Day Four Colts Training Camp Notebook: Parris Campbell Dazzles In Red Zone Work

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INDIANAPOLIS – A second straight day of full pads saw some promising moments out of the Colts rookies and an improved run game.

Andrew Luck did return to practice on Sunday, but his absence from team drills continues, as the Colts now head for their first off day of camp.

Here are some tidbits from Sunday’s fourth practice of Training Camp:

Andrew Luck got his first camp work in full pads on Sunday afternoon, after he sat out Saturday’s practice. Luck stopped short of working in team activities though on Sunday. His 7-on-7 activity had Luck go 5-of-11. That effort came in a windy red-zone session. Luck did throw one interception, although that was a result of a ball ricocheting off the hands of who appeared to be Krishawn Hogan. Through 4 days of camp, Luck’s work has looked like this: individual drills, 7-on-7 work, rest day, 7-on-7 work. Frank Reich had to say after Sunday’s practice if Luck will progress to team activities next week: “We’ll see. I don’t want to guess. We’ll get feedback from Andrew and see where he’s at.” No Luck in team drills continues to delay the progress in 11-on-11 work the quarterback can have with newcomers Devin Funchess and Parris Campbell.

Speaking of Campbell, the rookie had his head coach gushing about him after practice. Yes, a hamstring injury late in practice held Campbell out of team drills, but he was outstanding in 1-on-1 work. The first ‘TD’ turned Jalen Collins around made the veteran corner look silly. Then, Campbell made a beautiful ‘TD’ grab in the back of the end zone when he tipped the ball up to himself and came down with it. “Did you see those?” Frank Reich said to the media after practice, when referencing the two plays by Campbell. “The two plays he made in the red zone today weren’t hybrid, gadget, slot receiver plays. They were legit, NFL, ‘I’m going to be a stud receiver plays.’ He ran two phenomenal routes and made two big plays in the red zone.” That’s high, high praise from Reich. Now, the next step for Campbell is to have this translate to team sessions, which is something we haven’t seen quite yet from the rookie. Also on Sunday, Campbell was clean in handling punts, after a disastrous Saturday in that department.
Another standout in 1-on-1 drills on Sunday was Devin Funchess. The 6-4 Funchess went over Pierre Desir for a fade route grab and then ran a really nice slant route against Nate Hairston. Again, with Jacoby Brissett quarterbacking the starting offense, the receivers (not named T.Y. Hilton) have been pretty quiet, so it’s hard to truly evaluate this group after 4 days of practice.
A name we need to keep on the radar at cornerback is Nate Hairston. He had his strong moments in 1-on-1 drills as well on Sunday, and has been an occasional starter in the nickel group. Remember, Hairston has slot and outside ability, which is a nice luxury when trying to assemble a 53-man roster. Honestly, I thought the defensive backs did a nice job overall during the 1-on-1 period. One more note on the corners, Rock Ya-Sin had two interceptions on Saturday, both coming off of deflections.
Frank Reich was not pleased with the run game early in camp, but he has liked what he’s seen in the last two days of full pads. The run game was effective on Sunday, with some big lanes for Marlon Mack and Jordan Wilkins.

Watching Darius Leonard operate in the open field is a sight to see. The Maniac closes ground so darn quick and it led to a pair of incompletions on Sunday, when the Colts tried to target Nyheim Hines. Leonard is such a weapon in today’s NFL in matching up with quicker guys out of the backfield.
Poor Clayton Geathers on this move by T.Y. Hilton. You cannot take for granted what Hilton can do at his size as a receiver. He’s a tremendous route runner.
I uploaded the impressive route by Campbell and the nice work out of Funchess to my Instagram stories, if you want to watch those highlights.
Ryan Kelly said on Saturday that Frank Reich has a goal of the Colts rushing for 2,000 yards this season. Last year, the Colts ran for 1,718 yards (20^th in the NFL), as 8 teams in the league eclipsed the 2,000-yard mark. The 1994 season was the last time the Colts finished a season with more than 2,000 yards.
A cool moment following the end of practices in regards to pass rushing tutelage. You had Robert Mathis and Justin Houston (still in his full pads) going through some pass rushing 101 with the younger pass rushers on the roster. Houston appeared to be doing a lot of the teaching in demonstrating moves.
Sunday marked a second straight day in full pads for the Colts, as they are a quarter of the way done with their 2019 Training Camp at Grand Park. We saw tons and tons of 11-on-11 work from the Colts on Sunday, with the practice lasting two hours.
While Denico Autry was resting on Sunday, Frank Reich still had some nice things to say about what the veteran defensive lineman has done early in camp: “Denico has looked really good. He’s jumped off the tape in these first couple of practices. He’s just so quick, inside like that. He really could play inside or out. He has that kind of talent. He’s so explosive off the ball. He’s a tough matchup inside on pass rush. And then with our defensive scheme, with all the line movements we make, for an inside player, we are not just going to smash you in the mouth, so that really plays into Denico’s strengths.”

Here were the Colts who did not practice on Sunday: RB-Spencer Ware (muscle injury with a boot on his right foot/leg, on PUP list for 1-2 weeks), DE-Jabaal Sheard (sore knee, has missed 3 straight practices), DE-Kemoko Turay (shoulder, has missed 2 straight practices), TE-Gabe Holmes (ankle), DE-Denico Autry (rest). Receivers Penny Hart and Parris Campbell both left practice early with hamstring issues.
Following Sunday’s practice, the Colts made a roster move at the running back position, waiving Aca’Cedric Ware and signing Keith Ford.
The Colts are now headed for their first mandatory off day of the 2019 camp. They will come back on Tuesday for three straight days of morning practices, before another off day on Friday.