Mitch Connors

I absolutely despise the designed QB runs. I understand that he can make plays like that (just like Lamar can) but those hits are unnecessary and will add up. Running when the play breaks down is great. Running your QB on purpose is a terrible idea IMO and I don't care if he's averaging 35 yards per play on designed runs. Too much of that and we can expect his career to be short.

Do you think right now, based on your realistic expectations for Leonard, that he should be taking snaps away from another healthy LB? I mean based on his play; if Leonard isn't 100% then why is he out there? And also, if he is 100% then why is he out there?

Glad to be wrong on this one. Thanks for the update and context.

Am I wrong in thinking AR is likely to miss this game? It seems like it's a two-week thing for most concussions or am I just wrong on that? In my defense, its been a long time since last season.

These are the moments I wish rosters, PUP and IR were more fluid. Let's say Rigo is 80% ready to go, thats not enough to rely on him fully but also too close to 100% to want to carry two punters on your roster. It'd be nice if you could maneuver players around so teams arent forced to play guys at 80% (made-up number btw). I'm sure it would be abused but the rules seem to lend themselves to rushing players back.

If I read that correctly the Colts would be much better off cutting him after June 1st. Not specifically directed at you but you clearly know more about it than me, but why is that? Is that so teams are incentivized to retain their players until the draft has ended? Seems like Leonard would want to be cut asap so he can start lining things up before official free agency begins. ***lets not worry about whether they should/would cut him. I'm curious about the logic in the contract.

Youre close but you made a common mistake with the rqpfo metric and you forgot to carry the 2 after dividing by 9. AR is actually #2.

I think that speaks to the skeptics Leonard mentioned in the abovementioned article excerpt. I hope he plays. I really hope he plays great. I view him with an 'ill believe it when I see it' lens now. I don't think I'd be happier for someone to show me how wrong I am than him but I need to see it to believe it.

Not many things I despise more than the highlighted when it comes to reporting. Holder knows absolutely nothing or he'd report it. It gives the impression that he's plugged in and has info when he doesn't. Guaranteed, if the 2nd team comes out he will say he had that info all along - even if it isn't an AFC team or a hockey team - he will say he knew but couldn't say for "reasons."

I think the point is the Colts clearly needed a QB when Herbert was on the board (we didn't when Allen was) but Ballard kicked the can down the road which has set off a chain of very unfortunate events for this franchise. Herbert on the Colts may very well have led to his total failure but thats beside the point - if you need a QB you have to get one now, you can't wait until the perfect moment becasue that will never happen.

Last year. The 49ers were 3-3 when they traded for McCaffrey and they went 12-0 after and made it to the NFC championship. They were very clearly an elite back away.

There was one play in the 2nd quarter, can't recall where exactly in the game, that AR got flushed from the pocket, ran around the right end, and had a 5-6 yard run in front of him. Instead of just taking off he ran just enough to make the linebacker take a step towards him and threw a 10-yard pass to the TE behind him. A lot of QB's will run and take that hit (Josh Allen is one that immediately came to mind) but AR used his legs to make the throw. Pretty exciting stuff imo.

Generally agree but AR was on the run and escaping pressure on that throw. If we expect AR to be precise while running then its fair to expect Pittman (and Pierce) to catch passes that aren't perfect.

E F F is blocked because it stands for ***** %%%% &&&&&

Wasn't AR the only healthy rookie QB not to play this weekend? I saw Stroud and Young both played and Levis is hurt. I see a lot of dismissal of the value of the preseason to young players so I'd ask, are you in favor of scraping the preseason entirely? If it's not used for rookies to get the NFL feel and for other players to shake the rust off then what's the point? I also see we're not the coach and we don't know better. While true, the Colts did the opposite of their NFL peers both this season and last which means the Colts are the outlier here. My opinion certainly doesn't matter but the rest of the NFL has a different opinion than Steichen and the Colts about the value of rookies playing.

It's pretty reasonable to assume AR's adrenaline was pumping through the roof given it's his first time playing NFL football and realizing a lifetime dream through massive amounts of hard work. I think it's more than fair to expect overthrows in a moment like that.

I see where you're coming from as the game is today but this rule was in place until the NFL and NCAA changed it a handful of years ago. It used to be no offensive player was allowed to push or pull a teammate forward anywhere or anytime (this is the rule that USC broke with the Bush Push). When you have the ball in your hands you're on your own and nobody on your team can push or pull you forward or its a penalty. Pretty easy to enforce if they want to but I get the feeling they don't want to change the rules again and enforce them.

I'm the age that most of my time with Colts has been through good seasons (I was in high school when we drafted Peyton) and I think that's shaped my perspective. I can find a dozen reasons why we can win any game no matter the opponent and I always think we'll be good to the point that I willfully won't draft Colts on my fantasy team because I'm way too optimistic about what they will do. I have a good friend that's a Browns fan and he is the exact opposite. You could give the Browns the all-decade team in their prime and he'll tell you why they will only win 3 games next season. I have to imagine our experience with the team's history informs both of our perspectives.

Interesting take on the TE, I would classify them as below average largely because we don't have a single TE in the top 16 in the league IMO. Some of that could be the QBs or the system under Frank. Either way, I much prefer your take to mine.

I'm happy Ballard finally drafted a QB but I'm more than tired of the constant trading down. I understand the concept of accumulating more picks but sometimes a 2nd round player is just better than two 3rd round players. Itd be different if this team had a solid foundation of core players but it doesnt and the results are showing that. Itd be nice if we started drafting playmakers instead of just accumulating more players.

***Darick Rogers enters the chat***

Hard Knocks has really turned me onto the idea of these joint practices. That show does a great job illustrating how amped up the coaches and players get for the joint practices vs a normal practice. So long and nobody gets hurt and the fights arent too crazy, I love these.

When will Ballard ever be responsible with this logic? I can hear it now....the QB they choose this year (draft or otherwise) will be Steichen's fault when it fails because his new way of thinking didn't work with Ballard's old-school approach. I get it. You like Ballard. Like him for the things you believe he does/did right and accept that hes responsible for the QB mistakes over the last 5-6 years regardless of what Frank is or isn't as a coach. The bottom line is Ballard is responsible for making those decisions and if he took in bad information and ran with it, thats his fault too.

I agree but QBs are not solely drafted on talent, they're largely drafted on scarcity. The best DE, WR, LT, etc isnt worth anywhere near the same as the 10th best QB in the league. That fact alone makes any QB move up a round or two in every draft especially when teams see even a glimpse of potential that could turn that drafted QB into a top 5 or 10 QB.

Somebody check my head on this one but... Let's say high side a rookie #1 pick will make $30M over their 4-year rookie deal. Colts draft a rookie and it would cost the #4 pick and $30M over four years. If you have to pay Fields after year 4 that means you get 2 years of his rookie deal worth $15M (again $30M for a full 4-year rookie deal). Then you have to pay Fields veteran QB money at or above $20M per season. Fields would cost the #4 pick and $55M over four years. Based on Fields' play after 2 seasons the Bears would have to convince me to make this trade. The Bears can't lean on Fields' potential as an incentive because there are 3 QB's on the draft board with a ton of potential that costs a lot less to get and are in the range of my pick.