Displaying items by tag: Indianapolis Colts

Sam and Brad caught up with Doug Dieken of the Cleveland Browns Radio Network to talk some football on the Sam and Brad Show. 

If you were looking to kick off the NFL season last night, you weren't going to find in Canton. The NFL was forced to cancel Sunday night's Hall of Fame game due to poor field conditions.

The main problem was reportedly the wrong type of paint used to paint logos on the field; it quickly became more like a glob of tar. Players also noted parts of the field were "like cement" and didn't have the proper shock-absorbing layer of rubber chips to help cushion hits to the ground, a must for tackle football on artificial turf.

Fans immediately began lining up at customer service tents for refunds.

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(National Football League) The official return of pro football will have to wait another four days. The NFL canceled Sunday night's Hall of Fame game because of poor field conditions. The Green Bay Packers and Indianapolis Colts are headed back home.

"I was notified at about 5:30 that there was a problem at midfield and in the end zones with some of the painting that it was kind of congealing and rubberized, which meant players might slip on it," Pro Football Hall of Fame president David Baker (seen at left, after making the cancellation announcement)  told NFL Media's Steve Wyche. "The folks with the field tried to remediate that by dropping some other pellets but after talking to the coaches and staff for both the Packers and the Colts, there was a concern they might be able to remediate it but they would have to do something underneath the surface.

"We think we could make it playable, that it might be playable now but if there is any concern, anything in the minds of players we want to err on the side of player safety. This is the Pro Football Hall of Fame. You've heard me many, many times talk about our values of commitment, integrity, courage, respect, and excellence. If we don't have that integrity to respect our players and respect their safety, then we shouldn't be doing this job. It was a difficult decision to make. ... But in some respects, it was an easy, ethical decision.

"When the field was put down -- this was a brand-new field that had only been used one year at the Superdome in New Orleans -- when it came here, it passed the safety tests. This morning when the cover was taken off, it passed the safety tests then. But I think the concerns were really about the painting and the rubberized surface."

The NFL and NFLPA issued the following statement:

"Due to safety concerns with the condition of the playing surface in Canton, tonight's game between the Indianapolis Colts and Green Bay Packers has been cancelled. We are very disappointed for our fans, but player safety is our primary concern, and as a result, we could not play an NFL game on this field tonight."

The embarrassing news casts a pall on an otherwise great weekend. Sunday's game wasn't going to be much of a regular season preview, although it provides a chance for end-of-the-roster plays to impress coaches and make the team. Undrafted free agent Joe Callahan was expected to start at quarterback for the Packers. Starters usually play a series or two at most in the first preseason game.

"It sucks, but the conditions of the field weren't safe for any player on either roster," veteran Colts linebacker D'Qwell Jackson told NFL Media columnist Michael Silver.

More than anything, this is a huge letdown for the crowd in Ohio. This weekend in Canton proved to be a pilgrimage for Packers fans and now it has been cut short.

Two key members of the Indianapolis Colts organization will be enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame this weekend in Canton, and one former Colt offered his thoughts on the men he took the gridiron with.

Former Colts linebacker Gary Brackett joined the Brad Russell show to talk about Tony Dungy and Marvin Harrison being inducted into football's greatest fraternity and what he's doing after a solid 9-year career in pro football.

Gary said that playing for Coach Dungy was a truly special time in his life.

"He had very good values and morals as a coach," Brackett said. "He was very mild mannered, but very prepared and effective, and we always had a great game plan for whoever we were playing."

Brackett helped the Colts win Super Bowl XLI over the Chicago Bears. He came into the league with the Colts in 2003. 

Now after retiring from pro football in 2011, Gary is involved with his restaurants and the Gary Brackett Impact Foundation.