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October 2, 2009

Brock, Mathis need to step up and fill void left by Freeney's injury

By Tom James

INDIANAPOLIS — With Dwight Freeney sidelined for Sunday’s National Football League game with the Seattle Seahawks with a strained right quadriceps, the spotlight will be on defensive ends Robert Mathis and Raheem Brock to keep the Indianapolis Colts’ pass rush intact.

Freeney was off to a fast start this year, posting a team-leading four sacks with the first three games of the season. The franchise’s all-time sack leader with 74.5, who also has 36 career forced fumbles, may also miss next week’s AFC South marchup with the Tennessee Titans.

But Mathis has been a pretty productive defensive end in his own right. The former fifth-round draft choice (2005) from Alabama A&M; isn’t that far behind Freeney with 55.5 career sacks. He also has 31 forced fumbles.

“I think [Mathis] may not get talked about as much, in terms of the media and things of that nature, but I would bet that our opposition sees him and know what he can do and how much of a force he is for us,” Colts coach Jim Caldwell said earlier this week.

“He is a very, very important guy. He has a lot of speed and ability, and he can create some havoc.”

Brock is a capable backup to replace Freeney. He has played both defensive end and defensive tackle during his eight years with the team.

“The nice thing about it, he’s played so much for us around here that we anticipate he’ll come in and play like he’s always played. He’s a rough, tough individual that certainly is active, and now he’s probably going to get a little more playing time, which is good,” Caldwell said.

“Key[unta] Dawson will also rotate in there, so we’ll have a pretty good three-man rotation going this weekend.”

In addition to Dawson, who played defensive end in college at Texas Tech but was moved inside to tackle as a rookie with Indianapolis three years ago — defensive tackle Eric Foster and outside linebacker Philip Wheeler could also get some work at defensive end if needed.

Foster has become Indianapolis’ do-everything player, stepping in as a short-yardage fullback on offense as well as having the athletic ability to move outside from defensive tackle.

“Well, we have some options. Eric Foster can play out there, and we [can] put Philip Wheeler [at defensive end]. I think you saw him at the end of the game last week [against Arizona]. Phil can play a little end as well. We do have some options,” the Colts coach said.

Having Wheeler line up at defensive end should not come as a surprise to anybody who followed his collegiate career at Georgia Tech.

“The interesting thing about him is that is what he did in college. He was a standup player, but during some of their nickel looks, he became one of their four [pass] rushers. And he did it quite well. So we’ve kind of always had our eye on him,” Caldwell explained.

“As we were evaluating him [before the 2008 NFL draft], that was one of the things that jumped out, ‘Hey, this guy can rush the passer.’ Now, oftentimes, you can get that from just sending him from his normal linebacker spot. But, in this particular case, he has a good understanding of it. And in the event of an emergency, we could possibly put him in that position where he could give us a little bit of help.”

• Tickets for sale — The Seattle Seahawks returned over 200 tickets for Sunday’s game with the Colts.

Tickets are available at the Lucas Oil Stadium ticket office, Ticketmaster Ticket Centers, charge-by-phone at (800) 745-3000 or at www.ticketmaster.com while they last.

• Injury list — Freeney, middle linebacker Gary Brackett (knee), cornerback Kelvin Hayden (hamstring),

running back/kickoff returner Chad Simpson (abdomen), and defensive end Keyunta Dawson (foot) are listed as questionable for the Seattle game.

Of that group, Dawson is expected to play while Simpson will probably be a game-time decision. Cornerback Marlin Jackson did not practice Friday but is expected to play. Placekicker Adam Vinatieri and offensive tackle Tony Ugoh, who did not practice Thursday, took part in Friday’s workout.

Wide receiver Anthony Gonzalez (knee) and safety Bob Sanders (knee) are the only two Indianapolis players officially ruled as out.

• Manning named as FedEx Air Player of the Week — Quarterback Peyton Manning has been selected as the FedEx Air Player of the Week.

Manning completed 24 of 35 passes for 379 yards and four touchdowns with one interception, and won his 120th career game in the Colts’ 31-10 victory at Arizona last Sunday night.

Jacksonville running back Maurice Jones-Drew won the FedEx Ground Player of the Week. Both awards were voted on by fans

FedEx will make a $1,000 donation in the winning players’ names to the local Safe Kids coalitions in Indianapolis and Jacksonville to support pedestrian safety improvements. Safe Kids USA is a national non-profit organization that works to prevent accidental injury among children.

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