Phil

August 25, 2019

Hey, #12,

I haven't logged into the ol' Colts forum in... a while. In fact, I think I stopped being a mod right after you got drafted and other than lurking I've made like six posts since. Life got busy, and honestly, being a mod during that down season before we drafted you took my love of the game away, so I get it.

I cried twice over your retirement. Once because it's sad to see you go; after your return last year, I was hoping to selfishly get a few more amazing years. Growing up with a Colts team that struggled, I was lucky to get all those years with Peyton and then the years we had with you. I cried when Peyton left, too, even knowing we had you to take over. I'm a weepy fan.

The second time I cried, though, was when our fans booed you. I'm not sure who those folks are or what they're all about, but that was heartless and reprehensible. I wish those of us who loved and appreciated what you did for the team and the city could somehow erase that moment. We can't, though, and that's the sad part of fandom. Everyone gets to do what they want to do as a fan. Even the jerks.

Now I know you're probably never going to see this post; it was super rare for a player to read the board back when the community was much, much smaller. But if you happen upon this, thanks, Andrew. Thanks for coming to a team that was falling apart and losing a legend and stepping up. Thanks for the amazing run of games, for the gutsy playoff comebacks, for the cool moments like you randomly serving as a fan's best-man on the fly.

And thank you for stepping away for the good of your life. I think fans sometimes don't get that. If you're hurt, and it's making your life miserable, you need to take care of you. I am glad you had the strength to look out for your future and not be burdened by all of us wanting the wins and maybe not thinking clearly about your safety and your well-being. People need to learn that those who entertain us don't owe us their comfort, their bodies, their lives. You were wise beyond your years to realize you don't owe our fans your happiness.

The Colts Nation will miss you, but I know that most of us will remember you with a smile. And the ones who won't... well, we can't choose our family, right?

I won't say it doesn't hurt to see you go, but you'll always be one of our finest.

August 14, 2018

As is the Colts usual, this is probably a move we won't even try to make, but IMHO it's a no-brainer if we can get him for a 1st and a young player or for a pair of second rounders. I'd even give a first and second.

People talk about the value of draft picks, and that's generally true. But Mack is ABSOLUTELY the best result you could get drafting a player. Even if we draft top five, the odds we could land a player of Mack's caliber are so slim. And we already know he's not going to be a bust (he might not be AS good in our system, but he has more than proven he's an NFL superstar). He's only 27, right?

I'd do that deal in a second.

August 11, 2018

I have to say there's like zero science to it or logic that he'd be particularly anything more than a Luck or TY fan, but I watched Bell in college (as a player and a person), and while he might seem aloof in Pittsburgh, I'd be overjoyed to see him in a Colts uniform. I think he'd be worth the money, even with some years on his body. He'd change what we can do on offense and make teams respect us at the LOS in ways they don't right now.

November 11, 2015

I don't think one NFL.com article should suddenly make everyone happy with the o-line, particularly if you read it close and don't just absorb the headline/lead as concrete fact. They rose to the occasion this week against Denver's D, but they're still making pretty easy mistakes. Luck is holding the ball trying to make things happen, but some of that time is him trying to defend himself.

The line isn't as bad as I thought, now that they're sort of figuring it out. But claiming that offensive problems aren't their fault is short sighted. their job is to block and protect. Our QB is getting destroyed. That's on them, even if he holds the ball longer. They have to figure out how to handle that.

Numbers are useful, but the article uses them in interesting ways. Time given based on-- when Luck throws, right? How long he takes to throw based on how long it is between snap and pass. That doesn't account for any scrambling, for bad exchanges, etc. But more importantly, there's no measure kept (that I know of) for "lost his block" vs. "never touched the pass rusher." We've let people shoot through the line too often.

It's on Luck trying to be a super-man and carry us, but no one criticized him for playing that way against KC in the playoffs during that massive comeback. Or when he furiously threw himself into a comeback against ... well, take your pick.

