Le'Raven Clark Update

[NeedsADefence]

all i can say is URGH another wasted draft pick by grigs

[jskinnz]

9 hours ago, Superman said:

Why are people acting like a redshirt rookie season is something unique to Le'Raven Clark and the 2016 Colts?

 

This and some more of this

[MacDee1975]

14 hours ago, twfish said:

Haeg's ceiling is not much higher than what he's at now. Maybe, MAYBE run of the mill, middle of the pack guard that can play some tackle solid but not a difference maker. Clark's ceiling is a top tackle in the league. So I guess you don't get it...

 

When Le'Raven Clark becomes the top tackle in the league, then you can come on here and crow about it.

As of right now, Haeg is the superior player.  A higher round player being better than a lower round player at the same position in the same draft means Grigson effed up.  Yet again.

[Jason_]

5 hours ago, NeedsADefence said:

all i can say is URGH another wasted draft pick by grigs

 

that seems to be a common, albeit incorrect, assertion

[MacDee1975]

10 minutes ago, Jason_S said:

 

that seems to be a common, albeit incorrect, assertion

 

Except that time where he screwed up 3 first round picks in a row.

[Jason_]

Just now, MacDee1975 said:

 

Except that time where he screwed up 3 first round picks in a row.

 

huh?  we're talking about the Le'Raven Clark pick.

[tikyle]

If he hasn't played and he isn't hurt then technically he isn't a bust.  See Goff (before he shows what he has this week).

[MacDee1975]

1 hour ago, Jason_S said:

 

huh?  we're talking about the Le'Raven Clark pick.

 

Misunderstanding on my part.

[ztboiler]

6 hours ago, MacDee1975 said:

 

When Le'Raven Clark becomes the top tackle in the league, then you can come on here and crow about it.

As of right now, Haeg is the superior player.  A higher round player being better than a lower round player at the same position in the same draft means Grigson effed up.  Yet again.

Did you really just suggest, as the basis for your logic, that it is better GM work to draft a guy in the 5th who has less impact than the guy you drafted as a project in the 3rd?

[NewColtsFan]

6 hours ago, MacDee1975 said:

 

When Le'Raven Clark becomes the top tackle in the league, then you can come on here and crow about it.

As of right now, Haeg is the superior player.  A higher round player being better than a lower round player at the same position in the same draft means Grigson effed up.  Yet again.

 

You've been a member here since 2012,  same as me.

 

Clark being a project and not expecting to get anything out of him this year has been the Colts plan since Day One.      That weekend we had all sorts of discussions about not expecting to see Clark this year because he was a long-term project.

 

Just as Arizona took OT DJ Humphrey in the 1st round a year ago and he didn't even dress for a single game in 2015.     He just stood on the sidelines.     That was the Cardinals plan.      And this year,  Humphrey starts for them.

 

This may work out or it may not.     But Irsay and Pagano were both on board with the pick.   

 

Why are you not aware of any of this?       I don't understand your rant.....

 

[MacDee1975]

28 minutes ago, ztboiler said:

Did you really just suggest, as the basis for your logic, that it is better GM work to draft a guy in the 5th who has less impact than the guy you drafted as a project in the 3rd?

 

I didn't suggest anything.  I outright stated, correctly so, that it is bad GM evaluation and usage of your 3rd round pick at a position of great need, when he doesn't get so much as a hint of playing time, whereas a guy drafted at the same position, 2 rounds later, is starting.

[MacDee1975]

26 minutes ago, NewColtsFan said:

 

You've been a member here since 2012,  same as me.

 

Clark being a project and not expecting to get anything out of him this year has been the Colts plan since Day One.      That weekend we had all sorts of discussions about not expecting to see Clark this year because he was a long-term project.

 

Just as Arizona took OT DJ Humphrey in the 1st round a year ago and he didn't even dress for a single game in 2015.     He just stood on the sidelines.     That was the Cardinals plan.      And this year,  Humphrey starts for them.

