ztboiler
-
Posts
2,414 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Gallery
Events
Blogs
Posts posted by ztboiler
-
-
Today all the talk is about Trust, Toughness, Team...and its working...and there are some who think there is even a remote chance that Ballard/Reich would bring Bell into this locker room?
-
1
-
-
2 minutes ago, Superman said:
Sharp was just putting a bow on his story from last season, which was about how poorly coached the offense was late in games. His point was well made last season, regardless how this year turned out.
And he did acknowledge not having Luck last season, but it was almost not relevant. The issue was the play calling. These are games in which the Colts had a late game lead, without Luck. It's not like they just couldn't compete at all; the problem is that they couldn't close, and the play calling was a primary factor.
Absolutely, and the point stands on its own. It's hollow and weak to come back and say I told you so when this staff is 7-1 with different personnel at the most important position in sports. There is no further point to be made, and he is merely grandstanding numerically for his own commercial benefit.
I'm fine if he sells that info to someone...we've all got something to sell.
-
24 minutes ago, Superman said:
Just like coaching matters, context matters. Sharp pointed out how absurdly predictable and conservative the play calling was late in games last season, and this is the contrast.
Yes, Luck's absence was a HUGE factor, but the Colts didn't have to lose all those games late in the fourth quarter last year. Coaching got in the way.
Of course....but that story has been done. Its obvious...and you don't get to make yourself look smarter as a writer using contrast without deference to the context of coaching with an elite QB and without.
-
Coaching matters...but this is incredibly lopsided in an effort to make the point more dramatic.
One team had Andrew Luck and the other one didn’t.
-
Neck-bearded demon....
-
17 hours ago, richard pallo said:
Sorry we are two years away from anything major being due. Half of what he's asking? Absurd.
Couldn’t have said it better....paying him even half of what he is asking is absolutely absurd.
-
10 hours ago, braveheartcolt said:
Agreed. We shouldn't break the bank, but we need to offer him a competetive deal and hope he does not get too greedy. But make it decent so he doesn't need to look around.....
A talented line is key, but so is a healthy and consistent one that can grow their chemistry and dominate. Ballard will get him.
Glowinski might turn into a curious case where perceived value among the fan base diverges from actual value in the league.
I share the opinion of the majority that we should retain Glow on a solid multi year deal...but it also won’t surprise me if the league evaluates him as a journeyman whose ascension coincides with the coalescence of the talent around him. Nor would it surprise me if Ballard evaluates him as such and the league values him higher.
-
1 hour ago, MikeCurtis said:
Normally, I would agree on a player like Hunt (age)
But........ The guy IS peaking.... right now
He shouldnt get top 5 DL money, but the guy has been VERY valuable to this team
I think Al Woods to a lessor extent, is still valuable to this team
We let some other DL folks leave to keep him
If it doesnt break the bank,,,,,, you sign him as well
I think you have nailed it here. Hunt has shed the label of replacement level player this year and is creating disruption from multiple positions. Low mileage too.
Woods is valuable but easy to retain on the same type deal he’s playing on, he stays too unless we need the roster spot for another DT under 30. That can be sorted out in camp.
-
8 minutes ago, CR91 said:
All easy to resign. Geathers will probably get something like a 3 year 18 mil contract with 8 guaranteed
Geathers will probably have to take a 1 year deal here or somewhere to demonstrate he can sustain availability...lots of questions about his neck still. He was almost shut down again mid-season but seems to be OK now.
-
3
-
-
I’m at peace with it. It’s the decision I hoped he would make and hope he would make again. There are ramifications...and I certainly see the other side of the argument as valid.
The results of a season are the ramifications of a series of daily decisions across multiple years. The decision in question is, no doubt, a more definitive moment than most of those other decisions feel like in terms of our current playoff position.
Stay aggressive Frank...
-
1
-
-
2 hours ago, Superman said:
I get what you're saying, and the team will hopefully get to the point where we're letting good players go, which means the roster is stacked with good players.
But for this year, while a lot of rookies and young players have played major snaps, we actually only have four rookies that have played more than 40% of their unit's snaps this season. Leonard alone on defense (Turay is close, and Lewis and Adams are getting starter snaps lately), and Nelson, Smith and Hines on offense.
Below that 40% mark, we still have a lot of replacement level players getting notable snaps. Those are presumably the players that will be getting pushed out of the door by successive draft classes.
And in theory, I'd want to bring rookies on deliberately, not out of necessity.
Right on...but when you have the luxury of bringing rookies along deliberately...first impression will almost always be that we aren’t drafting as well as we did in 2018 regardless of merit.
Our Top 6 draft picks have played prominent roles, and a 7th rounder has as well. It’s unlikely that any future draft class by Ballard will have those kind of instant returns en mass on a more mature roster.
