For the past week, we've been running a contest here at Colts Authority.

The best Colts themed Haiku will win a football autographed by Andrew Luck courtesy of Quaker Oats.

The Quaker Oats Company is the official hot cereal sponsor of the National Football League, and throughout the relationship, Quaker and the NFL will team up in an effort to help families live healthier lifestyles through nourishing foods and physical activity, complementing the goals of NFL PLAY 60. Indianapolis Colts QB Andrew Luck makes it a priority to eat a hearty breakfast, like Quaker oatmeal, as part of his morning routine to fuel up for the day and recently collaborated with Quaker at the NFL PLAY 60 Youth Football Festival to help motivate young athletes to be active and choose wholesome foods.

We encouraged readers to go to  Facebook and give Quaker Oats a 'like', then come back here to enter a haiku in the comments.

We had more than 200 total poems entered, and most of them were outstanding. no comments

The Colts have cut TE Brody Eldridge, a 2010 fifth round draft choice. Eldridge was largely a blocking tight end, catching only 14 receptions for 84 yards in 27 games. Nevertheless, it seemed like his role as a depth blocking tight end was fairly assured during the 2012 season. 

Eldridge was replaced by QB David Legree, a free agent quarterback out of Hampton University. 

This move is a little puzzling to me. Losing Eldridge is not a huge loss, and with the signing of Andre Smith earlier this week, the Colts were a little crowded at the tight end position. And, of course, the Colts could use another camp arm with Chandler Harnish being hurt. S

Still, Eldridge does have value as a blocking tight end, and while he would definitely be behind Coby Fleener and Dwayne Allen, he's actually played in games, unlike Smith, Kyle Miller, or Dominique Jones (all UDFAs or waiver pick ups). Apparently the coaches didn't see that him, however, or were possibly concerned about his injury history. Eldridge has had hand and rib injuries in the past, as well as knee surgery last summer, which Indy Star's Phil Wilson thinks he may never have fully recovered from. 

The Colts are now carrying five tight ends, with a combined zero snaps of experience.

It's been awhile.

I'd like to apologize to our readers for my lack of writing over the last two weeks, where school and work have kept me swamped. Fortunately, from here on out, I'll be able to provide consistent content all summer, with a focus on statistical and video analysis. 

In preparation for the summer, I'd like to let you know the type of studies I'll be looking at over the summer, and ask you guys (and gals) for suggestions and requests. 

First, I'll be doing some major statistical gathering, and plan on revamping the Colts Authority statistics page. The new page will include complete basic statistics for the 2009-2012 seasons, as well as tracking of advanced statistics such as DVOA, EPA, WPA, etc. from year to year (and week to week where possible). By gathering the team statistics in one place, we hope to make it easier for you, the reader and (presumably) Colts fan, to have accurate statistical information available to you. 

The Colts announced yesterday that they have signed four of their 2012 NFL Draft picks (all to four year deals), including: 

• Fifth round pick RB Vick Ballard
• Sixth round pick WR LaVon Brazill
• Seventh rounder LB Tim Fugger
• Mr. Irrelevant, QB Chandler Harnish

As you can see, all of these signings are of the late round picks, with OL Justin Anderson being the only pick in this group that has not been signed. It has also been reported that early fifth round pick Josh Chapman has been signed to a four-year deal, although this was not confirmed by the Colts. 

Other recent moves by the Colts include the release of CB Mike Holmes, who was on the practice squad last season for the majority of the season. He was put on the roster for the final four games, but was never active. 

Holmes was replaced by TE Andre Smith, who was on the roster for eight games for the Bears last season, but was also never active. 

Break out your poetry shoes, kids! It's time for an epic contest from Colts Authority and Quaker Oats.

The best Colts themed Haiku will win a football autographed by Andrew Luck courtesy of Quaker Oats.

