Grigson talks Free Agent risks....

[NewColtsFan]

A good write-up by Mike Chappell.

 

And some interesting comments from our GM.

 

An easy read.....  

 

 

http://indysportscentral.com/2015/08/31/colts-ryan-grigson-risks-of-free-agency-worth-it-in-pursuit-of-title/

[chad72]

To me, the first two years, Grigson was still feeling it out, the risks and rewards, IMO.

 

I think Irsay was more involved early on, and now he has let Grigson settle in. No more tweeting of "trade winds are blowing, yada, yada, yada..." now, and whether folks believe it or not, that puts added indirect pressure on a new GM that wants to please his owner, IMO.

 

I think this year's free agent acquisitions will help erase the bad acquisitions of the 2013 offseason, IMO.

[Smonroe]

Yes, a lot of the FA's haven't worked out, but at least they were smart with the money.  I give him credit for that.

 

What I still don't understand, from day 1, is why they just didn't sell out for O linemen.  Both in free agency and in the draft.  I don't mind overdrafting if it brings in a guy who will be on our line for 10 years.

 

And I certainly wouldn't mind paying for good FA linemen, even if it meant not signing one or two of our skill players. 

 

Anyway, it's all been said before, sorry to rant on.

[OffensivelyPC]

When he's constantly bringing in groups of guys to replace the old with the contracts that he's been giving out to vets (i.e. team friendly for the most part), it makes the misses a little more palatable.  It's never good to have dead money, but it's really unavoidable.  In the meantime, build up through the draft, keep the older contracts staggered and I think eventually you'll hit gold sooner or later.  Just have to hit in the draft, which Grigs has done well for the most part, but the 1st round misses in 2013 and 2014 have really hurt.  I can't say Grigs has been a top 5 GM in the past 3 years, but if he's not, I'd feel pretty comfortable putting him in the top 10 despite his mistakes.

[Smurphy1]

One thing to keep in mind about free agency is players have to want to come here and it's not all about the money. Look at Jacksonville this offseason. They spent a lot this offseason and brought in free agents that are mostly perennial backups with a few starts and paid them starter money to start for them. Sound familiar? With the success on the field over the last 3 seasons the quality of players who want to play for the Colts has gone up every offseason but the ones we could afford/attract initially were not very good for the most part.

[Smash Mouth]

Yes, a lot of the FA's haven't worked out, but at least they were smart with the money.  I give him credit for that.

 

What I still don't understand, from day 1, is why they just didn't sell out for O linemen.  Both in free agency and in the draft.  I don't mind overdrafting if it brings in a guy who will be on our line for 10 years.

 

And I certainly wouldn't mind paying for good FA linemen, even if it meant not signing one or two of our skill players. 

 

Anyway, it's all been said before, sorry to rant on.

Isn't the rule of thumb you only sell out for Left Tackles and pass rushing DEs?   Or unless you're Suh.  I think Grigson's inability to fix the OL and DL is why gets him fired - Mewhort better work out at RT too.

[Smonroe]

Isn't the rule of thumb you only sell out for Left Tackles and pass rushing DEs?   Or unless you're Suh.  I think Grigson's inability to fix the OL and DL is why gets him fired - Mewhort better work out at RT too.

 

Yes, that's true (and I read we just gave AC a big contract).  The guys who know a lot more about football than me always say you don't overpay for a guard.

 

I still disagree.  But even if you don't want to overpay, you can overdraft.  Take the best guard or center in the draft, even if it's a round early. 

 

It just boggles my mind that you don't want to surround the franchise with the best available protection.

[ztboiler]

Yes, a lot of the FA's haven't worked out, but at least they were smart with the money.  I give him credit for that.

 

What I still don't understand, from day 1, is why they just didn't sell out for O linemen.  Both in free agency and in the draft.  I don't mind overdrafting if it brings in a guy who will be on our line for 10 years.

 

And I certainly wouldn't mind paying for good FA linemen, even if it meant not signing one or two of our skill players. 

 

Anyway, it's all been said before, sorry to rant on.

I think the common misperception to the bolded is that there were a wide number of O-lineman available to overdraft in the last 4 years - especially incorporating our draft positions.  We can all pick and choose players like Cordy Glenn or Larry Warford from '12 and '13 who would be regular contributors had we pulled the trigger - but if you go through the 12, 13, and 14 drafts there are surprisingly few O-linemen picked in rounds 2-4 that you could point at and say that you wish we had pulled the trigger to get them. 

 

2012 (pick 34) was probably our best "missed opportunity" to use a high pick on the OL, and we used that pick quite well on Fleener.  If you look at 2013, there really weren't OL available at 24 that made sense (regardless of what you think about Werner), and we used our first pick on Mewhort in 2014.  

 

As for 2015, would Donovan Smith (pick 34) or any of the other round 2 tackles selected really be changing the way the fan base feels about the line today if we had traded back and overdrafted them?  Time will tell, but it's unlikely.

 

We do have 2 drafted players in 13 and 14 as current starters and I still predict that Thornton will settle into one of the guard spots by mid-season.