-
15 hours ago, Superman said:
Every meaningful draft pick looks like a hit right now. Wilkins seems to be in the dog house, Cain is hurt, and Franklin probably isn't athletic enough. Everyone else looks like a player. It's too early to really know what we have in all these young guys, but the early returns are impressive.
He signed five FAs to contracts greater than vet minimum: Autry, Ebron, Grant, Howard, and Slauson. I wasn't impressed by Slauson before he got hurt, but he was at least respectable, and brought some valuable intangibles (just ask his teammates and coaches). Howard wasn't good and is gone, and Grant has been the physical embodiment of "meh." So raw numbers, at worst he went 2/5 in free agency.
BUT -- Ebron and Autry have been so good. Like, sooo good. These two guys might be the most cost effective and impactful free agents from the entire 2018 class, league wide.
And Dungy nailed it tonight. He said the Colts had two glaring weaknesses last season: a slow defense, and a bad OL, but now the defense is fast and physical, and the OL is one of the best in the league. In one offseason.
Ballard had an excellent offseason. He has set the bar unreasonably high, and if he has a repeat performance next season -- combined with continued development from this year's class -- the Colts will be well on their way.
To the bolded - Part of the unreasonably high expectations moving forward, is the circumstantial element of clearing roster space for rookies to play and develop. It matters that the rookies have played winning football (and at an All-Pro level for Leonard and Nelson) but it very much matters that there were so many snaps available to them by construction of the roster. It's very much like 2012. We're winning games in a developmental year and the rookies are playing - and we all feel better about the draft class when the rookies are actually playing.
The very act of playing and winning makes it that much harder for the next draft class to impress at the same level - their snaps are already spoken for...and you usually only get the opportunity to reshuffle the deck and play this many rookies once.
-
1 hour ago, Superman said:
It's a light WR class if you're looking for a specific kind of receiver. There are guys who don't fit our specific criteria (whatever those are, but most Colts fans want someone 6'2", 26 years old, who can stretch the field and never drops the ball), but will be decent adds for other teams.
Humphries, Brown, Cobb, Moncrief, Hogan, Beasley, Crowder, etc. Older guys like Tate, Cobb, Wallace, will fit in somewhere also.
Second tier guys like Enunwa, Williams (Chargers), Conley (KC), probably fit our profile best.
And there's a host of third tier guys that I would look at, although I'd love to come away with a bonafide #2: White, Latimer, Matthews, Hardy, Perriman, Coates, etc.
I’ve been warming to the idea of Crowder in this offense. We need a YAC guy in this scheme. Might be worth a premium.
-
55 minutes ago, Superman said:
Top 25 by some random person's criteria.
There are a handful of good WR FAs this offseason. I don't think it matters if B/R thinks they're top 25 or not.
I feel like it’s a pretty light WR UFA class for 2019...not that they all need to be #1 types of which there are certainly few.
Jamison Crowder or John Brown could fill a niche. Maybe Quincy Enunwa could take the next step here after missing all of last year?
Who are you liking that might be notably better than what we have in a #2 role?
-
6 hours ago, Lawrence Owen said:
Being we are in a nickel most snaps on defense, that just leaves Leonard and Walker. And I will argue with anyone that the only team in the NFL that has a young due at linebacker, even in their caliber, is Smith and LVE in Dallas.
I know it is only stats, But if you watch them play they confirm these stats.
Walker is trending, no doubt, but it’s very early and he has done little to suggest elite impact...he’s just been steady.
The LB play has gotten better, but if you watched the Cowboys against the Saints, it didn’t look like that, nor do we take away space guarding receivers the way they do in the secondary..yet we are showing some adaptations in this version of the scheme that provide reasons for optimism that we just might eventually.
Overall, it’s all about what we choose to do with the back end of the defense. Players and scheme.
-
57 minutes ago, Lawrence Owen said:
The difference between the dungy era and now is, our Linebacker starters are LEAGUES better.
Easy now. We do look like we have a better WILL...but let’s not act like 2 rookies and a second year guy trying to make it are all that yet.
The main thing that would differentiate the second edition is if they choose to defend receivers consistently.
-
3 hours ago, Lawrence Owen said:
The biggest problem with our pass defense i think is the type of zone scheme we run. We do allow underneath throws by design. Anything in the 10-20 yard range is that soft spot in our zone. We normally lock down anything past 25+ and 5 yards and under are 'designed' to tackle fast and stop yac. But any QB worth their salt will see the 10-20 soft part and take advantage. At that point it is up to the defenders to read the QB and react as he throws. That is a tough thing to ask anyone to do IMO. But yeah,...i get that % worry you have.
But i also look at complete drives. not just plays on an individual basis. When you defend the run well, you end up putting teams in long yardage 3rd down. And this scheme is based off making team walk the field on 10+ play drives. Even at 70% completion %, This stalls drives in the long run. If you complete 70%, but have to make 8 pass plays/drive. There is a good chance one of those 3rd downs fail. Drive ended.
