AwesomeAustin

I have not followed former Colts much. Who is performing better after they left? Hooker, Autry and Okereke come to mind but I felt they also played well here too.

It also looks like there were three games he recorded zero snaps. Weeks 2, 10 and 12. The last four games he played he dropped from 5th to 24th. Would have to dig in deeper to see what caused that. I have no idea if ST props overall grades.

I agree and didn’t expect the push back from my TE2 or 3 ceiling comment. Did get some good info from @w87r when he posted Ogletree’s grades and that was much appreciated. I see our TE room as solid but not spectacular and production will come from a mix of different players playing in certain packages. Will one of them elevate capture the full time starting spot? Hard to say. I think there is potential in this group especially with Woods. I also see scenarios where none of the current TEs are on the roster in 5yrs. Hopefully competition will rise the cream to the top.

I understand what you are saying. I guess I don’t understand how saying he has a ceiling of TE2 or 3 is writing him off either. I want to be clear and say if he doesn’t make the the team it will be bc of talent on the roster, not this legal situation. The room is crowded and if the Colts retain MAC or draft someone day 1 or 2, Ogletree and Mallory will be battling it out for the final roster spot. That’s if the Colts choose to carry 4 tight ends again. They both could be out as well in some situations.

I understand but I guess we will see if he becomes the TE1 or not. For now I will hope he can resume his career and make the team and build upon his 9 receptions and 147yds in 12 games while getting the 3rd most snaps of the position while missing who many feel was the possible TE1 in Woods for the year. I get I could be totally wrong but I feel the odds of Ogletree not making the roster next year are higher than him separating himself as the #1 option in the group. He will be battling for a roster spot in my opinion. Should be interesting to see it all unfold.

Thank you for sharing. Looks like he did have a good first half of the season. Also looks like he was steadily regressing(or possibly others were ascending) during the second half. Playing time wise he was the TE3. I personally think he would have been TE4 if Woods was available. I believe the Colts kept 4 TEs last year. Will be interesting to see if MAC is retained, Woods returns healthy and Mallory/Ogletree battling it out for the possible last roster spot should be really good. Maybe they both stay on the roster if MAC is cut and no TE is drafted in the early rounds. As always, I will wait and see what happens.

I understand. Just my opinion I’m sharing on a message board after watching him play. He could tear it up and be an all pro. People all the time gauge potential of players, especially this time of year. The entire draft and the order they are selected is them being judged on their potential. I believe he was a 6th round pick who played roughly 30% of the snaps. Potential TE2 or 3 seems like a fair assessment of a ceiling in my eyes. He could also not even make the team just on talent alone if Woods returns healthy and they retain MAC and like Granson and Mallory more. Your view may be different and that is fine.

Not sure this really means much for the team. Ogletree seems to be just above a practice squad player. They obviously see potential in him but likely as a TE2 or 3 ceiling if all goes right. Still, if Woods was healthy Ogletree may have been the odd man out. Im happy he gets to put this behind him and hopefully resume his career.

I hope not but my gut is telling me MPJ may get 25m a year. I think it goes for 100m even at 4yrs. Maybe a slight yearly discount if it’s 5yrs. Just my opinion but I don’t see us getting a team friendly deal beyond it being front loaded with possible outs the last year or two.

Mike Evans signed for 26m a year in Tampa. I’m guessing that will drive MPJs price up a little. Evans has obviously had a great career but at this point they are closer in talent level. I don’t think he will get more but will probably want to be close

I doubt the team would bring him back. If I’m recalling correctly, I believe Hines requested to be traded out of Indy. I understand anything is possible but that probably was the end of his time with Indy for good. I expect someone to take a chance on him. Maybe the eagles?

On my list I would only consider Ben Banogu and Quincy Wilson bust. The rest have reasons such as injury, slight underachievement or there is still time. Those on the list aren’t an indication of my personal opinion of them but an objective try to see both sides. They are all up to personal reasons why someone grades a player so very subjective. I will say I’ve been very pleased except the DE position. That one I grade Ballard out as average between his drafting and FA. That’s pretty darn good in my book if that’s your “black eye”. The QB spot I put on Reich. I said the moment they went the veteran route someone would ultimately lose their job over this…I think we saw who did and why. Always enjoyed discussing topics with you even when on opposite sides. Always respected your positions and look forward to your responses. I hate echo chambers and enjoy a bit of push back with others ideas and opinions with hobbies, work and personal life.

I don’t think he is a bust or wasted pick either. I do think he has underperformed but not by much. Why I added underperformed part. If he was a 2nd round pick I would have left him off the list. I will admit I value first round picks heavily and recognize that is my opinion only.

