Christensen could be leaving town

[Mameluc]

I understand that some of Arians playcalling can be frustrating, but if it came down to Arians or Clyde, I'm taking Arians every freaking time. Not even close IMO. 

and to be honest even with the ridiculous amount of deep passes we take..i thrust Grigson will take care of OL this FA...so im kinda salivating of Luck/Arians with a top OL

[bluephantom87]

I'm of that same opinion on Arians. Absolutely thrilled the guy could be leaving town.

Let me see.... Here's a guy who took a overhauled offense with rookies at the skill set including qb, had one of the worst o-lines in football and had finished 2-14 last year with Clyde as the oc while being ranked almost dead last in every offensive category. Under Bruce, Luck broke the rookie record for passing yds, the most wins (11) for a number one overall pick, most comeback wins (7) by a rookie and lead the team to the playoffs. Let's not forget Arians went 9-3 filling in for Chuck and won a SB as the oc for the Steelers while being denied another by Aaron Rogers. A lot of sports media say the absence of Bruce as the oc in the steel city is why big Ben regressed this year. So yes I see your point.

[GoColts8818]

Let me see.... Here's a guy who took a overhauled offense with rookies at the skill set including qb, had one of the worst o-lines in football and had finished 2-14 last year with Clyde as the oc while being ranked almost dead last in every offensive category. Under Bruce, Luck broke the rookie record for passing yds, the most wins (11) for a number one overall pick, most comeback wins (7) by a rookie and lead the team to the playoffs. Let's not forget Arians went 9-3 filling in for Chuck and won a SB as the oc for the Steelers while being denied another by Aaron Rogers. A lot of sports media say the absence of Bruce as the oc in the steel city is why big Ben regressed this year. So yes I see your point.

First of all I am all for keeping Arians but when people try to compare the offense from this year to last year it's really not fair.  I think if Arians was trying to run his offense with Curtis Painter, Kerry Collins, or even Dan Orlovsky as his QB it would struggle like it did under CC.  Is CC as good as Arians I don't think so but I think people (and I am not saying you here) are a little unfair on judging him based on the year without Peyton.  Most OCs would struggle to have a good offense if they were expecting to have Peyton Manning and then have the rug pulled out from under them and be left with Collins, Painter, and Orlovsky.

[BleedBlu8792]

Let me see.... Here's a guy who took a overhauled offense with rookies at the skill set including qb, had one of the worst o-lines in football and had finished 2-14 last year with Clyde as the oc while being ranked almost dead last in every offensive category. Under Bruce, Luck broke the rookie record for passing yds, the most wins (11) for a number one overall pick, most comeback wins (7) by a rookie and lead the team to the playoffs. Let's not forget Arians went 9-3 filling in for Chuck and won a SB as the oc for the Steelers while being denied another by Aaron Rogers. A lot of sports media say the absence of Bruce as the oc in the steel city is why big Ben regressed this year. So yes I see your point.

1. The Colts won 11 games. This isn't baseball. The coaching staff this year is light years better than what we had last year, however in the first 8 weeks last year we still had an opportunity to win at the least 4 of them.

2. His turnovers are what put the Colts behind. Undoubtedly he brought them back, but he put us in that position to begin with.

3. Arians did a very admirable job filling in for Pagano, but just like in Pittsburgh he nearly got our QB killed with his incompetence. It took him ~10 weeks to figure out that our O-line was too inconsistent for his play calling to work. Again, much like Pittsburgh.

By all means be thrilled with 22pts per game and a below average redzone offense, which is also tied to Arians' offenses. I, however, feel this team was more talented than just 22 points per game. They were way under-utilized I felt, especially with Luck stubbornly being turned into a gun-slinger due to Arians. Again, by all means be satisfied with that, but I simply refuse to.

4. Pittsburgh was where it was because of their defense NOT because of Arians. There is a reason why LeBeau is still there while Arians is not.

[throwing BBZ]

nattering nabobs

[John Dee]

Luck will be fine, it is all the other young fellas that worry me if the O is "retooled" ..   

 

A totally new O would not be good at all.

Based on yesterdays Broncos game I would not be stunned if they feel they have to get more to make Peyton comfortable.

 

With that being said, it's just been one year for Luck and this offense in Indy. I am not overly worried they can't do it again with a new coach. Luck is a smart cookie. It will take time though and they will need the offseason/preseason to get comfortable.

