One reaction to the TRich trade that I simply don't understand.

[GoColts8818]

I know people are concerned over Richardson YPC or lack there of.  I heard some of the media guys talking about it on the radio this morning and they said part of the reason Richardson's YPC was low in Cleveland was he was the only thing teams feared in Cleveland and they would stack the box.  In Indianapolis teams are still going to respect Andrew Luck and the Colts WRs to know you can't stack the box on every play.  If you do Luck will hurt you throwing the ball.  So the running lanes might be a little more open here for Richardson than they were in Cleveland.

 

Now with that said Richardson is never going to be a Peterson type of back with a 5.0 career YPC.  He's a type of back that is just going to wear your defense out and that you get tired of tackling as the game goes along.  So there are probably going to be a lot of pound the ball into the line early in the game with him.  That pays off in the fourth quarter.  Then being able to hit them with Bradshaw this year and hopefully Ballard next year when they are fresh and the other defense is taking a pounding from Richardson while we let Richardson rest so he's fresh will wear other teams defenses out.  This is a style of football we have not seen from the Colts in a long time.  Maybe since the Dickerson days and Dickerson wasn't even as physical of a back as Richardson is. 

 

If the ground game works the way I think the Colts are hoping it will it will let the Colts control the clock and let the defense rest and stay fresh and will also bring back something that has been missing from the Colts offensive attack for a while now, a respectable play action pass.  Also a power running game is a heck of a way to protect the QB.  Also throwing the ball when you catch the other team by surprise with the play action pass also helps protect the QB because if you do it right they aren't going to be in a position to rush the passer. 

 

I like this move.  I think we are set at the skill positions on offense for the future except for another WR.  I think the o-line needs time more than anything else to come together.  I think Thornton is the long term replacement for McGlynn and I hope Holmes is the replacement at Center.  If that happens I am fine with Thomas, Castonzo, and GC to round out the rest of the line.  As for the defense I think Grigson still has work to do there as well as starting to think about the future because guys like Bethea, Davis, Redding, and Franklin might not stick past their current deals.