We Are Who We Thought We Were

[Tark The Shark]

We should be thankful to be a middle of the road team.

Middle of the road in the AFC is a playoff team.

I wouldn't have thought this early in the year.

We should look at what the team has accomplished.

Luck is a great QB, and will only get better. Ballard, Brown, and Carter are all good running backs and have given us a good stable of backs. Reggie is as good as ever, Avery & Hilton have proven to be good deep threat receivers. Fleener & Allen are a good TE tandem and will get better as the years go on.

[jskinnz]

Pats fans are who we thought they were. The worst.

I mean, why were they booing Adam Vinateri the entire game? How many SB's did the guy win for you?

Please. Colts fans once booed a 12 year-old girl dressed in a Pats jersey during Punt Pass & Kick introductions a few years ago. On top of that they booed Brandon Stokley when he came back to the Dome with the Broncos. Booing a returning player with a new team is not close to making them bad fans but if it were the Pats do not have the market cornered on bad fans.

[jskinnz]

Brady is a system QB.

And everyone (who isn't a Patriots* fan...or a contrarian troll) knows it. Take away the victories directly resulting from the Patriots* Cheating Scandal and he is a system QB with the same number of Super Bowl wins as Luck.

If it weren't for the typical rookie mistakes (turnovers) a QB with 10 NFL games under his belt (27/50/334yds/2TD/3int) went blow for blow with the veteran system QB Brady (24/35/331yds/3TD).

Dear God...

[BleedingBlue]

I don't understand what you're saying. It seems like you didn't expect us to be all the good, but you make it sound like you expected us to contend for a Super Bowl.

I'm saying that you should always be competing for a super bowl every year.

What could we have done to compete this year?

[HarassedOffTheSite]

LOL

[Superman]

I'm saying that you should always be competing for a super bowl every year.

What could we have done to compete this year?

???

I think our team is in pretty good shape this season, considering the changes made. For us to have a serious shot at a Super Bowl this year would be a historic turnaround. We're already better than most expected us to be.

It's all well and good to say that you should compete for a Super Bowl every year, but that's just not the reality of the situation.

[BleedingBlue]

???

I think our team is in pretty good shape this season, considering the changes made. For us to have a serious shot at a Super Bowl this year would be a historic turnaround. We're already better than most expected us to be.

It's all well and good to say that you should compete for a Super Bowl every year, but that's just not the reality of the situation.

Or, you trade the pick and put the long missing pieces around the GOAT and continue to compete.

[Superman]

Or, you trade the pick and put the long missing pieces around the GOAT and continue to compete.

That's a horse of a different color. Things being what they are, we're in pretty good shape.

[Hans Moleman]

we gave up 100+ rushing yards, what are you talking about? It was a tick poor game by the players and especially the coaches(defensive coordinator actually)

Like I said, our run defense played very well yesterday with the exception of one play by Edelman which accounted for 47 yards of it.

Their RB's only averaged 2.8 yards per carry. They were the 5th rated rushing offense in the league, so that's a good performance for us in that regard.

That's what Hans is talkin' bout.

[IndyTrav]

Or, you trade the pick and put the long missing pieces around the GOAT and continue to compete.

I don't think your getting up from some of the shots Luck has taken this year if your over the age of 25.

[BleedingBlue]

That's a horse of a different color. Things being what they are, we're in pretty good shape.

literally.Yea things being what they are... but thats no fun. speculating and arm-chairing is why we're here. ;)

[Superman]

literally.Yea things being what they are... but thats no fun. speculating and arm-chairing is why we're here. ;)

I personally have turned the page on that decision. I'm hopeful that the current regime can put this team back into title contention, and it could happen a lot faster than I expected it to.

The expectations changed for this team in September of 2011. Moving forward, what Grigson and his staff have done is more than acceptable.

[Flying Elvis]

yeah that's the very article I quoted and linked towards the top of the page. The title is totally misleading because he didn't "shun" them; they didn't offer him a deal and so he went elsewhere and then didn't beg them to bring him back. That's hardly "shunning."

I don't see where it says that the Patriots didn't offer him a deal. Vinatieri said "the negotiations for a new contract were not going the way we thought they would." From another article quoting Adam, http://www.boston.com/sports/football/patriots/reiss_pieces/2006/03/vinatieris_rema_1.html

On the Patriots and their involvement:

“We had plenty of talks. I’m not saying they didn’t make a commitment to [talk to] me. I just felt at this point that my best option and my best decision was to come to the Indianapolis Colts, and I’m very proud and very happy to be here.”

I think Adam left because he wanted a long term contract but the Patriots kept franchising him. They put a ceiling on the different positions and they don't budge. That's the way the Patriots do business. I may not like it and you may not like it but you can't argue with their results. It's how they build depth and why they will be able to replace Gronk in the upcoming weeks.

For the record, I would never boo Adam. He was great in his time here and I understand why he left.