He's a franchise QB. You protect him better than average (or worse). He's totally beat up right now.

November 3, 2015

That was some intensity from Freeman. I like it.

November 3, 2015

It's probably for blocking.

You will never escape the wrath of Trent Richardson btw......

He's like a horror film character that never goes away.

That's who he ran like... Jason Vorhees!

November 3, 2015

Nice to see some Trent Cole.

November 3, 2015

This is why I predicted we could win if we didn't lose the turnover battle. We're -2 and still only down a TD. Imagine if we executed at all anymore.

November 3, 2015

Given the caliber of competition, with the exception of the fumble the O-line is playing well. This is all on Luck.

It's almost like he's playing with broken ribs and a messed up shoulder.

November 3, 2015

That was defensive humiliation.

November 3, 2015

So... 3 minutes in, 2 turnovers. If we somehow get the ball back down six (or three) this will be an amazing turn of events.

November 3, 2015

i never saw the great explosion he supposedly possessed. If he's still raw midway through yr 3 that's kinda on him.

Cleveland gave up on him, and they weren't really using him as a rusher as much as trying to make him every down.

I don't blame someone for not showing skill in Cleveland, honestly.

November 3, 2015

And there's that fantastic O line of ours.

November 3, 2015

He wasn't that good in college

He was what he was in college. He's a pass rusher. He was/is raw. He has all the tools, though.

November 2, 2015

Well thought out post. I know it wasn't directed at me, but I'll respond to some thoughts.

1) Won't belabor the point, but you know how I feel about Malcom Brown. You refer to him as a block commanding, run stuffing DL, and I don't think he'll be that in the NFL. I'm not writing him off, he might be a decent player, but he's not as good of a prospect as you're making him out to be. JMO

2) Tyler Lockett was one of my favorite players in the draft. Maybe you take him in the second. And if that means you take Kendricks or Darby or someone else at #29, then that's probably better than what we did. Or trading down.

3) You keep talking about OL, but there wasn't a lot of talent on the board at #29. Again, trading down would have been ideal. Don't know if there were any offers or takers.

4) We signed the vets we signed because A) we had the cap space, and B) they filled holes we had. Frank Gore is already the best back we've had since 2007, and it's not even close. AJ and Cole haven't done what we hoped, but they were supposed to be stopgaps in the short term. It's not 'we need these guys to win the SB.' Those were just moves to improve the quality of the roster.

5) Set aside some bad coaching and a blown onside kick call, and you could easily argue that we can beat the Patriots. And that's with some roster deficiencies.

Good points. I agree with the not having a good OL on the board when we picked, and I agree (I think I said it earlier) that trading down was the move I'd have made. I did like Brown, though. Agree to disagree? I can see what you see, too. I just also saw potential. We can revisit him in a year or two, and if you're right that he's a bust, I'll take it in stride and call you the man.

Glad to see another Lockett fan. I think we messed up not picking him if we wanted a WR, but... such is life. Him being two rounds later in the draft than Dorsett is the big reason I feel Dorsett wasn't a great pick in our spot. I know Dorsett likely would have still gone off the board next knocking all the WRs back (or some, at least), but when the quality difference from round 1 to round 3 is what we see in those two, and it's not a position of serious need, I feel personally it's a bad pick.

As for 4 and 5, I totally agree with you on both fronts, except that I think, deep inside, Grigson did think "we were so close to the Super Bowl" as he made those signings. He kept talking about veterans making a leadership difference and all that (true enough, of course, but it felt a lot like "we're so close!"-- I might be reading into it, though, I admit). I talk more crap on them than I should-- they weren't awful signings. I just would have rather not seen us sign AJ, and I wish we'd gone after Orakpo and Fairley (I know some people thought he had a bad attitude) if we were going to try to fill needs in FA. I was really sad to see us not take a flyer on Freeney when he shook loose, too, but that's more nostalgia thing for me (though he looks good in Arizona).

November 2, 2015

So I guess spending the entire draft outside of 2 players on defense wasn't enough for you? So you are saying that if a player you had graded highly in the first round dropped to you at the bottom of the first round and you needed lineman you would select a lineman you were not as high on or even graded in the second round you would pass over Dorsett or let us say Todd Gurley just to do that? How is that building talent for the long term? The Jets were already stacked on the D line but I don't see anybody mad that they took Leonard Williams.

You realize that you can read what I said and not "guess" what I mean, right? Because you're guessing wrong. I would have loved to get Gurley, had he dropped. Dorsett isn't Gurley. Dorsett didn't "drop." He went a little higher than most people had him slotted, as a late 1st/early 2nd WR, and he's arguably no better than the glut of receivers that went after him. But if it makes you feel better about the whole discussion, then yes, all but 2 players in the draft being defenders wasn't enough for me because I wanted to see us commit to building where we needed to build. If our last two picks has been offense, or both offensive picks had been linemen, or we'd gotten someone like Gurley or Gordon, I'd feel different. Phillip Dorsett isn't a player that I consider good enough to stick with "best available," but I also question the scouting that had him at best available when we picked.

I guess where I differ from the general thread of this conversation is that: 1) I don't think that one philosophy has to govern every situation. If a great player drops, you pick him because he's great. I never said not to do that. But the "you must stick to your board" philosophy doesn't work for me when yo have a position of need that has a comparable player 2) If people disagree with my thinking that we should have addressed a need because they think Dorsett was a steal, I just don't share your scouting of him.

November 2, 2015

Maybe Grigson can bring him back to play on the offensive line

I know you're kidding, but you know... if T-Rich wants to play in the NFL, he might want to consider becoming a blocking fullback. His talent for running right into defenders would mean one sure block per down.

November 2, 2015

Current: Luck
Former: Freeney, Harrison
non-Colt: Von Miller

November 2, 2015

He's not as bad as he's looked in Cleveland, unless you believe a player can suddenly lose his skills. They use him wrong and have made him really, really unhappy.

I wouldn't shoot for the moon on him, but I'd give up a 4th. I'd rather see him packaged with one of the two linemen they're fire-selling for a second (or even, maybe, our first). That way we end up with a young first-round rated talent and a older offensive lineman. Two potential solid pieces for at least 3-4 years going forward.

In my opinion, Mingo could be Mathis-like for us. Particularly if we brought him in and he could play with Mathis to learn.

November 2, 2015

Yeah, BPA is about drafting young, relatively cheap talent. Because there's a salary cap. Your move would have us paying $11m/year to a RT who has never played RT.

As for the 'deep, dark secret,' it's not deep or dark. Joe Thomas is a $10m/year player, and would presumably cost a pretty penny to trade for. It's a very risky proposition, particularly for a player at a position where we're already pretty good.

Yeah-- the BPA thing was me being playful .

I realize it's a financial risk. I would advocate for letting him play LT and juggling what we have, since it's not working. I'd rather have Mack if we're going just by position, since we could use a center much more. But I don't agree that any part of our line is "already pretty good." If you honestly think anyone on the line has shown and proved, I salute you, but in my mind good would mean that we have time to pass.

November 2, 2015

I thought he might actually get another shot somewhere until that Raiders pre-season game where he ran in the opposite direction of his gap right into the defense. He's a lost cause. Unless you need one not-very-tough yard. Then he's your man.

November 2, 2015

This is kind of silly because we got help for our lines in the draft. 2 day one starters as a matter of fact. Guess it doesn't count if u don't get one in the first round huh? All the rest of those DL were selected outside of the first round and Brown isn't showing a whole lot for 2015 impact so you are really advocating that we should have taken a guy in the first round who produces less than our 3rd and 5th round picks just to fill a need? Not only that but take him in the first after we graded him as a second round prospect? That would have made u feel better?

