ColtStrong2013

I don’t believe there is such thing as silly rumors of a player potentially wanting out of what is clearly a mess. Pagano/Grigson end was a MESS. Also- it would be entirely wrong if he stayed, but guess what… he didn’t. He left the business, after playing one season after that article was written. We spoiled his career so badly he left the entire business. perhaps Ballard was the reason he remained committed for 2017 and 2018, because he had a clear vision for luck’s health and future. It’s not a silly rumor to me. That was smoke where everyone should have been paying more attention. I wasn’t paying attention at the time because I thought all of the rumors of his mental state and health concerns were overblown. I had a coworker that kept telling us colts fans that he was going to walk away. someone independently thinking and watching could see it coming while none of us could

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/20692318/andrew-luck-committed-indianapolis-colts-agent-says Absolutely. There was plenty...

It's my conclusion based on the fact that Ballard declined interviews with many teams prior to 2017, including the Bears in 2015 and 49ers in 2017 before the Colts job opened. He preferred to stay in the midwest, but those teams didn't have a longterm franchise qb (or the ability to draft a legitimate option in the forseeable future). https://www.espn.co.uk/blog/san-francisco-49ers/post/_/id/23134/new-colts-gm-chris-ballard-passed-on-49ers-to-stay-in-midwest Here's one article that states what Ballard states his reasoning being the location. But the article says that having Andrew Luck definitely didn't hurt with the 49ers nowhere near figuring their situation out. I can't find a link, and it might have been an interview that he said this, but Ballard once said that John Dorsey preached to him patience. Not only with roster building and player development, but especially with GM jobs. It has to be right, and that would definitely include having a franchise qb or the ability to draft one. It's the most important position in sports as we've all seen. It's ludicrous to think that Andrew Luck didn't have a major impact on Chris Ballard taking this job.

You should read the followups before posting...

We don't. Unlike Dougdew, I'll admit it's just my opinion and provide the links to the rumors going on at the time. There were question marks with Luck's health as well as his commitment to Indianapolis. See my above response to Doug regarding my call into Boston radio. I'm well aware of what happened. I just don't buy that there was anything the Patriots were going to offer as an OC to compare to HC for a team with Andrew Luck on roster... unless he was very uncertain on Luck's future. Just my two cents.

At least you put that it was your opinion after that first line... When did I criticize McDaniels for backing out? I've never criticized him one time for doing so. Matter of fact, I called into a radio show in Boston the day after it broke out and was on air for severl minutes with the hosts telling them I think it was the smartest thing that the Patriots did. They locked him in a room and made sure he was satisfied with staying as they were set to lose their Defensive coordinator, special teams coordinator and offensive coordinator in one week. They loved the input they were getting from a Colts season ticket holder. Maybe practice your reading comprehension. I simply said that McDaniels backed out and it was likely due to uncertainty with Luck's health/commitment and then produced an article that discussed the rumors that were floating at the time. I only brought McDaniels situation up to highlight the difference in one year with Ballard's situation. Had those rumors been floating in 2017, Ballard never takes this job in my opinion. Yes he did, because he's smart. He knows the odds of a GM without a franchise qb, and he's damn near experienced it after Luck's departure. Again, comparing the two is laughable so well done in that regard... I'm laughing. Caserio might have gone into a dumpster fire, but he went into one that he dang well knew he would get to stack high draft picks for a few years while he focused in other areas until the right time came to bring a franchise qb in. He landed an mvp candidate in his rookie year at number 2. They took a chance at not getting Stroud, either because they weren't sold that he was better than Young or for whatever reason, by sitting at number 2 while the Panthers traded up past them. As Ballard has repeatedly said regarding drafting qbs, it's not an exact science. Caserio lucked into CJ Stroud, in my opinon and @OLD FAN MAN thinks he's better than Howie Roseman now... LOL

number 1, i wasn’t comparing the two. I think it is laughable to compare Caserio winning in his 3rd season with CJ Stroud compared to Ballard having the same record in his 7th with Gardner Minshew. Ballard did the same in year 2 and hasn’t had a franchise qb since. i didn’t say it was a plus nor compare their situation with that. I just simply said he doesn’t take this job, which is likely true. Irsay has repeatedly said that he was fortunate to land Ballard. Your post is confusing because it’s a rambling mess of nothing I was talking about. Number 2, McDaniels was hired a year later. When Ballard was hired, there weren’t the same injury concerns with Luck. So it was a totally different thing. And yes, Ballard only took the Indianapolis Colts job because he thought he had Andrew Luck, which he did. No one would have guessed in 2017 he would retired two seasons later. In Feb. 2018, the talk was different. If Luck was questionable like he was when Ballard took this job, he’s likely looking to land in a larger market with the ability to draft a qb soon. Instead he got one year of Andrew Luck and an owner and new coach that tied his hands for 3 more seasons at the qb position.

I think it's possibly the biggest game of the season. I can of course make that statement for every game going forward, but I like our odds better in the following 3 games than this one and the Houston game. It looks like 10 wins might get us in. I also know that a blind squirrel finds a nut every now and then, and we only have two games of Browning to know what we're going to see. It was a big game for sure. If he puts several in a row, they will be in decent shape. If our pass rush continues, he might find himself slipping with the pressure, literally and figuratively. I'm not surprised on the swing with the amount of bets coming in. Browning's performance and the win might be a small factor, but it's largely due to the amount of bets coming it at the initial spread. And the bets are flowing because of the MNF performance.