 

This may work out or it may not.     But Irsay and Pagano were both on board with the pick.   

 

Why are you not aware of any of this?       I don't understand your rant.....

 

 

It is my contention that is a terrible plan and a waste of a third round pick.  Unlike the Cardinals, the Colts had needs all over the roster and did not have the luxury of drafting a project with their third round pick. 

 

My rant is that this was a terrible plan, and yet another in a long line of blown Ryan Grigson early round picks.  This is why we see the mediocre at best product on the field this year.

 

There's a reason that Grigson was on the hot seat last year and is again this year.

[ztboiler]

7 minutes ago, MacDee1975 said:

 

I didn't suggest anything.  I outright stated, correctly so, that it is bad GM evaluation and usage of your 3rd round pick at a position of great need, when he doesn't get so much as a hint of playing time, whereas a guy drafted at the same position, 2 rounds later, is starting.

So....would you feel differently about the situation if Haeg was drafted in the 3rd and Clark the 5th keeping everything else exactly the same?

[krunk]

The Fan always thinks he has the best view sipping on his Kool Aid with the remote control in his hand sitting on his couch.

[BOTT]

26 minutes ago, krunk said:

The Fan always thinks he has the best view sipping on his Kool Aid with the remote control in his hand sitting on his couch.

Meh, most gm's have a terrible hitting percentage.....so what the hell.

[NewColtsFan]

1 hour ago, MacDee1975 said:

 

It is my contention that is a terrible plan and a waste of a third round pick.  Unlike the Cardinals, the Colts had needs all over the roster and did not have the luxury of drafting a project with their third round pick. 

 

My rant is that this was a terrible plan, and yet another in a long line of blown Ryan Grigson early round picks.  This is why we see the mediocre at best product on the field this year.

 

There's a reason that Grigson was on the hot seat last year and is again this year.

 

Everyone signed off on it.    Irsay and Pagano.

 

If Clark turns out to be a bust down the road,  then you'll be vindicated.     But until that time,  it's just a rant.

 

But if Clark turns into what the Colts hope he'll be,  then you're going to be eating humble pie for quite some time.

 

 

[krunk]

43 minutes ago, BOTT said:

Meh, most gm's have a terrible hitting percentage.....so what the hell.

There's some truth to what you are saying here and that's all across the board around the NFL.   I'm sitting there thinking Seattle is so good, but then I checked their draft history for the last 4 years and there's been a lot of misses too.  Best year going off my memory without looking again was the year they draft Wilson which I think included some of the defensive pieces.   Schneider is still trying to get that O Line fixed just like Grigson.

[Luck2Hilton4TD]

If you hit on star players, no one's going to count all your misses. Problem is, Colts have found some solid guys like Moncrief, Mewhort, and Henry Anderson, etc. but no real stars since 2012. And I don't want to hear that guys weren't there... look at Tryann Mathieu, he was a 3rd round pick. 

[krunk]

34 minutes ago, Luck2Hilton4TD said:

If you hit on star players, no one's going to count all your misses. Problem is, Colts have found some solid guys like Moncrief, Mewhort, and Henry Anderson, etc. but no real stars since 2012. And I don't want to hear that guys weren't there... look at Tryann Mathieu, he was a 3rd round pick. 

We just started drafting on defense like last year 2015, so I think that's a bigger part of the puzzle.  Think that's got something to do with it don't ya think?

[BOTT]

2 minutes ago, krunk said:

We just started drafting on defense like last year 2015, so I think that's a bigger part of the puzzle.  Think that's got something to do with it don't ya think?

And that was a big mistake

[krunk]

2 minutes ago, BOTT said:

And that was a big mistake

Yeah but its not a sin that plenty of other GMs haven't committed. We are in the hunt this year and things should start to look a lot more promising with a good draft in 2017. Plenty of money for a decent FA signing or two. I'm more interested to see how the wrongs get corrected.

[Hoose]

10 hours ago, MacDee1975 said:

 

When Le'Raven Clark becomes the top tackle in the league, then you can come on here and crow about it.

