Small crowd expected tonight
Colts to concentrate on finalizing roster, pushing ticket sales for September games.
Colts coach Tony Dungy will have some tough decisions to make after tonight's game against Cincinnati. -- Matt Kryger / The Star
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Today's game
? Who: Cincinnati Bengals at Colts
? Kickoff: 7 p.m.
? TV: WTTV-4 (10:30 p.m., tape delay)
? Radio: WFBQ-94.7 FM
By Mike Chappell
mike.chappell@indystar.com
August 29, 2003
The Indianapolis Colts' goal is to close the preseason this evening with a victory over the Cincinnati Bengals in the RCA Dome.
But will anybody be there to notice?
"I don't expect a big crowd," said Ray Compton, the team's senior vice president of sales and marketing.
Two weeks ago, the Colts hosted the Seattle Seahawks, and the smallest crowd -- 26,741 -- ever to watch a pro football game in the dome.
A similar turnout should be expected tonight, primarily because the final preseason game is the least attractive of an unappealing product. Generally it's more about finalizing personnel decisions and not exposing front-line players to the risk of injury with the regular season looming.
Teams must trim rosters, currently at 65, excluding NFL Europe exemptions, to 53 on Sunday.
The Colts still have decisions to make, the most prominent being whether to keep incumbent place-kicker Mike Vanderjagt or challenger Brett Conway.
Most decisions, though, involve juggling numbers at various positions. Do they keep a sixth wide receiver? Ten defensive backs? Five running backs?
"We have some specific things we want to accomplish with our first offense and defense," coach Tony Dungy said Thursday. "Then, we've got some roster decisions (to make).
"We want to see certain guys in pressurized situations and see how they do. We'll start to substitute fairly early and see how they handle tough situations."
In last year's preseason wrap-up at New Orleans, the No. 1 offense, including quarterback Peyton Manning and wide receiver Marvin Harrison, was intact for only the first series. Running back Edgerrin James completed his dream preseason, failing to step on the field for the fourth game in a row.
There won't be a rerun from James. Dungy said his reluctant star back will start tonight.
Before learning he will handle what promises to be a light workload against Cincinnati, James applied one player's perspective to the game.
Asked if he wanted to play against the Bengals, he replied, "I didn't want to play (in Denver).
"This is the last preseason game and they've got to look at other guys," James added. "We need to get ready to go up to Cleveland. You always want to be healthy and fresh for a game like that."
The Colts open the regular season Sept. 7 at Cleveland Browns Stadium.
Unlike James, several players are hoping to use the final tuneup for Cleveland to make the necessary impression on the team's coaching and personnel staff.
It figures to be an important outing for rookie Brad Pyatt, who will get another chance to return punts and kickoffs, rookie Aaron Moorehead, who's in the hunt for the final receiver spot, and backup offensive line prospects Tupe Peko, Makoa Freitas, Jim Newton and Joe Iorio. Also worthy of close looks will be cornerbacks Travis Coleman and Marcus Smith, and safeties Jason Doering and Anthony Floyd.
A mediocre-size crowd seems a foregone conclusion considering the mix-and-match nature of the last preseason game. That in mind, Compton is bracing for another public-relations hit.
"We can't do anything about it," he said. "Right now we're focusing on season-ticket sales and we're focusing on the two September home games.
"If we sell out those first two games, nobody will be talking about the preseason. We're looking at the big picture."
The team has sold approximately 37,000 season tickets. There are about 7,000 tickets remaining for the Sept. 14 home opener against Tennessee and 9,500 for the Sept. 21 clash against Jacksonville.
The Colts have sold out 32 consecutive regular-season games.
Compton admitted he's surprised with the number of tickets that remain for the Titans game.
"But traditionally we've never produced sellouts in July or August," he said. "It's almost always the week before the game.
"That tells you the market has always been a show-me market. At the same time, the Tennessee game signals there may be some concern. From a psychological standpoint, from a feeling-good standpoint, we need to fill up the house for those two games."