Maybe. I remember watching us blow the Raiders out and thinking, this season is going way better than I expected.

Just hedging what is on the books. I'll take the initial vegas spread over the majority of public opinion. Also- came here to post something similar. I saw you writing and waited for your post. lol

I don't see Sam as a backup. He's going to be our third option until his contract runs out. To me, its going to be Minshew unless he's just too expensive. I think they'll try to keep Minshew for another season, and then let Sam go in favor for a cheaper draft pick when he hits free agency. Sam could be a decent backup, and is probably the "backup option" at qb2 for if Minshew isn't able to be retained, which they would look to the draft for a replacement. There's really no way of knowing at this point. We'll hopefully not need to see Sam at qb this season, so our sample size is small and under different leadership.

grass is always greener on the other side…

Our odds inched a little higher tonight. keep this train rolling with a dub in Cincinnati. We’ve been due for a nice win against the Steelers for a while now. Let’s go!

Would we not franchise tag and continue discussions before letting him walk.?

this is important. With a backup qb. And backup quality all but 1 season of his career. Pittman has put up big time plays with mediocre qb play. I think he and Steichen are both doing quite a bit with what they are working with. Pittman has appeared to step his game up every season he’s been here. Even regressing with yards/touchdowns with last years fiasco season, he was 1 shy of 100 receptions. I don’t see how we can move on from him.

Caserio might go down as an all-time great. Right now, he’s surpassing expectations by all because of CJ stroud’s success. He could very well end up on the Ryan Grigson path.

I wouldn’t be saying anything about him, because he would be losing games… CJ Stroud has led how many game winning drives? I didn’t say he was a bad gm. All I said was that CJ Stroud is winning football games, and he got him with the 2nd pick, which wasn’t guaranteed. I’m well aware of the players he’s brought in. Anderson was a big move and will pay off going forward. Tank Dell was brought in because of CJ stroud, let’s not confuse that. “he is Ballard’s equal.” It’s wild to try and compare these GM’s. One that was the 2nd pick in the draft just a year ago. Now has a competitive team with an MVP candidate rookie qb. The other, had his franchise qb retire and his hands tied with drafting one until his 7th year as gm. Chris Ballard in year 2 was doing the same thing he’s doing in year 7 after years of qb changes. You can’t compare the two. Nor can you compare Caserio with many because he selected a qb that is looking like a superstar his rookie year.

it largely squares on what happens with Minshew. If he leaves in the offseason (most likely for a much bigger offer than we can afford), then there is no question we will be looking to add a qb. while I wouldn’t be looking to spend a top pick, i would be looking for the mobility you refer to, whether in draft or FA. Minshew is clearly limited in the playbook, even with the knowledge and experience he has with Steichen’s offense.

This is maybe the most reasonable post I’ve seen on Ballard. Teams can justify anything. But if you can’t replace him with someone you are confident will be better, then why wouldn’t you just stay patient and assist him in getting better? Just like you would expect a head coach to get better at his job with experience, you would have to do the same with a gm. I think Ballard has learned from both the good and bad, which will hopefully guide him moving forward. Contrary to the previous gm, who was a complete * to players and coaches he didn’t care for (see Pat mcafee’s first encounter with Grigson) Ballard is reasonable and largely looks to create win-win situations (see Shaq Leonard’s release- now on a Super Bowl contender, as well as many other cases). He might not bring a championship here, but I doubt very seriously Jim Irsay can bring a more professional GM in.

especially after you play the kicker roulette game and lost quite a few games due to the kicking game the last several seasons…

LOL. not at all. He lucked into CJ stroud at #2 thanks to the Panthers. If he was so convicted with Stroud, they would have moved up a spot. They were willing to take either young or Richardson at 2 if the panthers picked stroud. The only reason- ONLY. reason. They are winning football games is because of CJ Stroud right now. Propping him on a pedestal right now is similar to propping Ryan Grigson up early on. Stroud just like Luck is altering football games.

I don’t think Ballard takes it in 2017 without thinking Luck was committed longterm. There were a lot of rumors during that time that he wanted out. I don’t believe he was transparent with the team about his off field injuries just as Peyton wasn’t about his treatment and neck surgeries. I doubt it’s uncommon, but it does alter opinions, especially for new hires like Ballard. There’s a lot of hindsight in this opinion regarding Ballard. regarding McDaniels- I don’t think he was comfortable with what he was getting on Luck’s shoulder. He said that wasn’t the factor, but I cannot buy that. I’m saying there is no way he doesn’t take the job if there wasn’t serious insecurity about Luck’s future. He would have been dancing his way into the building. There were people calling him a “genius” after luck retired for what he clearly saw coming in the foreseeable future. Just fyi- he is NOT a genius. But I do believe he saw the handwriting on the wall with Luck.

this should have been mayflower- lol. Mobile won’t let me edit.

https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/sports/profootballdoc/sd-sp-pfd-josh-mcdaniels-colts-andrew-luck-shoulder-0207-story.html And before anyone disputes this statement. This article was just one of many that were popping up after he backed out. A lot of questions about Luck's health back then after he bolted.