Colts conclude three day mini-camp

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (WLFI) - It was a great day to conclude mini-camp for the Indianapolis Colts on Thursday afternoon as they had their final practice.

The three-day mini-camp concluded on Thursday and now the players will receive a six-week break before re-convening on July 28 for training camp at Anderson University.

Thursday’s practice saw a lot of red zone action involving 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 drills.

Defensively, newly signed cornerback Cassius Vaughn had a pair of impressive pass breakups for a unit that seemed very lively in the team’s final practice of the month.

“The last couple of practices, especially in the mini-camp, they started to get into that groove where they were familiar with it, they understood the blocking schemes, they understood the pass protections and they started feeling a little bit more comfortable in what they were doing across the board,” defensive coordinator Greg Manusky said.

Following practice on Thursday, linebacker Pat Angerer talked about the importance of the last few weeks for the development of the entire team.

“We’ve been going pretty hard for a while,” Angerer said. “The voluntary workouts, we’ve all been here so these three days were our chance to see where we’re at. I think we’re coming around real nice. Obviously, there is work that needs to be done but I think we’re going in the right direction.”

Quarterback Andrew Luck had another productive day on the practice field and is continuing to catch the eye of his offensive coordinator Bruce Arians.

The 2012 season marks a return to Indianapolis for Arians as he has had a history of working with talented, young quarterbacks.

Even though Arians did not have OTAs with Luck, he has been more than impressed with the Stanford product.

“He’s so smart and has done so much work already that it’s really easy,” Arians said of Luck. “He just lets it flow. He gets it the first time around so it’s not hard at all. You just go out and play and get used to where your guys are.”

Some of the highlights of the 90-minute practice for Luck included a pair of touchdown catches by fellow rookie Coby Fleener.

It has been a busy last month for Fleener trying to balance two communications classes, but he has made the most of his opportunities on the playing field.

“It’s been a whirlwind,” Fleener said. “Not only are we trying to learn a whole new language as far as the playbook, but to go against some of the guys that are All-Pros and just veteran studs is an amazing thing.”

As the final horn blew to announce the end of mini-camp, head coach Chuck Pagano gathered his team at midfield to address them one final time as a group before training camp beings in six weeks.

“What I told the guys afterwards was that coming in as a new head coach, a first-timer, and having the participation, the leadership and the support of the building from the top down has been phenomenal,” Pagano said. “I thought we got a ton accomplished and I think we are ready to have a great training camp.”