As NFL cracks down on training camp fights, Colts show a different way vs Falcons, Pats

WESTFIELD — Colts defensive end Jaylahn Tuimoloau shoved Falcons tackle Wanya Morris at one point in Thursday’s practice.

Morris took a pratfall, trying to draw a flag from the referees in attendance.

But that was the entire extent of the “scuffle,” and it was emblematic of the other dust-ups between the Colts and Falcons in two days of joint practices at Grand Park this week. When the Colts took on the Patriots in Foxborough, Mass., last week, the only kerfuffle was a brief blowup involving Indianapolis defensive end Durell Nchami in a kicking period.

The Colts have held at least two joint practices in every one of Shane Steichen’s four seasons in Indianapolis, and under Steichen’s leadership, the Colts have been able to avoid the sort of practice-altering explosion that happened between the Saints and Cowboys in Oxnard, Calif., earlier this week. While the Colts and Falcons were practicing in Grand Park on Thursday, the news broke that the NFL is fining both New Orleans and Dallas $500,000 for that practice, a stiff penalty meant to curb teams from turning joint practices into embarrassing exhibitions of mixed martial arts.

Indianapolis would rather get work done.

“You don’t want to be a part of that, where it just breaks out into full brawl and then you can’t practice,” Steichen said. “We had a couple down there. We split them up, and we got right back to work.”

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Joint practices carry a lot of weight for Steichen.

The Colts head coach always schedules multiple joint practices because it’s a way to keep the intensity high in training camp as the dog days of August start to linger. Beyond that, joint practices offer the Colts coaching staff a chance to test its starters against another team’s No. 1 unit under a controlled environment, limiting the risk of injury that comes in a preseason game.

But a team can only reap those benefits if it actually gets to practice against an unfamiliar opponent.

“Yeah, I mean, we go over the practice reminders every day in the team meeting,” Steichen said. “At the end, it’s just no fighting, guys. We want a clean practice. We’re here to get better and take care of each other. We don’t need that type of mess going on out there.”

That doesn’t mean the Colts back down.

Josh Downs finished off his joint practice in New England by tossing a little trash talk towards Patriots slot cornerback Marcus Jones after a Downs touchdown catch. Tuimoloau’s shove seemed to come at the end of a long exchange with Atlanta‘s offensive line.

The key is keeping it from going any further.

“We’re here to get better, we’re here to play football,” Colts defensive tackle Colby Wooden said. “Tempers are going to flare, yeah, but you’ve got to respect your counterpart. It’s give and take. … Nobody’s trying to fight. It’s hot and humid out here, we get all these pads on. … Fight between the whistle. It’s that simple.”