Dwayne Allen now doubtful
The Indianapolis Colts are set to become more of a passing offense again after Vick Ballard’s season-ending injury, because the Colts justifiably don’t have faith in injury-prone running back Ahmad Bradshaw’s ability to stay healthy while shouldering a full load of carries. The way to beat the Miami Dolphins is by throwing the football on them, but it looks like the Colts will be without a pass-catching weapon, excellent blocker, and all-around really good tight end in Dwayne Allen.
Indianapolis Colts tight end Dwayne Allen (83) dives for yardage after a reception during the third quarter against the Jacksonville Jaguars at EverBank Field. Indianapolis defeated Jacksonville 27-10. Mandatory Credit: Douglas Jones-US PRESSWIRE
According to new Indianapolis Star beat writer Stephen Holder, Dwayne Allen has been downgraded from “questionable” to “doubtful”, and that’s definitely not good news for the Colts. Allen injured his hip against the Oakland Raiders last week, and the downgraded doesn’t come as too much of a surprise since Allen never practiced this week. But the interesting thing is the fact that the Colts decided to downgrade Allen to doubtful now instead of initially listing him doubtful. It probably means nothing, but I still find it interesting.
This puts more of a strain on Coby Fleener, and, if Allen is out, the Colts are set to lose a lot of blocking ability. The Miami Dolphins have an excellent trio of pass rushers in Cameron Wake, Olivier Vernon, and Dion Jordan, and Allen could have been a real asset by staying in to block to help out against those players. The Colts don’t exactly have the best offensive line, and Allen’s doubtful status means that Andrew Luck could be in for a tad bit more pressure.
Allen’s injury is great news for fantasy owners of T.Y. Hilton, who will get even more targets in a very favorable matchup against a Dolphins defense that lacks depth at corner.
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