Reggie Wayne: A Few More Yards to Gain for Colts

Just 511 receiving yards, that’s the amount separating Colts’ 14-year veteran Reggie Wayne from becoming the all-time leading receiver in Indianapolis (also Baltimore) Colts’ Franchise History. Currently, Wayne stands #2 on the Colts’ all-time career receiving yards list at 14,070 career receiving yards. Of course, #1 is being held by Colts’ future Hall of Famer Marvin Harrison, who is on top with 14,580 career receiving yards, playing all 13 of his seasons in horseshoe blue.

To topple Harrison on the Colts’ all-time receiving mountain, Wayne will need to average 73 receiving yards per game in the next 7 games left of this season. A task that is hardly insurmountable given QB Andrew Luck and the Colts’ prolific passing offense.

For Wayne, it’s been about consistency and longevity. While some of his wide receiver contemporaries like Randy Moss and Chad Johnson may have had more dominant individual seasons, as well as off-the-field flare-ups, it’s Wayne that’s just been consistently consistent throughout his 14 seasons with the Colts. There’s something to be said for that. As it stands, he’s one of last few wide receivers of his era still playing, other than the Baltimore Ravens’ Steve Smith.

Wayne has always taken a workmanlike approach to the game of football, even showing up to Colts’ training camp in the past with a construction hardhat. He may not have made the off-the-field noise as some of his past wide receiver contemporaries, rather he saved it all for the field. Where it really matters, to the tune of 1,048 receptions for 14,070 receiving yards and 82 touchdowns. He currently sits 8th on the NFL’s all-time career receiving yards list.

For the first 8 seasons of his NFL career, he was often overshadowed on his own team by the aforementioned Marvin Harrison. Unlike Harrison though, Wayne has taken an active leadership approach with the Indianapolis Colts, particularly with T.Y. Hilton and the offense’s younger players:

“He’s always there, no matter what,” Hilton says of Wayne. “Andrew (Luck) trusts him, and we all trust him. He’s been here the longest and he knows the ropes. He knows pretty much every defense. He’s a great guy.”

“For me to be here now, playing with Reggie … the things I can learn from him and grow … I call him my big brother. He’s always there for me, always looking after me. Whenever I get a chance, I make sure to ask him any question that I have. With Andrew, me and Reggie, we have that same aspect that we can be good like they were. So that’s what we look forward to.”

It’s a stark contrast to the comments made by Reggie Wayne in a sit-down with Sports Illustrated’s Don Banks in February of 2010, regarding his lack of a personal relationship with the elder Marvin Harrison:

“Our lockers were next to each other and we very seldom talked then. It’s not like we were text message buddies in eight years. So I kind of figured it’d be that way. You’ve just got to understand his character. I think that’s just him,” said Wayne, who once played in No. 88’s shadow. “He’s to himself. He has a lonely soul. He’s anti-social. That’s what makes him. If you saw him talking to the media all of a sudden, that’s an imposter. That’s not him. He’ll keep the same makeup that he’s had since day one, and I guess that’s what works for him.”

In fact, one could make a strong argument of whether Reggie Wayne has been more instrumental in Indianapolis Colts’ history than his former legendary receiving counterpart, #88. However, that’s really neither for here nor there.

Quite frankly, it’s easy to forget that the Indianapolis Colts almost lost Reggie Wayne to the New England Patriots in March of 2012, as the team was initially more interested in re-signing the younger Pierre Garcon as a free agent, who left for greener pastures more money to the Washington Redskins.

From a leadership and production standpoint, it would have been a critical blow to QB Andrew Luck and the Colts’ budding young offense these past few seasons.

While he may have lost a step coming back from ACL surgery this season, he’s still the offense’s security blanket, the reliable set of hands that Luck can target on crucial 3rd downs and key moments of the game. He’s both one of the Indianapolis Colts and NFL’s all-time receiving greats.

For Wayne, simply put, what’s a few more yards in a renowned career that is already littered with them?


(naptownfinest.com)