[throwing BBZ]

Pretty much a nothing article by Chappell.
No results so far from $55M of guaranteed $$$ might be the message.
I do believe he signed proven guys for this season with worthy contracts.

[Defjamz26]

Once picks start developing, I think the FA misses will be less. Once we have that strong young core of players, we won't need to rummage through the FA bin as frequently.

The thing is that the Colts lacked quality starters and depth. We're getting close to having quality starters across the board.

[aReggie7]

I think that Grigson's big spending in free agency are pretty much over with Hilton and AC extended and Luck and Allen/Fleener due for extensions soon.

 

There were certainly some signings I didn't understand but I think the Cherilus, Thomas, and Art Jones signings have been ruined by injuries and not because they were bad players like say Landry and RJF. (RJF was ok but not worth signing imo)

 

Grigson's biggest misses (by far) have been the Werner pick and the Richardson trade. Heck the entire 2013 draft was a disappointment outside of getting Vontae Davis for the second round pick.

 

The Colts failed draft/develop quality talent the last several years of Manning's career outside of Costanzo and McAfee. That really hurts especially when you add the Trent Richardson and Werner blunders.

 

In the back of my mind I worry at times that Irsay has made more of the decisions than fans realize...as far trading for Richardson and who to draft.

[BOTT]

To me, the first two years, Grigson was still feeling it out, the risks and rewards, IMO.

 

I think Irsay was more involved early on, and now he has let Grigson settle in. No more tweeting of "trade winds are blowing, yada, yada, yada..." now, and whether folks believe it or not, that puts added indirect pressure on a new GM that wants to please his owner, IMO.

 

I think this year's free agent acquisitions will help erase the bad acquisitions of the 2013 offseason, IMO.

How was irsay involved?

[ColtRider]

No matter how you slice and dice, dead money is what counts. To be at #24 in the entire league at only $7.9 mil is to me a small concession to have endured while achieving a team the Colts now enjoy. Maybe I'm way off base here, but I can add. And besides, Grigson is right on the money when speaking about FAs. Grab 'em while you can to fill the need.

[Smonroe]

I think the common misperception to the bolded is that there were a wide number of O-lineman available to overdraft in the last 4 years - especially incorporating our draft positions.  We can all pick and choose players like Cordy Glenn or Larry Warford from '12 and '13 who would be regular contributors had we pulled the trigger - but if you go through the 12, 13, and 14 drafts there are surprisingly few O-linemen picked in rounds 2-4 that you could point at and say that you wish we had pulled the trigger to get them. 

 

2012 (pick 34) was probably our best "missed opportunity" to use a high pick on the OL, and we used that pick quite well on Fleener.  If you look at 2013, there really weren't OL available at 24 that made sense (regardless of what you think about Werner), and we used our first pick on Mewhort in 2014.  

 

As for 2015, would Donovan Smith (pick 34) or any of the other round 2 tackles selected really be changing the way the fan base feels about the line today if we had traded back and overdrafted them?  Time will tell, but it's unlikely.

 

We do have 2 drafted players in 13 and 14 as current starters and I still predict that Thornton will settle into one of the guard spots by mid-season.

Excellent post. Yes, I'm using hindsight, which is never fair.

I guess I'd put it this way - if there was an opportunity to take a quality lineman, even over a Fleener, I wish they would have gone for it.

I didn't have a problem overpaying Cherilus even though it didn't work out. But instead of trading a #1 pick for a RB, trade to shore up the line. Same for some of the high priced D guys.

In other words, build that line first and foremost. BTW, I hope you're right about Thornton, but I haven't seen it yet. Too many injuries.

[Bubbz]

Grigson is trash

[Superman]

I think that Grigson's big spending in free agency are pretty much over with Hilton and AC extended and Luck and Allen/Fleener due for extensions soon.

 

There were certainly some signings I didn't understand but I think the Cherilus, Thomas, and Art Jones signings have been ruined by injuries and not because they were bad players like say Landry and RJF. (RJF was ok but not worth signing imo)

 

Grigson's biggest misses (by far) have been the Werner pick and the Richardson trade. Heck the entire 2013 draft was a disappointment outside of getting Vontae Davis for the second round pick.

 

The Colts failed draft/develop quality talent the last several years of Manning's career outside of Costanzo and McAfee. That really hurts especially when you add the Trent Richardson and Werner blunders.

 

In the back of my mind I worry at times that Irsay has made more of the decisions than fans realize...as far trading for Richardson and who to draft.

 

I think "big spending" is a misnomer. Free agents frequently get $10m/year to switch teams, and the most Grigson had done prior to 2015 is just under $7m/year, and mostly with team friendly structures. Even the Packers gave Peppers almost $9m/year. So even after the young core is resigned, there will still be money for mid level free agents here and there. No big influx like in 2013, but a veteran here or there on a reasonable deal will still happen.

 

I agree with you. Missing on Richardson and Werner is a bigger deal now and over the next year or two than the free agency disappointments. And like you said, not having anyone worthy of retaining from the previous regime meant that there was some extra money to go around, and a need to just add capable bodies, even if they weren't stars. The previous roster was gutted. They had to stock the shelves, and I think they did okay, given the circumstances.