One of the biggest training camp battles on display this week for the Indianapolis Colts has taken place at left tackle between veteran Matt Pryor and rookie Bernhard Raimann.
As general manager Chris Ballard said all the way back in the spring, Pryor has truly been getting the first crack at winning the starting left tackle role along the offensive line.
In fact, Pryor has seen every rep at left tackle with the first-team offense since the Colts opened camp officially on Thursday with their first practice, according to Kevin Bowen of 1070 The Fan.
We are just two practices in, but Matt Pryor has taken every starting rep at left tackle. With full pads coming on Saturday, the left tackle competition (between Pryor and rookie Bernhard Raimann) will be evaluated even closer.
While the pads won’t come on until next week (Bowen issued a correction later), the Colts are still in the early stages of finding their new left tackle. The physical part of training camp when the pads are on will help decide the winner.
Furthermore, the Colts are keeping an eye on how the rest of the unit responds when a certain player is lined up on the blindside. Ballard mentioned in his pre-training camp press conference that chemistry will play a vital role in determining the starter.
Pryor hasn’t had a ton of experience at left tackle, but he has shown promise during the reps he’s had at that spot. It wouldn’t be a surprise if he was starter going into the preseason opener on Aug. 13 against the Buffalo Bills.
The Colts still have high expectations for Raimann, one of their three third-round picks in the 2022 draft. But he’s been working mostly on the second-team offense throughout the spring practices and training camp.
There’s still a long way to go until this spot is determined, but Pryor certainly has the upper hand right now.
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