Indianapolis Colts tight end Dallas Clark will not play in Week 10 against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Lucas Oil Stadium.

Tight end has suddenly become quite thinned out in Indianapolis. Clark has been ruled out of Sunday’s game with a leg injury, along with fellow tight end Brody Eldrige and guard Joe Reitz. Quarterback Peyton Manning, of course, also remains out.

Four players missed practice for the Colts today: linebacker Kavell Conner, defensive end Dwight Freeney, defensive tackle Antonio Johnson, and wide receiver Blair White.

Meanwhile, running back Joseph Addai was a limited participant in practice today.

The 0-9 Colts are still searching for their first win of the season, and hosting the 2-6 Jaguars figured to provide the team with one of their best chances to win, but the piling up injuries are doing them no favors.

Clark, who left the team’s Week 9 31-7 loss to the Atlanta Falcons in the second quarter and was wearing a walking boot on the sideline.ranks third on the Colts with 287 yards and second with two receiving touchdowns, 

In the midst of an 0-7 start to the season, many Indianapolis Colts fans are searching for answers. The offense, defense and special teams are playing poorly and the team is not winning games. Without Peyton Manning(notes) many fans expected the offense to struggle. Curtis Painter(notes) has played as well as anyone could have expected through his first four starts. The Colts defense has played much worse than anyone could have imagined. They are only missing two key players after injuries to Gary Brackett(notes) and Melvin Bullitt(notes).

The Colts defense currently ranks last in the NFL in points allowed and third-down efficiency, 31st in rushing yards and first downs allowed and 30th in total yards allowed. These defensive statistics show just how poorly the Colts defense is playing. They are playing this bad despite still having Dwight Freeney(notes), Robert Mathis(notes), Antoine Bethea(notes), Jerraud Powers(notes), and Antonio Johnson(notes) from the Super Bowl team of 2009. The talent is certainly there so something else is missing that is causing the Colts to play this poorly.

Many Colts fans felt that changes were needed after the poor start to the season. Cornerback Kevin Thomas(notes) moved into the starting lineup in the week seven loss to the New Orleans Saints. Thomas didn’t play exceptionally well but is now expected to remain a starter. At this point there is no reason not to let Thomas learn and see if he can develop into a future starter at cornerback. The Colts desperately need the help in the secondary and the move to bench Lacey and start Thomas is possibly the first out of several moves for the Colts in the coming weeks.

The real change that may be needed is with the Colts defensive scheme. Defensive coordinator Larry Coyer was chosen by head coach Jim Caldwell after he got the job. Coyer’s philosophy just doesn’t seem to work. The Colts take no risks and players are never in positions to create turnovers and turn the game in their favor. Every time a defensive player leaves they tend to thrive in another system. Colts fans used to think Jim Jennings was one of the worst cornerbacks in the NFL because he constantly gave 10-15 yard cushions to receivers and allowed them constant completions. Once Jennings left and signed with the Chicago Bears, he began playing extremely well and has been a high caliber starter on a top defense in the NFL. Kelvin Hayden also has an interception on the season in limited playing time with the Atlanta Falcons.

Colts fans should be heavily concerned about the performance of the defense so far in 2011. There are certainly talented young players on defense but something is clearly going wrong. As a fan it is noticeable that there is a problem within the Colts organization. I think the players that are there are capable of playing good defense and stopping opposing teams.

The true problem is with the Indianapolis coaching staff. This season has made it clear that if the Colts hope to return to the Super Bowl anytime soon, it’s time to look for a new coaching staff. Jim Caldwell and Larry Coyer are the ones to blame and take the fall for the Colts awful season. The players are playing hard and playing with a lot of heart but they are being out coached every week. With deficiencies in the scheme and philosophies, it appears very unlikely that the Colts’ defense will see much of an improvement in 2011.

