Unreal Expectations

[lennymoore24]

It seems some fans just have urealistic expectations of how the Colts should perform each week. By some posts you would think the expectations are:

 

- Luck throws 8 TDs, no INTs

- Richardson runs for 200 yards on 5 carriers

- O-Line gives up no sacks

- D-Line gets 15 sacks

- No player on the other team ever catches a ball

- The opposing QB is reduced to Ryan Leaf status.

 

Its not going to happen!  Lets be realistic.  For example, I see criticism of the offensive line's pass blocking against Denver.  So Luck dropped back over 50 times, facing Vonn Miller and DeMarcus Ware and you are faulting the pressure he got?  But on the flipside, Bjorn Werner goes up against a top LT in Ryan Clady and is ripped because he doesn't get more pressure. Or the Fleener bashing when a ball was throw very high and he didn't catch it.  Curious, did anyone on the Broncos ever drop a pass??  YES!!  Did Manning ever miss a pass?  YES!  Julius Thomas is a nightmere for ANY team to stop.  So not sure why you are so outraged that we didn't hold him to no catches. Manning IS going to complete passes to playmakers and they are going to make plays.

 

I just think it would be beneficial to tone down some expectations.  We aren't going to win ever battle at every position.  And if we lose some, the guy doesn't have to be replaced immediated because he is a bum.  Be realistic!  Teams are fairly evenly matched in the NFL.  That is why on any given Sunday anything can happen.

[Indyfan4life]

Shhhhh. Stop using logic. You'll upset people.

[IndyD4U]

But I can score 87 points on Madden and throw for 750 yards...

 

This isn't fair!

[Narcosys]

I'm not expecting those kind of numbers. But is it unrealistic to wish my team didn't look like trash for half a game?

[BlueShoe]

We were put in a tough spot to open the season. Going to Mile High and playing the defending AFC Champs in week 1 is a lot to ask of any team. 

 

Any fan who expects us to go in to Mile high under these conditions and dominate is not using logic. The fact that we played so well in the second half should give fans a reason for optimism. 

 

The sky is the limit for the 2014 Colts, and maybe this early loss will be a good thing. Last year, after we loss to Miami at home, we had a great run knocking off both Super Bowl participants and ending some undefeated seasons. 

[Coffeedrinker]

 

It seems some fans just have urealistic expectations of how the Colts should perform each week. By some posts you would think the expectations are:

 

- Luck throws 8 TDs, no INTs

- Richardson runs for 200 yards on 5 carriers

- O-Line gives up no sacks

- D-Line gets 15 sacks

- No player on the other team ever catches a ball

- The opposing QB is reduced to Ryan Leaf status.

 

Its not going to happen!  Lets be realistic.  For example, I see criticism of the offensive line's pass blocking against Denver.  So Luck dropped back over 50 times, facing Vonn Miller and DeMarcus Ware and you are faulting the pressure he got?  But on the flipside, Bjorn Werner goes up against a top LT in Ryan Clady and is ripped because he doesn't get more pressure. Or the Fleener bashing when a ball was throw very high and he didn't catch it.  Curious, did anyone on the Broncos ever drop a pass??  YES!!  Did Manning ever miss a pass?  YES!  Julius Thomas is a nightmere for ANY team to stop.  So not sure why you are so outraged that we didn't hold him to no catches. Manning IS going to complete passes to playmakers and they are going to make plays.

 

I just think it would be beneficial to tone down some expectations.  We aren't going to win ever battle at every position.  And if we lose some, the guy doesn't have to be replaced immediated because he is a bum.  Be realistic!  Teams are fairly evenly matched in the NFL.  That is why on any given Sunday anything can happen.

 

I've read this board for a long time and I've never seen anyone predict or expect any of those stats.

 

So your thread about unrealistic expectations is not very realistic and you are basically telling people to not expect stats that you made up.

[lennymoore24]

I've read this board for a long time and I've never seen anyone predict or expect any of those stats.

