ANDERSON, Ind. —Ryan Kelly will have to wait at least one more week before making his much-anticipated professional debut.
Indianapolis Colts head coach Chuck Pagano confirmed Friday afternoon that Kelly — who sat out four-plus days of practice this week after suffering a minor shoulder injury — will not play in Sunday night's preseason opener against the Green Bay Packers in Canton, Ohio.
Kelly was the only player confirmed out against the Packers by Pagano on Friday
Likely taking Kelly's spot as the starting center along the offensive line on Sunday will be third-year veteran Jonotthan Harrison, who took most of the first-team reps during Kelly's absence in practices this week
Harrison has started 19 games at center for the Colts the last two seasons, including the last nine games of the 2015 season
Kelly was one of several players who sat out Friday's training camp practice at Anderson University, a list that included wide receivers Marcus Leak and Josh Boyce, cornerbacks D'Joun Smith and Tevin Mitchel, guard Hugh Thornton, tackle/guard Joe Reitz, defensive end Kendall Langford, defensive tackle Arthur Jones and outside linebacker Robert Mathis
Pagano said most of those players are considered "day-to-day" with various injuries, but confirmed Mathis' absence on Friday was a "rest day" for the 14-year veteran
Pagano said most of the players sitting out want to play in Sunday night's game, but it will be a game-time decision mostly based on the risk of that particular player
"If they're nicked up — again, I listen to our docs, listen to our trainers — if there's any risk, we're not going to put them out there," he said
With Reitz — who suffered an injury halfway through Thursday's practice session — sitting out of practice, rookie Joe Haeg was seen getting a majority of the reps as the first-team right tackle the past two days
Haeg — a 6-foot-6, 304-pound North Dakota State product — was selected by the Colts in the fifth round of this year's NFL Draft
Playing timePagano said he hasn't yet decided how much time the first-team offense will play together Sunday night
"I don't know," he said. "I'm going to go with my gut.
Included in that group, obviously, is starting quarterback Andrew Luck. While reports out of Green Bay indicate the Packers will likely sit their starter, Aaron Rodgers, Pagano said there's still a chance he may decide to do the same with Luck
"I may wake up Sunday morning and (decide Luck) may not play," Pagano said with a smile. "Maybe he will. I don't know. We'll see."