 

And the more I look back the more I hated Arians playcalling. It seemed so boom or bust. It was ahhhhh or noooooooooooo. I like Arians and am fine if he stays but he has his pros and cons too.

[MIColtsFan]

Would not bother me in the least to see Clyde go.  Like Jim Caldwell, nice guy....but not my guy!  I saw too many deer in the headlights moments from both of them in the losing season....or shall we say the 'lost' season.  If/when Arians goes, time for some fresh ideas.  Time for no fear....no huddle...not afraid to run designed roll-out offense....offensive mindset.... :pass:  

 

We need to get to a point where we feel that each time we touch the ball we can score points.  Get across the 50 and we are at least going to hit you for 3.  We can get there fast with improvements in the line and a killer instinct OC.....loaded for Bear (s)  Time to go after the next Colts      !!!!!!  Go              :nfl:!!!!! 

no huddle and hurry up is needed now more than ever with the return of powerful defenses! gotta get it clicking

[lollygagger8]

A good OC utilizes the talent of his players, not tries to put square pegs in round holes and not change anything based on personel. CC is the epitome of someone not changing ANYTHING for the players he had. Anybody but Clyde as OC please!

[haughvillian]

Arians has said he will never be a dink or dunk play calling guy. That said, he reminds me a little of Mike Martz. Martz has been accused of getting his QB killed because of how long it takes for down field routes to develop. You could argue the same for Arians. Luck took his share of hits this year and I'm a tad bit worried it might eventually take a toll on Luck. Look at Big Ben, he's gotten to the point where he plays that way even with Arians gone. He holds the ball and takes big hits. He's now become injury prone. I personally would like to see more of a west coast thinking type of offense. Utilize Luck's smarts and take what the defense gives. You will still have down field throws but it doesn't have to be a dink and dunk type offense either. As for Clyde, let him go....

[Dudley Smith]

1. The Colts won 11 games. This isn't baseball. The coaching staff this year is light years better than what we had last year, however in the first 8 weeks last year we still had an opportunity to win at the least 4 of them.

2. His turnovers are what put the Colts behind. Undoubtedly he brought them back, but he put us in that position to begin with.

3. Arians did a very admirable job filling in for Pagano, but just like in Pittsburgh he nearly got our QB killed with his incompetence. It took him ~10 weeks to figure out that our O-line was too inconsistent for his play calling to work. Again, much like Pittsburgh.

By all means be thrilled with 22pts per game and a below average redzone offense, which is also tied to Arians' offenses. I, however, feel this team was more talented than just 22 points per game. They were way under-utilized I felt, especially with Luck stubbornly being turned into a gun-slinger due to Arians. Again, by all means be satisfied with that, but I simply refuse to.

4. Pittsburgh was where it was because of their defense NOT because of Arians. There is a reason why LeBeau is still there while Arians is not.

 

Your point #2 is a blanket statement that has some truth to it but is overly broad. To say that the reason this team was down at any point in the season was because of Luck's turnovers is simply not true. Not sure if that is what you were trying to say but that is the way I am reading it.

 

To not give ANY credit to Arians for the Superbowl he won as OC with the Steelers is also not being fair. It wasn't just because of their defense that they won that Superbowl. Arians was let go because Pitt's ownership wanted to get back to a running offense that they felt was the offensive identity that the Steelers as a franchise should have. It certainly wasn't because Arians approach lacked success. For whatever it's worth, Ben Roth. actually was very upset when Arians was let go.

 

Do you believe Luck is a franchise QB? All I see you post are things he is not doing/doing poorly. I never see anything positive in regards to Luck or Arians offense from you. To let you know, I too share some worries about Arians' playcalling, but I do think overall he has been a good OC for the Colts this past season and would like to see him return.

[YOUR GM]

Your point #2 is a blanket statement that has some truth to it but is overly broad. To say that the reason this team was down at any point in the season was because of Luck's turnovers is simply not true. Not sure if that is what you were trying to say but that is the way I am reading it.

 

To not give ANY credit to Arians for the Superbowl he won as OC with the Steelers is also not being fair. It wasn't just because of their defense that they won that Superbowl. Arians was let go because Pitt's ownership wanted to get back to a running offense that they felt was the offensive identity that the Steelers as a franchise should have. It certainly wasn't because Arians approach lacked success. For whatever it's worth, Ben Roth. actually was very upset when Arians was let go.