The Quaker Oats Company is the official hot cereal sponsor of the National Football League, and throughout the relationship, Quaker and the NFL will team up in an effort to help families live healthier lifestyles through nourishing foods and physical activity, complementing the goals of NFL PLAY 60. Indianapolis Colts QB Andrew Luck makes it a priority to eat a hearty breakfast, like Quaker oatmeal, as part of his morning routine to fuel up for the day and recently collaborated with Quaker at the NFL PLAY 60 Youth Football Festival to help motivate young athletes to be active and choose wholesome foods.

So go to Facebook and give Quaker Oats a 'like', then come back here and enter a haiku in the comments.

The rules are as follows:

1. All entries must be entered in the comments below.

2. All entries must follow the 5-7-5 format of a good haiku. An example would be:

Bob: Interception!  (that's 5 syllables)

Marlin Jackson slides to turf (that's 7 syllables)

RCA erupts (5 more syllables)

3. All entries must be submitted by midnight on Friday.

4. I will judge the winner based on humor, emotion, awesomeness and adherence to proper form (FORM MATTERS!!!)

5. First prize will win an football autographed by Andrew Luck.

6. Second prize wins a Keep Calm Kerry On shirt (medium) and a copy of the 2006 Super Bowl program.

7. Third prize wins a a 2006 Super Bowl program.

8. Enter as many times as you wish.

Join Laura Calaway and Greg Cowan as they discuss the Colts Rookie Minicamp, Colts on a Plane, Kurt Warner v NFL, Saints Suspensions and more!

The Colts took Coby Fleener and Dwayne Allen in the second and third rounds of the 2012 draft, reviving what had long been an Indianapolis staple: the two tight end offense.

I thought it would be useful to look at a brief history of two tight ends in Indy, to see when it took hold and where it has gone in recent years.

Though Marcus Pollard and Ken Dilger pre-date Peyton Manning with the Colts, the actual history of two tight-ends is sparse before 1998.

In the pre-Peyton days, the Colts had two tight ends each pick up more than 100 yards in a season just four times. The most prolific duo was Kerry Cash and Charles Arbuckle in 1992, accounting for roughly 21% of the total passing offense and combining for 673 yards, the bulk of that by Cash. The first year Dilger and Pollard both had 100 yards receiving in the same season was 1997, with Pollard going for 116 and Dilger 380. That represented 16% of the Indianapolis passing yards.

In 1998, everything changed forever.

Heading into the 2012 offseason was extremely difficult for Indianapolis Colts fans. Owner Jim Irsay made hard decisions that marked the end of an era of Colts football. Gone were the team's legendary General Manager Bill Polian and his son Chris, gone was nearly the entire coaching staff, and gone was a large portion of the nucleus of a 2006 NFL Championship team -- of course all starting with Peyton Manning.

The impact on fan confidence was drastic. Younger fans I have spoken to have said, "It just doesn't seem like the Colts anymore." Frankly, they're right, it's not the Colts they knew anymore, which made it extremely important for Jim Irsay to find and hire a new general manager that had the football smarts, talent evaluation skills, and individual fortitude as a leader to quickly create a new identity for fans to connect with.

Reader jado825 wrote an excellent piece breaking down the 2011 schedule and game outcomes if Indianapolis had a solid quarterback in each respective game. While there is no way to predict forward or backward what would have actually happened with a new signal caller, and while jado825 admits that there are legitimate reasons to believe the Colts will struggle in 2012, his insights are thought provoking and worthy of discussion. We've moved it to the front page.

It seems to be common consensus that the Colts won't be contenders this year. Many assert that Andrew Luck is going to need a season to settle down, the defense has lots of problems, and that a team doesn't just go from 2-14 to 10-6 in one year while fielding a rookie-filled team.

But what if we're wrong? What if the Colts do, in fact, have what it takes to contend?

Compiled for your Twittering pleasure are the currently known Twitter handles for the newest additions to the Colts team.  If you know of others, please do not hesitate to post a comment: