Superman

He's trolling, just like he did at Steichen's intro presser, just like he did with the bear photo. If the Colts draft Levis today, I'll buy you a cookie.

It was not my intention to make a big deal out of it. I just didn't like it, and think he could have handled it better. It also stood out pretty strongly next to Ballard, who always finds a way to handle questions he doesn't really intend to answer. He said it last week, sometimes he's dancing, and he's usually pretty smooth at it. Steichen is more of a body slammer. By the way, there are times when I think that kind of response is in order. I just thought his response was unnecessarily short and standoffish there.

I'm not super interested in defending Steichen here. I think your characterization of him as a liar is harsh, but it doesn't offend me, I just don't agree with it. I think there's shades of grey here. If I'm shopping for a new car, the most important consideration for me might be fuel efficiency. But that doesn't mean the cumulative value of several other considerations can't potentially outweigh the importance of fuel efficiency. I might also think that my way of driving and my intended use of the vehicle can stretch the fuel efficiency further than what's typical. So in this case, while Steichen said accuracy is very important to him, he didn't say 'I don't want a QB with accuracy issues.' And he believes (IMO, very clearly) that his plan for Richardson will lead to improved accuracy, which is obviously necessary if Richardson is going to have success. In fact, something Steichen said at the Combine was 'you have to see the future, it's tough, but you have to see what these guys can become in the future.' Then he said 'you have to build the offense around the QB, adapt to what he does well.' And specific to accuracy, he said 'accuracy is important, you have to be able to stand in the pocket on 3rd and 8 and make the play.' But then he was asked if you can teach accuracy, and he said, enthusiastically 'yes I think you can, you can help accuracy with mechanics, and you can help with scheme and simplify the offense to help the QB.' Again, shades of grey, and I think in those comments there's plenty of openness to a player who needs some development. Bottom line is I don't think picking Richardson means Steichen was not being truthful about the importance of accuracy. And that's not because I'm so dedicated to defending Steichen's honor. I'm taking issue with him in other ways already, so don't reduce every disagreement down to someone not being open to anything that's critical of the HC. But I think you're overly rigid in your interpretation on this one.

Let's add one more person to the mix... Steichen said he highly values accuracy. Do you think the Colts drafting Richardson is evidence that he doesn't highly value accuracy?

I agree. Not trying to be dramatic or anything, but there's a difference between media and journalism, and a lot of people don't properly acknowledge that difference. And despite most of the media being about engagement, there is real journalism out there. It's a little hard to find, sometimes behind a paywall, and often dry and boring, but it exists and is accessible.

I remember being blown away by Dustin Keller's combine, the Purdue TE who went to the Jets in the first round. Richardson is taller, heavier, ran faster, jumped higher... Athletes like Richardson usually play linebacker or defensive end. He compares more to Nolan Smith than he does to any other QB in this class.

Don't want to belabor the point, but wanted to mention the contrast with Ballard. Even though he had just said 'I don't want to compare QBs,' Ballard gave an insightful comment about similarities and traits and how they saw it, without giving away their scouting report. Then Steichen gets asked a similar but different question, and just shuts it down without even trying to offer anything meaningful. And it's a fair question; we want to know what the plan is for this super young, super raw, super talented QB that they just drafted with a super high pick. Like I said, between weak questions and formulaic answers, I don't expect a lot from the coach's pressers, so it's not like I'm gonna be hanging on every word. But that moment didn't go over well for me. And it seems to be his MO during pressers to be standoffish. And I think maybe because this is the first time we've seen him with Ballard, aside from the intro presser, the contrast was very pronounced.

Some people might prefer it, which is cool. I thought it was rude and unnecessary.

Belichick answers bad questions that way. He actually will engage if you ask a legitimate question, even if he's not necessarily entertaining and verbose. I thought it was a legitimate question, and that's coming from someone who generally thinks the presser questions are whack.

If we're only talking about overall athletic ability, I drop my objection. But I include passing proficiency when talking about whether a QB prospect is "gifted," and I think the finer points of throwing the ball is an area where Luck is far more talented than Richardson has shown so far.

