I Need To See More From Dallas Clark

[colts52761]

Put Tamme, Epps, or Eldridge in for plays if clark's head is somewhere else or is trying to play not to get hurt.

[ruksak]

Put Tamme, Epps, or Eldridge in for plays if clark's head is somewhere else or is trying to play not to get hurt.

+1

I don't care about his past. If he isn't going to do his job, find someone that will. Tamme did his job very well last year.

[Andy]

Dallas had another awful game. I don't know what's up with him but 3 drops is not what you expect from a pro bowl TE. He's playng terribly, and I wouldn't surprised if he gets benched soon

[Marquis Maahrque]

The Chiefs should award today's game ball to Dallas Clark. Almost looked like he was on their payroll today. He dropped two game changers. Wow.

[P-Money]

I think Clark is still getting used to the timing. Tight end catches are typically a short route with a quick fast pass. Its only his 2nd game with Painter. He'll step it back up

Edited October 9, 2011 by P-Money

[MoM]

He looks terrible. Whats wrong with him?

[Marquis Maahrque]

I think Clark is still getting used to the timing. Tight end catches are typically a short route with a quick fast pass. Its only his 2nd game with Painter. He'll step it back up

That's not really a valid excuse when two of his drops were IN HIS HANDS.

[P-Money]

That's not really a valid excuse when two of his drops were IN HIS HANDS.

They're not robots! Give him a break. He's one of the best in the league. This thread shows ignorance.

Edited October 9, 2011 by P-Money

[Coltsman1788]

Dallas looks like he is in a daze. He was in a funk last year before his season ending injury and he has yet to emerge from it so far this year.

[ruksak]

They're not robots! Give him a break. He's one of the best in the league. This thread shows ignorance.

Yea, he's sure playing like one of the best. Outstanding drops there buddy. Absolutely terrific fail. Never seen better.

[colts52761]

He gets paid to produce, not have a funk for 5 games

[Xfiles]

They're not robots! Give him a break. He's one of the best in the league. This thread shows ignorance.

Its not at all ignorant to ask your PRO BOWL TE to step up when his team needs him. But it might be ignorant to make excuses for him when he regresses instead. Not trying to be jerk, I want Dallas to succeed, but your use of the word "ignorance" was grossly out of order here.

[P-Money]

Yea, he's sure playing like one of the best. Outstanding drops there buddy. Absolutely terrific fail. Never seen better.

I suppose you can do better?? Even Peyton slumped last year with all his interceptions. We should have benched him!!

[ruksak]

I suppose you can do better??

I know I could drop every pass. I could certainly match that effort.

[colts52761]

lol

[Marquis Maahrque]

They're not robots! Give him a break. He's one of the best in the league. This thread shows ignorance.

No, it doesn't show ignorance; it's shows observations of football fans.

No one here expects robots, it's a game of human elements and emotion. I played the game for 6 years, and I understand that. You win some, you lose some- you catch some, you drop some...but today ?...REALLY ? You can't blame the wind, the sun, the QB, the timing, the untied shoe string, the coaching, the referee, or the noise. He dropped two balls that should have been caught. Painter put it right in his hands.

Everyone has a bad day. I like Clark; he is a pro & he'll recover. But I think he was a big factor in today's loss.

[Thewholefnshow28]

Dallas has been a huge disappointment this year. The TE should be a QBs best friend out there and he was killing us today. Those drops today are just unacceptable from a TE at his level. Those drops were drive crippling and should have been easy yards for our offense. Had he made a cpuple of those catched we could have extended the drives, rested our defense, and maybe even put up some points.

I think asking him to block so much more is really effecting him. If this injury is bugging me that much then he needs to be sitting on the bench. Tamme is a very capable back up.

With a young QB like we have Clark needs to get right as soon as possible. Either that or he is just another product of Manning.

[il vecchio]

No, it doesn't show ignorance; it's shows observations of football fans.

No one here expects robots, it's a game of human elements and emotion. I played the game for 6 years, and I understand that. You win some, you lose some- you catch some, you drop some...but today ?...REALLY ? You can't blame the wind, the sun, the QB, the timing, the untied shoe string, the coaching, the referee, or the noise. He dropped two balls that should have been caught. Painter put it right in his hands.

