Light years away...

[cdgacoltsfan]

3 hours ago, deedub75 said:

 

The Packers got healthy and they also made adjustments.  There's no way we beat them now.  

According to most on here, there was no way we were beating them then either.

[Smonroe]

44 minutes ago, #12. said:

 

 

I knew this was coming.  We went 1-6 vs. playoff teams, only beating the Packers in the midst of a 4 game losing streak in which they were also blown out by the Titans and Redskins, yet that one game will be used as 8 months of off-season proof as to how close the Colts are.

 

Closely following this will be the one solid game by Clark and the O-line against the Vikings, proof that Grigson has a stud O-line in the making.

 

You can look at every game and play 'if'.  Wins were wins.  The Colts are nowhere near 'Browns' bad.  And I do believe the O line has the pieces.  

 

As the Packers and Cowboys have shown, you don't need the best D in the league to be a contender.   

[lollygagger8]

56 minutes ago, Superman said:

This is what people said about Atlanta two years ago. 

 

Amazing what new coaches will do for a team. 

[MacDee1975]

Hardly light years away.  Tons of cap space available:  hit on both free agency and the draft, this team very easily could win the division.....provided they have the right leadership in place, which currently they do not.

 

[Superman]

1 hour ago, lollygagger8 said:

 

Amazing what new coaches will do for a team. 

 

Yup. Mike Smith had some success, wasn't awful, and he got some interest for head coaching jobs this year. But he wasn't the right guy to take the Falcons to contention, IMO, and they made a change. It's working out for them, I think. 

 

I think that's where the Colts are with Pagano. 

[braveheartcolt]

4 hours ago, deedub75 said:

 

I seriously doubt that.  Rodgers is in the top tier of QBs and Luck is not there.  I think Rodgers would have gotten a couple more wins and that would have been enough to win this sorry division.  

Absolutely. I cringe to think about what Rodgers would have done to us had we played them this year. I'm thinking Saints 2011...... 

[thecorn4]

I'm gonna say, we are not that far off.  That being said, if we can crush it in free agency and the draft this year, I believe we can win the division and make a run deep in the playoffs. For instance, two out of the four teams still playing this coming weekend had the 20th or worse ranked defense in the league.  That being the Pack, and the Falcons, and the Falcons are at 27 if I remember correctly.  We could easily move up 8-10 spots defensively ranking wise and contend.  Maybe not be the 85 Bears, but at the end of the day be just good enough to win the Super Bowl, and that is how teams are ultimately judged.     

[masterlock]

7 hours ago, Vinatieri4 said:

Although the Packers were playing bad football at the time, we still went toe to toe with them - at their house. That has to say something.  I know we aren't the most talented roster, but Luck didn't even have a great game and we still beat them.  I think we are closer to title contention than some people think.

They also lost to the lowly Jaguars. It's not good enough to win HALF the time. To contend, you need consistency. I hope things get better. But right now, they look like what their record says they are: An 8-8, average team.

[WoolMagnet]

10 hours ago, Dingus McGirt said:

After watching this weekend's playoff games, and seeing the quality of the players on the field - especially on defense, our Colts are not even close to having a roster of comparable caliber.  We can probably say the same about the coaching and front office staffs.  

 

This isn't the Cleveland Browns, but you can see the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame from here.

 

Well, at least you got your name right

[Kyle]

These are the guys I a 100% will start for the Colts next year

0ffense - Luck, TY, Kelly, Castonzo, Mewhort

Defense - Davis, ...

[2006Coltsbestever]

2 minutes ago, Kyle said:

These are the guys I a 100% will start for the Colts next year

0ffense - Luck, TY, Kelly, Castonzo, Mewhort

Defense - Davis, ...

I would add Moncrief to the Offense and of course Adam and Pat but that is SPTeams. Add Walden on Defense.

[Kyle]

3 minutes ago, 2006Coltsbestever said:

I would add Moncrief to the Offense and of course Adam and Pat but that is SPTeams. Add Walden on Defense.

yes, could add a few names... but the point is we are uncertain at RB, RG, RT, WR, OLB, OLB, ILB, CB, DE, DE, DT, and S.  While most teams have a few holes, we seem to only have a few non-holes.  We could possibly take every single one of those positions in the 1st round.