 

So your thread about unrealistic expectations is not very realistic and you are basically telling people to not expect stats that you made up.

 

"By some posts you would think the expectations are".  That is implied.

[Smonroe]

I've read this board for a long time and I've never seen anyone predict or expect any of those stats.

 

So your thread about unrealistic expectations is not very realistic and you are basically telling people to not expect stats that you made up.

 

Obviously, he's exaggerating.  But you have to admit that there are many posts here with unrealistic expectations.  I could give you dozens, some very recently.

[Coffeedrinker]

"By some posts you would think the expectations are".  That is implied.

It may have been implied but then you followed up your stats with, "ts not going to happen!  Lets be realistic."  ;)

 

Yes, a lot of fans have unrealistic expectations (I don't consider myself one of them but who knows) but that doesn't mean that when the team plays bad or even when there is a bad play that just because people talk about and expect better means they have unrealistic expectations.

[BrentMc11]

It may have been implied but then you followed up your stats with, "ts not going to happen!  Lets be realistic."   ;)

 

Yes, a lot of fans have unrealistic expectations (I don't consider myself one of them but who knows) but that doesn't mean that when the team plays bad or even when there is a bad play that just because people talk about and expect better means they have unrealistic expectations.

I Still think we will go 19-0....    

[GoColts8818]

I think some just aren't happy unless they gave something to complain about. That or they have already decided thry don't like something or someone ans are going to harp on every example they can find to be right band frankly look for examples and try to make things into examples that support them that aren't really examples. I've said for a long time and still think some here would rsther be right to win he argument here than really care how the Colts are doing.

[1yrdandacloudofdust]

People jeep talking about Trent Richardson. Bradshaw did more with less. I've seen nothing that makes me believe Trent Richardson is a starting rb. He's a pass catching fullback

[JoKeR]

I think some just aren't happy unless they gave something to complain about. That or they have already decided thry don't like something or someone ans are going to harp on every example they can find to be right band frankly look for examples and try to make things into examples that support them that aren't really examples. I've said for a long time and still think some here would rsther be right to win he argument here than really care how the Colts are doing.

You mean cognitive dissonance is a thing here?

[Steamboat_Shaun]

I'm not expecting those kind of numbers. But is it unrealistic to wish my team didn't look like trash for half a game?

 

Sort of. Denver has a much more experienced group of players, half of them pro-bowlers. I wasn't surprised at all that Indy got pushed around in the first half the way they did. Denver came to play, and that stadium was ROCKING. There were communication issues across the o-line the whole game, but they seemed to adjust and get better in the second half. There's a lot of new personnel on the field for the Colts right now, so some patience is in order.

[Steamboat_Shaun]

I've read this board for a long time and I've never seen anyone predict or expect any of those stats.

 

So your thread about unrealistic expectations is not very realistic and you are basically telling people to not expect stats that you made up.

 

Taking those numbers literally proves the OP right in a round-about way.

[braveheartcolt]

People jeep talking about Trent Richardson. Bradshaw did more with less. I've seen nothing that makes me believe Trent Richardson is a starting rb. He's a pass catching fullback

We know. You've told us a hundred times.

[Coffeedrinker]

Taking those numbers literally proves the OP right in a round-about way.

Two things. 

 

1.  No it doesn't.

2.  I've been meaning to tell you this for a long time... you have one of the funniest yet at the same time most disturbing profile pics I have seen on this forum.  Every time I read one of your posts it's kind of like slowing down for the bad car accident... I know it's going to be bad but I just have to look at that pic anyways.  I think it's the glasses.

