SI article on Ryan Grigson

[Superman]

Actually you may be right, I googled "Jonathon Newsome arrest" and found a couple hits.  He was arrested for pot possession and apparently tried to steal the referenced pills but I'm not sure if he was ever charged or convicted of that.  

 

So a few question marks in his record.  Don't see anything violent or anything like that.  And these days a player getting arrested 1 time for pot possession, a lot of pro teams wouldn't even flag that now.  

 

The possession you mentioned, plus two years of academic ineligibility at OSU, which led to his transfer to Ball State. He wasn't a hardened criminal or anything, but there were some red flags that any scouting department would have been wise to consider. 

 

However, rumor has it that the Colts wanted him in the third, but couldn't pass on Moncrief. So the character issues weren't necessarily the reason he went in the fifth.

[Steamboat_Shaun]

I really question the pro player scouting. There were 18 NFL games worth of film on TRich and more than that on LaRon Landry. The scouts had all kinds of film. Yet they made the mistakes anyway. TRich and LaRon didn't suddenly become different players when they joined the Colts.

 

I can better understand a miss on a Bjoern Werner or a Josh Chapman. Scouts are projecting from college to pro.

 

I don't know, every time I watch the highlights from Trent Richardson's rookie season, I wonder what happened, because he was a completely different player once he became a Colt. When I watch him with the Browns, I don't see that slow first step, lack of vision, or any hesitation whatsoever. Too bad it didn't translate over to Indy, I really wish he would've panned out.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hk2N0-Uvyt8

[Superman]

Eh... Grigson thought with the addition of Richardson, he could take some of the heat off of him by pairing him with Luck. Richardson had a decent year in Cleveland with no QB. I thought the same thing with him playing next to Luck, in that Trent would be able to take advantage of lighter boxes. Losing that first round pick hurt, but I don't think it was a complete detriment to the team though. The good thing was that Richardson was a cheap risk in terms of money, but again, it would have been nice to see what that first rounder we gave up for Trent would have netted us in the draft.

 

Landry was coming off a pretty good year for the Jets, so I see why Grigson went after him. However, Rex Ryan is so good with scheming in his secondary and his defense as a whole, he can make a lot of players (excluding Revis) look so much better than they are. Manusky nor Pagano are on Rex's level in terms of scheming and getting the best out of a defense. I personally think with Rex, this defense would easily be top-10 and our past games with the Patriots being much more competitive.

 

I don't see how anyone can say what was said about Richardson and Landry.

 

Richardson went from being the third pick in the draft and touted as one of the future great RBs in the NFL to being an absolute bum with the Colts. Even if his rookie season wasn't outstanding, it wasn't anything close to what we had to endure. He did more for Cleveland in 17 games than he did for us in 29. He was out of shape and not dedicated as a Colt, and that's really difficult to predict.

 

Landry was a Pro Bowler in 2012. Not a perfect player, but a playmaker. When Pagano referred to him as a game-wrecker, it's because there's plenty of film of him wrecking games for the opponent. Whatever happened to cause him to fall off the map -- lack of dedication, injuries related to steroid use, complacency due to money, whatever -- it wasn't something that pro scouting should have caught. In fact, vet free agency signings typically run these kind of risks. Many of them are far more costly than Landry was for us.

 

And of course, we often lose sight of the fact that bad acquisitions are made by every team. The Seahawks bombed on Percy Harvin, and they gave up more in terms of picks and money than we did for Richardson. That doesn't necessarily make anyone feel better about the Colts misses, just saying that a couple of high profile moves that didn't work out don't mean that the pro scouts didn't do their job. 

[Valpo2004]

The possession you mentioned, plus two years of academic ineligibility at OSU, which led to his transfer to Ball State. He wasn't a hardened criminal or anything, but there were some red flags that any scouting department would have been wise to consider. 

 

However, rumor has it that the Colts wanted him in the third, but couldn't pass on Moncrief. So the character issues weren't necessarily the reason he went in the fifth.

 

That makes me wonder, I'm curious how NFL teams consider academic issues by themselves (Say a kid doesn't commit any crimes or anything he just gets bad grades).  Is it flagged as a character issue?  A work ethic issue? An intelligence issue (can this kid understand an NFL playbook), or even a non-issue?

