Irsay/Ballard presser at 4pm

[Mr. Irrelevant]

Wow, that was some serious rambling from Mr. Irsay! 

[DougDew]

It sounds like Irsay is pumping up the value of Barkley.  

[Superman]

6 minutes ago, indy1888 said:

Irsay is hard to listen to anymore. Honestly wish he would just stop speaking altogether.  I feel he does more harm then good anymore.  Ballard did not want this to be about Luck that was obvious in how he answered the question about guys wanting to come here because of Andrew.  Then Irsay goes and rambles for 10 minutes all about Andrew. I personally don't believe a word Irsay says anymore anyway.

 

Irsay rambled and didn't say much of substance, but he did no harm. 

[stitches]

7 minutes ago, Superman said:

 

So what? It's well known that the Colts expected Luck to be able to play in 2017, and he had a setback. Does anyone really think the Colts are even remotely considering giving up on Andrew Luck at this point? 

 

What we all recognize is that no one will be confident in Luck returning and playing at a high level until he actually suits up and plays well, so we might as well stop grilling the owner about it. Just wait and see what happens.

People are so damn jittery and panicky. It's unreal. Here... look at this one from an "NFL Draft analyst":

 

 

 

In what world do those people live? Even if Luck needs to have the bicep surgery there is close to zero chance we draft a QB/give up on Luck before we see him back on the field or  he retires before the draft. I'd be stunned. To me this would be about the most shocking pick we can make. I wouldn't be shocked if we drafted Roquan Smith or Nelson, or Barkley or McGlinchey or Fitzpatrick or ... hell I don't think I'd be more shocked if we drafted a WR than if we drafted a QB at 3. 

[BlueShoe]

14 minutes ago, TheMarine said:

https://twitter.com/ProFootballTalk/status/947947401867923456

 

That's a Patriot ran site wrapped in an NBC logo. They will do anything to spread negativity about the Colts. 

[indy1888]

2 minutes ago, Superman said:

 

So what? It's well known that the Colts expected Luck to be able to play in 2017, and he had a setback. Does anyone really think the Colts are even remotely considering giving up on Andrew Luck at this point? 

 

What we all recognize is that no one will be confident in Luck returning and playing at a high level until he actually suits up and plays well, so we might as well stop grilling the owner about it. Just wait and see what happens.

 

Did you not listen to the press conference. Irsay was very confiedent in Luck returning, even promised that it would happen.  Even though Ballard said he hasn't even thrown yet, and that him throwing will tell them a lot, the owner is already promising a return.  Based on Irsays comments during this entire Luck situation, Doyel is exactly right, why should you believe him? The owner deserves the criticism when he cant stop opening his mouth and saying things that arent accurate.

[BR-549]

16 minutes ago, BlueShoe said:

Chris Ballard starts off talking about expectations. Said Chuck never lost the locker room. The players never lost focused, and never tanked. They showed up every week. Without a great locker room it is hard to win in this league. We have to have high standards. Our young players grew as the season went along. 

 

A lot of job openings. We will keep everything internal (in house). It will be a wide-open search. We are going to get the right fit for the Indianapolis Colts. 

 

Now Chris is taking questions. 

 

It is not a requirement for the new coach to have prior NFL head coaching experience. We want a staff full of teachers that can develop players. 

 

Jim was asked what led to making the change of head coach.

 

It was not any secret that we were evaluating Chuck last year. We wanted to have continuity. In the end it came down to the final day, and making sure we were doing the right thing. The decision was made, and it was tough to let a good man go. We were leaning towards making a change as the season went on. The Jacksonville game was very disappointing. We have to give Chuck a lot of credit. In the end, we felt we needed to make a change so we did. 

 

Chris: We are going to take our time to make sure we have the right fit for this organization. At the end of the day it will be the gut feeling of when it is the right guy. After we spend enough time with the person then we will know. Anytime you are a GM and you don't have a short list of names you better always have a running list of the available coaches. 

 

The new head coach will make the decision to keep the current coaches. He does not need to be offensive or defensive minded. I don't want someone to come here for just Andrew Luck. If a candidate is concerned about Andrew Luck then he is not the right fit.

