2nd Half Play-Calling Explained

[TKnight24]

 

 

So using this logic, guess they didn't believe Palmer could beat them either last week. I'll never understand conservative coaching when the lead is big. You stick with the horses that got you the lead in the first place. This team has blown entirely too many leads under Pagano and it's gotten old.

 

It's the NFL, you don't take your foot off the gas or their necks, whichever works. You would think a team that's seen its fair share of comeback wins & losses would understand this. Guess I'm giving the coaches too much credit 

 

 

 

[TKnight24]

 

 

[csmopar]

3 minutes ago, TKnight24 said:

 

 

So using this logic, guess they didn't believe Palmer could beat them either last week. I'll never understand conservative coaching when the lead is big. You stick with the horses that got you the lead in the first place. This team has blown entirely too many leads under Pagano and it's gotten old.

 

It's the NFL, you don't take your foot off the gas or their necks, whichever works. You would think a team that's seen its fair share of comeback wins & losses would understand this. Guess I'm giving the coaches too much credit 

 

 

 

in other words, they got cocky.

[ColtsBlitz]

I wonder if Pagano thinks this helps his case of staying head coach. 

"Well, uh, I thought they were too bad to beat us so I just stopped trying to score."

 

Terrible mentality, already caused us to lose a game, why would he do it again. 

[MB-ColtsFan]

3 minutes ago, TKnight24 said:

 

 

So using this logic, guess they didn't believe Palmer could beat them either last week. I'll never understand conservative coaching when the lead is big. You stick with the horses that got you the lead in the first place. This team has blown entirely too many leads under Pagano and it's gotten old.

 

It's the NFL, you don't take your foot off the gas or their necks, whichever works. You would think a team that's seen its fair share of comeback wins & losses would understand this. Guess I'm giving the coaches too much credit 

 

 

 

I think you're missing something here, TK: it was the execution of our own players that failed us, not as much the play calling.  Yeah , we could have been more aggressive, but we keep killing our drives with OLine penalties, dropped balls, and fumbles.  If we don't have those then we win easily.

 

It's like we have to play desperate because we had a 10 yd penalty against us.  Are we then to go for the home run ball to make up for it?  No, they let Cleveland kill their own drives by committing 4 offensive PI calls instead.  That was crazy stuff by Browns receivers.  We didn't have to play so aggressively in the 2nd half.

Just my opinion here.

[HungarianColtsFan]

Never despise your opponent! That sheds ill light on coaching staff... 

[MB-ColtsFan]

6 minutes ago, ColtsBlitz said:

I wonder if Pagano thinks this helps his case of staying head coach. 

"Well, uh, I thought they were too bad to beat us so I just stopped trying to score."

 

Terrible mentality, already caused us to lose a game, why would he do it again. 

Funny, I thought Chud called the plays, not Pagano?

[TKnight24]

6 minutes ago, MB-ColtsFan said:

Funny, I thought Chud called the plays, not Pagano?

Chud does, but every playcall comes through that HC headset. So it's also on Pagano. He has the authority to make changes if he wants. 

 

I'm not saying don't milk the clock, but you still have to move the ball and think touchdown. No lead is safe until the clock hits 0:00 

[aaron11]

lots of teams would have called similar plays, the issue is the colts dont run it well enough to wind down the clock 

[TKnight24]

10 minutes ago, MB-ColtsFan said:

I think you're missing something here, TK: it was the execution of our own players that failed us, not as much the play calling.  Yeah , we could have been more aggressive, but we keep killing our drives with OLine penalties, dropped balls, and fumbles.  If we don't have those then we win easily.

 

It's like we have to play desperate because we had a 10 yd penalty against us.  Are we then to go for the home run ball to make up for it?  No, they let Cleveland kill their own drives by committing 4 offensive PI calls instead.  That was crazy stuff by Browns receivers.  We didn't have to play so aggressively in the 2nd half.

Just my opinion here.

I understand that, errors were made. And some are saying on Twitter in response to Stephen that maybe the coaches didn't wanna burden JB. 

 

That is poop to me, cause this same staff gets conservative when 12 is under center. As we saw last year with the blown lead against Houston.

 

It's ways to still score but milk the clock. Go to a shorter passing game, get creative. Don't line up and run the same predictable offense 

[TKnight24]

1 minute ago, aaron11 said:

lots of teams would have called similar plays, the issue is the colts dont run it well enough to wind down the clock 

And that is true, which should lead to more creative play calling in those situations. Quick passes, screens, heck I wouldn't mind some read option with JB. He looked great as a runner yesterday. 

