Former Michigan running back Mike Hart is now in the NFL, and it's not quite what he thought.
"It's a little different,"
Hart said Saturday at Randy Wise Chevroletin Flint, where he signed autographs. "The only surprise is it's not as tough as I thought it was going to be, as far as practice and those type of things,"
he said. "It's more laid back."
Hart was selected in the sixth round of the April draft by the Indianapolis Colts. He said: "Indianapolis is a different organization. You watch 'Hard Knocks' on HBO and you expect to be hazed and a lot of those things, but the Colts are a lot different. It's not as bad as I thought -- we don't get taped, we don't get hazed with the Colts."
Even the organized team activities sessions over the past week are "a lot more relaxed because there's more teaching,"
Hart said. "They get all the rookies and young guys prepared, because the vets on our team, they're proven... Really they want to see what the young guys can do, so they slow it down and teach us. Minicamp, when the vets were there, it was all about the vets, to watch them and see how the speed of the game is."
Hart said most sixth-round picks don't get signed until mid- to late July, after the players above them set the standard. He is trying to compete for the backup slot behind Joseph Addai. The competition could be fierce with last year's backup Kenton Keith on the roster. The Colts also signed Dominic Rhodes.
By Mark Snyder
More trouble for some
Cedric Benson was arrested Saturday on a drunken driving charge in Austin, Texas, his second arrest in little more than a month. He was released on bond.
Benson's attorney said the former Texas star had a few drinks with dinner but didn't think he was intoxicated and cooperated with police.
On a similar note, former Bengals linebacker Odell Thurman has been suspended indefinitely by the NFL for violating its substance-abuse policy. He has been suspended since 2006 and was reinstated in April.
Brady still hobbled
Patriots quarterback Tom Brady says he is slow and can't jump because of lingering effects of an ankle injury in last season's playoffs.
