WESTFIELD, Ind. — Charvarius Ward Sr. is used to playing defense, so when his son reached for the mic Thursday during his post-practice news conference, the Indianapolis Colts cornerback quickly swiped his hand away. A smile flashed across Ward’s face as he held Charvarius Jr., with his fiancée (Junior’s mom) just a few feet away.
Months ago, Ward couldn’t envision that cute moment as he contemplated his football future.
“I was probably like 85 percent sure I was gonna retire,” Ward said. “But I found a different ‘why,’ a different purpose. Doing it for Junior (my son), doing it for my daughter, Amani. They bring me joy. … They put me in like a very emotional mental state to come out here and play.”
“It felt like I belong out here. I was probably like 85% sure I was gonna retire. But I found a different ‘why,’ a different purpose. Doing it for Jr., doing it for Amani, my daughter (who passed away). They bring me joy. …” pic.twitter.com/2T20KMzMV0
Ward’s daughter, Amani, died in October 2024 due to heart issues, yet he still talks about her in the present. He’s been very candid about navigating her death, even admitting in the spring that during last year’s training camp, his mind and heart weren’t really into football. His struggles were only compounded by suffering three concussions in his first season with the Colts. The trauma, on and off the field, made him think about walking away from the game.
“You can talk to my girl; you can talk to my mom; you can talk to my agent,” Ward said. “I was pretty sure I was done.”
Ward said in the spring that he’s talked to professional therapists to help him better cope with the loss of his daughter. But from a football perspective, he added Thursday that it wasn’t until he started training again that his “spirit was lifted and boosted” enough for him to return to the field.
The flashes Ward has displayed throughout the Colts’ first two training camp practices have been exciting for a defense that needs Ward at the peak of his powers. The 2023 second-team All-Pro, who said he’s wearing a “new-and-improved” helmet and will consider wearing a Guardian Cap as well, has been stifling in coverage alongside fellow outside cornerback Sauce Gardner. On Tuesday, the two produced pass breakups on back-to-back plays, which Ward warned was only a glimpse of their potential.
“Honestly, man, we’re two of the best in the world,” Ward said. “I don’t really want to make any crazy predictions, but I feel like we can be the deepest and the best secondary in the league.”
Daniel Jones is back on the field after Achilles surgery
James Boyd
Colts defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo praised Ward and Gardner, a two-time first-team All-Pro, as proven playmakers in the secondary, and Ward is eager to prove himself again. The 30-year-old, who went undrafted in 2018, said he’s already accomplished all he dreamed of in the NFL by securing two life-changing contracts and winning the Super Bowl with the Kansas City Chiefs in 2020. Now, after being limited to a career-low seven games last year due to repeated concussions, Ward said his goal is to play free and fearlessly.
“I’m not worried about giving up a touchdown, because I went through the worst stuff imaginable that anybody can go through — losing a child,” Ward said. “That was bad. Giving up a touchdown, giving up a catch, that’s not bad to me anymore. I feel like I have nothing to lose anymore, so (I) just go out (there) and have fun and ball out.”
With his first pick
Daniel Jones took all of the first-team QB reps for the second straight day. The veteran was sharp for the most part, completing 7 of 9 passes in 11-on-11 drills. However, he was intercepted by linebacker Austin Ajiake. As Jones rolled to his right, he faced heavy pressure from defensive end Laiatu Latu, who likely would’ve sacked him in a real game. After Latu eased up, Jones tried to sneak a pass in near the sideline, but Ajiake made him pay by jumping the route and picking off the pass.
Backup quarterbacks Riley Leonard and Anthony Richardson Sr. continued splitting reps, but they flip-flopped Thursday. Leonard was the first to step in behind Jones after Richardson went first Wednesday. Leonard finished 4-for-5 passing Thursday while Richardson was 3-for-4. Cornerback Cameron Mitchell picked off Richardson during seven-on-sevens after throwing a pass that was slightly high to rookie wide receiver Deion Burks. The ball went through Burks’ hands and probably should’ve been caught, but the miscue led to an easy interception for Mitchell.
Wohler and Walley’s starting reps
Second-year defensive backs Hunter Wohler and Justin Walley didn’t play last year due to a Lisfranc injury and torn ACL, respectively, but they’ve already appeared to make up for lost time. The two have played primarily with the first-team defense through the first two days of camp. Wohler has started at strong safety opposite of free safety Cam Bynum, while Walley has manned the slot.
Anarumo said no one should read too much into Wohler, a 2025 seventh-round pick, playing first-string reps over rookie second-round pick A.J. Haulcy. The plan is to “roll certain guys (on) certain days,” the coordinator explained, so Haulcy will likely get a shot with the starters soon. Anarumo was much more bullish on Walley, a 2025 third-round pick, who’s poised to replace 2021 Pro Bowler Kenny Moore II as the team’s top nickelback.
“Walley’s picked up where he left off last year,” Anarumo said. “I’m a big Walley fan.”
A few more nuggets
• Rookie fourth-round pick Bryce Boettcher continues to take starting linebacker reps in the absence of rookie second-round pick CJ Allen (calf).