If Ballard leaked the Levis stuff, and it worked to the point that virtually the entire national and local media landscape was linking Levis to the Colts, then why would Ballard almost directly shut it down in his presser last week? I mean, he did everything but look down the barrel of the camera and say 'read my lips... NO WILL LEVIS.' I think the Colts ran a pretty tight ship all offseason, starting with the HC search when no one had a read on what was happening until SB week. And now, the most reasonable take in the run-up to the draft was from Holder, who said weeks ago 'no one from the Colts is talking.' Meanwhile, the Colts snuck out to Florida to work out Richardson privately, before the Combine, and the only reason we got confirmation on that before tonight was because Richardson let it slip during his Combine presser. They sent area scouts to everyone's pro day, except Richardson's; they sent a high ranking front office guy to see him, and didn't even try to hide it. I do not think there was any gamesmanship here. I think they all kept their mouths shut, and went about their business, and then Ballard shut down the loudest rumors right before the draft, and now they confirmed with their actions that all the clues we saw were actually legitimate, and the media had no inside info about what the Colts planned to do.

Hard disagree. This is major recency bias. He's bigger (slightly), stronger, faster, has a bigger arm, and can play a more physically imposing style of football. But Luck's ability to make all the throws, including from a crowded pocket, to do so accurately, and demonstrate an ability to scan the field, is something that's so far beyond what Richardson has demonstrated so far. And he was no slouch in the arm department either, he could rip it.

He rubbed me the wrong way in this one. Just unnecessarily curt and standoffish. One thing Ballard understands and quickly demonstrated is that it's valuable to have a good working relationship with the media. So, for example, when Ballard said 'I don't want to compare QBs,' then someone asked Steichen a similar question and he answered 'like Chris said, we're not gonna compare QBs.' Then whoever asked the question clarified that they were talking about offensive approach, and Steichen goes 'yeah, I'm not gonna talk about scheme, either.' Really? Now, Reich would just give away the gameplan, and that was annoying. But in this case, Steichen couldn't talk about what kind of advantages he sees in having a QB like Richardson, or how they think they can deploy him as he develops, or anything like that? He didn't even try to dress it up and give a coachspeak answer, either. Just shut it down, not even entertaining what I thought was actually a legitimate question. Generally, I don't care too much because I don't expect to get anything meaningful from what the coach says, but that annoyed me, and seemed borderline rude.

It's probably a good thing for him. A slice of humble pie might be needed.

Levis getting hit with the Mario Kart banana peel, gonna slip right out of the first round... I'm shocked neither Detroit nor Tampa took him.

If they get Richardson up to speed this year, JT is going to have a great season. Look at how productive the Eagles were in the run game last year. Richardson is more dynamic than Hurts, and JT is more dynamic than anyone the Eagles have at RB.

Hard disagree. If a top five QB doesn't start right away in Year 1, but becomes a franchise guy for the next decade, it's well worth the trade off.

Very short on experience, and he's not ready. He's one of the most raw QB prospects to go in the first round in recent history. You're right to be skeptical, and I'm on the record with my concerns over the last 2-3 months. I said at one point this kind of pick can get a GM fired, and if Richardson looks bad in two years, I think Ballard and Steichen could be looking for work. But you started your previous post saying you don't know much about him. I suggest you do some homework. Watch his games and you'll see the special traits that have people excited. Read about his upbringing and circumstances and you'll see some grit. You won't understand this pick if you're just scouting the stat sheet. It's a major projection, and you won't get it if you don't try to see around the corner a little bit.

I think the Colts would have been in on Levis. But I'll say I think him skipping his bowl game and the Senior Bowl didn't do him any favors, especially with a team like that Colts that places a lot of value on football character, competitive spirit, and the Senior Bowl.

Listening to Steichen talk, it sounds like no matter who the starter is at the beginning of the season, they'll have a plan to get Richardson on the field sooner than later. I'm eager to see what that looks like, but I hope they have at least a couple of packages for him, and not just short yardage, QB run stuff.

What about everything else Ballard (and Steichen) said? Or what about Ballard's history of favoring high traits prospects? Last week, Ballard basically said it wasn't Levis. At the Combine, he said all the young QBs need a lot of work and development, so acting like 'ready to start Day 1' is a major factor didn't make sense. He said the drop back QB probably isn't the direction of the NFL right now. He also basically said all along that trading up wasn't gonna happen.

Ballard might be the most transparent GM in the league. He basically telegraphed this pick for two months, and we could have just believed in what he was saying and figured this out.

Why should it?

@stitches You did it!

By tomorrow we'll be hearing that none of his teammates came to his birthday party...