INDIANAPOLIS -- Tony Dungy hugged his players and his assistant coaches, and thanked the public for its support after returning to Indianapolis on Thursday. Then, he went back to work.
One week after leaving the Colts to mourn the death of son James, the coach ran practices, team meetings and announced he would coach Sunday's regular-season finale against Arizona.
"It was the right time to come back," he explained somberly after the Colts' afternoon workout. "I talked about it with my wife, and we went through the grieving process and now we're starting with the healing process."
Dungy's return culminated a draining week in which football has been secondary to life and death for the Colts.
He left the team Dec. 22 when his 18-year-old son was found dead in a Tampa-area apartment. A preliminary autopsy called the death an apparent suicide.
Team president Bill Polian and team owner Jim Irsay urged Dungy to stay with his family as long as needed while assistant head coach Jim Caldwell filled in. On Tuesday, about 200 Colts players, coaches and team officials flew to Tampa for James Dungy's funeral, their first opportunity to meet face-to-face with Dungy since the tragedy.
Before practice Wednesday, most players said they were still uncertain of Dungy's plans, although Polian and Arizona coach Dennis Green, a longtime friend of Dungy, said they had already been informed.
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