Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
One of the toughest decisions this season for the Indianapolis Colts may not be how to protect Andrew Luck or schemes to run on defenses, but rather where to find time to put in emerging superstar Caesar Rayford.
The 6’7” undrafted rookie linebacker is quickly becoming an emerging star on this Colts team.
Entering training camp no one knew who Rayford was. In fact, most didn’t have him making the roster as they were already pretty deep at the linebacker spot.
The Colts brought back Robert Mathis, Kavell Conner, Pat Angerer, Jerrell Freeman and Mario Harvey, among a few others at the spot. They also signed Erik Walden and Lawrence Sidbury to go along with trading for Kelvin Sheppard and drafting Bjoern Werner at that spot.
That’s nine guys there that all figured to take a bulk of the minutes during the regular season. They really don’t need many more guys on the active 53-man roster. But, with how well Rayford is playing, he’s shining and showing that he deserves a bulk of the playing time.
Rayford has nine tackles in three games and already has five sacks. He has all five sacks in the last two games to go along with two forced fumbles. He’s had the best preseason out of any of those nine linebackers.
Now, the problem is where do you put him? How do they find a way to get him on the field with all of those stars? They can’t trade or release him as he’s a budding star and they don’t want to play against him.
His size, length and speed make him a matchup nightmare. He’s winning every battle and has a motor on him that’s hard to stop. It’s a good problem to have for Indianapolis as he’s going to be a star one day.
Eric Smith is the Colts Beat Writer for Rant Sports. He’s covered the team the last four years and recognized as an accredited member of the media by the Colts. Follow him on Twitter @ericsportsguru
