INDIANAPOLIS — When the Indianapolis Colts selected running back Joseph Addai in the first round of April’s NFL draft, it was a foregone conclusion that the former Louisiana State all-purpose back would be a major contributor during his rookie year.
But when it came to sixth-round pick Antoine Bethea, there’s a good chance that few people figured he would be a starter in his first official professional game. But that could very well be the case when the Colts take the field against the New York Giants on Sept. 10.
As it stands now, with returning starter Mike Doss nursing a strained left calf, Bethea is the odds-on favorite to line up alongside Bob Sanders at safety in the regular-season opener.
The 5-foot-11, 203-pound rookie from Howard University has been everything the Colts’ coaching and scouting staff thought he would be prior to the draft. And more.
“Antoine’s coming along,” Indianapolis coach Tony Dungy said earlier this week. “He’s been a real eye-catcher in practice and in summer school and all the way through. And it’s continued on. He’s gotten into games and been very productive. He’s been, I won’t say a pleasant surprise because we expected that, but he’s done really well. Hasn’t slipped up at all.”
Earlier during training camp, Dungy mentioned Bethea’s rapid development but joked that he was concerned about being “over coached.” But that hasn’t been the case. In fact, far from it.
“He’s still playing pretty well. He’s playing like he did when he first got here, so that’s probably a good sign,” the Colts’ coach said. “But probably the only surprise is that he’s been able to do it at this level.
“What he’s doing is exactly what we saw on tape. He played center field at Howard. He made a ton of plays. He ran to the ball and he was a guy that looked like the best guy on tape in most of the games he was in. And you say, well, it’s small-school level. Almost like [defensive end Robert Mathis]. Level of competition and all that, it’s probably going to take him time to adjust. But it really hasn’t.”
During the scouting process, the Colts put a premium on speed, athleticism and football skills over size and where a player may have attended school. It’s worked with Mathis, who has gone from Alabama A&M; to becoming one of the league’s premier pass rushers despite being considerably smaller (6-2, 245) than most of the NFL’s starting defensive ends.
It also has worked with middle linebacker Gary Brackett, who played at Rutgers and was an undrafted free agent. Brackett had a team-leading 131 total tackles as a first-year starter in 2005.
As for Bethea, it was his ability to be a playmaker and to have a nose for the football that drew the Colts’ interest. Those traits have carried over fairly well so far, according to Dungy.
“We saw that. That’s what kind of attracted us to him on his college tape. And it’s continuing,” he said.
I I I
n Hawkins back, Sheldon gone — Former Texas Tech tight end Joey Hawkins, who was one of 10 players waived by the Colts on Monday, is back with the team.
Hawkins will most likely see preseason playing time against the Cincinnati Bengals on Friday night. Third-year veteran Ben Hartsock will be held out of that game as he continues to have problems with a strained hamstring. He tweaked the injury again during a rehab session Wednesday.
“We don’t know how serious it’s going to affect him,” Dungy said. “He probably won’t play this week. He actually was doing well and twanged it a little bit toward the end of practice. We’ll just have to see how it is.
“We brought back Joey Hawkins. With Ben not playing, we didn’t want to be short on tight ends. It will give Joey a chance to play in the game. That was the one thing with some of the guys that we had to cut. You didn’t really get as much chance to see them in a game. And he’ll get an opportunity to do that now.”
Wide receiver Dan Sheldon, who had been impressive in recent preseason games as a kick and punt returner, was released late Tuesday in order to make room for running back Jonathan Wells on the roster. Additional moves may be announced sometime today.
n Palmer to see playing time — Cincinnati quarterback Carson Palmer will most likely see limited playing time Friday night. Palmer is returning from a knee injury that he incurred during a first-round AFC playoff game with the Pittsburgh Steelers last season.
Bengals coach Marvin Lewis hasn’t specified how much work Palmer will get against Indianapolis, but has said that Palmer didn’t have any major problems with soreness or swelling after his preseason debut in Monday night’s preseason win over Green Bay.
Outside linebacker David Pollack (hamstring), wide receivers Antonio Chatman (groin) and Bennie Brazell (knee), cornerback Deltha O’Neal (knee) and defensive tackle Marcus Lewis (ankle) are not expected to play. Wide receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh (heel) also may not play.
Dungy said Wednesday that the Bengals’ decision to play Palmer won’t alter his plans on playing time for his starters, which may turn out to be for a series or two.
“We’ll have a plan and we’ll formulate that [Wednesday night] as to how long everyone’s going to play,” he said. “We’ll really do it by how many plays our guys have and what we need to get done.”
Tom James can be reached by e-mail at TJames1475@aol.com.
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