More Colts commentary from this Contributor:

Should the Colts Trade Peyton Manning If They Draft Andrew Luck? Fan’s Take

Should the Indianapolis Colts Fire Jim Caldwell: A Fan’s View

Peyton Manning Still May Play in 2011: A Fan’s Take

Kyle Rapoza is a Featured Contributor for the Yahoo! Contributor Network and has been a lifelong fan of the Indianapolis Colts. He attended Super Bowl XLIV in Miami and follows the team closely. Follow him on Twitter @kyler11.

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Check here for a complete list of the Indianapolis Colts’ roster moves.

Surprise moves: Tommie Harris seemed to play well enough to stick, but the former first-round defensive tackle apparently wanted to be treated like the team’s top defensive linemen and the team didn’t like the attitude. Defensive end John Chick had solid games but couldn’t get past Jerry Hughes. Undrafted rookie tight end Mike McNeill made it, as did four others who were not April selections: running backs Darren Evans and Chad Spann, linebacker Adrian Moten and safety Joe Lefeged.

No-brainers: Veteran additions on defense made good impressions in the preseason and are sticking around — ends Jamaal Anderson and Tyler Brayton and linebacker Ernie Sims. Anthony Gonzalez may be injury prone, but none of the other options at receiver is a better player.

What’s next: They’ve got only four defensive tackles in Fili Moala, Antonio Johnson, Eric Foster and Drake Nevis. It could be a spot where they look to add or upgrade on Foster. Offensive linemen Mike Pollak and Jamey Richard will have to prove they deserved to stick ahead of Kyle DeVan.

AP

I was gone for much of last week, which means there was a quick break in our series of post-lockout to-do lists for each NFL team.

Despite popular demand, we’re going to crank towards the finish line this week, starting with a team that has more on its plate to handle than usual.

1. Finish Peyton Manning’s contract.

Could he play for the franchise tag?  Sure, but that’s not likely.  Manning should be the highest paid player in the league before Week One. A deal this massive takes up a lot of energy, so the Colts’ front office needs to get it out the way so they can move on.

2. Bring back Joseph Addai.

The Colts don’t trust third-year player Donald Brown.  Trusting fourth-round pick Delone Carter to handle a big role in a complex offense is expecting too much.  The rest of the depth chart are “just guys.”

We would call this item “Address running back” but it’s just not the Colts’ style to bring in quality veterans from the outside. Instead, they should just spend the money to bring Addai back. He’s no gamebreaker but his value was seen by his absence last year.

3. Get numbers at defensive tackle.

Taking Drake Nevis in the third round doesn’t solve this long-time trouble spot.  Super Bowl starters Antonio Johnson and Dan Muir are both free agents.  The Colts should bring Johnson back and possibly another decent body for depth.

4. Cross fingers with wideouts.

The Colts are deep at wide receiver, but they have plenty of questions.  Austin Collie is coming off two devastating concussions.  Anthony Gonzalez may be on his last chance to prove he can stay healthy.  Reggie Wayne is entering the final year of his deal and Pierre Garcon took a step back in 2010.

5. Find a kicker.

It could be Adam Vinatieri, but there’s no need to overpay at this stage of his career.

6. Decide on Ryan Diem, Charlie Johnson.

Drafting offensive linemen with the first two picks in April was a great start, but there is more work to be done on the OL. Right tackle Ryan Diem is due more than $5 million.  The Colts would only keep him out of desperation.

They would be better off re-signing Charlie Johnson, who can play guard and tackle.

7. Check prices on Clint Session, Melvin Bullitt.

Both starters are set to hit free agency. Session is the better player, but will cost more to keep.  With Bob Sanders gone, keeping Bullitt at a thin safety spot almost looks like a necessity.  Why should we think this team’s run defense will improve?

8. See if training camp can be held at an undisclosed location.

From management to players, no team seems to find the media less necessary than the Colts. We propose holding training camp at an underground location somewhere in the Midwest, so no one can see how Manning’s neck looks after surgery.