INDIANAPOLIS — Indianapolis Colts offensive coordinator Nick Sirianni talked to local reporters today via video conference. What's the latest on new tight end Trey Burton and his place within the offense, as well as the development of two rookies in wide receiver Dezmon Patmon and offensive lineman Danny Pinter?
You can catch that entire session above, but here are some top takeaways:
» Sirianni has enjoyed incorporating new tight end Trey Burton into the offense: The Colts added the veteran Burton this season via free agency, the main draw — beyond his skillset at the position — being his familiarity within head coach Frank Reich's offensive system.
Burton played under Reich when he was the offensive coordinator of the Philadelphia Eagles in 2016 and 2017, logging a combined 60 receptions for 575 yards and six touchdowns in those two seasons. Both Reich and Sirianni have raved about Burton's route-running abilities, and that's certainly been on display as one of quarterback Philip Rivers' favorite targets so far throughout training camp.
"Trey's special, and (I'm) really happy to have him on this team," Sirianni said. "We've always liked to get the ball to our tight ends, especially in that intermediate range and in the red zone, and we're really pleased with what Trey brings to this offense.
"(It's) always a focus of this offense to be able to (get the ball to the tight end), but then again, it takes the right guy to be able to do that," Sirianni continued. "And we feel like we have that with Trey."
» Dezmon Patmon's physical shape, progression has been impressive: The Colts took Patmon in the sixth-round of this year's NFL Draft, raving about his 6-foot-4, 225-pound frame and his raw athleticism at the wide receiver position.
And even despite the fact Patmon, like every other rookie, didn't get the benefit of any on-field work with the team this offseason due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Sirianni has been impressed with the way Patmon has developed throughout the first couple weeks of training camp.
"Yeah, he's done a nice job," Sirianni said. "I know he's a guy who is in great physical shape, who can run, he's big, he's strong, he can run — he can run all day. … He definitely has the body to be a big-time wide receiver."
Patmon has seemingly made at least one big catch in the Colts' last three or four practices, and he's doing it in a variety of ways — and making a case for one of the team's final couple spots at wide receiver heading into the start of the regular season.
"It's been nice to get him some of the catches on these in-cuts. I know we had a big (play) to him today. He definitely has the body to do that, the type of body we look for on that. And he's made some plays outside of the numbers that's been really nice to see."
» Danny Pinter had an especially strong scrimmage performance Monday: By now we know all about Pinter's ability to adjust to new positions; he started out at tight end at Ball State, moved to right tackle by his junior season and was one of the nation's top run blockers last year as a senior, according to Pro Football Focus.
The Colts are keeping that theme going for Pinter, who has now moved inside to guard and is also getting a good amount of reps at center.
After reviewing the film from Monday's scrimmage at Lucas Oil Stadium, Sirianni said he came away impressed with the 2020 fifth-round pick's performance in a number of areas.
"I think you just see Danny get a little bit better each day," Sirianni said. "I thought he had a great scrimmage the other day; he showed an ability to get to the second level, played multiple positions, showed the ability to get some reaches on a nose (tackle) when he was playing center. He had a great day, and (I'm) really excited about that."
Sirianni said Pinter's work ethic, matched with the teachers around him, should accelerate his growth process as a rookie.
"He's got great teachers — not good, but great teachers — of teaching fundamentals in Coach (Chris) Strausser and Coach Klayton Adams," Sirianni said. "And then he's got guys that are in front of him that really care about the development of other players. I see Quenton Nelson stay after with him, and that's a testament to Quenton just being a good teammate.
"So really pleased, and a lot of credit to Chris Ballard and his staff, of evaluating (Pinter) and getting him in here, because I'm really pleased that we have Danny to add to the depth of our offensive line."
