Every time Alec Pierce pulls into the parking lot at the Indiana Farm Bureau Football Center), he knows if Adonai Mitchell is there before he even goes inside.
A little SUV, no tint on the windows. A "mom" car, Pierce said with a grin.
If that car is there, that means Mitchell is inside, more than likely catching balls from the JUGS machine before the rest of team arrives.
"He's super consistent," Pierce said of the rookie wide receiver. "He's always one of the first guys in the facility...I'm just proud of how he's carried himself as a rookie, mature beyond his years."
On Sunday, in the Colts' Week 10 game against the Buffalo Bills, that consistency and maturity paid off for Mitchell. While the Colts lost to the Bills, 30-20, Mitchell seamlessly fit in with the Colts' offense in place of an injured Michael Pittman Jr. and had a career day with six receptions on six targets for 71 yards.
"He probably had a lot more snaps and was in position to come up big when he needed to, and he did a good job," quarterback Joe Flacco said. "He looked comfortable out there, caught the ball well, did a lot of good things. It's unfortunate that it comes in a game like this where you can't feel as good about it as you want to, but he did a good job."
On Sunday, Mitchell played for 58 snaps. His previous career high was 30.
"It definitely felt good to be able to convert when the opportunities came," Mitchell said. "But kind of like a regular day, to be honest, was how it felt."
Sunday felt like a regular day to Mitchell because the numbers he put up were on par with what's been expected of him since he was selected in the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft. Mitchell had a total of 93 receptions for 1,405 yards and 18 touchdowns in his college career, so he knew he was capable of much more than just a few receptions here and there for a little bit of yardage.
In knowing that, he never lost confidence in himself, and neither did his team.
"I told him before the game, 'Today's your opportunity, take advantage of it,'" wide receiver Josh Downs said. "And he did. He was out there balling. I'm very proud of him, he's like a little brother to me."
"He's been playing well, he's been getting open, he's just had a lot of unfortunate events happen," Pierce said. "There's so much with receivers, so much more than your numbers. There's a lot that goes into making the play."
In the Colts' first nine games of the 2024 season, when Mitchell played, he would get open on a fairly regular basis. But he wouldn't always be able to make the play or hold onto the ball, and when he wasn't getting regular targets, wasn't able to show his potential.
"He's had a lot of tough breaks this year," Pierce said. "It's good to see him finally get this opportunity."
Mitchell's six receptions were dotted throughout Sunday's game, but his biggest one was arguably his first. On the Colts' second drive of the game, Flacco connected with Mitchell for a short four-yard pass, which he caught and carried to gain three more yards. But as Mitchell was moving, he fumbled the ball and went down among a heap of players trying to get it back. Wide receiver Josh Downs was the one to get to the ball first, keeping it with the Colts.
The play itself wasn't the best – or all that important – but how Mitchell responded was: he just kept moving forward.
When Mitchell went to the sideline, wide receivers coach Reggie Wayne told him to shake it off and just keep going. He had his first catch, so the pressure was off. And for someone like Mitchell, who can hold onto stress before games, that was the most important thing.
"It's plenty of times people could be in that situation, and people can rain down them, but (Wayne) was like 'It's over with, you got your first catch out of the way, the worst has already happened, at this point, so just shake it off,'" Mitchell said.
Mitchell went out and had five more receptions for 64 yards, so it's safe to say he took Wayne's advice. And it all comes back to that consistency and preparation, day in and day out.
"It's all a matter of just getting reps, learning through reps, learning through wins, learning through losses," Mitchell said. "Kind of figuring out why you won, why you lost, and kind of just helping yourself get better. And I've grown a lot – just credit to the guys around me, and obviously my receiver coach. We all push each other, and we all force each other to get better and grow."
