Insider: Jelani Woods, Alec Pierce reflect on chaotic rookie seasons

INDIANAPOLIS -- Jelani Woods had a defender blanketed on him and Nick Foles threw it anyway. So the second-round rookie stretched out two white gloves to a space his opponent couldn't find and pulled it in. Then he took the defender for a ride for 15 yards.

A few plays later, he caught a drag route and zipped up the left sideline for a 17-yard gain.

But right as a breakout game was building, he watched the defense adjust a safety over him. Foles would have to produce elsewhere before he could tap back to Woods, but it never came together in a 20-3 loss to the Chargers on Monday Night Football. The Colts finished 0-for-10 on third downs, managed 173 total yards and had as many interceptions as points (3). Their offense stalled for another game after making a change at quarterback, to their third starter in 15 games.

It's a level of chaos nobody saw coming this year, creating some unexpected lessons along the way. The rookie moments have been steep for the two pass catchers the Colts drafted on Day 2 this spring.

Woods and Alec Pierce have had the up-and-down seasons to be expected with a year as strange as this.

Woods has had to deal with pain physically, mentally and emotionally as he's adjusted to tight end, one of the most complicated position adjustments for a rookie, while fighting through shoulder and quad injuries and suffering the loss of two college teammates in a University of Virginia shooting.

"There's so much stuff that affects you, it's crazy," Woods said. "Even the small stuff affects you, like injuries. In your head, you're like, 'Man, I want to be out there. I'm a rookie. I don't want them thinking I'm soft.' Then you try to push it and push it when you're really supposed to not do it, and you can make yourself look even worse and you go back down that drain a little bit."

The third-round pick has seen his playing time move up and down amid coaching changes while learning one of the toughest positions out there, and he's tried to find just enough bright spots to push through it all with a smile.

More:'Devastating': Rookie Colts TE Jelani Woods opens up on Virginia teammates, shooting victims

INSIDER: 10 thoughts on the Colts' 20-3 loss to the Chargers

Those have come over the past month, with a 98-yard game against the Steelers, a 36-yard catch against the Vikings and then Monday's performance, when he led the Colts with three catches and 43 yards. He is tied for the team lead with three receiving scores.

After a challenging camp with some drop issues, Woods said he felt the light go on with his game-winning touchdown against the Chiefs in Week 3, and ever since, he's tried to find lessons in whatever comes. So when his position coach, Klayton Adams, left to take a job at Stanford two weeks ago, that meant getting to learn from a potential future Hall-of-Fame wide receiver in Reggie Wayne.

"Having him consistently on me, behind my head and in my ear, has helped me a lot," Woods said of Wayne. "It's more concentration than anything. At first, I was so relaxed with everything I'd do. Now, I've stiffened up. ... It's about staying in a lane and keep pushing and keeping that going."

Change is in Woods' at this point. In college, he switched positions from quarterback to tight end and then schools from Oklahoma State to Virginia. He knew the climb at tight end would be unsteady at times, and this season has just taken that experience to an extra degree.

"You go through so much in college," Woods said. "The magnitude (now) is different. But you have to be aware and help yourself out."

Pierce was the one who was used to stability. After he transitioned from linebacker to wide receiver early in his time at Cincinnati, he got to build chemistry with a single, high-level quarterback in Desmond Ridder. Ridder was his quarterback for all 106 of the passes he caught in college, and they took the connection all the way to the College Football Playoff.

He knew that was a luxury, that any quarterback can get hurt on any play. He had no idea he'd prepare for three different starters in his first NFL season.

"It's probably tough to come in when you haven't really been playing," the Colts' second-round pick said of the quarterbacks. "You just look at the product of football: It usually takes teams a few weeks to click. I feel like Week 1, teams are a little bit sloppier. For Nick, he comes in and this is his first game and he doesn't have that chemistry built, so it's a little tougher. ... We (as receivers) have to be very consistent and do what we're supposed to do."

Pierce's season has had a few different arcs packed into it. He started with a zero-catch day in Houston in which he took such a fierce shot to the head that his facemask broke, and he entered the league's concussion protocol and missed a game. Then he began an ascent, with a six-game stretch that featured 24 catches, 373 yards and a game-winning touchdown catch to beat the Jaguars.

The seven games since have been a different story, as he's caught 11 passes for 137 yards total, with three zero-catch games. In that span, the Colts have fired his offensive coordinator, then fired his coach and play-caller, then switched quarterbacks from Sam Ehlinger to Matt Ryan and then switched from Ryan to Foles.

It's caused him to step back and view what he's done or hasn't done in context, to keep a standard for himself that can translate no matter who is playing quarterback.

"You can play well and not have great numbers and then other times you can play not as good but you get lucky and make a big play here and there. So, numbers are tough," Pierce said. "For me, I've been inconsistent. I need to do a better job of building consistency, which I think comes from building a rapport with the quarterbacks and finding trust."

They're lessons nobody thought would come this way this season.

Contact Colts insider Nate Atkins at natkins@indystar.com. Follow him on Twitter @NateAtkins_.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Colts: Jelani Woods, Alec Pierce reflect on chaotic rookie seasons