INDIANAPOLIS (AP) -Colts defensive tackle John McCargo is ready for a fresh start in Indianapolis – as soon as he passes the team physical.
The former first-round draft pick with a history of foot problems arrived in Indianapolis on Wednesday morning, one day after being traded from the Bills, but did not practice.
“We’ve just got to see how this physical thing goes,” McCargo said. “Or how this physical thing is going to go. So I’m just waiting on them.”
McCargo has no concerns about passing the physical.
Indy (3-2) traded what is believed to be a middle- to low-round draft pick to get a player they hope can shore up a leaky run defense. The Colts have already allowed four running backs to top 100 yards this season and rank 29th in the league against the run.
For McCargo, it’s a chance to jump-start his NFL career after struggling in Buffalo, where many considered him a first-round bust.
pected far more from the North Carolina State alum when they swung a draft-day trade with Chicago to move back into the first round and selected him 26th overall in 2006.
Things simply didn’t work out in western New York.
McCargo missed 11 games as a rookie because of a broken left foot – the same one he broke in college – and never quite fit in with the Bills defensive scheme. Doctors had to re-break the foot in the spring of 2007.
“I think it’s pretty simple,” Bills coach Dick Jauron said. “We thought it was in our best interest as a football team, and we actually thought it was in John’s best interest, too. We made the deal, and we move on from there.”
The Colts defense appears tailor-made for McCargo’s style.
While some believe he’s undersized, his best asset is speed – and that’s a combination Colts head coach Tony Dungy has been successful with before.
The new system could be just what McCargo needs to get going.
“That’s always the hope,” Dungy said. “There was a guy named (Randy) Moss that supposedly was not playing well some place and he did all right. We’ll see what happens.”
McCargo embraced the move, too, saying he needed a change.
hope everything goes pretty good.”
Should everything work out with the physical and McCargo practices this week, Dungy said he could make his Colts debut Sunday at Green Bay.
The trade also conjures images of a deadline deal Indy made in 2006 for Anthony McFarland, another defensive tackle. McFarland helped stabilize the Colts defense down the stretch and became a major contributor in the Colts’ run to the Super Bowl.
Could it could be deja vu for the Colts?
Maybe.
“He was a guy we had good grades on (coming out of college), and he happened to be available,” Dungy said. “It’s an area we could use some help. If he was playing great for them, obviously, we wouldn’t have him now. But we think he can fit well into this system, and we’re hoping a change of scenery is good for him.”
Add A Comment