[Gavin]

I think its important to remember that fans expectations of certain players simply don't matter. While I may expect Richardson for example to top off at a 4.0 ypc(I do) and accumulate 800 yards on lets say 200 carries(Assuming he gets that many) for the season the coaches may expect a different amount, Coaches may expect Nicks to catch 50 balls all year long on 70 targets and gain 700 yards doing it(14 ypc) while fans may expect 1000 yards on 50 catches(20 ypc) and 10 td's on only 70 balls thrown his way (unrealistic in my opinion)...That don't matter.....Coaches have there own expectations and even goals and incentives for players to reach

[ruksak]

 

It seems some fans just have urealistic expectations of how the Colts should perform each week. By some posts you would think the expectations are:

 

- Luck throws 8 TDs, no INTs

- Richardson runs for 200 yards on 5 carriers

- O-Line gives up no sacks

- D-Line gets 15 sacks

- No player on the other team ever catches a ball

- The opposing QB is reduced to Ryan Leaf status.

 

 

 

 

There is a HUGE middle ground between what you listed (phoney) and being down by 24 points at the half (reality). 

 

Look at last year and we see a pattern of extremely poor performance from this team in the first half. 

 

Need I bring up the Rams game form 2013? This has become our teams M.O., and it is simply unsustainable. Coming from behind is a great thing, but when it becomes routine, we have every darn reason to get a bit suspicious of just how well built this team truly is. 

 

My expectations are exactly the same every week, same as it ever was. All I expect is that they play hard for 60 minutes. This rarely ever happens. There's a large disparity between this teams first and second halves. 

[Susie Q]

There is a HUGE middle ground between what you listed (phoney) and being down by 24 points at the half (reality). 

 

Look at last year and we see a pattern of extremely poor performance from this team in the first half. 

 

Need I bring up the Rams game form 2013? This has become our teams M.O., and it is simply unsustainable. Coming from behind is a great thing, but when it becomes routine, we have every darn reason to get a bit suspicious of just how well built this team truly is. 

 

My expectations are exactly the same every week, same as it ever was. All I expect is that they play hard for 60 minutes. This rarely ever happens. There's a large disparity between this teams first and second halves. 

Agree 

[Defjamz26]

We could very well put the shoe on the other foot, and point out all the fans who don't have high enough expectations for the team and accept mediocrity, and make an even more compelling argument.

[deedub75]

Why does it always seem like our players are always going against a top player at his respective position?  Why can't we have some top players?

[Malakai432]

There is a HUGE middle ground between what you listed (phoney) and being down by 24 points at the half (reality).

Look at last year and we see a pattern of extremely poor performance from this team in the first half.

Need I bring up the Rams game form 2013? This has become our teams M.O., and it is simply unsustainable. Coming from behind is a great thing, but when it becomes routine, we have every darn reason to get a bit suspicious of just how well built this team truly is.

My expectations are exactly the same every week, same as it ever was. All I expect is that they play hard for 60 minutes. This rarely ever happens. There's a large disparity between this teams first and second halves.

Yep, you can't continuously spot teams so many points... They were talking about that today on 1070 the fan as it being a culmination of many different factors. It's hard to really pin point one thing. The Colts for the most part can at least come back and make the game interesting, but it's definitely not sustainable. The coaching staff seems to downplay the issue as well. It's like "Well we know it happens but we aren't sure what to do to stop it. It just happens."

That being said just because it happened against the best team in the AFC game one @ Denver doesn't mean it will be a trend for this year. If it does happen vs Philly and continues, I'll start to get worried.

[indyprosports1]

Yes, we have to be patient. I remember in 1999 in Mannings second year we went 13-3 and turned around the next year and went 6-10. The rest is history, so even though we expect to win every game(and what fan does not want that) we

will not. It was one game and a tough one at that. I bet we come out fired up against the Eagles and then the Denver game with be in the past. Go Colts!!!!

[Superman]

There is a HUGE middle ground between what you listed (phoney) and being down by 24 points at the half (reality). 

 

Look at last year and we see a pattern of extremely poor performance from this team in the first half. 

 

Need I bring up the Rams game form 2013? This has become our teams M.O., and it is simply unsustainable. Coming from behind is a great thing, but when it becomes routine, we have every darn reason to get a bit suspicious of just how well built this team truly is. 