[2006Coltsbestever]

1 minute ago, Kyle said:

yes, could add a few names... but the point is we are uncertain at RB, RG, RT, WR, OLB, OLB, ILB, CB, DE, DE, DT, and S.  While most teams have a few holes, we seem to only have a few non-holes.  We could possibly take every single one of those positions in the 1st round.

I actually like Doyle as well but yes we have a lot of holes, I agree.

[throwing BBZ]

2-4 in our division for 2017.  lol

[NewColtsFan]

10 hours ago, tikyle said:

 

You can point that out but then someone can point out that we lost twice to the hapless Texans who got embarrassed this weekend.  We have a long way to go.  We had a ways to go when we were 11-5 for three years and we are not as good as we were then, now.

 

That is not to say that it cannot turn fast.  If we can find a consistent pass rush like what you saw from Bud Dupree and old man Harrison last night and just have a better scheme that will fix a lot of our defensive holes.  It is imperative we hit on at least three of these draft picks coming up.  And two of the hits need to be from the first three rounds.

 

Do you watch football much?

 

The Texans were in the game for roughly 3 quarters.     Not embarrassed.

 

And the Texans are NOT hapless.      Do you even know what that word means?

 

Do you know the Houston defense is #1 in the NFL.      That's means, the best in the whole league.    And,  they're number one WITHOUT the best defensive player in the league,  JJ Watt.      They've got top talent everywhere on that defense.     

 

The Texans roster is far superior to the Colts everywhere EXCEPT QB.      That's it.

 

The Texans are a very good team,  even with Osweiler.    It should be frightening to think how good they would be if they had someone better at quarterback.

 

[Dingus McGirt]

11 hours ago, Smonroe said:

 

Yeah, the Packers would probably kill us is we ever play them.  

Oops.  Forgot about that one.

 

[Dingus McGirt]

7 hours ago, Superman said:

This is what people said about Atlanta two years ago. 

Hope you are right, Supe.

 

[Superman]

6 minutes ago, Dingus McGirt said:

Hope you are right, Supe.

 

 

They had a significant shake-up two years ago. Dimitroff was considered a failure, he was on the hot seat, Mike Smith got fired, they hired Scott Pioli to help out as assistant GM, and hired Dan Quinn. If we were following that model, we'd switch coaches and add an experienced front office guy to work with Grigson. 

 

More important is the results. Dimitroff and Pioli have made some good draft picks that are paying off, and Quinn's done a good job as head coach. I'm not confident in our current staff turning things around like the Falcons have, but I hope they do, since it seems like they're the guys for now.

[dgambill]

1 minute ago, Superman said:

 

They had a significant shake-up two years ago. Dimitroff was considered a failure, he was on the hot seat, Mike Smith got fired, they hired Scott Pioli to help out as assistant GM, and hired Dan Quinn. If we were following that model, we'd switch coaches and add an experienced front office guy to work with Grigson. 

 

More important is the results. Dimitroff and Pioli have made some good draft picks that are paying off, and Quinn's done a good job as head coach. I'm not confident in our current staff turning things around like the Falcons have, but I hope they do, since it seems like they're the guys for now.

I was going to say didn't they fire their coach a couple years ago and after a year of learning under the new coach and a bright young OC they turned it around? I do think with the right two or three FAs and another great draft (if last years turns out as good as I think they might) then we should be able to win our division. NFL can change very very fast. If young players hit...and you bring in a few key FAs that help right away at a the key positions we have the hardest piece to find so we can do this.

[MacDee1975]

1 hour ago, NewColtsFan said:

 

Do you watch football much?

 

The Texans were in the game for roughly 3 quarters.     Not embarrassed.

 

And the Texans are NOT hapless.      Do you even know what that word means?

 

Do you know the Houston defense is #1 in the NFL.      That's means, the best in the whole league.    And,  they're number one WITHOUT the best defensive player in the league,  JJ Watt.      They've got top talent everywhere on that defense.     

 

The Texans roster is far superior to the Colts everywhere EXCEPT QB.      That's it.

 

The Texans are a very good team,  even with Osweiler.    It should be frightening to think how good they would be if they had someone better at quarterback.