As of right now, Haeg is the superior player.  A higher round player being better than a lower round player at the same position in the same draft means Grigson effed up.  Yet again.

Or maybe Grigson did a heckuva job selecting Haeg while also picking a potentially awesome athletic Tackle in Clark. Let's just wait and see. You have no idea. And neither does anyone else. Time will tell 

[Superman]

2 hours ago, BOTT said:

Meh, most gm's have a terrible hitting percentage.....so what the hell.

 

Imagine what the hitting percentage would be for a fan... How many people around here wanted Marcus Martin in 2014?

 

Not a 'let the pros do their job' kind of thing. Just sayin, if fans held themselves to any kind of standard, maybe they'd be less extreme about stuff like this.

[Superman]

16 minutes ago, Hoose said:

Or maybe Grigson did a heckuva job selecting Haeg while also picking a potentially awesome athletic Tackle in Clark. Let's just wait and see. You have no idea. And neither does anyone else. Time will tell 

 

What a good point... Just because Haeg appears to be a really good pick doesn't mean Clark is a bad pick. 

[Superman]

1 hour ago, Luck2Hilton4TD said:

 look at Tryann Mathieu, he was a 3rd round pick. 

 

With significant off field issues... 

 

Also, he really wasn't available to the Colts. We didn't have a second round pick, and he went at the top of the third. No one would have been happy with him in the first.

 

I'd love to have him now, but this is a hindsight judgment, for sure. At the time, he was far from a sure thing, which is the only reason he dropped so far.

[LockeDown]

2 hours ago, Hoose said:

Or maybe Grigson did a heckuva job selecting Haeg while also picking a potentially awesome athletic Tackle in Clark. Let's just wait and see. You have no idea. And neither does anyone else. Time will tell 

Agreed.  Maybe the coaches know.  Philbin says he gets better every day, but fans won't believe it till they see it.  

 

Personally, I am excited at the prospect that he might fulfill his potential.  We might actually have a player who is physically a prototype LT. We never get those.  His arm length is better than prototypical.  If that happens, we will have a dynamic Oline for years to come.  If he is a bust I will be as disappointed as everyone else.

[ColtsFanMikeC]

16 hours ago, Jared Cisneros said:

^-^ Had to give you a like. The problem I have is that we don't have a single defensive starter from Grigson's 1st three drafts (unless you count Vontae). Even Fleener and Allen are basically busts or aren't on the team anymore. So that leaves us with Luck, Hilton, Vontae, Mewhort, and Moncrief. It's a base, but over 3 years, it's not great. We needed to do better, especially when Luck was a given and we had the 1st pick in every round that year. 

 

The last two drafts are better it seems, but the holes are starting to appear. Dorsett is looking more and more like a bust. D'Joun Smith is gone. Parry and Good are nice role players while it seems Geathers and Anderson can be starters. That's a good draft, especially if Dorsett figures it out. You can also see the difference when grigson makes a solid, safe pick in the 1st. Ryan Kelly is doing wonderful and T.J. green is looking good as well. The problem that Grigson always seems to make is he takes these project guys and it burns him. Every time. We may have a solid draft again, but the problem is we focused on O-Line late (5th year), defense late (5th year), and most importantly pass rush way too late (hasn't happened yet). The team is full of holes and it's not progressing quick enough. Luck's career will be 25-33% over after this year, and he still has a lackluster team around him. Something needs to happen soon.

 

If we can get Luck some time, it should help Dorsett tremendously.  I think it's too early to call him a bust, also -- Reggie Wayne came onto a team with a WR who was still pretty young but established (while I think Marvin is better than TY, there is an analogue here).  It took Reggie 3 years to really find his role on the team, and really it was his 4th year when he took off.  It's too early to tell, but Dorsett is definitely showing more and more glimpses of having ability to play in this league.

 

16 hours ago, Superman said:

 

This is a pet peeve of mine. Grigson has made plenty of bad draft picks, and that is the reason the team isn't better now. But he didn't wait five years to focus on the OL, the defense or the pass rush.