Everyone has a bad day. I like Clark; he is a pro & he'll recover. But I think he was a big factor in today's loss.

I agree that he was a big factor in the loss. Disappointing.

I've never played even high school football, but somehow I just never have understood his reluctance to wear gloves. Yes, I know he prefers to not wear them, for some reason, but I assume gloves do the following...1) make the ball effectively "softer" and less likely to bounce off your hands, 2) make the ball effectively "smaller" by comparison, as your catching area is larger and 3) make the ball "stickier". All of these features are what a baseball mitt provides baseball players, although a mitt does this to an even greater degree, of course.

I have never seen data on his drops over his career, and I may be wrong, but it seems they are relatively frequent.

Aside from this, and I know this is blasphemy here, but I wouldn't be averse to trading Clark since he is near (and already past) the top of his trade value and we have a capable replacement for him in Tamme. I think we'd benefit more as a team with defensive players of equal NFL value, and younger ones, too.

Edited October 10, 2011 by il vecchio

[coltfaninnewyork]

clark was flat out horrible,and i venture to say the one that he almost got{catchable,but a tough one}the deep pass.He catches it we win.

[Coltsman1788]

Dallas has been a huge disappointment this year. The TE should be a QBs best friend out there and he was killing us today. Those drops today are just unacceptable from a TE at his level. Those drops were drive crippling and should have been easy yards for our offense. Had he made a cpuple of those catched we could have extended the drives, rested our defense, and maybe even put up some points.

I think asking him to block so much more is really effecting him. If this injury is bugging me that much then he needs to be sitting on the bench. Tamme is a very capable back up.

With a young QB like we have Clark needs to get right as soon as possible. Either that or he is just another product of Manning.

Interesting...I think you are on to something with the increased blocking responsibilities taking its toll on his effectiveness in the passing game. Caldwell has him trying to block Mario Williams and James Harrison one on one for crying out loud. He is being put in situations where he is physically overmatched and that can wear anybody down. He isn't the same player right now and I think it has more to do than simply not having Manning around as he was also struggling last year before his season ending injury. The offensive line had issues last year as well and Dallas was used to block more than he was accustomed to.

Hopefully he rebounds soon and is able to become more of a factor in the weeks ahead. But for now we are still searching for Dallas Clark.

Edited October 10, 2011 by Coltsman1788

[ruksak]

Here's a good question;

If he can't block, why is he a TE?

New question for this year;

If he can't catch, why is he playing?

[cmgww]

I said it before, but Clark is mentally not right....sorta like Tiger Woods is right now with his swing being terrible. I think he's thinking of that wrist. Maybe the brace is affecting his "hands" w/ regards to catching balls. But I think he's just not back from that wrist injury, mentally. He's definitely trying, I saw the frustration after those dropped balls. He was MAD. But I think his problem right now is between the ears and it goes back to LaRon Landry crushing his wrist last season...hopefully he'll get his confidence back, b/c at 100% he's nearly unstoppable

[Megan]

Some people are questioning his wrist and/or the brace. And everybodysgotone asked about the procedure he had done in another thread. So I'm just giving some information here, please don't shoot the messenger! I'm not throwing my opinion into this thread. lol

When I noted the protective wrap he was wearing during contact practice, Clark acknowledged that somewhat reluctantly, he will be wearing the brace throughout the year. "I'm not a big fan of wearing a brace, but it's one of those things where it doesn't inhibit me from doing what I need to do, which is exciting." Clark noted that the brace doesn't keep him from catching the ball and, he cleverly added, "It doesn't make me run slower." Doctors say the time frame is approximately one year for full recovery (October will mark the one-year anniversary), so the brace essentially provides some additional protection, but Clark is free to participate in all activities, no restrictions.

Source

So, I guess we should see soon if that brace is going to come off this year and if his play gets better if it does.

Here's what the surgery was...

"After the injury, Dr. Wiedrich in Chicago sewed the three ligaments back together and inserted two pins in my wrist to keep my wrist immobile while the ligaments healed," Clark told the Independent Monday. "I was placed in a cast that went over my elbow for two months."

