Colts are hoping Reggie Wayne can be the difference maker for receiver room
With a young and unproven wide receiver unit, the Indianapolis Colts are hoping Reggie Wayne can unlock the group’s potential.
The Indianapolis Colts enter the 2022 season in a much better state than they ended last year. Indy spent the offseason making several necessary moves to improve the team’s overall standing. However, there is still one problem that plagues the team. That problem is uncertainty at the wide receiver position.
After a wholly underwhelming year by every Colts receiver not named Michael Pittman Jr. last season, Indy didn’t do much to improve the unit. The team did draft Alec Pierce, but they also lost Zach Pascal and possibly TY Hilton. Hilton is still a free agent and there’s a chance he could rejoin the team.
However, while everyone on the outside is worried, the Colts don’t have much concern. There are a couple of reasons why. The first reason is that the team believes the young guys are more talented than the world knows. The other reason is Reggie Wayne.
Now the wide receivers coach, Wayne is still the receiver that Indianapolis is relying on to help improve the team’s passing game.
Coach Reggie Wayne working with his young WRs on day 2 of #Colts camp. Here he is with rookie @alecpierce.
— Taylor Tannebaum (@TaylorTannebaum) July 28, 2022
HC Frank Reich on @ReggieWayne_17: “He’s done a phenomenal job with these guys. I mean Reggie, you talk about ‘it’ factor, Reggie has brought an ‘it’ factor to that room.” pic.twitter.com/SEWa8lh8wJ
Colts believe Reggie Wayne can unlock young receivers
Earlier in the offseason, Chris Ballard admitted that Indy didn’t necessarily feel the need to add a veteran receiver for leadership purposes because they had the best possible veteran receiver leading them already as a coach in Reggie Wayne.
Now, Frank Reich has talked about Wayne having the “it” factor and how he thinks that “it” factor “is really going to help those young guys take a step.” It’s just Wayne’s first year as an official coach, and asking him to hurry the development of some unproven receivers is a tall task.
However, if anyone could accomplish it, it’s Reggie. In addition to being a great receiver himself, Wayne was a big influence on TY Hilton and his development. If Wayne can have the same effect on the current receivers, and they develop into just a fraction of what Hilton was at his peak, the Colts should be in pretty good shape.