• Defensive tackle DeForest Buckner (neck surgery) has only taken part in individual drills so far as he gets reacclimated to practice.
• Wide receiver Alec Pierce (left ankle surgery) spent time on the sideline talking to his position coach/Colts legend, Reggie Wayne. The two briefly played catch together for the second straight day, only throwing stationary passes from about 5 yards apart. Notably, Pierce is no longer walking with a limp he had in the spring. Colts general manager Chris Ballard said Tuesday that his team’s top wideout is one or two weeks away from practicing.
Cameron Norrie’s resurgent form continued as he overpowered Bernard Tomic in just 50 minutes to progress to the semi-finals of the Los Cabos Open in Mexico.
Fifth-seed Norrie won 12 straight games to defeat his Australian opponent 6-1 6-0 and set up a semi-final meeting with defending champion Denis Shapovalov.
The British number two travelled to Mexico on a run of six consecutive defeats, having not won a match since April, but has put together a run of three successive straight-set victories.
He defeated Aleksandar Kovacevic comfortably in the first round before recovering from 3-0 down in the first set to beat James Duckworth in the second round.
“I’m pleased with the result. I was very solid, I returned well, I made a lot of tough balls when I needed to, and I kept him moving,” said Norrie.
“I enjoyed the match, and it’s nice to go to bed a little bit earlier.”
The other semi-final will be contested by Hong Kong’s Coleman Wong and Frenchman Arthur Gea, both of whom are ATP Tour semi-final debutants.
Tomic, 33, who reached the main draw as a lucky loser from qualifying, held serve in the opening game of the match against Norrie but then lost the rest.
Norrie said it had taken him a while to get his confidence back following his run of losses, adding he had also “overtrained a little bit” before his first-round exit at the French Open in May.
“To get a win here meant a lot,” he said. “I took a lot of confidence from that and I was just able to play, not thinking about too much, just enjoying myself,”
In the Washington Open, top seed Jessica Pegula overcame a slow start to beat Poland’s Magdalena Frech 3-6 6-3 6-0 in the second round on Thursday.
American Pegula, 32, saved five of seven break points on her own serve before sealing victory, and will face fifth seed Anna Kalinskaya of Russia in the quarter-finals of the WTA 500 event on Friday.
Second seed Elina Svitolina also booked her place in the quarter-finals with a 7-6 (7-4) 6-4 win over Uzbekistan’s Polina Kudermetova.
Alex de Minaur vs. Brandon Nakashima, 2 p.m. ET (Quarterfinal)
Taylor Fritz vs. Alex Michelsen, 3:10 p.m. ET (Quarterfinal)
Rafael Jodar vs. Lorenzo Musetti, 6 p.m. ET (Quarterfinal)
Alejandro Tabilo vs. Ben Shelton, 8 p.m. ET (Quarterfinal)
Citi Open odds
Taylor Fritz: +220
Ben Shelton: +350
Alex de Minaur: +400
Rafael Jodar: +400
Alex Michelsen: +1100
Brandon Nakashima: +1200
Lorenzo Musetti: +1200
Alejandro Tabilo: +2200
This watch guide was created using technology provided by Data Skrive.
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Photo: Clive Brunskill, Carl De Souza, Filipe Amorim, Valery Hache / Getty Images
While George and his team-mates are not short of experience, with hundreds of international caps and English Prem games between them, on the cricket pitch it is, of course, a different story compared to their opponents.
However, the rugby squad do have some experience to call upon.
Daly represented Surrey as a teenager and played for England at age-grade level, while Earl similarly played for Kent as an under-15.
“They’re both very handy so at least we’ll get some runs on the board and then we’ll have to scramble around a bit,” George, 35, said.
As for what kind of player George will be? “Like a Daren Sammy [former West Indies T20 World Cup-winning captain] type role, I would not bowl and I’d bat at nine or 10 and just be there for morale,” he said.
“I’m an old man now but I used to play a lot of cricket back when I was at school.”
Gregory, who is Somerset’s all-time leading T20 wicket-taker, is happy the game is being played on his turf rather than the other way around and in a rugby match.
“A lot of our lads are excited to see the rugby boys in action and it will be nice to put them under a bit of pressure rather than it being in a rugby game, because that could be a little bit messy,” he said.
The decision to support the MND Association was also an easy one for both Gregory and George, with former players in both rugby and cricket having been diagnosed with the disease in recent years.
MND is a neurological condition which affects the brain and spinal cord, and can affect a person’s ability to talk, walk and breathe.
Former England and Gloucestershire fast bowler David ‘Syd’ Lawrence died in 2025, having been diagnosed with MND the year previously.
Doddie Weir, the former Scotland lock, died in 2022, six years after being diagnosed with MND, and having raised millions of pounds and awareness to combat the disease, while former Gloucester lock Ed Slater and former England captain Lewis Moody both live with MND.
“It’s a horrible disease and that’s why the rugby and the cricket communities are very similar, there’s a lot of crossover between the two,” George said.
“We look after our own and we want to try to do everything we can to raise as much awareness and hopefully find a cure.”