"Two weeks ago he removed the pins which didn't require surgery. He just numbed the skin and cut a couple of slits to pull the pins out," Clark said. "I am now in a cast that's up to mid-fore arm, and I'll be in it until January 19."

Source

Make of all that what you will.

[everybodysgotone]

Some people are questioning his wrist and/or the brace. And everybodysgotone asked about the procedure he had done in another thread. So I'm just giving some information here, please don't shoot the messenger! I'm not throwing my opinion into this thread. lol

Source

So, I guess we should see soon if that brace is going to come off this year and if his play gets better if it does.

Here's what the surgery was...

Source

Make of all that what you will.

Thanks, Megan.

Rare for me, but I didn't read all of the content in this thread before posting this reply, but at a glance even just above ^ here it looks like a lot of folks are ripping Clark.

I couldn't find any other information on the injury/surgery other than it was relatively rare, he consulted with several doctors before having the procedure, and he was initially scheduled to be inactive indefinitely. If it's true that his one year post-surgery mark is October, then he possibly hasn't reached MMI....and if that's true then he's still adjusting and trying to improve on-the-fly while making an effort to contribute to the team. I wonder what Clark is experiencing with range of motion and pain. This might be a situation where it's more along the lines of 1.5 yrs, rehab combined with playing time to get closer to 100 % using his hands for pushing-off, blocking, catching. Similar to RBs with ligament injuries where it can take close to that much time. I remember how much EJ went through to make it back & what he said about the process.

At any rate, we all know Clark was more and more involved in the offense each year and was doing well last year before being hurt. The guy has grit.....he bounced back after getting his bell rung and defenses were head hunting him some years back. I'll not question his commitment, toughness or approach.

This year, for obvious reasons with our Oline and QB issues, our TEs are only getting about 3 catches per game. Yes, it could be more if Clark hadn't had those drops but a bigger role out of the position this year is blocking - something Clark has accepted and done over the years when called upon. He did well against even Harrison in the PITT game. I'm not sure if a gameplan to rotate him in/out on certain situational downs would be beneficial. He's proven to be an asset to the team and I believe it will bode well for the Colts to let him work his way back into form........especially during a lost season. Let him play his usual game if he's medically cleared to do so and let's see where he is at the end of the season.

[bayone]

Thanks, Megan.

Rare for me, but I didn't read all of the content in this thread before posting this reply, but at a glance even just above ^ here it looks like a lot of folks are ripping Clark.

I couldn't find any other information on the injury/surgery other than it was relatively rare, he consulted with several doctors before having the procedure, and he was initially scheduled to be inactive indefinitely. If it's true that his one year post-surgery mark is October, then he possibly hasn't reached MMI....and if that's true then he's still adjusting and trying to improve on-the-fly while making an effort to contribute to the team. I wonder what Clark is experiencing with range of motion and pain. This might be a situation where it's more along the lines of 1.5 yrs, rehab combined with playing time to get closer to 100 % using his hands for pushing-off, blocking, catching. Similar to RBs with ligament injuries where it can take close to that much time. I remember how much EJ went through to make it back & what he said about the process.

At any rate, we all know Clark was more and more involved in the offense each year and was doing well last year before being hurt. The guy has grit.....he bounced back after getting his bell rung and defenses were head hunting him some years back. I'll not question his commitment, toughness or approach.

This year, for obvious reasons with our Oline and QB issues, our TEs are only getting about 3 catches per game. Yes, it could be more if Clark hadn't had those drops but a bigger role out of the position this year is blocking - something Clark has accepted and done over the years when called upon. He did well against even Harrison in the PITT game. I'm not sure if a gameplan to rotate him in/out on certain situational downs would be beneficial. He's proven to be an asset to the team and I believe it will bode well for the Colts to let him work his way back into form........especially during a lost season. Let him play his usual game if he's medically cleared to do so and let's see where he is at the end of the season.

Yeah having him trying to block Mario Williams & others cant help that healing

[everybodysgotone]

Yeah having him trying to block Mario Williams & others cant help that healing

Do you have any additional medical info on Dallas Clark, Barry? I thought of you in this situation.

