Ballard started off his press conference announcing that head coach Frank Reich tested positive for COVID-19 and that he is in quarantine. Reich is fully vaccinated but will be away from the team as he goes through the protocol.

“So, Frank has tested positive. He’s fully vaccinated. The good news is no symptoms. There are no symptoms,” Ballard said. “I’m not going to give you a timeline on when he is going to be back. Our protocols are pretty similar, but we are going to be careful, we’re going to be safe. When he is back, he’s back but the good news is he doesn’t have any symptoms and he’s feeling good. When you hear some of the stories about people that are not vaccinated and who are getting sick, the difference is dramatic between the two. So we keep moving forward. It sucks, he’s going to miss the first – I think the earliest he can be back is Monday but we’ll see.”

Ballard said one other staff member also tested positive and will be in quarantine. In the meantime, the Colts won’t be naming an interim head coach.

“We’re not going to name an interim coach. Bubba (Ventrone) will handle some things at practice, but look, between Marcus (Brady), Flus (Matt Eberflus) and Bubba, we’ll split up some responsibilities,” Ballard said.

Reich will still be conducting Zoom meetings and will still be involved during his quarantine.

The Colts were reported to be one of the teams below the 50% mark when it comes to vaccination rate, but it seems that number may be on the rise. Ballard said the team has over a 60% rate among players with at least one vaccination shot.

The numbers in the reports only account for players who are fully vaccinated.

“We’re above 60 percent with at least one shot,” Ballard said.

That’s encouraging given the fact that other teams will have a competitive advantage over the Colts if they have a higher rate of vaccinations. It’s hard to see the Colts approaching a fully vaccinated squad simply given the divide among the players when it comes to this decision.

But Ballard is making it clear that this won’t be an issue in terms of players disrespecting each other over their decisions.

“No, no. I think they respect each other. They understand that – that’s the beautiful thing about a locker room, there is going to be differences,” Ballard said. “We’ve had meetings on this. We had a long meeting a couple weeks ago and talked and we let everybody talk – guys that are vaccinated guys and guys that are not vaccinated – and let them hear each other out on why. We respect each other’s opinions but saying that, we also understand that we have to protect each other.”

This will certainly be a storyline to watch throughout the season depending on the rate at which the Colts are vaccinated, but it at least seems the number will be higher when the season starts.

Ballard touched on a few injury updates since the last time the team was together during the spring. First, linebacker Darius Leonard will miss the start of training camp after he underwent an ankle procedure in June.

The recovery isn’t considered long-term and Ballard isn’t concerned with the issue at all.

“You won’t see Darius (Leonard) early. He had a little procedure on his ankle, but nothing major. We’ll monitor him here early just to make sure to take care of him,” said Ballard. “He’s a vet going into his fourth year, he knows how to play. He’ll be ready. Darius works. He’s in great shape right now but we’ll monitor him as we go forward.”

On the positive side, Ballard told the media that all three of Marlon Mack (Achilles), Parris Campbell (knee) and Kemoko Turay (ankle) are all set for full participation in training camp.

“Marlon Mack, (Kemoko) Turay and Parris Campbell will all be good to go. We’ll monitor them during camp but they will all be good to go,” Ballard said.

Both Mack and Campbell missed the majority of the season due to their injuries while Turay played during the second half of the season. He didn’t seem right, though, and had a clean-up procedure during the offseason.

The Colts added left tackle Eric Fisher to the PUP list and rookie Dayo Odeyingbo to the NFI list, both with an Achilles injury sustained around the same time in January.

Ballard wouldn’t put a timeline for either player when it comes to a return.

“Eric (Fisher) and Dayo (Odeyingbo) both started the season on PUP and NFI. They’re both doing well, both rehabbing really well – no timeline on either one of them but we are encouraged about where they’re at and where they’re going. They’re working really hard and we will let it play out as it goes,” Ballard said.

The good news about being put on these lists is that they can come off of it whenever they are ready.

We all have certain positions we will be keeping an eye on during training camp. I highlighted my predictions for the winners of the big battles throughout the roster entering training camp.

Ballard has his eyes on a few positions as well.

“Defensive line, defensive end, backup defensive tackle, there’s going to be some good battles there. Offensive line, the depth, the left tackle spot, especially when (Eric) Fisher’s not here. Who is going to be the guy?” Ballard said. “I think there will be some interesting battles at wideout. More than I think people realize. We have some good young players. It will be good for everybody to see this young talented group we have.”

Along with those spots, the Colts will have a battle at kicker between Rodrigo Blankenship and Eddy Pineiro.

“Yeah. Look, Rod (Rodrigo Blankenship) had a great year last year, but iron sharpens iron and Eddy (Pineiro) is talented,” said Ballard. “Eddy Pineiro is very talented so that will be fun to watch. I think they’ll make each other better.”

An interesting nugget that might be overlooked is that Ballard said vaccinations won’t play a part when it comes to roster construction. Of course, most coaches and executives would say that, but we tend to believe Ballard given how genuine he’s been throughout his tenure.

“No, we want to win. Look, whoever wins the job on the field, that’s who’s making the team,” Ballard said. “I’m not going to take a player that just because he’s vaccinated, hadn’t won the job. What message are you sending to your locker room? Are you giving yourself the best chance to win on Sunday?”