 

However, in his second draft, he took a pass rusher in the first, and OL in the 3rd and 4th; he didn't have a 2nd rounder, that was represented by Vontae Davis. In his third draft, he used a 2nd on Mewhort (didn't have a 1st), which a lot of people hated, and his 5th rounder was a decent edge rusher who smoked his way out of the league. There were FA signings that were supposed to supplement those picks, also, most of which didn't work out, unfortunately.

 

^AMEN!!  A lot of moves haven't worked out (often due to health issues, or legal issues), but it isn't like Grigs just has been ignoring gaping holes in the roster.

 

12 hours ago, BOTT said:

Well, fans are usually pretty dumb.

 

Thanks for proving your point.

 

7 hours ago, MacDee1975 said:

 

When Le'Raven Clark becomes the top tackle in the league, then you can come on here and crow about it.

As of right now, Haeg is the superior player.  A higher round player being better than a lower round player at the same position in the same draft means Grigson effed up.  Yet again.

 

Haeg came out of a school where he was playing much more 'fundamental'/NFL-style offensive line.  I'm a big Haeg guy, and not saying you are wrong.. but perhaps the best thing about Haeg is his versatility -- if Clark really develops, it'd be a good problem to have to see if Haeg should move to another position on the line (which he has proven he can).  It is also not a sure sign that Grigs effed up -- Clark was drafted because he has a lot of potential, several scouts had him ranked a top 5 tackle in this draft, NFL even projected him as a 1st or 2nd rounder.  An NFC Scout projected that when he has time to develop, he'll be a top 5 tackle in the league: http://www.nfl.com/draft/2016/profiles/le'raven-clark?id=2555202

 

Sure, right now Haeg is better.. but Clark was taken as a pick for the future, if he lives up to his potential, we'll all be very happy fans next year.

 

4 hours ago, MacDee1975 said:

 

Except that time where he screwed up 3 first round picks in a row.

 

Too early to tell on Dorsett.

 

3 minutes ago, MacDee1975 said:

 

It is my contention that is a terrible plan and a waste of a third round pick.  Unlike the Cardinals, the Colts had needs all over the roster and did not have the luxury of drafting a project with their third round pick. 

 

My rant is that this was a terrible plan, and yet another in a long line of blown Ryan Grigson early round picks.  This is why we see the mediocre at best product on the field this year.

 

There's a reason that Grigson was on the hot seat last year and is again this year.

 

The draft  has limitations.  There was not likely to be a 'stud' CB falling to us in this draft and there were almost no very good pass-rushers.  Our biggest need was OL, and Grigs addressed that with Clark (as a project) and then got insurance with Haeg later in the draft. 

 

What would have been worse is if we took a mediocre pass rusher who would be wasting a roster spot for years to come.  I think with Maggitt as a UDFA we got pretty much as good of a rush LB/DE as there was in the draft outside of the early first.

[BOTT]

7 hours ago, ColtsFanMikeC said:

 

If we can get Luck some time, it should help Dorsett tremendously.  I think it's too early to call him a bust, also -- Reggie Wayne came onto a team with a WR who was still pretty young but established (while I think Marvin is better than TY, there is an analogue here).  It took Reggie 3 years to really find his role on the team, and really it was his 4th year when he took off.  It's too early to tell, but Dorsett is definitely showing more and more glimpses of having ability to play in this league.

 

 

^AMEN!!  A lot of moves haven't worked out (often due to health issues, or legal issues), but it isn't like Grigs just has been ignoring gaping holes in the roster.

 

 

Thanks for proving your point.