 

 

Good Christ.....get off their n u t s a c k.  They are average at best.....nowhere near "very good".  Do YOU watch football?  If you watched *them* at all you would've noticed they looked like the inferior team in 80% of the games they played this season.  Football outsiders has them as a 5 win team this season based on offensive/defensive/special teams efficiency, so what on earth are YOU taking about?  They got every favorable bounce that a team could ever possibly get and still barely finished over .500 in a garbage division.  The Colts / Jags / Bengals, 3 horrific teams, all were beating Houston handily and then had to p i s s on themselves in order for the Texans to eek out wins in each of those games.  There are numerous Houston locals who are not happy with O'Brien at all.  They know that if he coached in any other division, he'd be going on 3 sub .500 seasons in a row and likely would be gone now.

[Colts_Fan12]

6 minutes ago, MacDee1975 said:

 

Good Christ.....get off their n u t s a c k.  They are average at best.....nowhere near "very good".  Do YOU watch football?  If you watched *them* at all you would've noticed they looked like the inferior team in 80% of the games they played this season.  Football outsiders has them as a 5 win team this season based on offensive/defensive/special teams efficiency, so what on earth are YOU taking about?  They got every favorable bounce that a team could ever possibly get and still barely finished over .500 in a garbage division.  The Colts / Jags / Bengals, 3 horrific teams, all were beating Houston handily and then had to p i s s on themselves in order for the Texans to eek out wins in each of those games.  There are numerous Houston locals who are not happy with O'Brien at all.  They know that if he coached in any other division, he'd be going on 3 sub .500 seasons in a row and likely would be gone now.

You realize they have one of the worst QBs in the league right?? Upgrade the QB spot to average and they would kick the living % out of the Colts.

[twfish]

I'm sorry I didn't realize we were atleast 5.88 trillion miles away from a superbowl. I mean the speed of light is 186,300 miles per SECOND and the fastest we've sent something in space has been 36,373 mile per HOUR so to be honest I'm not sure how any team will ever reach the superbowl in our lifetime if the superbowl is atleast a light year away? Fun fact radio waves travel at the speed of light. Another fun fact the GPS on your phone is an uncorrected signal along with a poor clock (not in sync with the atomic clock in the satellites) so the accuracy is about 45 feet vs a corrected signal of WAAS (wide area augmentation systems) which is 4-8 inches vs RTK (real time kinematics) where the accuracy is sub inch. Okay nerd turned back OFF.

[NewColtsFan]

2 hours ago, MacDee1975 said:

 

Good Christ.....get off their n u t s a c k.  They are average at best.....nowhere near "very good".  Do YOU watch football?  If you watched *them* at all you would've noticed they looked like the inferior team in 80% of the games they played this season.  Football outsiders has them as a 5 win team this season based on offensive/defensive/special teams efficiency, so what on earth are YOU taking about?  They got every favorable bounce that a team could ever possibly get and still barely finished over .500 in a garbage division.  The Colts / Jags / Bengals, 3 horrific teams, all were beating Houston handily and then had to p i s s on themselves in order for the Texans to eek out wins in each of those games.  There are numerous Houston locals who are not happy with O'Brien at all.  They know that if he coached in any other division, he'd be going on 3 sub .500 seasons in a row and likely would be gone now.

 

I see no where in your post did you happen to mention that they have the number one defense in football.

 

Not a word,  despite the fact that you showed off some analytics.

 

Plus,  you even pulled out that there are numerous Houston locals who are not happy with O'Brien.     Do you even understand that there are locals in New England who are not happy with Belichick?     Why would I ever, EVER care what fans think?       

 

Houston could fire O'Brien today,   and he'd be employed quickly.     

 

I don't care what Football Outsiders thinks. 

 

And if you've been reading my posts for any length of time and think that I don't know football,   then I can't help you.      Not one bit.  

 

Please feel free to put me on IGNORE!      I'd be very happy if you did us BOTH a big favor and paid no attention to me.   

 

Good luck.....      

 

[tikyle]

13 hours ago, NewColtsFan said:

 

Do you watch football much?

 

The Texans were in the game for roughly 3 quarters.     Not embarrassed.

 

And the Texans are NOT hapless.      Do you even know what that word means?

 

Do you know the Houston defense is #1 in the NFL.      That's means, the best in the whole league.    And,  they're number one WITHOUT the best defensive player in the league,  JJ Watt.      They've got top talent everywhere on that defense.     

 

The Texans roster is far superior to the Colts everywhere EXCEPT QB.      That's it.

 

The Texans are a very good team,  even with Osweiler.    It should be frightening to think how good they would be if they had someone better at quarterback.

