irsay claims the team is more balanced now

[Stephen]

http://www.courierpress.com/news/2013/jul/25/balance-holds-key8232to-colts-success-jumpirsay/

[Smonroe]

Hope he's right. Personally, I think the days of a team having a dominant D are gone. Now you just want your D to hang in there and give your O more series. You don't have to be great, just good. The Ravens proved that last year.

In a way, a teams O is their best D. A high scoring O takes the pressue off the D and puts opposing teams in bad situations. I'm not saying a "built for the lead" D is the right answer though. i agree with Jim. Balance...balance...balance.

[NewColtsFan]

Stephen.......

 

Thanks for linking this.....    it's a great, great read....   and this is among the many reasons why I like and admire Irsay....

 

That's a pretty darn candid interview he gave.....   and, frankly,  I couldn't agree more with his assessment....

 

Props to him for stepping up and 'owning' everything about the last 15 years....    

 

Hope my fellow Colts' fans will read the linked story....   I think it's well worth your time....

[The Old Crow]

Funny , when Irsay dumps high priced veterans , he is a genius. When the Ravens do it, they are gutting their team. Anyway, it was an interesting read and Irsay may be onto something. The Colts definitely should have won more than one Super Bowls during the Manning years , as this was a top quarterback of a generation. Was it Irsay's, Polian , or Mannings fault, probably a combination of all three.

[cjwhiskers]

Funny , when Irsay dumps high priced veterans , he is a genius. When the Ravens do it, they are gutting their team. Anyway, it was an interesting read and Irsay may be onto something. The Colts definitely should have won more than one Super Bowls during the Manning years , as this was a top quarterback of a generation. Was it Irsay's, Polian , or Mannings fault, probably a combination of all three.

 

Irsay and the Colts did it to rebuild a team, start a new philosophy in Indy. The Raven did it to pay Joe Flacco...big difference. 

[Jules]

Great interview. Thanks for linking Stephen.

 

Lets hope his vision comes true someday and we see more playoff success. Last season I don't think anyone truly hung their head in any shame losing in the playoffs after the unexpected journey we had.

 

But, you know in the future it won't be the same for us.....expectations will rise. And to win in the playoffs we will need balance.

[Superman]

Funny , when Irsay dumps high priced veterans , he is a genius. When the Ravens do it, they are gutting their team. Anyway, it was an interesting read and Irsay may be onto something. The Colts definitely should have won more than one Super Bowls during the Manning years , as this was a top quarterback of a generation. Was it Irsay's, Polian , or Mannings fault, probably a combination of all three.

What does this have to do with the Ravens??? For the record, not everyone thinks the Ravens gutted their team. I've stated that I think they might be better on several occasions.

More on topic, winning Super Bowls is hard. I agree that the Colts had the potential to win multiple titles during Manning's time here, but you catch a bad break here, you mess up there, and you come up empty. Irsay has some blame there; he let Polian and his son kind of take over for a while, and they weren't really held accountable until the end. Polian has plenty of blame, of course. Manning should take some blame as well, although I think he also deserves more credit than any other party.

What I think Irsay has learned is that you can't be satisfied with having a dominant offense that can carry you into the playoffs, and then cross your fingers and hope that's enough to win big once you get there. You have to be balanced overall, including special teams, as he mentions. You should do whatever you can, use whatever avenue you have available to you, to improve the quality of your roster, never satisfied with "good enough."

My favorite quote: "There was a conscious effort to make sure we had more balance and tighten the special teams up. It was really a strong theme that I thought was important as Andrew came in and as we started this new era. When we can add that component (a tough ground game and a tough defense) to the Andrew Lucks of the world, I think you really have a chance to win more than one.”

I think that's why he settled on Ryan Grigson and Chuck Pagano, two guys who really have a strong vision about the identity the team should take on. Neither of those guys ever acknowledge the odds that a 2-14 team was facing to get to the playoffs. They both let the skepticism fuel them, turned their backs on it, and did everything they could to overcome the challenges they were facing. Grigson is a confident intellectual who isn't afraid to make a decision and stick to it. Pagano is an inspired motivator and leader. They make a great team. Only time will tell whether they are actually good at building and coaching a team, but all indications are positive so far.

[#12]

We all have the same regret, Jim.  We regret this shift in philosophy didn't happen when Manning was 28-29. 

[lollygagger8]

Great article...thanks! 

[mvbighead]

We all have the same regret, Jim.  We regret this shift in philosophy didn't happen when Manning was 28-29. 

 

Truth.