 

 

Haeg came out of a school where he was playing much more 'fundamental'/NFL-style offensive line.  I'm a big Haeg guy, and not saying you are wrong.. but perhaps the best thing about Haeg is his versatility -- if Clark really develops, it'd be a good problem to have to see if Haeg should move to another position on the line (which he has proven he can).  It is also not a sure sign that Grigs effed up -- Clark was drafted because he has a lot of potential, several scouts had him ranked a top 5 tackle in this draft, NFL even projected him as a 1st or 2nd rounder.  An NFC Scout projected that when he has time to develop, he'll be a top 5 tackle in the league: http://www.nfl.com/draft/2016/profiles/le'raven-clark?id=2555202

 

Sure, right now Haeg is better.. but Clark was taken as a pick for the future, if he lives up to his potential, we'll all be very happy fans next year.

 

 

Too early to tell on Dorsett.

 

 

The draft  has limitations.  There was not likely to be a 'stud' CB falling to us in this draft and there were almost no very good pass-rushers.  Our biggest need was OL, and Grigs addressed that with Clark (as a project) and then got insurance with Haeg later in the draft. 

 

What would have been worse is if we took a mediocre pass rusher who would be wasting a roster spot for years to come.  I think with Maggitt as a UDFA we got pretty much as good of a rush LB/DE as there was in the draft outside of the early first.

 

I wasn't referring to fans when I said "anyone"

[Superman]

Also, how many of these people calling Clark a wasted pick wanted Jaylon Smith in the first or second round?

[Gavin]

19 hours ago, NewColtsFan said:

1 minute ago, Superman said:

1 minute ago, Superman said:

Also, how many of these people calling Clark a wasted pick wanted Jaylon Smith in the first or second round?

Also, how many of these people calling Clark a wasted pick wanted Jaylon Smith in the first or second round?

 

 

I have no idea why my post is triple posting but as to Jaylon and Clark, Jaylon was a top 5-10 prospect based on his actual play prior to injury. Clark was a day 3 4th-5th round prospect based on his play and he was healthy

[Superman]

10 minutes ago, Gavin said:

I have no idea why my post is triple posting but as to Jaylon and Clark, Jaylon was a top 5-10 prospect based on his actual play prior to injury. Clark was a day 3 4th-5th round prospect based on his play and he was healthy

 

There's a legitimate chance that Jaylon Smith never plays. And don't you prefer immediate contribution from a first or second rounder even more than you would from a third rounder?

 

And Clark wasn't a Day 3 prospect.

 

NFL.com projected him as a first or second rounder: http://www.nfl.com/draft/2016/profiles/le'raven-clark?id=2555202

 

CBS projected him as a second rounder: http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1860919/le

 

McShay projected him in the second: http://sports.mynorthwest.com/111653/espns-todd-mcshay-names-some-early-round-ol-options-for-the-seahawks/ https://imgur.com/a/YE5qs#bFDzDon 

 

Yahoo had him at #47: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-shutdown-corner/nfl-draft-profile--texas-tech-ot-le-raven-clark--a-dancing-bear-185815724.html

 

Kiper had him at #47, then mocked him to the Texans at #85 (pay wall link, sorry). 

 

Yes, there were some people who had him in the 4th and beyond. And even if media consensus had him higher, that doesn't make anything fact. But just looking back, it's hard to understand how anyone could say he was a Day 3 prospect.

 

And the point isn't to pit Smith vs Clark. The point is that there's a double standard.

[Gavin]

28 minutes ago, Superman said:

28 minutes ago, Superman said:

 

There's a legitimate chance that Jaylon Smith never plays. And don't you prefer immediate contribution from a first or second rounder even more than you would from a third rounder?

 

And Clark wasn't a Day 3 prospect.

 

NFL.com projected him as a first or second rounder: http://www.nfl.com/draft/2016/profiles/le'raven-clark?id=2555202

 

CBS projected him as a second rounder: http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1860919/le

 

McShay projected him in the second: http://sports.mynorthwest.com/111653/espns-todd-mcshay-names-some-early-round-ol-options-for-the-seahawks/ https://imgur.com/a/YE5qs#bFDzDon 

 

Yahoo had him at #47: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-shutdown-corner/nfl-draft-profile--texas-tech-ot-le-raven-clark--a-dancing-bear-185815724.html

 

Kiper had him at #47, then mocked him to the Texans at #85 (pay wall link, sorry). 