 

 

When you lose by 18 in the playoffs that's an embarrassment.  Especially when you lose by more than you even score.  I don't care if the game was close for 59 minutes, if you end up losing by 18 you got embarrassed.

 

Hapless may be too strong but they are hapless on offense.  And don't give me that #1 defense crap.  They are #1 in yards allowed.  That "#1 defense" was 11th in points allowed.  That is such an out dated way to rate a defense it's a joke.  The defense is great but that wasn't the best defense in the NFL this season.  The team got outscored this season by 40+ points.  A friggin' playoff team had a NEGATIVE point differential.  That is hapless.  I take it all back.  They are indeed hapless.

 

Having a better roster than the Colts isn't hard.  The Jaguars have that.  No matter what way you slice it the Texans were not good this season.  The only thing you can hang your hat on is they made the playoffs.  I will give them credit for playing this well on defense without their best player.  The thought of a healthy Watt on that squad next year is daunting.  But let's not overrate them because they won the division we're in.

[NewColtsFan]

34 minutes ago, tikyle said:

 

When you lose by 18 in the playoffs that's an embarrassment.  Especially when you lose by more than you even score.  I don't care if the game was close for 59 minutes, if you end up losing by 18 you got embarrassed.

 

Hapless may be too strong but they are hapless on offense.  And don't give me that #1 defense crap.  They are #1 in yards allowed.  That "#1 defense" was 11th in points allowed.  That is such an out dated way to rate a defense it's a joke.  The defense is great but that wasn't the best defense in the NFL this season.  The team got outscored this season by 40+ points.  A friggin' playoff team had a NEGATIVE point differential.  That is hapless.  I take it all back.  They are indeed hapless.

 

Having a better roster than the Colts isn't hard.  The Jaguars have that.  No matter what way you slice it the Texans were not good this season.  The only thing you can hang your hat on is they made the playoffs.  I will give them credit for playing this well on defense without their best player.  The thought of a healthy Watt on that squad next year is daunting.  But let's not overrate them because they won the division we're in.

 

The Colts have been to the playoffs in the last 5 years having given up more points than they scored.

 

It happens.     

 

And you may not like the way the rating system works,  but as long as the NFL calls Houston the number one defense,   then I'm fine calling them that too.

 

The more you write,  the more you're exposed.    

 

[Smonroe]

1 hour ago, NewColtsFan said:

 

The Colts have been to the playoffs in the last 5 years having given up more points than they scored.

 

It happens.     

 

And you may not like the way the rating system works,  but as long as the NFL calls Houston the number one defense,   then I'm fine calling them that too.

 

The more you write,  the more you're exposed.    

 

 

I'm jumping in late, sorry. 

 

Yes, it's true Houston had the #1 D in total yards.  But they weren't in the top 10 in scoring.  And I believe their 3rd down D wasn't rated very high either.

 

What I like about Houston is that they still haven't settled in on a QB.  That keeps the door open for us.

[tikyle]

1 hour ago, NewColtsFan said:

 

The Colts have been to the playoffs in the last 5 years having given up more points than they scored.

 

It happens.     

 

And you may not like the way the rating system works,  but as long as the NFL calls Houston the number one defense,   then I'm fine calling them that too.

 

The more you write,  the more you're exposed.    

 

 

LOL.  The more I write the more I'm exposed?  Yet you are validating all my points by continuing to write.  The Colts have been a facade the last five years (yes even the playoff years).  They, just like the Texans, have taken advantage of a terrible division.  I don't even want to get into it..........

 

I just showed you how the Texans aren't the #1 defense but since the NFL rating system says that, then that's who you're going with......alrighty.  You go ahead with your antiquated NFL analysis.  Enjoy your total yards allowed and total yards gained without any context at all.  I will continue to consume a much more sophisticated analysis of the NFL.  The type that the actual teams who are participating in it use.

 

I will just leave this here for you to consider.  I'm here to build up, not tear down.

 

www.footballoutsiders.com

www.presnapreads.com

www.profootballfocus.com

[VocableLoki]

To jump in on the Houston thing:

 

A) People can say that QB is their only problem and that they are only an average QB away from being scary (which I would contest but beside the point) but that is a BIG problem to have. The money they have tied up in Osweiler presents all kinds of problems for them going forward and they have some of the least cap space in the league. Point being: unless they hit the lottery in the draft they are not going to have a good QB anytime soon.

 

B) I don't think Houston is more talented across the board. RB's and O-line seem like a wash to me and I would take our WR's and TE's over theirs. Obviously defensive is another issue, speaking of which...

