By David HaughMIAMI GARDENS, Fla. -- Like the rest of football America, Colts backup defensive end Ervin Baldwin expects Pro Bowl pass-rusher Dwight Freeney to play Sunday against the Saints.
But Baldwin admits he has let his mind wander in case Freeney doesn't because of an injured ankle. It's called visualization.
"I'm sure I may get an opportunity to go out and play if Dwight can't go -- but I know he's going to play -- and if I do I am confident I will make the most of it," Baldwin said.
He had that same type of confidence in Chicago after the Bears took him in the seventh round of the 2008 NFL draft. But a logjam at the position prevented Baldwin, an undersized but speedy pass-rusher at 6-foot-2 and 270, from ever getting the chance. He was one of the Bears' final cuts last September, and when the door to Halas Hall closed the one in Indianapolis opened.
Photo: Former Bears draftee Ervin Baldwin tries to tackle the Jets' David Clowney. (Michael Conroy/AP)
It took Baldwin a little while before he looked at it that way.
"You always feel like you can go out there and get the job done so it hurt me when the Bears let me go," Baldwin said. "I have pride and them not giving me the opportunity to give me a chance to go out and play, it rubbed me the wrong way. But you have to continue to work every day."
The Colts elevated Baldwin from the practice squad Dec. 2 and he finished the season with 13 tackles, including seven in the season-ending loss to Buffalo when Indy emptied the bench. Baldwin keeps in touch with former Bears teammates such as his best friend on his former team, Marcus Harrison, and maintains fond memories.
"Chicago still means a lot to me and I'll always be thankful they drafted me and gave me a shot," Baldwin said. "I had a lot of older guys in front of me, they told me to be patient and believe and then I was gone. But it's a business."
"You always feel like you can go out there and get the job done so it hurt me when the Bears let me go," Baldwin said. "I have pride and them not giving me the opportunity to give me a chance to go out and play, it rubbed me the wrong way. But you have to continue to work every day."
The Colts elevated Baldwin from the practice squad Dec. 2 and he finished the season with 13 tackles, including seven in the season-ending loss to Buffalo when Indy emptied the bench. Baldwin keeps in touch with former Bears teammates such as his best friend on his former team, Marcus Harrison, and maintains fond memories.
"Chicago still means a lot to me and I'll always be thankful they drafted me and gave me a shot," Baldwin said. "I had a lot of older guys in front of me, they told me to be patient and believe and then I was gone. But it's a business."
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