[ColtsSouljah]

I don't see where it says that the Patriots didn't offer him a deal. Vinatieri said "the negotiations for a new contract were not going the way we thought they would." From another article quoting Adam, http://www.boston.co...ris_rema_1.html

On the Patriots and their involvement:

“We had plenty of talks. I’m not saying they didn’t make a commitment to [talk to] me. I just felt at this point that my best option and my best decision was to come to the Indianapolis Colts, and I’m very proud and very happy to be here.”

I think Adam left because he wanted a long term contract but the Patriots kept franchising him. They put a ceiling on the different positions and they don't budge. That's the way the Patriots do business. I may not like it and you may not like it but you can't argue with their results. It's how they build depth and why they will be able to replace Gronk in the upcoming weeks.

For the record, I would never boo Adam. He was great in his time here and I understand why he left.

``The Patriots clearly expressed to me that it was a business by the decisions they made. So I had to examine my options."

"Vinatieri confirmed he did not give the Patriots the chance to match Indianapolis's offer."

also:

``I saw it coming," Vinatieri said. ``I had a real nice season [in 2004], but the negotiations for a new contract were not going the way we thought they would. I don't know . . . I told my agent [Jonathan Hurst], `I don't need to know the day-to-day details. Call me if they offer me something decent.' They ended up franchising me. "

I have searched and searched and have found nothing that says that the Pats offered him a contract after franchising him. His quotes certainly imply that they did not.

[BleedingBlue]

I personally have turned the page on that decision. I'm hopeful that the current regime can put this team back into title contention, and it could happen a lot faster than I expected it to.

The expectations changed for this team in September of 2011. Moving forward, what Grigson and his staff have done is more than acceptable.

For me who knows. Winning helps

[needanoline63]

Like I said, our run defense played very well yesterday with the exception of one play by Edelman which accounted for 47 yards of it.

Their RB's only averaged 2.8 yards per carry. They were the 5th rated rushing offense in the league, so that's a good performance for us in that regard.

That's what Hans is talkin' bout.

59-27,400+ yards total offense, that's what I am talking about

[SOMDColtsfan]

You must have a mouse in your pocket because I disagree. The Colts were able to move the ball all day long, the score was 24-17 at halftime and unfortunately the Pats made some big plays that broke it wide open. The Pats are an elite team, make no mistake about it. IMO though if these Colts execute, make good open field tackles like they mostly have all year they can still hang in with the better teams in the NFL.I dont think they are as far off as everyone is saying. I thought 10-6 at the beginning of the year, still a chance but have to clean some things up. Lets see how they bounce back

[BOTT]

Please. Colts fans once booed a 12 year-old girl dressed in a Pats jersey during Punt Pass & Kick introductions a few years ago. On top of that they booed Brandon Stokley when he came back to the Dome with the Broncos. Booing a returning player with a new team is not close to making them bad fans but if it were the Pats do not have the market cornered on bad fans.

she had it coming.....

[southwest1]

Yeah, there were some great pluses, I thought, for the Colts. The running game looked good, until the Patriots started getting momentum defensively. The fake reverse worked very well.

Luck is going to be an outstanding QB. Once he and his weapons mesh, things will be good. Of course, the team will need to become as balanced defensively, as we saw during Peyton's time here.

Oh, and the run defense looked very, very solid yesterday.

Thank you VL for your objectivity here. I don't know why some people dislike you; VL's just intensely devoted to his team, Tom Brady, & Bill Belichick. He's no troll or liar. I find that conclusion ridiculous and completely unfounded. All my interactions with him have been productive & valuable. His criticisms will always be sought after, encouraged, & read by me anyway. Keep pointing out our strengths & weaknesses VL. We need to hear this...Don't dismiss or underestimate a fresh set of eyes. The quicker we rectify our glaring holes on the Colts; the quicker we get to clash swords & replenish our rivalry.

[coltsfan_nyc]

...a middle of the pack 8-8 team (9-7, 7-9).......

.......Ehhhh. I hear people trying to continue the playoffs mantra. And I understand. But we'll be on the road against a good team (like last night). We just don't have the horses yet. We can compete so that is a victory when compared to last year. And I guess that'll be enough for me this season.

I understand what you are saying, but think about this: With a rookie quarterback and a young team such as this, we are playing WAAAAAY beyond what we're suppose to be. In fact, we are suppose to look like the way we do two years from now, but somehow we are legit contenders after the Indianapolis Colts basically pressed the "reset" button.

Honestly, we are not suppose to be this good so fast. That's why the Patriot blow out does not affect me so much. Can you imagine how good we will be a year from now or two? I see the future of this team as bright as the sun, but as far as the present, I see us as perhaps the weakest team in the PLAYOFFS due to lack of experience but who know, we might slip past the first round with LUCK!

[gspdx]

Or, you trade the pick and put the long missing pieces around the GOAT and continue to compete.

We could have traded the pick, but there is no guarantee that the players drafted would have filled the holes and become contributors right away or at all. Plus we wouldn't know for sure how many of them would have been injured and we don't know if we could have done enough to improve the o-line for Peyton. We wouldn't have had money to play in free agency. And if we take it back another step then we probably would have kept the Polians around and Chris doesn't have a great record in the draft.

Hindshight is 20-20, but even hindsight doesn't prove this team would have been great this year with Peyton.