 

I suppose the answer to that depends on looking into it deeper and finding out what causes it.  If he flunked cause he never showed up to class that might be a work ethic flag.  But if he flunked because he just couldn't keep up with both football and academics either an intelligence issue or a non-issue.   

 

Too be fair doing too well in school seems to hurt you as well although not as much.  I was watching Hey Rookie yesterday and when John Urchel got the call from the Ravens he had to reassure them that he really does want to play football for a living.  

[Esquire59]

Landry was a Pro Bowler in 2012. Not a perfect player, but a playmaker. When Pagano referred to him as a game-wrecker, it's because there's plenty of film of him wrecking games for the opponent.

Only problem is, #Chuckstrong refers to 64% of Colts as "Game-wreckers" and 100% of opponents as "Game-wreckers." Its one of his pre-fabbed worn-out cliché responses.

[Superman]

That makes me wonder, I'm curious how NFL teams consider academic issues by themselves (Say a kid doesn't commit any crimes or anything he just gets bad grades).  Is it flagged as a character issue?  A work ethic issue? An intelligence issue (can this kid understand an NFL playbook), or even a non-issue?

 

I suppose the answer to that depends on looking into it deeper and finding out what causes it.  If he flunked cause he never showed up to class that might be a work ethic flag.  But if he flunked because he just couldn't keep up with both football and academics either an intelligence issue or a non-issue.   

 

Too be fair doing too well in school seems to hurt you as well although not as much.  I was watching Hey Rookie yesterday and when John Urchel got the call from the Ravens he had to reassure them that he really does want to play football for a living.  

 

I think collegiate athletes, especially football players, get a lot of "support" when it comes to academics. Right or wrong, better or worse, if a guy isn't eligible because of academics, especially at a football factory like OSU, it probably speaks to his work ethic and discipline more than to his intelligence or time constraints. No question it can be tough, but to be academically ineligible two years in a row, it's probably more about the player than about his circumstances.

 

Newsome accepted responsibility for his situation: http://www.indystar.com/story/sports/nfl/colts/2014/12/04/colts-jonathan-newsome-will-finally-get-to-cleveland-stadium/19923563/

"Being young, I didn't know how to handle that," Newsome said. "I wasn't taking classes as seriously as I should have. I wasn't even going to some classes. I was partying, staying out late, even sometimes showing up at the facility after staying out all night."

 

Another really good read on him: http://www.ballstatedaily.com/article/2015/01/jonathon-newsome-was-more-than-just-a-number-at-ball-state

 

John Urschel is a different story. That guy has a genius level intellect, and a lot of "higher calling" interests (depending on one's perspective). They wanted to be sure that he wouldn't come to camp for a week and decide that he didn't want to keep putting his body on the line when he could be doing virtually anything else. 

[Superman]

Only problem is, #Chuckstrong refers to 64% of Colts as "Game-wreckers" and 100% of opponents as "Game-wreckers." Its one of his pre-fabbed worn-out cliché responses.

 

It's a buzz word. I know it's overused, but so is most of coachspeak, and not just Pagano's.

 

Either way, the point is that Landry wasn't some used up bum that we threw a bunch of money at for no reason. He was actually a really good player. 

[Valpo2004]

I think collegiate athletes, especially football players, get a lot of "support" when it comes to academics. Right or wrong, better or worse, if a guy isn't eligible because of academics, especially at a football factory like OSU, it probably speaks to his work ethic and discipline more than to his intelligence or time constraints. No question it can be tough, but to be academically ineligible two years in a row, it's probably more about the player than about his circumstances.

 

Newsome accepted responsibility for his situation: http://www.indystar.com/story/sports/nfl/colts/2014/12/04/colts-jonathan-newsome-will-finally-get-to-cleveland-stadium/19923563/

"Being young, I didn't know how to handle that," Newsome said. "I wasn't taking classes as seriously as I should have. I wasn't even going to some classes. I was partying, staying out late, even sometimes showing up at the facility after staying out all night."

 

Another really good read on him: http://www.ballstatedaily.com/article/2015/01/jonathon-newsome-was-more-than-just-a-number-at-ball-state

 

John Urschel is a different story. That guy has a genius level intellect, and a lot of "higher calling" interests (depending on one's perspective). They wanted to be sure that he wouldn't come to camp for a week and decide that he didn't want to keep putting his body on the line when he could be doing virtually anything else. 

 

Good point on the first part.