[Pacergeek]

Our defense isn't good enough to hold up for 4 quarters. This is proven by the performance over the past two games in the 4th quarters. We have been shredded, and its dumb for the coaches to put all the pressure on a bad defense to win games

[NannyMcafee]

19 minutes ago, MB-ColtsFan said:

I think you're missing something here, TK: it was the execution of our own players that failed us, not as much the play calling.  Yeah , we could have been more aggressive, but we keep killing our drives with OLine penalties, dropped balls, and fumbles.  If we don't have those then we win easily.

 

It's like we have to play desperate because we had a 10 yd penalty against us.  Are we then to go for the home run ball to make up for it?  No, they let Cleveland kill their own drives by committing 4 offensive PI calls instead.  That was crazy stuff by Browns receivers.  We didn't have to play so aggressively in the 2nd half.

Just my opinion here.

 

It is the players job to catch the ball. It is every players job, to commit no penalties. It is their job, to hold onto the ball and not fumble. And it is paganos job to make sure that his players do the above accordingly. 

 

The thing with fumbles, dropped balls and stupid penalties, is it is very disciplinary. Meaning our players have no discipline. Results like this fall primarily on the HC. 

 

If people cant see that to be true then I'm sorry for you. 

 

But an undisciplined HC will show what the colts have been for the last 6 years and majorly the last 2. 

 

I know now that your point is the play calling here. I'm just making a separate point. 

[Creekside]

15 minutes ago, MB-ColtsFan said:

I think you're missing something here, owTK: it was the execution of our own players that failed us, not as much the play calling.  Yeah , we could have been more aggressive, but we keep killing our drives with OLine penalties, dropped balls, and fumbles.  If we don't have those then we win easily.

 

It's like we have to play desperate because we had a 10 yd penalty against us.  Are we then to go for the home run ball to make up for it?  No, they let Cleveland kill their own drives by committing 4 offensive PI calls instead.  That was crazy stuff by Browns receivers.  We didn't have to play so aggressively in the 2nd half.

Just my opinion here.

 

completely agree. The O-line did not control the line of scrimmage when the Colts were up 28-7. It will not matter who the QB is or the head coach is, or what the play calling is until and unless there is significant improvement with the line.

[krunk]

34 minutes ago, TKnight24 said:

 

 

So using this logic, guess they didn't believe Palmer could beat them either last week. I'll never understand conservative coaching when the lead is big. You stick with the horses that got you the lead in the first place. This team has blown entirely too many leads under Pagano and it's gotten old.

 

It's the NFL, you don't take your foot off the gas or their necks, whichever works. You would think a team that's seen its fair share of comeback wins & losses would understand this. Guess I'm giving the coaches too much credit 

 

 

 

easy to say stuff like this when you're not the coach and you have no liability on the line.

[Fisticuffs111]

What really gets me is that the Browns looked really bad throughout the game, committed dumb penalties throughout the game, dropped pass after pass, and they still almost came back from a 28-7 deficit.


 

[Vinatieri4]

3 minutes ago, Fisticuffs111 said:

What really gets me is that the Browns looked really bad throughout the game, committed dumb penalties throughout the game, dropped pass after pass, and they still almost came back from a 28-7 deficit.


 

 

 

The Colts committed dumb penalties, had basically a rookie QB starting for them with their franchise QB out and lead 28-7.

 

Sure they fell apart a little but still a win is a win.

[Fisticuffs111]

41 minutes ago, MB-ColtsFan said:

Funny, I thought Chud called the plays, not Pagano?

I'm not saying Chud is at all blameless, but it should be acknowledged that Chuck has a huge say on deciding the strategy. That's why second half adjustments, whether good or bad, usually fall on the HC.

[Fisticuffs111]

9 minutes ago, Vinatieri4 said:

 

 

The Colts committed dumb penalties, had basically a rookie QB starting for them with their franchise QB out and lead 28-7.

 

Sure they fell apart a little but still a win is a win.

I'm fine with people who want to think like this. But for me personally, since we're at such a crossroads with our coaching staff, I'm really looking further into how we either win/lose.

[csmopar]

13 minutes ago, Pacergeek said:

Our defense isn't good enough to hold up for 4 quarters. This is proven by the performance over the past two games in the 4th quarters. We have been shredded, and its dumb for the coaches to put all the pressure on a bad defense to win games

when you play the entire second half cause the offense wants to go 95% run up the middle 3 times and punt the entire half, people get winded fast. combined with a non aggressive defense scheme for the 2nd half, comebacks happen

[NewColtsFan]

Another incredibly bad thread with posters jumping to one wrong conclusion after another.   