You can call it silly if you want (nice argument style ), but it's an honest opinion of the scenario. And I don't know where you drew from my comment that our other picks "didn't count." I was talking specifically about how we used our first round pick. What I'm advocating is that when you're soft on the offensive and defensive line, you don't spend your first pick on a WR when you have two young, talented receivers, a serviceable third in Griff Whalen, and then that Johnson guy. And we had Carter, who is a pretty good project.

I don't think our team is in a position to just "get help" at positions. We need to BUILD. You can use your opinion of how Brown has done so far with New England to read how he looks right now, and looking back if I knew what I know now, I might not instantly say he should be the pick (though I think that those of you writing him off are going to be surprised a year or two from now). At the time, he was a lineman who could have played anything along our front who had size and athleticism and looked to have pretty solid character in spite of a few early life mistakes. I don't really put any stock in what Grigs ranked him on his board. You're welcome to, but I'm one of the people who thinks Grigs needs to be more careful.

If you would really look at two players and think "hmm, we could use another speed receiver more than a run stuffing, block commanding defensive lineman," I would consider that to be a "silly" thought.

I would have rather had a stud offensive lineman in that spot, but I said Brown because I was being honest about what *I* would have done as an armchair scout in the moment, based on the scouting I had at the time. I think it's too soon to know if either player being discussed will end up being a great pro or a bust. I'm talking about the position and the relative talent compared to what we had on the team. I'm comfortable with the idea that Dorsett will contribute. I like him fine as a player and person. I just didn't think we needed another receiver that bad. And if we did-- Tyler Lockett went two rounds later and had roughly the same profile.

And as someone else said here-- it's great to get second, third, fourth, even fifth round help. Sometimes a sixth or seventh round player becomes a find, or even a UDFA. We all know that. But we have THE QB for the future of the NFL right now. Unlike even Peyton, where people would argue for another (Brady, anyone? Rogers), there's no one that anyone in their right mind is claiming would be a bigger star in Andrew's generation (maybe Cam Newton as of this year). If we don't invest in protecting him, we are making a mistake. And if we wait until lightning strikes like it did with Freeney, Mathis and Sanders to give him a D (like we did with Manning), we're making a different kind of mistake.

I just want to see that we're thinking about how the team will look instead of playing fantasy offensive weapon stockpile while renting guys to act like we were "one player" from the Super Bowl. We got destroyed by the Patriots. We weren't one player from winning that game. I'd like to see us act like we care enough to build the team that could win in that same situation later. Particularly since that Patriots team is STILL going to be in front of us for a while.

November 2, 2015

What is with Cleveland all the sudden?

http://www.cleveland.com/browns/index.ssf/2015/11/browns_willing_to_deal_barkevi.html

I'd take Mingo, too. I hope we're at least talking to them about this fire sale. Sure, T-Rich was a bad move, but if we were to pick up a couple guys from them for a pick, we could come out way ahead. I'd give our first for one of the two linemen and Mingo and never think twice.

November 2, 2015

Would rather spend the first round pick in the draft on a tackle.

At this rate we will be drafting fairly highly.

I would agree if we weren't still destined to win the division and draft in that position. Our division is garbage in a stick. I don't think there will be a lineman of that quality at our pick. Plus-- what if the "best player" on the board is a short, fast WR?

I'd rather build with drafted youth, but right now anything that could fix this line seems like goal one for us. If we don't fix the line, we're going to end up truncating the career of our franchise QB. He's already dealing with a shoulder injury that could be chronic and trying to push through broken ribs to will us to win games. He deserves better than the protection we're giving him.

November 2, 2015

And play him where?

Anywhere he wants, honestly. Let him be LT and move Castonzo to RT. Put him at RT.

We need to improve that line somehow. Does best player available only work for you when drafting? Thomas is a stud to be available on the market, unless there's some deep dark secret we're not seeing.

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