"Don't be scared, now!"
Ashton Dulin was getting ready to step on the football field for training camp at Grand Park for the first time in 2024, and Reggie Wayne was messing around with him. It didn't matter that the last time Dulin was on that field, he tore his ACL and was sidelined for the entire 2023 season. Wayne, the Colts wide receivers coach, was still acting as he often does with his players, playing around and keeping things loose.
And Dulin was joking right back.
"Who's scared? That's the best ligament I got in my body right now," he responded.
"Yeah, you right," Wayne said. "You've still got the receipt!"
But Dulin wasn't really joking; he was just being honest. He wasn't scared at all. He never had been.
"Once you start playing and going 100 percent and flying around, the worry just goes away and you're just playing football," Dulin said after his second training camp practice of the year. "(It feels) just like it's my rookie year."
When Dulin first started with the Colts in 2019 as an undrafted free agent, he just wanted to get out on the field and start playing football, confident that he would prove himself and success would follow. Five years – and one rehabbed ACL – later, those feelings are back in full force.
"I just want to go out there and play," Dulin said. "The stats will come with that as long as I play hard and do my job."
In four years on the field with the Colts, the wide receiver has added a significant amount of flexibility to the Colts' offense as someone who can make big plays in many different spots and serve as a physical blocker. He's seen action in 55 games and totaled 33 receptions for 450 yards and three touchdowns.
"The one that we missed most was Ashton Dulin just because he did so much," general manager Chris Ballard said in the offseason "He can play multiple spots. He does the dirty work. And then if you have to start him you can still play winning football. Losing Ashton during camp last year, that sucked."
But Dulin's value extends beyond the offense. He has also been a force to be reckoned with on special teams, with 17 kickoff returns for 439 yards, 35 special teams tackles and 863 special teams snaps under his belt.
Dulin earned second-team AP All-Pro recognition in 2021 for his efforts on special teams, as he was second in the NFL in special teams tackles (17) and became only the 12th player in NFL history to have at least 17 tackles and 13 receptions in a single season.
"Whenever he's available, our room becomes better," Wayne said. "You can put him on any position and the job gets done."
"He's a special teams demon, too," Wayne added.
Heading into the 2024 season, the pressure is no longer on Dulin to prove himself. Instead, this season is about making sure he's back to where he was before his injury, if not better. It's about playing hard, meeting the expectations of his teammates and having fun on the football field.
"One play and it could all be over," Dulin said. "So I'm just enjoying it while I'm here."
Such a phrase is much easier to say in hindsight; now that Dulin is fully healthy again, he can recognize how quickly a career can end. It's something that could easily plague the mind of any athlete, especially one who was injured on a routine play that he will more than likely encounter again in his career.
But Dulin isn't just any athlete.
"Some guys will kind of be moping a bit (during rehab), especially when you feel like you're good and they say you're not good," Wayne said. "But him, every day, he had a smile on his face. He had a smile, he was excited, he knew he was going to come back better."
Dulin came into rehab every day of the 2023 season with high spirits and even higher expectations for himself, determined to deliver. He had a rock-solid support system in his family, his girlfriend, his friends and his coaches, and used their belief in him as motivation to continue working no matter what setbacks he encountered.
"The mental side is probably the biggest part, being away from the game and trying to lean on your family members, teammates, coaches, whatever it may be," Dulin said. "Coming off of (surgery) and knowing that every day might not be your best day, but kind of working through that knowing, 'Okay, I can bounce back the next day.'"
Luckily for Dulin, he didn't hit any major walls. He certainly went through ups and downs over the course of the year, knowing his team was playing without him, but he had someone there with him to get through it all: Anthony Richardson.
The Colts quarterback sustained a season-ending shoulder injury just five games into the season, leading him to do his own rehab regimen alongside Dulin for the rest of the year. In that time, the young rookie leaned on the veteran wide receiver, gaining valuable insight into Dulin as a football player and a person.
"Us rehabbing definitely let us build a relationship and get a lot closer, able to just joke around with each other through a tough time like that," Richardson said. "That's my guy."
Dulin and Richardson talked about everything from their families to their music taste to what they wanted to accomplish together when they got back on the field, building chemistry that improved their connection both on and off the field.
"I love that dude," Richardson said. "I appreciate him for being there with me."
While Richardson was leaning on Dulin, Dulin had a mentor of his own he could turn to. After all, when your position coach has won the Super Bowl, played 14 seasons in the NFL, is one of the best wide receivers to ever play for the Colts and has also sustained a torn ACL during his NFL career, you take advantage of that.
"He was like a big brother to me," Dulin said about Wayne's support throughout his recovery. "He's played the game for so long, he's seen everything. To have him there is an added plus and just makes everything so much easier."
"I know what it's like to be at the bottom of the barrel," Wayne said. "Sometimes you need that extra voice to motivate you and get you going."
Wayne was that voice. He saw Dulin through the entire rehab process, a witness to the wide receiver's dedication and determination to stay positive.
"Everything I saw is what I expected," Wayne said. "In there early, leaving late, doing extra."
And because he saw all that hard work firsthand, Wayne expects Dulin to return just as he was pre-ACL tear, if not better.
"He's been grinding and looks good," Wayne said after three days of training camp practices. "I expect him to be that guy that he's always been – that other additional leader in the room, leading by example, doing all the little things right."
Dulin's playmaking ability is already showing up in training camp as he's displayed his fast feet and quick hands in individual drills and team work alike. Dulin has primarily seen snaps as part of the second-team contingent during 11-on-11 play, contributing as both a blocker and a receiver and providing vital depth to the Colts' wide receiver room.
With a strong start to training camp, the door is wide open for Dulin to have a big comeback season. Whether he's serving as a role model for younger players, catching darts from Richardson, dominating on special teams or just cracking jokes during practice, Dulin will make sure his presence is known.
The Colts were without it for long enough.