 

These happen on days of the week that end in...   d-a-y.      

 

 

[Dark Superman]

Why are people surprised the Colts only won this game by 3? We looked like the worst team in football week 1. And gift wrapped and delivered a victory in week 2. To be honest, I was waiting for the Browns to come back and win that game. I won't be surprised if the Colts lose by more than 20 next Sunday at Seattle with the way this team is coached. These young guys are playing their hearts out and guys are making big plays, but we played three of the worst teams in the NFL the first three weeks of the season.

 

Our schedule is favorable and no one is walking away with the division. The Colts could easily win the South and return to the playoffs, but I feel like we should sit Luck and allow him to heal for another year. Allow these young guys to gain experience and come back stronger next season to make a run at the Lombardi with a healthy #12

[csmopar]

5 minutes ago, Blue Shoe Savior 12 said:

Why are people surprised the Colts only won this game by 3? We looked like the worst team in football week 1. And gift wrapped and delivered a victory in week 2. To be honest, I was waiting for the Browns to come back and win that game. I won't be surprised if the Colts lose by more than 20 next Sunday at Seattle with the way this team is coached. These young guys are playing their hearts out and guys are making big plays, but we played three of the worst teams in the NFL the first three weeks of the season.

 

Our schedule is favorable and no one is walking away with the division. The Colts could easily win the South and return to the playoffs, but I feel like we should sit Luck and allow him to heal for another year. Allow these young guys to gain experience and come back stronger next season to make a run at the Lombardi with a healthy #12

you're not gonna win a Lombardi with a QB who hasnt played meaningful football in almost 2 years.......

[ColtsBlitz]

17 minutes ago, egg said:

 

completely agree. The O-line did not control the line of scrimmage when the Colts were up 28-7. It will not matter who the QB is or the head coach is, or what the play calling is until and unless there is significant improvement with the line.

To be fair, the Browns were putting 7-8 guys in the per play because of the play calling. It was a coordinated failure to produce drives in the 2nd half. 

[lollygagger8]

Stephen Holder is the king of maybe's, if's and pure conjecture. 

[life long]

40 minutes ago, MB-ColtsFan said:

Funny, I thought Chud called the plays, not Pagano?

Chuck does not call the plays but his job is to make second half adjustments. Which does seem to be the essence of this thread. He could tell chud and ted to change it up. He did not.

[stitches]

Browns receivers had 8(EIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!!!) drops. I have no idea how they concluded Kizer cannot beat them. Having in mind he came close to beating them after their receivers % the bed so badly is indicative the coaching staff and decision-makers don't know what they are talking about or doing. There needs to be a purge after the season and I will stand firmly behind Ballard when he does it.

[our_dbs_rock]

44 minutes ago, TKnight24 said:

Chud does, but every playcall comes through that HC headset. So it's also on Pagano. He has the authority to make changes if he wants. 

 

I'm not saying don't milk the clock, but you still have to move the ball and think touchdown. No lead is safe until the clock hits 0:00 

 

Or 0:08 in the Lions/Falcons case.

[TKnight24]

1 minute ago, our_dbs_rock said:

 

Or 0:08 in the Lions/Falcons case.

 

Touchè

[Devildog]

1 hour ago, csmopar said:

in other words, they got cocky.

 

Cocky and incompetent. 

[NewEra]

Man I really miss Tom M.

[GoColtsWin]

41 minutes ago, NewEra said:

Man I really miss Tom M.

This^ 

[MB-ColtsFan]

2 hours ago, TKnight24 said:

I understand that, errors were made. And some are saying on Twitter in response to Stephen that maybe the coaches didn't wanna burden JB. 

 

That is poop to me, cause this same staff gets conservative when 12 is under center. As we saw last year with the blown lead against Houston.

 

It's ways to still score but milk the clock. Go to a shorter passing game, get creative. Don't line up and run the same predictable offense 

LOL.  I saw Brissett throw through two receivers yesterday (Doyle and Gore??) in short passes.  I understand the short game, but Brissett seems to want to rocket it through to everyone.  Still can't throw a proper screen.

Not disagreeing with you, just pointing out the...uhh...lack of "touch" he has.  Maybe, just maybe the coaches felt less confident in those plays.  I dunno...i'm not in the huddle or on the sidelines.

 

I don't deny that I was screaming to run more play action at the least.