 

Do you believe Luck is a franchise QB? All I see you post are things he is not doing/doing poorly. I never see anything positive in regards to Luck or Arians offense from you. To let you know, I too share some worries about Arians' playcalling, but I do think overall he has been a good OC for the Colts this past season and would like to see him return.

 

I think Pitt's ownership took a hard look at the talent level on offense and the results that followed (under Arians watch), and weren't impressed. His offense only cracked the top 10 once in scoring while he was there. The simple fact is, the Arians offense is feast or famine. His unit's most memorable moments actually came when he WASN'T calling plays.  Pittsburgh's offense really wasn't doing much in the superbowl against the Cardinals until they were in 2-minute, no-huddle offense, with their backs to the wall. Their offense, in general, pretty much lived off of Ben extending plays and waiting for a receiver to come open. Why should Arians be credited for that? Sign me up for OC, if all I have to do is tell the QB, "Hang in that pocket, hope someone gets open, and make it happen!" He's done the same thing here with Luck, and it's a horrible way to approach offense, in my opinion. The Steelers saw that and cut ties with him for that reason, I feel 

[BOTT]

I think Pitt's ownership took a hard look at the talent level on offense and the results that followed (under Arians watch), and weren't impressed. His offense only cracked the top 10 once in scoring while he was there. The simple fact is, the Arians offense is feast or famine. His unit's most memorable moments actually came when he WASN'T calling plays.  Pittsburgh's offense really wasn't doing much in the superbowl against the Cardinals until they were in 2-minute, no-huddle offense, with their backs to the wall. Their offense, in general, pretty much lived off of Ben extending plays and waiting for a receiver to come open. Why should Arians be credited for that? Sign me up for OC, if all I have to do is tell the QB, "Hang in that pocket, hope someone gets open, and make it happen!" He's done the same thing here with Luck, and it's a horrible way to approach offense, in my opinion. The Steelers saw that and cut ties with him for that reason, I feel 

I assume Arians is still calling plays in hurry up

[Dudley Smith]

I think Pitt's ownership took a hard look at the talent level on offense and the results that followed (under Arians watch), and weren't impressed. His offense only cracked the top 10 once in scoring while he was there. The simple fact is, the Arians offense is feast or famine. His unit's most memorable moments actually came when he WASN'T calling plays.  Pittsburgh's offense really wasn't doing much in the superbowl against the Cardinals until they were in 2-minute, no-huddle offense, with their backs to the wall. Their offense, in general, pretty much lived off of Ben extending plays and waiting for a receiver to come open. Why should Arians be credited for that? Sign me up for OC, if all I have to do is tell the QB, "Hang in that pocket, hope someone gets open, and make it happen!" He's done the same thing here with Luck, and it's a horrible way to approach offense, in my opinion. The Steelers saw that and cut ties with him for that reason, I feel 

 

I think I can safely say that if all BA did was tell his QB "Hang in the pocket, hope someone gets open and make it happen!" then he wouldn't have a job in the NFL. I share some of your concerns about the way BA runs the offense, but I also think it is silly to not give him any credit for his offenses' success but then make him to take all the blame for the failures.

 

Overall, I think BA is a good coordinator despite some of his shortcomings. I think a bigger problem this season was our OL. Sure, some of the sacks were coverage sacks from Luck holding onto the ball too long either because he should have thrown it away or was focused on one of the deep routes, but a lot of the sacks were because our OL was just terrible. I think so long as the OL is shored up this offseason this offense could be very effective if Luck has better protection.

[JoKeR]

Deuces!

[BrentMc11]

Deuces!

Would the real JoKeR please stand up? :clap:  You are changing like the weather

[JoKeR]

Would the real JoKeR please stand up? :clap:  You are changing like the weather

There you go, changed it for ya, lolz.

[BrentMc11]

There you go, changed it for ya, lolz.

Always have fun with you JoKeR!!!!  

[YOUR GM]

I think I can safely say that if all BA did was tell his QB "Hang in the pocket, hope someone gets open and make it happen!" then he wouldn't have a job in the NFL. I share some of your concerns about the way BA runs the offense, but I also think it is silly to not give him any credit for his offenses' success but then make him to take all the blame for the failures.

