The official "I'm upset with Pep Hamilton" Thread.

[sfergson727]

So we have one of the best Quarterbacks in the NFL, yet we are a run first offense?  Why?

 

Wouldn't we (Pep) be better off using our pass offense to run up the score early in the game and then use our run offense to control the clock for the win?  The Chargers game is proof positive that you can't win if you don't use your assets.  Come on Pep, open it up a little, at least until we have a two score lead, and then cruise to your hearts delight.

 

Thank you.

[lollygagger8]

Why didn't we play more no huddle??? 

 

It worked like a charm when we did it and marched right down the field. 

[BrentMc11]

Is anyone happy with Matt Schaub and OC Rick Dennison?  I am

 

Looking at our game day thread, sure looked like fans were happy with the play calling on the first drive.

 

This was a totally different game if DHB had not had a buttered biscuit before the game and Fleener had the common sense to catch before he ran....T-Rich too....and REGGIE?  TY????

 

2-19 3rd downs NOT on Pep whatsoever.  We are 4-2...Giants 0-6.....Teans....Minnesota....Steelers....Skins.  Yes we have a rough schedule.  We need a little more Pep in our step.....Reggie was like a mime out there...no enthusiasm...looked like he wanted to be at home.

 

Regardless....GO       !!!

Should have said 2-10 3rd downs....my bad!

[BrentMc11]

Why didn't we play more no huddle??? 

 

It worked like a charm when we did it and marched right down the field. 

I believe that we were trying to actually get a sustained drive going with ball control to keep the defense off of the field.  As we know the Time of Possession was incredibly one sided.  We HAVE to be gassed as a defense when Ricardo Mathews is playing.....Where is Lawrence Guy again?  

 

I agree we need to go more no huddle and let Luck make more calls on plays based on what he sees.  We can still go no huddle and have Pep make calls he wants...that is called a team effort!!!  

[mystrymaster]

My issue with the play calling last night is this, 

 

We want to be a power running team, then why are we lining up in a spread offense on 3rd and 1? T-Rich can pick up 1 yard in his sleep (he may not even get more than 3 in his dream though ;) Just a joke people)   I was livid at that setup yesterday.  

 

Yes there were way too many drops but things like that are just unacceptable in my mind.

[tfunky14]

Luck threw for 220 yards last night.....

 

Now add the yards of the dropped passes.......

 

???

[TKnight24]

Luck threw for 220 yards last night.....

Now add the yards of the dropped passes.......

???

Drop pass yards: Luck would have about 350 yards without the drops

[Mameluc]

I think he's doing fine. His play-calling had nothing to do with our receivers drops, the defense giving up bone-headed penalties (resulting in three 1st downs to Chargers), and it's not like he had the authority to go for it on 4th down instead of punt (at least I assume he doesn't have that authority). He's at least trying to mix up his play-calling with the flea flicker play, occasional screen, etc.

 

Our defense didn't give our offense enough chances. Too many 3rd down conversions were given up today. You have any QB sit on the bench for that long and your offense will be out of rhythm. Let's also not forget it was Monday at San Diego. It was a long flight for Indy in a loud Monday night stadium. It was so loud, Luck couldn't communicate effectively with his receivers. Fleener had to tell the receivers in the flats what the play call was, or so the announcer said.

 

You can point a lot of fingers at this loss, but Pep Hamilton isn't the main culprit.

sure i agree drop passes and execution is an issue...but it hink is also an issue when you are facing the worst pass defense in the league and you continue playing the FB or trying to run the football. I also have a problem when we are supposed to be a power team, third & 1 and he calls a play that has luck rolling to his left. I understand, our OL aint that good so just telling everyone we are running wont work...but if he understands that our OL sucks why the heck is he still trying to prove we are a running team the rest of the game 

Also, let freaking Luck play.

[tfunky14]

Drop pass yards: Luck would have about 350 yards without the drops

Colts ran 48 plays, Luck passes 30 times..

[WastedColt]

Have to admit, I was a bit confused with the playcalling at times. Going power formation play action on 3rd and 19 made me laugh, going spread on 3rd and 1 made me cry... Its not all on Pep though, plenty of blame to spread around.

[SilentHill]

Calling him a troll doesn't invalidate his point.  He's right.  If we catch the football, we're having a different conversation today. 