I think this is the basis of the defense. Good is not good enough on a bend but don't break type defense. It's meant to allow a score on 1/3-1/4 of drives. TD or field goal. using the % explanation listed above. if you get 3 drives a quarter..and score on 1/3 of them..that's 4 scores/game. That is the safe defense built for a team that also has high scoring offense. 24 points should win games with this type of defense.
This is why i think Indy would beat K.C. They are not patient, they live and die off the big play. And our defense just don't allow big plays. Not that teams don't try. We just take it away.
I ain’t gonna lie...I think you just characterized the Dungy D years quite well...and I just threw up a little in my mouth.
-
9 hours ago, ColtsBlueFL said:
Dang, y'all confusing me here. I don't think it was all that long ago when it seemed nearly everyone was trashing the Zone / Tampa 2 and wanting Eberflus replaced...
What this really points out is the evolution of zone defenses (actually, all of them) and the move to nickel, big nickel, and dime sub packages. But no defense is without weak spots. The right teams with right personnel can find them and exploit them. That is a reason perfect seasons are so hard to achieve.
When you have defenders in the vicinity of receivers and game plan specific blitzes...its not exactly the same scheme that "Everyone" has been "Trashing".
-
1
-
-
10 minutes ago, richard pallo said:
I bet they have second thoughts on releasing Turbin. Each week that passes Bell is looking better and better. Hard to ignore the obvious. We need a WR and a RB. Manning had Edge and Addai. This offseason it's time to get Andrew some playmakers who can produce.
This is just silly...if they had second thoughts about Turbin they’d just sign him...
-
1
-
-
Deserves his own thread. 8 sacks on the year from the interior despite missing some time...
-
3
-
-
1 hour ago, Smoke317 said:
I can't believe so many so called Colts fans are on our forum talking about they can see how LVE can be seen as above Leonard as Defensive Rookie of the Year right now. That's ridiculous. Leonard's stats are much better than LVE's. It's almost like you guys are advocating that LVE should get the award and justifying it. It would be a complete robbery. LVE only leads in passes defended (9 to 4) and 1 more interception (2 to 1).
Leonard has him beat in tackles 114 to 102, sacks (6 to 0), Tackles for loss, forced fumbles (4 to 0), fumble recoveries (2 to 0). And here's the kicker: Leonard has missed a game and these stats include last night's game for LVE and Leonard still has to play this Sunday to pad his stats even more. Leonard leads all rookies in tackles, forced fumbles, tied for the lead in recoveries, and is 2nd in sacks.
So as of "right now", the only way LVE gets the DROY award is through politics and politics alone. He doesn't deserve the DROY over Leonard. Nor does Chubb. They've got a lot of work to do over the next 5 weeks to overtake the Maniac. Because as of "right now" he's out front. And only prime time nonsense and politics can take it from him. And I'm stunned that y'all seem ok with that.
As great as Leonard has been and, as you suggest, the numbers support it, most football people are going to discount the record breaking tackle numbers a great deal. Our scheme is set up to produce huge tackle stats from his role...and many of those tackles are low impact stat stuffers.
LVE is flat out performing and having a big impact on a legit defense. That matters. It’s not politics.
If Leonard continues to perform with impact plays the way he has, the Colts make the playoffs, and the Colts D plays a fair role in the winning, then it will be a close race...as it should be.
-
27 minutes ago, Superman said:
By "everyone" I meant the coaches as well. So the play calling and in game adjustments need to be on point.
Color me skeptical but optimistic that we’ll evolve beyond what we did during the Dungy years...because initially it looks a lot like a reboot.
The Cowboys pre-Richard were noticeably different in their coverage scheme than they are this year with the similar personnel on the back end. That suggests to me that they were smart enough to bring in some new ideas.
-
1 hour ago, Superman said:
Agreed. I think our scheme has been too simplistic to be effective against good offenses, and I think our DBs in particular make too many mistakes in coverage, pre- and post-snap.
But when everyone is humming, this defensive scheme can work. It has to be played correctly, and the game plan needs to be sound.
And...I think by "humming" you must also mean not only better players but additional coverage elements (ie defending a receiver before he catches the ball) that are already in the playbook that we simply won't run often enough with the current personnel.
-
56 minutes ago, GoatBeard said:
You create it, its not like your destroying the integrity of the scheme. You're just playing with the 4 man rush. The key is creating pressure with 4 guys, allowing 7 to play coverage. We dont have the personnel to do that right now without using our 4 best pass rushers, and I feel like Leonard is absolutely one of those 4.
Everything you just said makes complete sense...in a vacuum. This scheme is simply not that kind of party.
Coaching Matters
in Colts Football
Posted
No. We completely agree on the facts. I completely agree with Sharp on the facts. Last year was unprecedented. We were poorly coached in 2017 and we are well coached in 2018. Those conclusions are easy to support numerically, schematically and in the W-L column....but independently. You just shouldn't do it comparatively. It's bad science.