Chris Ballard Interview [Merge]

[csmopar]

Ballard was just on Dakich and it was pretty good, worth a listen if you want.  One thing that stood out, Dakich asked him does he go BPA(best player available) or draft best player for a need.  Ballard pretty much said that he's going BPA unless there's 2 players that grade out similarly and one is a need.  So I guess that leaves pretty much every position but QB on the table....  He used the Reggie Wayne draft pick as an example.

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He's having a live press-conference in 10 minutes at the combine. Those quotes above are from his interview with Dan Dakich. 

 

You can watch the press-conference here : http://www.colts.com/Streaming.html

[BProland85]

At the same time he comes from a defensive background in regards to scouting so I could see him valuing defensive players slightly over offensive players aside from OL since he believes in building the trenches.  

[BCoop]

He addressed comments from his first PC where he said you can't buy a locker room as well which I liked.

 

To paraphrase, he said if you're going to spend big money on a FA, and the Colts could do it, you have to be sure that when that guy steps foot in your locker room with the highest salary on that side of the ball, you have to be sure he has his mind right. If you bring in a guy that has an attitude issue, that sends the message to the rest of the team that it doesn't matter.

 

I thought he had some really good comments in such a short segment.

[austriancolt]

If he drafts a receiver with the first pick I will quit as a Colts fan...

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Ballard will have a press-conference at the combine in 5 minutes or so. You can watch here:

 

http://www.colts.com/Streaming.html

 

Another quote from the Dakich interview:

 

 

[Nesjan3]

maybe this is evidence that he will draft Cook if he is available.

[chad72]

Music to my ears, front 7, front 7, front 7, say it with me...:)

[Andrew Luck fan club]

4 minutes ago, chad72 said:

Music to my ears, front 7, front 7, front 7, say it with me...:)

Frronnntttttttt! 7!

[BOTT]

That's what everyone says.

[backshoulderfade]

Someone keep me up to date on that presser?

[LJpalmbeacher2]

I guess a lot of people here will be praying that Fournette or Cook will be gone before we pick, Lol.

[stitches]

5 minutes ago, Majin Vegeta said:

Frronnntttttttt! 7!

 

10 minutes ago, chad72 said:

Music to my ears, front 7, front 7, front 7, say it with me...:)

[aaron11]

2 minutes ago, LJpalmbeacher said:

I guess a lot of people here will be praying that Fournette or Cook will be gone before we pick, Lol.

fournette would be a steal at our pick

 

cook keeps getting mocked to the colts becasue hes bpa in those mocks.  there are like 10 guys i would take over cook, all of them defenders except for LF.  if they are gone, then i would definitely be ok with him

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[TKnight24]

31 minutes ago, csmopar said:

Ballard was just on Dakich and it was pretty good, worth a listen if you want.  One thing that stood out, Dakich asked him does he go BPA(best player available) or draft best player for a need.  Ballard pretty much said that he's going BPA unless there's 2 players that grade out similarly and one is a need.  So I guess that leaves pretty much every position but QB on the table....  He used the Reggie Wayne draft pick as an example.

Beat me to it, you sly devil you lol 

 

Here's more. He's live right now 

 

 

[stitches]

 

[coltsfeva]

Liked what he said about having FAs fit the scheme, be a good teammate and earn the $$$.

[Gigc]

go back and look at the last few Chiefs drafts. One thing I noticed; they picked LOTS of cornerbacks.

 

Just sayin

[LJpalmbeacher2]

Who knows how Ballard will set his board?

But if the top 2 RB's, TE, WR are there at 14, will there be any Front 7 players left that will rate nearly as high?

[Smonroe]

2 minutes ago, LJpalmbeacher said:

Who knows how Ballard will set his board?

But if the top 2 RB's, TE, WR are there at 14, will there be any Front 7 players left that will rate nearly as high?

 

Or QBs.  When they say best player, they mean best player on our board.  There's no way a QB is ranked as a first rounder on the Colts draft board.  I'd like to believe the same is true for WR and TE, and maybe even RB.

 

But I've been wrong before...

[LJpalmbeacher2]

1 minute ago, Smonroe said:

 

Or QBs.  When they say best player, they mean best player on our board.  There's no way a QB is ranked as a first rounder on the Colts draft board.  I'd like to believe the same is true for WR and TE, and maybe even RB.

 

But I've been wrong before...

Yeah we not picking a qb.

[Steamboat_Shaun]

26 minutes ago, backshoulderfade said:

Someone keep me up to date on that presser?

 

It was pretty brief. To paraphrase, questions that were asked regarded drafting players with character issues, Andrew Luck timeline, free agency strategy, Parry arrest, D'Qwell Jackson release, and what the plan was for Art Jones.

 

I lost my connection right as he was discussing DQ release.

[2006Coltsbestever]

Dalvin Cook it is folks!