 

Yes, there were some people who had him in the 4th and beyond. And even if media consensus had him higher, that doesn't make anything fact. But just looking back, it's hard to understand how anyone could say he was a Day 3 prospect.

 

And the point isn't to pit Smith vs Clark. The point is that there's a double standard.

There's a legitimate chance that Jaylon Smith never plays. And don't you prefer immediate contribution from a first or second rounder even more than you would from a third rounder?

 

And Clark wasn't a Day 3 prospect.

 

NFL.com projected him as a first or second rounder: http://www.nfl.com/draft/2016/profiles/le'raven-clark?id=2555202

 

CBS projected him as a second rounder: http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/players/1860919/le

 

McShay projected him in the second: http://sports.mynorthwest.com/111653/espns-todd-mcshay-names-some-early-round-ol-options-for-the-seahawks/ https://imgur.com/a/YE5qs#bFDzDon 

 

Yahoo had him at #47: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-shutdown-corner/nfl-draft-profile--texas-tech-ot-le-raven-clark--a-dancing-bear-185815724.html

 

Kiper had him at #47, then mocked him to the Texans at #85 (pay wall link, sorry). 

 

Yes, there were some people who had him in the 4th and beyond. And even if media consensus had him higher, that doesn't make anything fact. But just looking back, it's hard to understand how anyone could say he was a Day 3 prospect.

 

And the point isn't to pit Smith vs Clark. The point is that there's a double standard.

It  wasn't hard to see a 4th-5th round pick watching him play and given his production. Mcshay and Kiper based a lot of it off of measurables. Its great when that actually works out but ultimately drafting that way will lead a lot of people looking like a fool for thinking like that and a GM to be made to look like a fool and possibly fired if he makes a habit of it.

 

At the end of the day though of course I hope he works out because I think he works hard and it will benefit the team as a whole if he does but I didn't have him going in the 3rd

[Superman]

26 minutes ago, Gavin said:

It  wasn't hard to see a 4th-5th round pick watching him play and given his production. Mcshay and Kiper based a lot of it off of measurables. Its great when that actually works out but ultimately drafting that way will lead a lot of people looking like a fool for thinking like that and a GM to be made to look like a fool and possibly fired if he makes a habit of it.

 

At the end of the day though of course I hope he works out because I think he works hard and it will benefit the team as a whole if he does but I didn't have him going in the 3rd

 

So Clark was a Day 3 prospect... in your opinion. Not by any general consensus.

 

[Jason_]

1 hour ago, Superman said:

Also, how many of these people calling Clark a wasted pick wanted Jaylon Smith in the first or second round?

 

but, but..it's different when the player has a recognizable name

[jskinnz]

52 minutes ago, Gavin said:

It  wasn't hard to see a 4th-5th round pick watching him play and given his production. Mcshay and Kiper based a lot of it off of measurables. Its great when that actually works out but ultimately drafting that way will lead a lot of people looking like a fool for thinking like that and a GM to be made to look like a fool and possibly fired if he makes a habit of it.

 

At the end of the day though of course I hope he works out because I think he works hard and it will benefit the team as a whole if he does but I didn't have him going in the 3rd

 

Dear Lord...

 

[Gavin]

1 hour ago, Superman said:

 

So Clark was a Day 3 prospect... in your opinion. Not by any general consensus.

 

No. I get it. Everyone will jump on the consensus. I know that. However inevitably the consensus is wrong every year about at least one prospect and often several. Also I have said numerous times that while I follow the consensus opinion and sometimes agree with them that doesn't mean it is above and beyond reproach and is wrong sometimes. Nor do I think its wrong to have a differing opinion. We ultimately don't know how Clark will turn out. I'm not turning this into Clark bashing by any stretch of the imagination but given all the info regarding in on field ability and system he came from and production he wasn't on my board in the 3rd.....He was their in the 4th. I felt their was a few better players available based on production and skill level

 

At the end of the day its water under the bridge regardless of how he turns out because his draft position will have no bearing on how he turns out. I'm just stating how I saw him. Had we not taken him I don't think its out of bounds to think he would have lasted 16 more picks and landed in the 4th but that's just opinion and could have been wrong

 

 

[Gavin]

1 hour ago, jskinnz said:

 

Dear Lord...