 

Jim: Andrew is coming back, and he makes this job that much more enticing. The great fan base we have. The great tradition we have. The incredible stadium we have. 2012 was absolutely incredible. We had an Executive of the Year award. If you come around the horseshoe then you are coming to something special. Jacoby really did some special things. The commitment we have in winning. This is something that should last for decades and decades.

 

I am thankful, Chris acknowledged to me that he really wanted to come to the Colts. Peopl are going to be excited about coming here and having a chance to get this job. You don't know the fire that is burning in #12's eyes. He ahs a 110 fever. You put him on that field with and Edgerrin James type "BARKLEY! WHOA"... That last part was me. But he said it. LOL

 

Jim continues... Ideally we would like to have someone we can have success for 10-12 years, but we are not ruling out older coaches who might not plan to coach that long either. 

 

I don't have super powers. I cannot see through concrete walls. I can say that from being around football for half a century, that this thing just took longer than we thought it would. The surgery was a success. When I made the comment about being 3-4 inches between you ears, I was talking about myself. I was injured, and questioned should I train or not train. I am not trying to sell something that I don't believe in. This horseshoe is bigger than us all, and it will prevail without me, Chris or Andrew. I do believe that from talking to the doctors that he can come back. My optimism was absolutely genuine. One of the finest shoulder doctors in the world said the shoulder surgery was outstanding. Each case is different. It just longer for the shoulder to heal.

 

I am an optimist, but I am also a realist. I am not going to nonsense anyone. I am telling you that I have no doubt in my mind that Andrew is going to come back. That kid is a special kid. He was born to do great things in the NFL and he will do great things in the NFL! That is coming form someone who has been in this game for half a century. And that is coming from someone that was brought into this game by Johnny Unitas, who slapped my butt in the locker room and said get out of the way kid.

 

Irsay continues:

 

Whether we trade the pick or keep the pick, it is a tremendous asset. The type of equity we have with this type of draft pick, plus we were in every game this year. We could have been in the wildcard weekend. That's how close we are.

 

God rest his soul Ron Meyer, he had a car salesman aspect to him and he was fun. I feel that Andrew is going to be back and he will write his name into the NFL in a very important way. If you told me that he was going to miss the entire year last year then I could not have believed you. 

 

Continue on..... Irsay continues... Time will tell, but I am sincere when I tell you Andrew will be back. 

 

Chris: We will continue to add competition. We will start throwing soon and that will tell us a lot. 

 

Press Conference over. 

 

Sorry for the typing mistakes. I was doing this on the fly,  

Impressive.... good job!

[RockThatBlue]

2 minutes ago, stitches said:

People are so damn jittery and panicky. It's unreal. Here... look at this one from an "NFL Draft analyst":

 

 

 

In what world do those people live? Even if Luck needs to have the bicep surgery there is close to zero chance we draft a QB/give up on Luck before we see him back on the field or  he retires before the draft. I'd be stunned. To me this would be about the most shocking pick we can make. I wouldn't be shocked if we drafted Roquan Smith or Nelson, or Barkley or McGlinchey or Fitzpatrick or ... hell I don't think I'd be more shocked if we drafted a WR than if we drafted a QB at 3. 

I follow Tyler and he is always saying stupid stuff like that. 

[RockThatBlue]

2 minutes ago, BlueShoe said:

 

That's a Patriot ran site wrapped in an NBC logo. They will do anything to spread negativity about the Colts. 

Florio is terrible. Can't stand him.

[Indeee]

Just now, Superman said:

 

Irsay rambled and didn't say much of substance, but he did no harm. 

Exactly. I can't stand how some fans make fun, bash Jim. I love Jim. He is a fan and IMO one of the best owners in the league. It does seem his health is failing and I'm saddened about that but on the presser, I mean what's he really suppose to say. I never expected him to say l"look, Chuck just isn't HC material or anything we all have seen/speculated. At the end of the day it's a business and at least Jim isn't Brown in cincinnatti who seriously doesn't care about his team as marvin Lewis is the protypical evidence of a coach that should've been shown the door years ago and everyone criticizes irsay for keeping pags too long? I get it, but I don't get it. I love Jim

[IndyD4U]

I love that Jim Irsay is the world's #1 Indianapolis Colts fan. 