[krunk]

“Alright, so I’ll give you my thoughts [on free agency],” Ballard said today at the NFL Combine, “because I don’t want to create the misconception that we’re never going to hit free agency. That’s not right. What I am going to say, though, is when we do dip into free agency and sign other players, we have to be right on the player you sign. So let me give you an example: you pay a guy a lot of money, and you plug him into the locker room. Well the locker room is watching. They are watching. So to me, in my mind, that guy has to be a worker, he has to be a good teammate, he has to earn it. He has to earn that money and earn that right. And he’s got to be a fit. He’s got to be a fit for what you’re doing offensively and defensively. So that’s where my fear of free agency comes in, making sure we know exactly what we’re [getting], is he a good fit, is he the type of person that’s going to come in and the other players are not going to resent him because he’s making an amount of money. If he’s a worker and he’s a good teammate and he’s going to help us win, they’ll buy in and he’ll be a good player for us. That’s my take on free agency. Are we going to be 100-percent right? No. I wish I was, I mean I’ll end up where Mr. [Bill] Polian was if I was, but I’m realistic. I’m realistic.”

http://www.stampedeblue.com/2017/3/1/14782288/chris-ballard-opens-up-on-his-free-agency-approach-you-cant-buy-a-locker-room-indianapolis-colts

[BOTT]

2 hours ago, LJpalmbeacher said:

I guess a lot of people here will be praying that Fournette or Cook will be gone before we pick, Lol.

Ballard will pass if Cook is there.

[BOTT]

3 hours ago, LJpalmbeacher said:

Who knows how Ballard will set his board?

But if the top 2 RB's, TE, WR are there at 14, will there be any Front 7 players left that will rate nearly as high?

Sounds like a great spot to trade down

[Defjamz26]

If Fournette is there there is no way Ballard passes. Fournette is arguably the 2nd best player in the entire draft. He could pass on Cook though.

 

As great as Cook is he has some flaws. Scouts are concerned about his character because he's got like 3 arrests on his record. Ball security is a concern as well. I'd say Ballard will be looking at the following for the Colts pick:

-Fournette

-Foster

-Thomas

-Wilson

-Bolles

-McDowell

-McKinley 

 

Hes serious about building the trenches too. Bolles is a day 1 starter at RG and has better upside then Haeg at that position. I don't think he'll reach on a pass rusher either so maybe McDowell is his guy. The only RB he'll consider touching in round 1 is Fournette. Wouldn't be upset if he did take Fournette though.

[superrep1967]

3 hours ago, LJpalmbeacher said:

I guess a lot of people here will be praying that Fournette or Cook will be gone before we pick, Lol.

i know I will be

[ztboiler]

6 hours ago, stitches said:

 

Nominated for best GIF usage in context on a message board.

[LJpalmbeacher2]

3 hours ago, BOTT said:

Sounds like a great spot to trade down

Trade back about 9 spots or so and get a 2nd rd. pick too.

[BProland85]

3 hours ago, BOTT said:

Sounds like a great spot to trade down

 

It should be with both Denver wanting to possibly move up for OJ Howard and the Giants possibly wanting their missing piece on offense in Cook. 

[Yoshinator]

43 minutes ago, BProland85 said:

 

It should be with both Denver wanting to possibly move up for OJ Howard and the Giants possibly wanting their missing piece on offense in Cook. 

I think the Broncos are more interested in Christian McCaffrey and will move up for him.

[21isSuperman]

8 hours ago, csmopar said:

Ballard was just on Dakich and it was pretty good, worth a listen if you want.  One thing that stood out, Dakich asked him does he go BPA(best player available) or draft best player for a need.  Ballard pretty much said that he's going BPA unless there's 2 players that grade out similarly and one is a need.  So I guess that leaves pretty much every position but QB on the table....  He used the Reggie Wayne draft pick as an example.

Merged

[twfish]

It was kind of a refreshing interview to listen too.

[Jackie Daytona]

8 hours ago, BProland85 said:

At the same time he comes from a defensive background in regards to scouting so I could see him valuing defensive players slightly over offensive players aside from OL since he believes in building the trenches.  

valuing more?  not necessarily, being more comfortable evaluating, sure.

[Defjamz26]

3 hours ago, BProland85 said:

 

It should be with both Denver wanting to possibly move up for OJ Howard and the Giants possibly wanting their missing piece on offense in Cook. 

But why would it be us? Last year it was us trading back with Denver for Lynch. There's other teams they can trade up with.

 

 I'm not opposed to moving back but we can't say we can trade back like it's a certainty. That requires a willing trade partner. People aren't going to trade for the Colts pick just because the Colts want to move down. And inventing some trade deal is unrealistic unless you're talking about a top 5 pick.

[LockeDown]

Cook is elusive, but easy to tackle if you do get your hands on him.  When I watch Hunt, who is similar in build, he takes a hit and somehow maintains his balance and gets that extra yard or 2.

[Smonroe]

9 hours ago, LockeDown said:

Cook is elusive, but easy to tackle if you do get your hands on him.  When I watch Hunt, who is similar in build, he takes a hit and somehow maintains his balance and gets that extra yard or 2.

 

I guess the two knocks on him are that he didn't play against the best competition, and his speed is suspect. 

 

We'll find out about his speed/agility soon enough.  If I had my way, if it came down to him or Mixon in the 4th round, I'd go with Mixon. 

[Superman]

Ballard was asked about Jackson and Jones. He said they made a quick decision on Jackson because Jackson was coming into the building and he wanted to be straight up with him, so they moved on quickly. He said the plan for any other moves is still in process, and they'll make decisions as they see fit.

 

I interpret that to mean that there might still be cuts coming, and Jones might be on the list. Nothing definitive, so we'll have to wait and see. But if it were me, Jones would be gone. He's unreliable due to injury, he is a suspension risk, and he hasn't played that well when he's been on the field. His salary makes it a no brainer, IMO.