[MB-ColtsFan]

2 hours ago, NannyMcafee said:

 

It is the players job to catch the ball. It is every players job, to commit no penalties. It is their job, to hold onto the ball and not fumble. And it is paganos job to make sure that his players do the above accordingly. 

 

The thing with fumbles, dropped balls and stupid penalties, is it is very disciplinary. Meaning our players have no discipline. Results like this fall primarily on the HC. 

 

If people cant see that to be true then I'm sorry for you. 

 

But an undisciplined HC will show what the colts have been for the last 6 years and majorly the last 2. 

 

I know now that your point is the play calling here. I'm just making a separate point. 

I agree that it is a coaches job to stress discipline.  I think that can get lost sometimes on some players.  I think it would also help if someone in that huddle or on the sidelines (besides a coach) would get into their face as well.

 

I think as much as Ballard has tried to change the culture we still need a player to step up and call out the other players when they mess up.  It's mostly on the coaches, but the players themselves have to hold each other accountable.

[Superman]

I don't mind going conservative to shorten the game, but the play calling was too conservative and vanilla for my tastes, they should have called some high percentage short passes (!) and tried to get to the edge in the running game more, rather than so many unsuccessful inside runs. By early in the 4th, the Browns defenders were teeing off on the run game, and they even left Hilton uncovered on a couple of plays because they knew a run was coming. The offense should have been more alert to catch them overcommitting and make them pay.

 

But the real issues were a) penalties, and b) lack of run blocking. 

[MB-ColtsFan]

2 hours ago, stitches said:

Browns receivers had 8(EIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!!!) drops. I have no idea how they concluded Kizer cannot beat them. Having in mind he came close to beating them after their receivers % the bed so badly is indicative the coaching staff and decision-makers don't know what they are talking about or doing. There needs to be a purge after the season and I will stand firmly behind Ballard when he does it.

Yet he DID get the win...and you're still looking to split hairs.  Give him his props on at least winning the game with his lame game plan.  I guess it wasn't as lame as the guy on the other sideline.

 

Look, it just seems that no matter what this coaching staff does it's bad.  We lose it's bad.  We win...it's still bad!!  Let's keep some sort of objectiveness here.

 

Let me also point out that if Chuck and company get canned after the season I have no issue with that.  If they stay around I still don't have a problem with it because the D is getting better and that is part of what we got Chuck for in the first place.  I think that's something we all wanted for the last decade+ or so.

 

On the offensive side I wouldn't mind seeing a change.  That's up to both Chuck and Ballard to make.

[Coltsman1788]

11 hours ago, ColtsBlitz said:

I wonder if Pagano thinks this helps his case of staying head coach. 

"Well, uh, I thought they were too bad to beat us so I just stopped trying to score."

 

Terrible mentality, already caused us to lose a game, why would he do it again. 

Exactly,  Chuck cooking his own goose with each game. Let him simmer.

[Coltsman1788]

11 hours ago, Blue Shoe Savior 12 said:

Why are people surprised the Colts only won this game by 3? We looked like the worst team in football week 1. And gift wrapped and delivered a victory in week 2. To be honest, I was waiting for the Browns to come back and win that game. I won't be surprised if the Colts lose by more than 20 next Sunday at Seattle with the way this team is coached. These young guys are playing their hearts out and guys are making big plays, but we played three of the worst teams in the NFL the first three weeks of the season.

 

Our schedule is favorable and no one is walking away with the division. The Colts could easily win the South and return to the playoffs, but I feel like we should sit Luck and allow him to heal for another year. Allow these young guys to gain experience and come back stronger next season to make a run at the Lombardi with a healthy #12

No one may be walking away from the division but they could very well walk away from these Colts.  Right now Indy is the worst team in the South.  Titans are for real.  Texans are good and gave New England all they wanted.  And Jacksonville looks to have one of the best young defenses in the league and appears to finally be trending in the right direction. 

[ColtsSouljah]

I'm not defending the play calling, but bad officiating played a huge role. As the Browns began to come back there was a wave of holding calls on the Colts to kill our drives and mysteriously non-called blatant holds on the Browns during their drives.

[braveheartcolt]

11 hours ago, TKnight24 said:

Chud does, but every playcall comes through that HC headset. So it's also on Pagano. He has the authority to make changes if he wants. 

 

I'm not saying don't milk the clock, but you still have to move the ball and think touchdown. No lead is safe until the clock hits 0:00 

Actually, the Rams lead in Week 1 was safe at half time. Very safe.......