 

My expectations are exactly the same every week, same as it ever was. All I expect is that they play hard for 60 minutes. This rarely ever happens. There's a large disparity between this teams first and second halves. 

 

I disagree that it has become the M.O. That's an exaggeration. We had slow starts in a handful of games last year, including the Chiefs game, and then the opener this year. That isn't the team's identity. And most of those games last year were when we were struggling to adjust to Reggie's absence.

 

We also have a young team that, particularly on offense (coordinator, QB, #1 receiver last year, TE, RBs), has a lot of growing to do.

 

You are right to expect effort for 60 minutes, but I don't think and have never thought that the team hasn't lacked effort. Lack of attention to detail? At times, like the Houston game last year when we couldn't get a punt off. Sluggishness? Maybe, like the MNF against the Chargers. But I think they always play hard.

 

You say there are reasons to wonder about how well built the team is. I say again, this team is not a finished product. This team can play really well at its best, but we don't have the talent to make big plays every week to secure wins. If that talent is on this team, it hasn't been realized yet. And we still need more talent, more depth, more experience, etc., before the level of disappointment that many have expressed over the last two days can be considered anything other than sensational. While we have proven we can hang with the big boys, we're still a year or two behind them, at least. 

[wordofmouth]

People jeep talking about Trent Richardson. Bradshaw did more with less. I've seen nothing that makes me believe Trent Richardson is a starting rb. He's a pass catching fullback

Nice!  A Trent Richardson thread!

[thedude]

Nice!  A Trent Richardson thread!

Well, that was the most fabulous 20 yard game by a RB I've ever seen.

[coltsfanatic24]

Not only stats but expectations for the season.The defense needs more playmakers and Luck needs a RB that will take some of the pressure off of him in order for this team to win a SB.

 

The year that Manning won the SB, that Colts defense had Sanders, Freeney, Mathis, and a good young player in Bethea. All three players were pro bowlers and in their prime, Davis is the only player on the defense that can be compared to those guys and he has to get more INT's to be on that elite level. It doesn't matter how great Luck is, if he doesn't have the talent around him he won't win.

[crazycolt1]

I'm not expecting those kind of numbers. But is it unrealistic to wish my team didn't look like trash for half a game?

So you think that Denver might have had something to do with that?

[crazycolt1]

I've read this board for a long time and I've never seen anyone predict or expect any of those stats.

 

So your thread about unrealistic expectations is not very realistic and you are basically telling people to not expect stats that you made up.

I guess sarcasm is hard for you to see? I think he was just making a point that you evidently didn't pick up on.

[crazycolt1]

People jeep talking about Trent Richardson. Bradshaw did more with less. I've seen nothing that makes me believe Trent Richardson is a starting rb. He's a pass catching fullback

Would it be possible for you to stay on topic? Your broken record is getting old.  

[crazycolt1]

It may have been implied but then you followed up your stats with, "ts not going to happen!  Lets be realistic."   ;)

 

Yes, a lot of fans have unrealistic expectations (I don't consider myself one of them but who knows) but that doesn't mean that when the team plays bad or even when there is a bad play that just because people talk about and expect better means they have unrealistic expectations.

What I find unrealistic is your ability to pick up on an obvious sarcastic comment that did have a meaning behind it.

[crazycolt1]

I disagree that it has become the M.O. That's an exaggeration. We had slow starts in a handful of games last year, including the Chiefs game, and then the opener this year. That isn't the team's identity. And most of those games last year were when we were struggling to adjust to Reggie's absence.

 

We also have a young team that, particularly on offense (coordinator, QB, #1 receiver last year, TE, RBs), has a lot of growing to do.

 

You are right to expect effort for 60 minutes, but I don't think and have never thought that the team hasn't lacked effort. Lack of attention to detail? At times, like the Houston game last year when we couldn't get a punt off. Sluggishness? Maybe, like the MNF against the Chargers. But I think they always play hard.