 

Overall, I think BA is a good coordinator despite some of his shortcomings. I think a bigger problem this season was our OL. Sure, some of the sacks were coverage sacks from Luck holding onto the ball too long either because he should have thrown it away or was focused on one of the deep routes, but a lot of the sacks were because our OL was just terrible. I think so long as the OL is shored up this offseason this offense could be very effective if Luck has better protection.

 

 

Yeah, I didn't intend for that quote to be taken literally. My point was, BA puts his QB's in that scenario far too often for my taste. To his credit, he has called good games before. I just feel like for much of this season (and even his time in Pittsburgh), he stubbornly called plays based on his idealogy of a primarily vertical attack, rather than calling what was practical for the personnel he had on the roster. The goal of the offense is to score points, not score points with style. I think Arians gets too caught up on the style and forgets what his job ultimately is as a coordinator, which is to move the rock and score TD's    

[JoKeR]

Always have fun with you JoKeR!!!!

Have fun while seeing this cat in your nightmares!!! MWHAHAHAHA

No really I'm having issues making the joker clap gif. load up on my iPad.

[BrentMc11]

Have fun while seeing this cat in your nightmares!!! MWHAHAHAHA

No really I'm having issues making the joker clap gif. load up on my iPad.

HA HA!.....miss the Joker clap......

[Susie Q]

If I could afford it, I would help pay for his relocation to Denver. They can't get rid of him soon enough IMO. I will say though, if they kept him in a position like he holds now, just a QB's coach, then I have no problem if he stays, but it really worries me that he may get promoted.

Did it ever dawn on you and everyone else that could be the reason CC might be leaving is because just maybe he already knows that if he stays here he will only be the QB coach? Who knows what has happened behind closed doors.  Just like Arians I hope he (Arians) doesn't leave but if he has always wanted to be a HC he will have to leave to do so to get his longtime dream.   All this is JMO of course.

[Balzer40]

Did it ever dawn on you and everyone else that could be the reason CC might be leaving is because just maybe he already knows that if he stays here he will only be the QB coach? Who knows what has happened behind closed doors.  Just like Arians I hope he (Arians) doesn't leave but if he has always wanted to be a HC he will have to leave to do so to get his longtime dream.   All this is JMO of course.

 

 

Im not sure what you're driving at here or what is supposed to dawn on me, but I don't want Arians to go either however, if clyde wants to go to Denver to be an OC then by all means he can't go fast enough for me. Like I said, if he stayed as a QB's coach then I have no problem with him, but he had his shot as an OC here and failed miserably IMO. I hope that Grigson and Pagano realize that too and don't promote him if Arians leaves. I know, Grigson and Pagano know more than I or anyone else on this forum does, but It's just my opinion that CC is not a good OC and i hope we never have to deal with him in that position here again.

[Superman]

Let me see.... Here's a guy who took a overhauled offense with rookies at the skill set including qb, had one of the worst o-lines in football and had finished 2-14 last year with Clyde as the oc while being ranked almost dead last in every offensive category. Under Bruce, Luck broke the rookie record for passing yds, the most wins (11) for a number one overall pick, most comeback wins (7) by a rookie and lead the team to the playoffs. Let's not forget Arians went 9-3 filling in for Chuck and won a SB as the oc for the Steelers while being denied another by Aaron Rogers. A lot of sports media say the absence of Bruce as the oc in the steel city is why big Ben regressed this year. So yes I see your point.

 

All of that is true, and is worthy of praise.

 

None of that means that Bruce Arians and his offense don't have flaws.

[bluephantom87]

First of all I am all for keeping Arians but when people try to compare the offense from this year to last year it's really not fair.  I think if Arians was trying to run his offense with Curtis Painter, Kerry Collins, or even Dan Orlovsky as his QB it would struggle like it did under CC.  Is CC as good as Arians I don't think so but I think people (and I am not saying you here) are a little unfair on judging him based on the year without Peyton.  Most OCs would struggle to have a good offense if they were expecting to have Peyton Manning and then have the rug pulled out from under them and be left with Collins, Painter, and Orlovsky.

