MVN - Most Valuable Network

The long Rhodes home

Nothing captured my imagination more than hearing that the Colts plan to bring back Dominic Rhodes.

He’s a player I’ve had a love-hate relationship with. I admired Dom for filling in admirably during his rookie season for Edgerrin James. Then, the guy got hurt, suffering a knee injury of his own.

He bounced back, providing occasional relief for Edge. After James left for Arizona, the Colts drafted Joseph Addai. Though Addai was the big-money guy, the playmaker…Rhodes was deemed “the starter.” It was a label that rankled me during that season.

While Rhodes was the “starter” by name, when the Colts needed a big play, Addai usually came through. Then, something amazing happened to the Indianapolis Colts. They decided to pound the ball in the playoffs. In the postseason, the roles seemed reversed; while Addai was “the guy,” Rhodes was actually the guy. His performances in some of those playoff games are truly hard to forget, including his gutsy ground performance in the Super Bowl.

I entertained the thought, briefly, that the Colts would bring Rhodes back into their fold after he was released by the Raiders. I didn’t really think it would happen; it was the thought of a fan still punch-drunk from a Super Bowl championship two seasons ago. Through his own stupidity, Rhodes missed the first four games of the year last season after a run-in with the law. That in turn allowed other players to shine and Justin Fargas eventually became the starter. Dom wasn’t much of a factor with the Raiders after that.

It was pretty embarrassing when Rhodes was picked up for drinking and driving not long after the Super Bowl celebration. I think that episode helped convince management to let him go via free agency. If anything, re-signing him for $650,000 is a bargain by the wacky standards of professional athletes. After all, he ended up signing a typically extravagant free agent contract with the Raiders worth about $7.5 million. Rhodes now comes into a system he knows intimately. He’s with an organization that “discovered” him and gave him chances to excel.

He’ll provide consistency behind Addai. I bet this spells the end of “KK” (that’s Keith Kenton…er Kenton Keith) in a Colts uniform. I’m a little curious as to what this will mean for Mike Hart, the Colts’ rookie running back. If Addai and Rhodes split carries, will Hart get the chance to show us what he’s got?

This entry was posted on Thursday, May 8th, 2008 at 2:00 pm and is filed under Dominic Rhodes, Kenton Keith, Colts. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.