With 200th game, Indianapolis Colts' Reggie Wayne joins exclusive club

INDIANAPOLIS - Peyton Manning. John Unitas. Come Sunday afternoon, Reggie Wayne makes it a threesome.

"That's good company," the Indianapolis Colts veteran wide receiver said. "It's exciting, man.

"Hopefully after it's over with, get a W …  and I can celebrate in style."

The topic of discussion was Wayne being on the verge of reaching yet another milestone on an NFL journey that began in 2001. 

He’ll make his 200th regular-season appearance Sunday against the Tennessee Titans at Lucas Oil Stadium.

The only Colts players who have played more are Manning (208) and Unitas (206).

"It means that I've played a lot of games," Wayne replied when asked the significance of reaching 200. "You want to get 200 more. You want to play as much as you can. It's a credit to my strength coaches just to keep me healthy, giving me the right workouts to keep my body right.

"Hopefully the 200th game will be the best one yet."

Wayne would have put No. 200 behind him in 2013, but his pursuit was put on hold when he suffered a season-ending knee injury Oct. 20 against Denver. It snapped a streak of 189 consecutive appearances, which was the NFL's longest active streak among receivers.

Being there, Wayne insisted, always has been paramount.

"Absolutely. I really feel like being able to answer that bell each week, that's what it's all about," he said. "Getting the respect from my teammates, knowing that I’ll be there.

"That's bigger than touchdowns. That's bigger than catches. That's bigger than yards. At the end of the day when it's all said and done, I want that respect of my teammates, let them know I was there and I was a good teammate."

Along with being on the verge of his 200th game, Wayne needs three catches to move past Isaac Bruce (1,029) into the No. 7 spot all-time and 24 yards to move past Henry Ellard (13,777) into the No. 10 spot.

Coach Chuck Pagano has become numb to Wayne's continued excellence.

"…if you tell about milestones or somebody else tells me about the numbers, the number of games he's gone with three or more catches, all those type of things, am I shocked? No," he said. "He's the consummate pro. You can't have enough guys like Reggie in your locker room."


(theindychannel.com)