 

C) The idea that they are a top defense that will get better with JJ Watt is flawed for two reasons in my mind: no one knows how healthy Watt will be, back injuries can be career-altering for defensive linemen and that Houston is very dependent on breakout seasons from several players. Lets see if they can put together back-to-back good seasons before claiming they are some awesome defense. It's not like Andrew can't move the ball against Houston. I also think awarding Houston the best defense title based on total yards allowed by itself seems dubious at best. 

 

D) They hung around with New England but were incredibly fortunate to be in that position. Getting three turnovers won't happen often and the way O'Brian coached that game gives me confidence that he isn't some genius that's going to outmaneuver us all the time. Essentially, I think Houston will be the top contender in our division but they aren't running away with anything yet.

 

[NewColtsFan]

15 hours ago, tikyle said:

 

LOL.  The more I write the more I'm exposed?  Yet you are validating all my points by continuing to write.  The Colts have been a facade the last five years (yes even the playoff years).  They, just like the Texans, have taken advantage of a terrible division.  I don't even want to get into it..........

 

I just showed you how the Texans aren't the #1 defense but since the NFL rating system says that, then that's who you're going with......alrighty.  You go ahead with your antiquated NFL analysis.  Enjoy your total yards allowed and total yards gained without any context at all.  I will continue to consume a much more sophisticated analysis of the NFL.  The type that the actual teams who are participating in it use.

 

I will just leave this here for you to consider.  I'm here to build up, not tear down.

 

www.footballoutsiders.com

www.presnapreads.com

www.profootballfocus.com

 

It's late in the evening....   and I've finally had a chance to try and take a look at your three websites.   I'm most familiar with PFF.    I pay attention to them.      I know of PFO,  but am less familiar with them.    And even less familiar with DVOA,  thought I've clearly heard and read about it.     As for Presnapreads,  that might be the worst looking sports website I've ever seen.    They tried hard to hide their information.    I didn't know what you wanted me to see there....    I didn't spend much time on it.

 

First off, I should say that I've followed the analytics movement for roughly 30 years, give or take.    I believe in it.   But it's a tool to be used wisely.     It's not the whole puzzle,  it's a piece of the puzzle.     It's to be given proper consideration,    but it's not the be-all and end-all of any analysis.

 

I took a long look at DVOA....     Oh, Dear God.     What a mess..... 

 

The Colts ranked 15th in the NFL,   Houston ranked 26th and Detroit 29th.

 

This is the kind of outcome that gives analytics a bad name with some.    Bill Simmons once used analytics to promote the idea that Carmelo Anthony is a real superstar,  much, much better than his critics would have you believe.    I felt sorry for Bill,  one of the Godfathers of the modern age of covering basketball.

 

But if DVOA really believes that the Colts are 15th and Houston is 26th and Detroit is 29th,  then I'd simply say....       Garbage in;   Garbage out.       What's next?     The 76ers are one of the best teams in basketball?   Are the Padres one of the best teams in baseball?     There's no argument for those three rankings.    It's nonsense.      It's pop-math disguised as outside-the-box progressive thinking. 

 

We're all free to have our own opinions,  but to state the incredibly obvious,  you and I clearly see the same things differently.  

 

Good luck.....

 

[AZColt11]

On 1/16/2017 at 3:13 PM, Superman said:

 

Yup. Mike Smith had some success, wasn't awful, and he got some interest for head coaching jobs this year. But he wasn't the right guy to take the Falcons to contention, IMO, and they made a change. It's working out for them, I think. 

 

I think that's where the Colts are with Pagano. 

Heck I would take Mike Smith at THIS point honestly.

[Vinatieri4]

On 1/16/2017 at 4:50 PM, masterlock said:

They also lost to the lowly Jaguars. It's not good enough to win HALF the time. To contend, you need consistency. I hope things get better. But right now, they look like what their record says they are: An 8-8, average team.

 

I'm not saying the Colts are a great time. Obviously 8-8 is an average record, and you are what your record says you are. Win one, lose one was the story of the season last year. However, I said the Colts are close to contention. I really believe that. I'm not one much for moral victories, however - we played a lot of good teams close last year. We are a play maker or two away from being able to play with anyone in the league. 

 

A defensive pass rusher, and TJ Green to step up on defense to create some turnovers and HEY! You never know.