 

No, because i've been having this conversation all year.

[SilentHill]

For the most part Luck's decisions where fine.  It's crucial drop after crucial drop.  

 

I think we dropped like 4 or 5 3rd down conversion passes.  Lets say it's 4. . . If we make those catches then we go from converting what 2 3rd downs to 6 and we would have had more chances to score, Rivers would have stayed off the field, etc etc.

 

The time of possession tells the entire story of this game, and the reason it was that bad was because San Diego converted on 3rd down, churning out small little gains that kept the drive alive and ran the clock and the Colts did not convert on 3rd down.

 

Luck will probably stand up there and take the blame again.  But his only int was off a tip in despiration.  This is on the receivers and the defense not getting off the field.   

 

I've said it before, and i'll say it again. We shouldn't have even been in those 3rd down situations, if pep would have dialed up more plays that were caught in front of the first down marker.

[Coltswarriors]

Call me crazy but... offensive playing calling was not the problem last night (minus the early 3rd down where Luck rolled left and threw an incomplete pass, that was a terrible play call).

 

We had 34 pass play calls and 13 run play calls (Luck ran for 4 of the pass calls). We just had terrible execution. The dropped pass by DHB which could have a been a touchdown. The dropped pass by Reggie on a key 3rd down. The drop by Fleener that would have been a huge game, if not a touchdown. The drop by Richardson on a screen where he had room to run and blockers in front of him. 

 

The plays were there, we just didn't execute. I also feel like Pagano made some terrible decisions. Should have went for it a couple times on 4th down after realizing our defense was gassed and couldn't stop a nose bleed.

[Danfish98]

Call me crazy but... offensive playing calling was not the problem last night (minus the early 3rd down where Luck rolled left and threw an incomplete pass, that was a terrible play call).

 

We had 34 pass play calls and 13 run play calls (Luck ran for 4 of the pass calls). We just had terrible execution. The dropped pass by DHB which could have a been a touchdown. The dropped pass by Reggie on a key 3rd down. The drop by Fleener that would have been a huge game, if not a touchdown. The drop by Richardson on a screen where he had room to run and blockers in front of him. 

 

The plays were there, we just didn't execute. I also feel like Pagano made some terrible decisions. Should have went for it a couple times on 4th down after realizing our defense was gassed and couldn't stop a nose bleed.

 

^this!  Lots and lots of problems last night but Pep wasn't one of them.  Loved the flea flicker to get us going on the first drive.  Unfortunately after that dropped pass after dropped pass doomed the offense to failure.  That has 0% to do with the offensive coordinator.

[SilentHill]

Call me crazy but... offensive playing calling was not the problem last night (minus the early 3rd down where Luck rolled left and threw an incomplete pass, that was a terrible play call).

 

We had 34 pass play calls and 13 run play calls (Luck ran for 4 of the pass calls). We just had terrible execution. The dropped pass by DHB which could have a been a touchdown. The dropped pass by Reggie on a key 3rd down. The drop by Fleener that would have been a huge game, if not a touchdown. The drop by Richardson on a screen where he had room to run and blockers in front of him. 

 

The plays were there, we just didn't execute. I also feel like Pagano made some terrible decisions. Should have went for it a couple times on 4th down after realizing our defense was gassed and couldn't stop a nose bleed.

 

Ok, I'll oblige, you're crazy.

 

The play calling constantly put us in 3rd and short situations. There is no reason for that, we killed the clock in a game where we didn't have time to spare, and we constantly called plays that required YAC for a 1st down, that was sniffed out by the Chargers D almost every time. At some point we should have went from short passes to passes that would guarantee a first down if caught. It's not like it would have taken 5 more seconds to run a pattern where the WR gets 3-5 more yards down the field, we would have had plenty of time, and if we capitalized on the plays that i'm talking about it would have taken the pressure off of Luck. There is no reason to try to run this craziness where we say what we are going to do before we do it, We do not have the skill positions needed to make it happen.

[OffensivelyPC]

No, because i've been having this conversation all year.