I listed them bc I think they are each underperforming by about a round each. I’m interested to see if Paye has his option picked up. Usually if it isn’t people consider that a failure. I made sure to add underperforming bc I don’t think they are failures. Main reason why I said Dayo is still undecided is bc I’ve been very vocal about not wanting him. I recognize my bias on him and I can’t objectively rate him with any fairness. Also the whole injury perspective is always in the the eye of the viewer if that counts against the GM or not. I take the position it’s not the GMs fault but ultimately their responsibility so take it with a grain of salt. There are so many angles to discuss this group of players. There are arguments from both sides. I respect both positions but did add that I feel overall Ballard has done well. Finally, coaching can be the main cause of a lot of this.

Failures or not meeting expectations for their draft slot 1st: Malik Hooker, Paye and trade for Wentz. Would have to look deeper into the 2 other trades out of the first round to see what that actually turned into. 2nd: Turray, Banogu, Rock, Paris, Pierce, Dayo, Wilson, Lewis These are all players I feel have under performed for all types of reasons including injuries and scheme. I believe Lewis could be viewed either way depending on the person. He had a great year as a rotational guy. Will also say the jury is still out on Dayo and Pierce. This year is pivotal for both of them. I may have missed some players bc I’m not that invested in this. I don’t think Ballard has been bad in the first two rounds but I do think it’s top heavy with the Nelson, Leonard, MPJ, Taylor and Smith picks. He really knocked it out of the park with those. 5 stars and 9-11 so so to bad picks. It really depends on the person if they view that as acceptable. I get both sides. Personally, stars win games and those 5 players are/were studs and that matters. Wish we could have found an answer at DE with all the draft capital spent but overall I think Ballard drafts very well.

I take the millionaire comments as people relating as employees and parents, not just as fans. These players aren’t the first fathers to have a job. Working as a parent brings on a set of obstacles and challenges that can be difficult but ultimately is their responsibility. Sure it’s nice if your employer can help in certain ways but at no time should it be expected and instead appreciated. Parents of all classes endure this life balance every day. If the entry level worker is expected to figure it out and show up focused and ready to work then I get the idea millionaires might have an easier time doing the same. It’s completely unfair but as a whole society doesn’t take well to rich people complaining about common task in day to day life. You are right that every level in the hierarchy will have their complaints. They are justified as well. Still, people will complain about people complaining until the end of time.

I get the position of the players and appreciate their concerns compared to other teams. However, one thing I’ve learned owning a company is employees are the hardest group to ever make happy. My top manager came to me frustrated about how the workers were always complaining no matter what he did to make things better. I showed him how 80% of employees that have been hired by us have either quit or been fired despite us offering 30% higher pay, paid vacation, sign on bonuses and other perks our competitors don’t. Nearly 60% of those that quit have inquired about coming back. That’s the number that lets us know we are doing it right. I told my manager he will never be able to make them all happy so be a leader, make balanced decisions and get used to it. We could give them all $10k today and half of them will be complaining about something next week. Just comes with the territory.

The players want to bring their families to the stadium. All but 7 teams provide this. I get the complaint. First world problem for sure but I get the complaint. I would say it would be quite difficult to allocate and remodel a space plus staff the right help for I’m guessing 50-100 children.

Pittman is good enough to resign to $20m + a year but not enough to warrant trading more than a day 2 pick for. I could see a contender giving us a 2nd or 3rd if they thought he would be the last piece of their offense. That’s the top of his trade market and I’m guessing it won’t happen.

I appreciate you clarifying. I understood it was talking about replacing LBs with DBs during games. The part about hybrid LBs was my personal opinion. I’m a fan of those type players bc they would be able to stay on the field and provide flexibility in defensive scheme. I think we will see a trend to more LBs like this but will have to wait for the college game to catch up a bit

I like the hybrid safety/LB type players. Granted, they are hard to find. I’m sure like @NewColtsFan said, there is a trend away from the standard type LBs. I don’t think Ballard and Bradley will try to force a high pick bc they value the spot more than other teams. I do believe if they identify a game changer like Leonard, Warner or Roquan they will take them if available. Special players can be the exception and besides Leonard, Ballard really hasn’t sunk much draft capital or salary cap into the position.

I read up until the colts and stopped. Seemed decent rankings until then. I for one think the Texans staff deserve a lot of credit for doing what they did with their roster. Most people felt the Colts roster was better than the 4th pick but the Texans were truly one of the worst teams in the league. They did a good job. Colts do appear to have an outstanding head coach. I really like Shane and I’m guessing if AR can stay healthy we will see the team move up list like these

We need a couple more very good DBs. One at CB and safety. Honestly, every level of this defense needs a playmaker. It’s far from elite.

Mahomes was 13-19 at Texas Tech and Anthony Richardson was 6-7. It’s common enough top QB prospects aren’t on double digit win teams in college I don’t judge too much with it.

Franklin reminds me of D’Qwell Jackson, a LB we had during the Grigson tenure that came from the Browns. Always had a lot of tackles but wasn’t flashy.