Leighton Vander Esch will play big roles, too.The league’s official stats show Leonard leading the league with 135 tackles despite missing one game with an injury.Vander Esch has played well Indianapolis Colts Hoodie , too. The Cowboys credit him with 136 tackles, tied for the franchise’s rookie record, league stats show Vander Esch with 108 — tied for No. 6 overall and second among rookies to Leonard.LINE DANCEWhile Colts starting center Ryan Kelly could return after missing three straight games with a sprained medial collateral ligament in his left knee, Cowboys right guard Zack Martin could miss the first game of his career in his first trip to his hometown.Martin, a four-time Pro Bowler and 2014 All-Pro, sprained the MCL in his left knee during the preseason and left both games against defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia after aggravating the injury. He returned to the first Philadelphia game, but didn’t come back in last week’s victory.Kelly, meanwhile, was limited in practice Wednesday. He said he hopes to play through the pain with a brace.Before he was injured, the Colts allowed one sack in six games. Indy has given up six sacks in the three games he missed.REJOINING THE YOUNGSTERS?Cowboys linebacker Sean Lee practiced this week for first time since leaving a game Nov. 5 against Tennessee with his second hamstring injury this season and he could be rejoining the linebacker rotation Sunday.If he does, the focus will be on how it works.Vander Esch and Lee play the same position and 23-year-old Jaylon Smith https://www.coltsfanshop.com/Le_Raven-Clark-Jersey , a former Notre Dame star, also played well this season. The two youngsters have embraced playing big roles while Lee, a 2014 All-Pro choice, was on the mend.FANCY FEETEight Colts players will wear special cleats this weekend to promote various charities.Luck will wear shoes bearing Indianapolis’ renown Riley Hospital for Children, which he has worked with since being drafted No. 1 overall in 2012.Three players — Leonard, linebacker Anthony Walker and safety Mathias Farley — are using their cleats to draw attention to the Edwin Jackson 53 Foundation. Jackson was killed in a traffic accident in February.