 

With the second part I was going to say that it seems this is an issue any time a player has an interest in anything outside of football.  That was actually one of the few listed concerns on Luck too.  Teams are somewhat timid of taking players who have a backup plan.  

 

However in the end I guess I can't blame them.  Nothing against Chris Borland but his quitting football really cost them a draft pick and you don't want to blow your draft picks on players who might quit at any time.  But that doesn't keep me from feeling sorry for guys like him, he does the smart thing by having a backup plan and is insanely intelligent and the league sort of punishes him for it.  

[Superman]

Good point on the first part.

 

With the second part I was going to say that it seems this is an issue any time a player has an interest in anything outside of football.  That was actually one of the few listed concerns on Luck too.  Teams are somewhat timid of taking players who have a backup plan.  

 

However in the end I guess I can't blame them.  Nothing against Chris Borland but his quitting football really cost them a draft pick and you don't want to blow your draft picks on players who might quit at any time.  But that doesn't keep me from feeling sorry for guys like him, he does the smart thing by having a backup plan and is insanely intelligent and the league sort of punishes him for it.  

 

I don't think Urschel was punished. He got drafted about where he was projected to be drafted. 

 

Borland might have made it more difficult for guys like that in the future. Borland wasn't a super academic like Urschel, so it's not necessarily the same kind of situation. But I'm sure GMs are shook by the idea that they might lose their young players -- especially good ones -- to early retirement. I don't know that anyone outside of Borland's close family expected him to walk away.

[SteelCityColt]

Only problem is, #Chuckstrong refers to 64% of Colts as "Game-wreckers" and 100% of opponents as "Game-wreckers." Its one of his pre-fabbed worn-out cliché responses.

Out of Supes' posts that's the only thing you picked out?!

[Esquire59]

Out of Supes' posts that's the only thing you picked out?!

Enjoyed it and agreed quite a bit. Just make a shot at Chuck (not "Supes") and his awful clichés.

[SteelCityColt]

Enjoyed it and agreed quite a bit. Just make a shot at Chuck (not "Supes") and his awful clichés.

Fair enough

[southwest1]

"We all agreed that this guy was a first-round talent—and now we're moving him to the bottom of the third based on what he did in one drill?"

 

I love that quote. Too many scouts get mesmerized by athletes in meaningless drills that prove nothing about a guy's football IQ or ability to play ball.

 

A burst or speed doesn't mean much if you can't perform well in critical 4th QTR situations. I get that some combine rituals have merit like the vertical jump for lunging off the line of scrimmage. 

 

However, when you're not in pads, shedding a block, or creating separation against another player who cares? Hades, anybody looks good against air. LOL! 

[southwest1]

"Some are labeled IBG. These are Injury Bug Guys."--Ryan Grigson. 

 

He didn't take this statement next level. I wanna know as either a GM or a scout, what do you do with a dude who is always making plays, but whose constantly banged up & not active a lot? Here's what I'm getting at. How long will you roll with a playmaker who is injure ridden before you either go in full season ending rehab heal up mode or just drop the sledge hammer & cut the dude? I wanna get a window into your front office mindset here. 

 

Plus, it's not easy to fire a guy no matter how many times you are asked to do it. Is it better to make small talk first or reveal the bad news to the player almost immediately? What the proper level of kindness & decorum for crushing a man's lifelong dream of playing in the NFL? 

 

This is the kind of stuff I wanna know. I wonder if certain songs take guys back to being released. What's the best departure genre musically? Motown, Blues, Reggae, Bluegrass, Techno, Country, or Heavy Metal? 

[cmgww]

thanks for sharing. So glad I know where you discuss business plans.

Jesus, lighten up. Just sharing something from the article that hit home with me. Sorry if I pizzed in your milkshake

[southwest1]

I realize that making draft selections is never easy, but unless you are a top 10 draft pick, you can still get cut & not make the final 53 man roster by September. 

 

I always have mixed feelings when I see kids on the phone talking to their new HC, GM, or team owner because that same player can go from blissful euphoria to feeling like they got punched in the gut & can't breathe in a few months. 

 

To answer my previous post question about release music, I'd probably roll with jazz & a slow, long, melodic trumpet solo reminiscent of a funeral montage not of their career just their tenure with us in INDY.

 

I'm not gonna humiliate the kid. The music will just remind me to be respectful & put myself at the other side of the table thinking how would I want to be treated if I was given the boot?