Colts to Continue Playing Donte Moncrief

Aug 28, 2014; Cincinnati, OH, USA; Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Donte Moncrief (10) against the Cincinnati Bengals at Paul Brown Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports

The Indianapolis Colts drafted wide receiver Donte Moncrief in the third round of the 2014 NFL Draft, and were hoping that he could step into a role with the offense immediately. He has great speed and elusiveness, and provides the Colts with another nightmare for opposing defenses to gameplan against. Moncrief has seen some playing time so far this season, but had an extended role last week against the Jacksonville Jaguars after T.Y. Hilton went down with injury.

According to Mike Wells of ESPN.com, the Colts will continue giving their rookie wide receiver playing time. Moncrief has caught six passes for 80 yards, but simply hasn’t seen too much action outside of last week. He caught five passes for 55 yards last week against the Jaguars alone, and showed the type of potential that the Colts saw in him when they drafted him.

It’s going to be very intriguing to see how the Colts fit him into their system more, especially if Hilton is able to come back this week. Andrew Luck loves quick passes under the middle, and that is how Moncrief has been getting the majority of his production. His speed makes it nearly impossible for opposing defenders to stay in front of him, and he has excellent hands to go along with his speed. Add in the ability that he has to make plays after the catch, and he looks like a complete all-around wide receiver with plenty of room to grow.

While the Colts were hoping that Moncrief would be able to burst onto the scene and earn playing time, they were fully expecting year to be a learning experience for him. He has forced their hand due to solid play and is now looking at getting meaningful time on the field. The Colts’ offense finally looked like the powerful unit that they were expected to be last week, and hopefully that will propel them in the coming weeks.

Indianapolis has a lot of talent at the wide receiver position, and Moncrief is going to have to make as much as possible out of his opportunities. Luck already has confidence in his rookie receiver, and it will be intriguing to see how many targets are thrown towards Moncrief. Needless to say, the next few weeks are going to be very fun for Colts fans to watch one of the most dynamic playmakers on the roster.