Understand that the Colts drafted Painter and he had been with the team 3yrs as Peyton's backup. Orlovsky had a few prior nfl starts under his belt and Kerry Collins had numerous nfl starts including leading a team to a SB. So my point being is as the oc you adapt to your talent level and play to their strengths. Were any off them Peyton? No (how many are?) but servicable coupled with the fact that Clyde still had Reggie, Saturday, Garcon, Addai, Collie, Dallas, Tammie, D Brown to name a few at his disposal but the Colts finished almost dead last in almost every offensive category in the nfl enroute to a 2-14 season last year. I also remind you that Brady went down the FIRST game of a season and was out for the year but the Pats finished 11-5 with Matt C. (who proved to be terrible elsewhere) Peyton had missed all of training camp from the neck surgery and with any procedure there's the possibility of a setback. Clyde was terrible on his own at Tampa. He followed Tony to the Colts which already had Tom Moore as the oc along with Peyton Manning. Once Tom retired he simply was the next man up with TOM'S offense. By default Clyde called an ok game (9 pts) with ARIANS playbook against the Ravens and now some think he should be given the oc job if Bruce leaves. I think it should be based on his OWN merits and not simply because he is already on the staff. I think the sky's the limit for Luck but I also think he must be paired with a top tier oc to continue his growth as an elite qb in the nfl.

[GoColts8818]

Understand that the Colts drafted Painter and he had been with the team 3yrs as Peyton's backup. Orlovsky had a few prior nfl starts under his belt and Kerry Collins had numerous nfl starts including leading a team to a SB. So my point being is as the oc you adapt to your talent level and play to their strengths. Were any off them Peyton? No (how many are?) but servicable coupled with the fact that Clyde still had Reggie, Saturday, Garcon, Addai, Collie, Dallas, Tammie, D Brown to name a few at his disposal but the Colts finished almost dead last in almost every offensive category in the nfl enroute to a 2-14 season last year. I also remind you that Brady went down the FIRST game of a season and was out for the year but the Pats finished 11-5 with Matt C. (who proved to be terrible elsewhere) Peyton had missed all of training camp from the neck surgery and with any procedure there's the possibility of a setback. Clyde was terrible on his own at Tampa. He followed Tony to the Colts which already had Tom Moore as the oc along with Peyton Manning. Once Tom retired he simply was the next man up with TOM'S offense. By default Clyde called an ok game (9 pts) with ARIANS playbook against the Ravens and now some think he should be given the oc job if Bruce leaves. I think it should be based on his OWN merits and not simply because he is already on the staff. I think the sky's the limit for Luck but I also think he must be paired with a top tier oc to continue his growth as an elite qb in the nfl.

Oh I am fully aware that the Colts drafted Painter.  The problem with Painter wasn't that he didn't know they system it was that he wasn't good enough which is why the guy that drafted him was shown the door.  The Colts coaches were forced to try to make chicken saled our of you chicken you know what at the QB poistion last year.  The fact that their best option was a guy who had been the QB of a 0-16 team just proves that they didn't have the talent they needed at the QB poistion.  There is only so much coaches can do if the players are just not good enough. 

 

Keep in mind when the Colts found out they were losing Peyton for the year last year too.  They found out right after final cut downs.  Up to that point they thought he would be good to go at most a month into the season.  It was way too late to make major changes to the offense.  Reggie Wayne talked about how hard it was to get BA's offense down with a full off-season.  Trying to get all those guys to get a new offense down at the start of the season would have been even worse than what we saw.  They were really stuck they could tweak it which they did.  The problem is they were still stuck with a bad talent at the QB poistion.  That's why you saw the Polian's fired right away and the coaching staff hung on for a while.  Frankly had the Colts been able to convince Steve Spagnuolo to be their DC we might have not fired Jim Caldwell which probably means Clyde would have still been our OC.

 

Keep in mind when Clyde did have his QB that they built the offense around they got to the playoffs twice and a Super Bowl.  So he had to do something right.  Also before you say well Peyton called the plays if that's the case it's not fair to blame Clyde for things that went wrong during those two years then or did Peyton only call the plays when the offense worked? 

 

I don't think Clyde was the best OC in the league and I don't even think he would be my first choice to replace Arians but I don't think he's as bad as most Colts fans want him to be either and I also think he gets unfairly blamed for the 2011 season.  Frankly we could have probably had any OC in the league that year and the offense would have struggled because at the end of the day the problem was the lack of talent at the QB spot which was backed up by the fact that two of those players are now out of the league and the third is a back up in Tampa Bay and the guy who was responsible for getting those players in place is also out of a job while Clyde is still employed. 