[bayone]

Do you have any additional medical info on Dallas Clark, Barry? I thought of you in this situation.

unfortunately not Shawn, i remember the articles cited by Megan and thats all , dont remember any other info on the surgery ,

and u know if he's still having trouble the Colts wont acknowledge that

but they sure have him doing a lot more blocking than hes used to and it just cant help the situation

Edited October 10, 2011 by bayone

[everybodysgotone]

unfortunately not Shawn, i remember the articles cited by Megan and thats all , dont remember any other info on the surgery ,

and u know if he's still having trouble the Colts wont acknowledge that

but they sure have him doing a lot more blocking than hes used to and it just cant help the situation

Good to see ya, buddy. I have to run.....early day. Have a good one!

[King Colt]

LOSERS!! Dallas Clark has been a dream receiver for the Colts and has a pair of the best hands ever by any tight end. Trade him? NEVER!!!!

[Jaric]

He's 32. He's already well exceded the average age of a football player. It's not unheard of for a player his age to start on the downslope. If that is the case, we'd be well served to part ways a little too early rather than a little too late.

As is, he's a liability. Both as a blocker and a reciever.

If Dallas Clark was who we thought he was, then he should be front and center at helping Painter develop as a QB by providing a safety valve for when Wayne or Garcon are covered.. Clark should be Painter's best friend.

If the issue is medical, then he shouldn't be on the field. If the issue is something else, then we would be better served to start looking in another direction.

[Coltssouth]

I don't think one years age has made that big of a difference in our Dallas.

Before his injury he was and outstanding player. Something is wrong. I don't know what, but I don't believe the age factor is it.

[Jaric]

I don't think one years age has made that big of a difference in our Dallas.

Before his injury he was and outstanding player. Something is wrong. I don't know what, but I don't believe the age factor is it.

Marvin Harrison got old very quickly. I know he was also injured, but then so is Dallas. I don't think it' unreasonable to think that age might have a factor in his play right now.

I hope I'm wrong, but the shelf life of NFL players isn't that long.

[ruksak]

I got to thinking about it, and I believe he has alligator arms.

For those whom don't know, that's when a player has taken some brutal hits and no longer extends his arms and goes all out for the catch. Instead, he seems more concerned with protecting himself against the hit and just halfheartedly puts his hands on the ball. Dallas has taken some pops in recent years, maybe he's no longer willing to take the punishment? One of his drops yesterday he tried to stab the ball with one hand, when he clearly could've reached out with both and caught it. That drop in particular looked like alligator arms syndrome, he didn't want to expose himself and take a hit.

It's natural, as you get older you no longer want to participate in reckless abandon. I ride 4 wheelers, and I do some crazy things. When I was in my 20's I would jump the darn things like a madman. Somewhere on the wrong side of 30 I stopped doing that. Just didn't have the guts anymore.

Maybe Dallas just doesn't have the heart to get his ribs cracked by 265 pound men that run a 4.4/40?

[bayone]

Good to see ya, buddy. I have to run.....early day. Have a good one!

u to my friend, hope all is as best as could be for you & all members , know u wish same back

[CoachLite]

Just a couple of thoughts. 1. Do you suppose Dallas Clark, and a whole handful of players are totally demoralized? 2. If the players aren't making plays, don't you suppose that they aren't coached in the proper techniques to make plays? Look, most of these guys have played quite successfully in the past. It is obvious there are problems with the coaching staff - and this could destroy the team (if it hasn't already) even IF Peyton returns.

Peyton is great, but even HE can't do it all! Especially if everyone elses give-a-darn is broken.

[everybodysgotone]

Just a couple of thoughts. 1. Do you suppose Dallas Clark, and a whole handful of players are totally demoralized?

No. They're professionals. In Clark's case, he's shown plenty of mettle in the past. I don't call his attitude or work ethic into question.

On another note, Clark is signed through the 2013 season on his 6yr/36M/11M signing bonus - deal. If his injury does in fact prove to be more limiting, it's possible to see his 2012 4.5M and 2013 5.3M salaries reduced to make cap room and/or parting of ways.

Still......I say give the guy a chance to play through it as long as he's medically cleared. The 1 - 1.5 yr MMI/rehab/re-acclimation seems about right.