CHICAGO —
With a rookie quarterback and a young pass catching corps, the Indianapolis Colts will ask a lot out of wide receiver Reggie Wayne this season.
The 12-year veteran certainly did his part to deliver in Sunday’s 41-21 season-opening loss to the Chicago Bears.
Wayne was targeted 18 times by quarterback Andrew Luck and made nine catches for 135 yards. Many of his biggest plays came on the kind of diving catches and one-handed grabs that have long branded Wayne as a fan favorite.
He’s pretty popular in the locker room as well.
“I think he’s obviously a great player and sets a great example for all of us on offense, especially young guys,” Luck said. “He came up big in a lot of situations, which I wish I could have punched a couple in the red zone with him. I know I threw another interception (in the end zone, intended for Wayne), but I think he sets a great example for all of us, and I am lucky to play with him.”
MATHIS MAKES GOOD FIRST IMPRESSION: Many wondered how longtime defensive end Robert Mathis would respond to a move to outside linebacker in the Colts’ new hybrid 3-4 defensive scheme.
If Sunday’s loss was any indication, there’s nothing to worry about. Mathis recorded the 18th two-sack game of his career, including dropping Chicago quarterback Jay Cutler for a 12-yard loss on the first play from scrimmage.
Mathis finished with five tackles, three for a loss and two additional quarterback hits.
“You see when things are going good, they’re going great,” Mathis said of the new defensive scheme. “When it rains, it pours. You’ve got to maximize your positives and minimize the negatives. It’s just back to the drawing board.”
FLEENER FINE IN DEBUT: Rookie tight end Coby Fleener caught some flak for a laundry list of dropped passes during practices and games in the preseason. It didn’t take long for him to put that history behind him.
Fleener caught six passes for 82 yards, finishing second to Wayne on the team in both categories and flashing the expected chemistry with Luck, his former Stanford teammate.
O-LINE TAKES ITS HITS: It was a rough day for the Colts offensive line, which started the game without left guard Joe Reitz and lost right tackle Winston Justice to a concussion during the second half.
They allowed Luck to be hit eight times, including three sacks, and paved the way for just 63 yards rushing.
Seth Olsen started in place of Reitz, and Jeff Linkenbach came in to replace Justice.
They joined right guard Mike McGlynn, center Samson Satele and left tackle Anthony Castonzo to finish the game.
Indianapolis head coach Chuck Pagano said he thought the linemen did a commendable job in a tough situation.
“Those guys fought,” he said. “There are some things that we’ll have to clean up. It’s more one-on-one matchups is what it is. They’re only going to get better — they haven’t been playing together that long.”
SWEET REVENGE FOR JENNINGS: Former Colts cornerback Tim Jennings came back to haunt his old team with two of Chicago’s three interceptions.
He added four tackles and broke up four more passes. Afterward, he was happy with the improvement he’s made with his hands.
“It was a pretty good day,” Jennings said. “I caught more than I dropped today.
“Last year, I struggled with that. I worked on that in the offseason with the JUGS machine. I got the opportunity today, and I made some plays on the ball.”
INJURY LIST — Defensive end Dwight Freeney left the game in the first quarter with a sprained left ankle. He did not return.
Offensive tackle Winston Justice was also sidelined for most of the game with a head injury.
Bethea, defensive end Corey Redding and Wayne all left the game for brief periods but were able to return.
“Lost Dwight early in the ball game. He’s got an ankle injury. We’ll go back and I’m sure they’ll do an MRI on Dwight and see what the severity of that is. So he’ll be day-to-day,” Pagano said.
“And then we had Winston Justice go out with a concussion and wasn’t able to return. So we’ll monitor him and see how that goes.”
Colts
Related Photos
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Indianapolis’ Reggie Wayne gets his hands on the ball as Chicago’s D.J. Moore defends during the Colts’ 41-21 loss to the Bears on Sunday in Chicago. Joe Garza / CNHI News Service
Discussion
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