 

And a Merry Dear Lord to you and yours

[Luck2Hilton4TD]

21 hours ago, krunk said:

We just started drafting on defense like last year 2015, so I think that's a bigger part of the puzzle.  Think that's got something to do with it don't ya think?

 

This is also true, but certainly whiffing on defensive players like Bjoern Werner and D'Joun Smith in the early rounds of drafts hasn't helped either. 

[Superman]

1 hour ago, Gavin said:

No. I get it. Everyone will jump on the consensus. I know that. However inevitably the consensus is wrong every year about at least one prospect and often several. Also I have said numerous times that while I follow the consensus opinion and sometimes agree with them that doesn't mean it is above and beyond reproach and is wrong sometimes. Nor do I think its wrong to have a differing opinion. We ultimately don't know how Clark will turn out. I'm not turning this into Clark bashing by any stretch of the imagination but given all the info regarding in on field ability and system he came from and production he wasn't on my board in the 3rd.....He was their in the 4th. I felt their was a few better players available based on production and skill level

 

At the end of the day its water under the bridge regardless of how he turns out because his draft position will have no bearing on how he turns out. I'm just stating how I saw him. Had we not taken him I don't think its out of bounds to think he would have lasted 16 more picks and landed in the 4th but that's just opinion and could have been wrong

 

No that's fine, you're absolutely entitled to your opinion. You get a lot of grief because you hold your guns, but that's to be commended.

 

All I'm saying is that Clark wasn't a Day 3 prospect just because you say he was. If you had said that you felt he was a Day 3 prospect I wouldn't have said anything. But general consensus had him as a Day 2 pick, and that's where he went. 

 

Also, to a certain extent, even these "media scouts" are still media. Their opinions are partly informed by what they hear from NFL personnel guys -- team scouts, GMs, coaches, etc. So when McShay or Mayock does a big board, it's at least somewhat influenced by what they're hearing, not just their own evaluations. They don't always get it right, and things change, but in general, if all the main guys are calling a player a top 50 prospect, I'm assuming they're hearing some of the same things.

 

Going back to Jaylon Smith, if I were the Colts GM, I wouldn't have drafted him before the third round. I'm pessimistic about his knee injury, and I had him about 20 spots lower than everyone else did based on the film anyways. So I could say Jaylon Smith was a Day 2 guy -- to me. That doesn't mean he was actually a Day 2 guy, and I wouldn't claim that he was.

[Superman]

One more thing, I've been a little snippy on this subject, but I figured I'd share my actual thoughts.

 

I'm fine with where we drafted Clark. He's projected to be a starting tackle -- probably RT, IMO -- within a year or so. That's a good grab for a third rounder. The Colts were expecting Reitz to be a solid starter this year, then his position would be up for grabs moving forward. As it turns out, Reitz hasn't been that good this year, but that doesn't mean you throw Clark in hurriedly.

 

Truth on Clark is that he needs a year to refine his technique, and probably to get stronger. With coaching, he'll be capable of starting at RT. He has some simple technical issues that he needs to work on. No sense in putting him out there before he gets them ironed out. I said after he was drafted that we shouldn't expect to see him in 2016.

 

And that's fine because drafted players are expected to help the team for several years, not just as a rookie. As a matter of fact, their expectations are the lowest in their rookie year. So any player who doesn't contribute much as a rookie should be graded in accordance with what the team's expectations were when he was drafted. And it's easy to see -- based on the Colts comments when Clark was drafted, and base don pre-draft observations -- that he was expected to basically redshirt in 2016, then compete for a starting spot moving forward.

 

Patience is the key, no matter what you think of the Colts roster at present.