The toughest player Anthony Castonzo ever blocked? All in the Colts family.
Colts LT Anthony Castonzo never made a Pro Bowl. He never won a ring.
But every metric, numerical or character-driven, has him marked as one of the best to ever do it at his position, and the hulking star’s retirement on Tuesday morning has certainly left the franchise shaken.
Castonzo chose to ride off into the sunset rather than rehabilitate a surgically-repaired ankle this offseason, and we respect his decision, though we’re extremely sad to see him go.
In retirement, we hope he’ll continue to share stories of his glory days in the trenches — after all, nothing needs to stay in the vault now that he’s done competing on the field.
So, who made the great Castonzo sweat? Who was the pass rusher he feared most (as if he feared anyone)? Well, Colts fans will be happy to know he kept this answer all in the family, too.
The toughest guy Castonzo ever had to block?
— Stephen Holder (@HolderStephen) January 12, 2021
Dwight Freeney. Period.
After Dwight Freeney announced before what turned out to be Castonzo’s final game that he was backing the Bills in the playoffs instead of the Colts, maybe the hulking veteran would like one last crack at blocking him?
Freeney left Indianapolis for the tail end of his career, heading to San Diego in 2013 at the age of 33, then spending time in Arizona, Atlanta, Detroit and Seattle before his retirement in 2017.
We assume that the majority of Castonzo’s experience with Freeney came in practice in Indy — the LT was the team’s first-round pick in 2011, the final year of the Peyton Manning Era (though a year in which the great Manning didn’t appear, felled with a neck injury).
It might be worth asking Freeney if Castonzo makes his personal all-time team, too. He probably deserves it, based on the numbers.
Anthony Castonzo has announced his retirement from the NFL:
— PFF (@PFF) January 12, 2021
Anthony Castonzo career ranks:
87.5 PFF Grade (15th)
84.6 Pass-Block Grade (17th) pic.twitter.com/iOPuZjbvb8
We’ve enjoyed every second of the Anthony Castonzo Experience, and wish him well as he rides off into a more comfortable future.
No matter how much of a thrill it gave him in the moment, we’re sure he’d rather join Freeney on the couch than line up against him anyway.
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