 

You say there are reasons to wonder about how well built the team is. I say again, this team is not a finished product. This team can play really well at its best, but we don't have the talent to make big plays every week to secure wins. If that talent is on this team, it hasn't been realized yet. And we still need more talent, more depth, more experience, etc., before the level of disappointment that many have expressed over the last two days can be considered anything other than sensational. While we have proven we can hang with the big boys, we're still a year or two behind them, at least. 

Finally a voice with some reality said. Too many seem to think the Colts are or need to be super bowl ready and that is just not the case at this time. We are still building the beast so to say but I understand high expectations and all that but let's be real.

[rockywoj]

As much as I am a forever Colts fan, the rational prognosticator in me picked the Broncos to win the game and cover the -7 point spread. I was correct on the straight up and a push on the points.

I was really disappointed in the team's 1st half performance and then yet again impressed by their resilience shown in the 2nd half. The sad thing is, this game turned out to be theirs for the taking, if not for a botched opening drive FG attempt, painfully bad 4th and 1 QB sneak attempt, and a few other missed opportunities.

In the final result of game 1 against the Broncos, I think the Colts met or actually exceeded my expectation.

Telling will be the Colts' next 5 games. For them to contend, they must win 3 of the next 5. If they win 4 of the next 5, then they are looking REALLY good. My expectation is 3 of the next 5 and a record of 6 - 3 heading into their bye week. I will be disappointed if they are worse. If they manage to exceed my expectation, they'll be 7-2 heading into their bye week.

[Coffeedrinker]

What I find unrealistic is your ability to pick up on an obvious sarcastic comment that did have a meaning behind it.

Hi I'm pot, nice to meet you kettle.

[crazycolt1]

Hi I'm pot, nice to meet you kettle.

Does it really need to be explained to you?

[GoColts8818]

Why does it always seem like our players are always going against a top player at his respective position?  Why can't we have some top players?

He might not be the top of his poistion but Andrew Luck isn't too shabby. I'd say Wayne is viewed as a top player, listen to the broadcasters talk about him during a game. I know he's hurt but Mathis was the best pass rusher in football last year. Then AV and McAfee are viewed as top players at their positions. So the Colts do have them and one very important one who is growing into it in Luck.

[Coffeedrinker]

Does it really need to be explained to you?

Does it need to be explained to you?  I know he was exaggerating... that was the point, I thought a post about being realistic should be you know, realistic.  You were accusing me of missing sarcasm while at the same time you are missing it as well.  Thus the pot/kettle thing.

[Smash Mouth]

 

 

You say there are reasons to wonder about how well built the team is. I say again, this team is not a finished product. This team can play really well at its best, but we don't have the talent to make big plays every week to secure wins. If that talent is on this team, it hasn't been realized yet. And we still need more talent, more depth, more experience, etc., before the level of disappointment that many have expressed over the last two days can be considered anything other than sensational. While we have proven we can hang with the big boys, we're still a year or two behind them, at least. 

I think that this speaks to expectations being too high for the Colts. We have a franchise QB, a good core of WRs, a good your TE, a good CB, and solid kickers.  But the rest of our talent is average.  I think Pagano has the ability to motivate a team but I question if his ceiling as as a coach is any higher.  The OC is still learning.  Now we have lost our best defensive player for the season.  I think we may get more push back within the AFC South than we expected too.  

[lennymoore24]

Splitting hairs a bit I think ;)

 

I am suggesting that fans might be happier if their expectations weren't for the Colts to play a perfect game, because it has never been done.   If one of our guys gets knocked over by a pass rusher, credit the other guy. It happens.  If we can't cover Julius Thomas, credit the Broncos for scheming that way.  I would guess most linebackers can't cover Thomas consistently.  Those things are going to happen.  The best you can do is limit them and seize opportunities yourself.   I would also suggest that  it seems Luck gets off easier than others on criticism.