[lollygagger8]

The point is, the last season, Clyde knew he had a joker at QB but never adjusted the scheme to compensate. We still had every other weapon on the field except Manning. He left Orlov riding the bench instead on Curtis freakin Painter and only put Orlov in to play 2 games? Are you kidding me?

[bavanlan]

The point is, the last season, Clyde knew he had a joker at QB but never adjusted the scheme to compensate. We still had every other weapon on the field except Manning. He left Orlov riding the bench instead on Curtis freakin Painter and only put Orlov in to play 2 games? Are you kidding me?

 

Suck for Luck?

[lollygagger8]

Suck for Luck?

Lol, I never did buy into that.

[HarassedOffTheSite]

PFT has an article up saying that with Broncos O.C. Mike McCoy possibly getting a head coaching gig, Denver could possibly bring in Clyde as the O.C.. So hypothetically we could lose Bruce Arians, and Clyde Christensen. So a lot of people around here may be very happy soon. Thank goodness Andrew Luck is a genius when it comes to learning playbooks. 

 

There is no indication that Christensen is going anywhere. This is all surmising.

[YOUR GM]

The point is, the last season, Clyde knew he had a joker at QB but never adjusted the scheme to compensate. We still had every other weapon on the field except Manning. He left Orlov riding the bench instead on Curtis freakin Painter and only put Orlov in to play 2 games? Are you kidding me?

 

 

No adjustment was going to make Painter even worthy of being a game manager. He's not even employed right now. Clyde got a bad deal last year, and while he shouldn't have tried to stick with the Manning offense, he was under the impression that Manning was coming back at some point and likely didn't shift too much of the offense early on for that reason. Couple that with the fact that VETERANS vouched for Curtis to be the starter and were upset that Kerry Collins was brought in, tells me he was doomed to fail no matter what. 

 

I don't think Clyde is great, and I really don't know what I think, to be honest. He's an enigma because he really hasn't established a name for himself. He maintained Moore's offensive scheme and did the same for a game under Arians. I'm curious to see if he's able to come up with his own style by meshing the two offenses. 

 

As far as drawing up X's and O's, Clyde is completely unproven, but as a play-caller, I'd take him over Arians, anyday. I'd even go as far as to say our season probably would've been worse last season (and that's saying something), if Arians were OC because he's stubborn (and likely wouldn't make any more adjustments than Clyde did last year) and his scheme puts the QB under constant duress without airtight protection from the o-line. 

[theanarchist]

PFT has an article up saying that with Broncos O.C. Mike McCoy possibly getting a head coaching gig, Denver could possibly bring in Clyde as the O.C.. So hypothetically we could lose Bruce Arians, and Clyde Christensen. So a lot of people around here may be very happy soon. Thank goodness Andrew Luck is a genius when it comes to learning playbooks. 

This would assume that the Colts would not be interesting in offering him the opening that we now have. I think it's premature to assume that Clyde would not be in consideration for Arians job.

[corgi]

The article in question is also five days old.

[lollygagger8]

No adjustment was going to make Painter even worthy of being a game manager.

 Incorrect.

 

Going back to holding the clipboard would've helped immensely.

[YOUR GM]

 Incorrect.

 

Going back to holding the clipboard would've helped immensely.

 

Agreed. But was that Christensen's call? We don't really know. 

 

 

This is all moot anyways. He's not our OC so nothing to worry about

[BrentMc11]

 Incorrect.

 

Going back to holding the clipboard would've helped immensely.

I need a painter come spring.....do you know any that are available?    

[HungarianColtsFan]

I need a painter come spring.....do you know any that are available?    

 

 

I know one...but get prepared for INC... :-)

[BrentMc11]

I know one...but get prepared for INC... :-)

Or INT!!!!!!  

[lollygagger8]

Or INT!!!!!!  

Hahhaha! Painter would get intercepted dipping the paint brush in the can.

[BrentMc11]

Hahhaha! Painter would get intercepted dipping the paint brush in the can.

Have you seen him at Walmart lately?  I know you and he were tight!!    He may be at Mane Clips in Lafayette. (I know...old joke)