Yeah, but my point is, your criticism doesn't have much punch to it, when we lose for lack of execution.  The original comment was basically that, had the players caught the football, we'd be 5-1.  Does it need some tweaking?  Sure.  It's far from perfect.  You can have your reservatiosn, but at some poitn, whether it's 4-2 or 5-1, you just have to let Pep do what he's doing, because maybe the guy knows a little more about football than we do.  Is it a bit primitive?  Sure.  But teams with good defenses, a good running game, and a passer who can make protect the ball, make the deep throw when needed, is a superbowl winning formula.  Brady did it 3 out of 4 yeras and ever since they've been known as an elite passing team, they haven't done squat.  Steelers, Giants, they won multiple superbowls using that formula.  It's a passing league, but it's not sole ingredient.

 

Bottom line is, we want Luck to pass the ball more often and further down field.  That's fine.  But we did that with Manning for 11 years - 2 Superbowl appearances and 7 first round exits.  I'll give it a year, maybe 2, before I throw the towel in on Pep.

[BrentMc11]

I've said it before, and i'll say it again. We shouldn't have even been in those 3rd down situations, if pep would have dialed up more plays that were caught in front of the first down marker.

I thought that Fleener was lost on some of those plays.  The PLAYER needs to know where the first down marker is.....Reggie has made a career of it.

 

I agree on the ones that were VERY short to TY.  Tough times to be looking at YAC when you NEED a 1st down...

[Jason_]

Pep wasn't out there today, the receivers were just not there and Luck wasn't making good decisions. 

 

It's not his game plan that killed the Colts, it's the players on the field and there performances. It's not like they performed and the gameplan was crap. I liked the gameplan. Had they performed, it would have been much closer and they could've won.

 

They had a nearly identical gameplan against the 49ers and won very handily. 

 

I'll second that all around

[SilentHill]

Yeah, but my point is, your criticism doesn't have much punch to it, when we lose for lack of execution.  The original comment was basically that, had the players caught the football, we'd be 5-1.  Does it need some tweaking?  Sure.  It's far from perfect.  You can have your reservatiosn, but at some poitn, whether it's 4-2 or 5-1, you just have to let Pep do what he's doing, because maybe the guy knows a little more about football than we do.  Is it a bit primitive?  Sure.  But teams with good defenses, a good running game, and a passer who can make protect the ball, make the deep throw when needed, is a superbowl winning formula.  Brady did it 3 out of 4 yeras and ever since they've been known as an elite passing team, they haven't done squat.  Steelers, Giants, they won multiple superbowls using that formula.  It's a passing league, but it's not sole ingredient.

 

Bottom line is, we want Luck to pass the ball more often and further down field.  That's fine.  But we did that with Manning for 11 years - 2 Superbowl appearances and 7 first round exits.  I'll give it a year, maybe 2, before I throw the towel in on Pep.

 

but it's not the reason we are 4-2. The jaguars we just had our way with, Luck won the Raiders game in the 4th 1/4, our team was playing beside itself on the SF game, and for the seahawks, we won it on the arm of luck.

 

Seems like the winning formula is try the pep offense for 3 quarters, and then after the job isn't done, give the game to luck and hope he pulls it off.

[OffensivelyPC]

but it's not the reason we are 4-2. The jaguars we just had our way with, Luck won the Raiders game in the 4th 1/4, our team was playing beside itself on the SF game, and for the seahawks, we won it on the arm of luck.

 

Seems like the winning formula is try the pep offense for 3 quarters, and then after the job isn't done, give the game to luck and hope he pulls it off.

Not the reason?  It was the main reason we beat the 49ers and it played a large role in sealing the game off in the 4th quarter against hte Seahawks.  It was part of the offensive strategy.  Just because it may set up plays later doesn't mean we won in spite of it.  It doesn't have to be the play that scores the TD for it to have been unimportant (sorry for hte double negative, but I think you get my drift).  It means that we had success with other plays because of it.  So, while it may not be the scoring plays, it was stroke of paint out of the many strokes in the picture.  So when you say "it's not the reason we are 4-2," I think you are oversimplifying it.  It may not be THE reason we are 4-2, but it is A reason...among the many of other reasons.  Who knows what would happen if we used other formations?  We won't know unless we run them, but if there's any reason at all I'm disappointed in us being 4-2, at this point, it has nothing to do with Pep.  I don't understand some calls he makes, but you could say that about any Colts team in any year in any game.