 

The plain simple fact of all of this, is that Manning's presence covered up the flaws of this team.  We won so many games, that everybody skated by.  So, the reality is, it's all Manning's fault.  

[Stephen]

Lol one person can only do so much

[The Old Crow]

The Ravens signed Joe Flacco , cut older players on defense, and brought in younger , better players. The Colts will soon have to sign Luck to a big contract , so it will be interesting to see if Grigson and Irsay can navigate these waters like Ozzie has. That being said , how come it took the Manning years to pass before Irsay came to this conclusion that you need balance ? Wanting balance, and getting it, are two different things.

[mvbighead]

The Ravens signed Joe Flacco , cut older players on defense, and brought in younger , better players. The Colts will soon have to sign Luck to a big contract , so it will be interesting to see if Grigson and Irsay can navigate these waters like Ozzie has. That being said , how come it took the Manning years to pass before Irsay came to this conclusion that you need balance ? Wanting balance, and getting it, are two different things.

 

They brought in younger, better players?  Sorry, but time will tell the story on that one.

 

As for why it took so long?  Pretty simple.  We were successful in MANY ways all those years.  You don't scrap a project that is producing good results.  The reality is, 1 out of 32 teams will win the SuperBowl every year.  The odds are not good that it will be your team, regardless of who you are.

[JlynRN]

Great article, thanks for sharing !!!  I'm ready for some Colts football !!!

[GoDeep]

Great read. Manning definitely should have more hardware.

[Drewp1]

Good article. Sure Colts should have won more rings. But as its been said its hard to win a Superbowl. Takes little bit of luck too. When Colts won, I'm not so sure Colts would have beat Chargers. Always seem to have bad luck against them. That was the only time that I ever rooted for the *s.

[superrep1967]

Funny , when Irsay dumps high priced veterans , he is a genius. When the Ravens do it, they are gutting their team. Anyway, it was an interesting read and Irsay may be onto something. The Colts definitely should have won more than one Super Bowls during the Manning years , as this was a top quarterback of a generation. Was it Irsay's, Polian , or Mannings fault, probably a combination of all three.

Yeah I hope Luck does better in the playoffs then Peyton did.

[unitaswestand]

I honestly believe teams can have a very strong defense. The days of the 85 Bears are probably over.  But I would disagree on simply outscoring everyone.  Look at what Baltimore did to NE in the playoffs last year.  They basically shot down their offense a good part of the game. That is what we have to get to.   So I am for more balanced.  I know people often scream that we shouldn't run and the highest scoring teams win the titles, but that is not really true.  It still comes down to the team that can run effectively and stop the run effectively is most often the team that wins.

[The Old Crow]

Sometimes in playoffs it's as much about match ups as balance. You also have to build your team to win the division or the conference like the Ravens have done with the Steelers and Patriots. Luck is an element , but great teams make some of their own luck.

[bayone]

Funny , when Irsay dumps high priced veterans , he is a genius. When the Ravens do it, they are gutting their team. Anyway, it was an interesting read and Irsay may be onto something. The Colts definitely should have won more than one Super Bowls during the Manning years , as this was a top quarterback of a generation. Was it Irsay's, Polian , or Mannings fault, probably a combination of all three.

 

think lack of balance, bad early draft picks after SB win  & health, only year fully healthy in playoffs was the SB win ,

 

& after SB 41,Polian early draft picks were misses and as he said once , u cant afford to miss on your first pick, and he did a few in a row, esp iuf one includes Ugoh  in 2007 after taking britle gonzo , as we gave up the next years 1st rounder to get him as Polian insisted he was 1st round quality & our first pick that year was mike pollack in 2nd round , following year Donald Brown & year after that HUGHES, after that ist pick following year Castonza and with 2nd pick Ijalana who we are still waiting to play soime real time

 

thats alot of bad early picks

[The Old Crow]

It does kill you. Ozzie rarely whiffs on first round picks. The colts may have been drafting position ally , and not best player available.

[Superman]

Sometimes in playoffs it's as much about match ups as balance. You also have to build your team to win the division or the conference like the Ravens have done with the Steelers and Patriots. Luck is an element , but great teams make some of their own luck.

 

Yeah, us playing the Steelers in 2005 was a bad matchup. They had a good gameplan and we took too long to adjust. A different matchup might have helped us get in a groove sooner.

 

Same thing in 2008, Jamal Williams was the worst defensive lineman we could have seen in that first round playoff game. And what's worse, the 12-4 Colts had to go on the road to the 8-8 Chargers! 

[Jules]

We have to see it to believe it too, especially in the playoffs.

 

It's one thing to say we will have more balance. But, it's quite another to actually DO IT.

