This year’s training camp is going to provide Colts’ head coach Shane Steichen and offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter with their first extended look at tight end Jelani Woods.
“It’s a good time of year. We’re excited to watch Jelani,” said Cooter on Saturday.
Woods would miss the entire 2023 season dealing with hamstring injuries. Now fully healthy and a regular on the practice field during offseason programs and training camp, Woods is feeling good and ready to earn a spot as one of the “pivotal” members of this offense.
During Woods’ rookie year in 2022, he caught 25 passes for 312 yards with three touchdowns, with 50 percent of his targets coming between 10-19 yards downfield.
The Colts’ offensive coaching staff has, of course, dissected that tape to learn about what Woods does well and where he can improve. However, the truly valuable part of the evaluation process comes from watching Woods–or any player–in person.
“We’re excited about watching him do that and sort of learning a little bit more about him because we–you learn a lot off tape, and that’s a really important part of our business,” added Cooter, “but the value of training camp, out here practicing live against an opponent you know well–when he’s matchup up versus one of our safeties.
“We got a good feel for how that guy plays and how he’s going to defend him and we’ll see if Jelani can beat that guy on a pass route or maybe block a defensive end on a run play.”
At 6-7 – 253 pounds with 4.61 speed, Woods can be a matchup problem for opposing defenses in the passing game, particularly as someone who can stretch the middle of the field in Steichen’s RPO-heavy offense and in the red zone.
During Sunday’s practice, Woods was one of a few Colts’ pass-catchers to produce a big play in the passing game.
Woods will certainly be a factor in the passing game, with the coaching staff wanting to take advantage of the what he does well. However, at the tight end position, versatility is always at a premium, so throughout training camp, Woods and the other members of the tight end group will be asked to handle a variety of roles, including ones they may not be as accustomed to.
“We’re really excited to get him out there and let him play and let him–like we were talking about with the tight end position, gosh, let him try to do everything,” Cooter said, “and we’ll put the pads on, and we’re blocking, we’re running routes, we’re doing different things in protection. Jelani’s going to get a chance to do all of that.”
Having not only Woods but the other tight ends able to handle both passing game and run game responsibilities will add a layer of unpredictability to the offense. For example, if Woods can be relied upon in the run game or Mo Alie-Cox in the passing game, defenses won’t as easily be able to decipher pre-snap what’s coming based on the personnel or where players are lined up.
As Ballard acknowledged, there may not be a “superstar” in the Colts’ tight end room, but he does believe there are several viable options at that position, particularly with the variety of skill sets on the roster, allowing Steichen to really mix and match the tight end personnel based on the opponent and game-plan.