 

I have no doubt this team will be able to pass the ball at will and pass well. I have faith in Andrew and the passing game. I hope the defense or run game both improve this year. Both would be nice........

[The Old Crow]

In the Manning years , the Colts were a horrible match up for the Ravens. Some teams you just don't want to see in the playoffs. Honestly , I didn't like the Ravens having to go against Luck , Brady, Manning, and Kaepernick last year. This was a murderers row of opposing quarterbacks if I ever saw one.

[21isSuperman]

"It took Manning only six seasons to pocket more league MVP awards (four) than any player in league history".  That was one quote that really stood out to me.  That's unreal.

 

Irsay is right.  A balanced approach wins in the NFL.  The postseason is different from the regular season.  You need to have depth, you need your defense to play well, and you need to have your running game going too.  You can't just rely on your QB

[The Old Crow]

If Manning wins another Super Bowl or two with Denver , combined with the MVP's and regular season record , he could well be considered the greatest QB of all time.

[Superman]

"It took Manning only six seasons to pocket more league MVP awards (four) than any player in league history".  That was one quote that really stood out to me.  That's unreal.

 

Irsay is right.  A balanced approach wins in the NFL.  The postseason is different from the regular season.  You need to have depth, you need your defense to play well, and you need to have your running game going too.  You can't just rely on your QB

 

It's like that article from Grantland, the QB Championship Belt. Manning was just the best QB in the league from 2003 to 2009, with the exception of 2007. And only one Super Bowl win. Heck, Ben Roethlisberger even got two Super Bowls in that stretch, and he wasn't nearly as good a quarterback as Manning, not even in 2008. 

[ColtsBTM12]

This may sound crazy but I think the Colts would have won more than one Super Bowl during the Manning era if Bob Sanders had stayed healthy on defense. That defense was a different unit with him out there on the field.

[The Old Crow]

The Colts did have some very good defensive players sanders , freeney , and mathias as examples. Irsay and Polian just didn't fill in more defensive positions.

[LockeDown]

When Irsay is serious, he is a wise dude...he just likes to have fun most of the time.

[ColtStrong]

Really? What a revelation.

[CR91]

so your telling me the reason we never built our defense was because of lack of cap space? so explain how we overpaid average players like kelvin hayden gary brackett and joesph addai

[Superman]

so your telling me the reason we never built our defense was because of lack of cap space? so explain how we overpaid average players like kelvin hayden gary brackett and joesph addai

 

 

Who said that?

[CR91]

Who said that?

 

its in the article

[Superman]

its in the article

 

Not really. 

[CR91]

Not really. 

 

its in the section where they said peyton's contract was 48 mil and edge's was 49

[Warhorse]

Jim Irsay is my favorite sports owner of all time. I think he is so real, it makes people uncomfortable. I think he loved Peyton, was not happy with the direction that Polian eventually drove this team to through his approach, and when Peyton's back took him out of the game, he had one of the toughest decisions to make...probably in his lifetime.

 

Whether you agree with that decision or not, is not what this thread is about. It is about the team being more balanced from Mr. Irsays opinion. I think it is more balanced. I also think that is a good thing.

 

I read through this thread, I felt surprise towards some of the comments. Then, before I posted.....I decided to just say what was most important and true in my world. Jim Irsay is a rare, soulful man who cares about the team he owns to a level that is unparalleled in the NFL, IMO. No amount of jabs or attempts to discredit him will change my respect for the man.

 

Every failure that has occured since Jim took over the team, I own, right along with the team. Because it is my team. I celebrate the highs along with them, and I undure the lows...along with them.

[Superman]

its in the section where they said peyton's contract was 48 mil and edge's was 49

 

The point was that it's easier to manage the cap with the rookie wage scale, not that the Polian Colts didn't have enough cap space to build a defense.

[CR91]

The point was that it's easier to manage the cap with the rookie wage scale, not that the Polian Colts didn't have enough cap space to build a defense.

Yes, but they used thar as an excuse as to why they couldn't build the defense

[The Old Crow]

The buck stops with Jim Irsay. He hired Polian and all the support staff. I have heard a lot of criticism about Flacco's signing preventing the Ravens from signing people and being balanced. Colts fans apparently didn't worry about the boat loads of money going to Manning , at the time . That being said, Irsay and Polian could have gotten better players at bargain basement prices to round out the defense, and the team around Manning. Did Irsay suddenly have an brainstorm ? In a few years he will have to pay Luck. Will he and Grigson do better than the Irsay/ Polian team ? That is the million dollar question. Saying and doing , are two different things.