[NewColtsFan]

21 minutes ago, BlueShoe said:

Chris Ballard starts off talking about expectations. Said Chuck never lost the locker room. The players never lost focused, and never tanked. They showed up every week. Without a great locker room it is hard to win in this league. We have to have high standards. Our young players grew as the season went along. 

 

A lot of job openings. We will keep everything internal (in house). It will be a wide-open search. We are going to get the right fit for the Indianapolis Colts. 

 

Now Chris is taking questions. 

 

It is not a requirement for the new coach to have prior NFL head coaching experience. We want a staff full of teachers that can develop players. 

 

Jim was asked what led to making the change of head coach.

 

It was not any secret that we were evaluating Chuck last year. We wanted to have continuity. In the end it came down to the final day, and making sure we were doing the right thing. The decision was made, and it was tough to let a good man go. We were leaning towards making a change as the season went on. The Jacksonville game was very disappointing. We have to give Chuck a lot of credit. In the end, we felt we needed to make a change so we did. 

 

Chris: We are going to take our time to make sure we have the right fit for this organization. At the end of the day it will be the gut feeling of when it is the right guy. After we spend enough time with the person then we will know. Anytime you are a GM and you don't have a short list of names you better always have a running list of the available coaches. 

 

The new head coach will make the decision to keep the current coaches. He does not need to be offensive or defensive minded. I don't want someone to come here for just Andrew Luck. If a candidate is concerned about Andrew Luck then he is not the right fit.

 

Jim: Andrew is coming back, and he makes this job that much more enticing. The great fan base we have. The great tradition we have. The incredible stadium we have. 2012 was absolutely incredible. We had an Executive of the Year award. If you come around the horseshoe then you are coming to something special. Jacoby really did some special things. The commitment we have in winning. This is something that should last for decades and decades.

 

I am thankful, Chris acknowledged to me that he really wanted to come to the Colts. Peopl are going to be excited about coming here and having a chance to get this job. You don't know the fire that is burning in #12's eyes. He ahs a 110 fever. You put him on that field with and Edgerrin James type "BARKLEY! WHOA"... That last part was me. But he said it. LOL

 

Jim continues... Ideally we would like to have someone we can have success for 10-12 years, but we are not ruling out older coaches who might not plan to coach that long either. 

 

I don't have super powers. I cannot see through concrete walls. I can say that from being around football for half a century, that this thing just took longer than we thought it would. The surgery was a success. When I made the comment about being 3-4 inches between you ears, I was talking about myself. I was injured, and questioned should I train or not train. I am not trying to sell something that I don't believe in. This horseshoe is bigger than us all, and it will prevail without me, Chris or Andrew. I do believe that from talking to the doctors that he can come back. My optimism was absolutely genuine. One of the finest shoulder doctors in the world said the shoulder surgery was outstanding. Each case is different. It just longer for the shoulder to heal.

 

I am an optimist, but I am also a realist. I am not going to nonsense anyone. I am telling you that I have no doubt in my mind that Andrew is going to come back. That kid is a special kid. He was born to do great things in the NFL and he will do great things in the NFL! That is coming form someone who has been in this game for half a century. And that is coming from someone that was brought into this game by Johnny Unitas, who slapped my butt in the locker room and said get out of the way kid.

 

Irsay continues:

 

Whether we trade the pick or keep the pick, it is a tremendous asset. The type of equity we have with this type of draft pick, plus we were in every game this year. We could have been in the wildcard weekend. That's how close we are.

 

God rest his soul Ron Meyer, he had a car salesman aspect to him and he was fun. I feel that Andrew is going to be back and he will write his name into the NFL in a very important way. If you told me that he was going to miss the entire year last year then I could not have believed you. 

 

Continue on..... Irsay continues... Time will tell, but I am sincere when I tell you Andrew will be back. 

 

Chris: We will continue to add competition. We will start throwing soon and that will tell us a lot. 

 

Press Conference over. 

 

Sorry for the typing mistakes. I was doing this on the fly,  

 

Brilliant job!      First rate!

 

I saw the presser and was stunned how accurate you were.    Transcribing like that is much harder than people know.

 

Just great!   Thanks so much for doing this!!

 

 

[Superman]

1 minute ago, indy1888 said:

 

Did you not listen to the press conference. Irsay was very confiedent in Luck returning, even promised that it would happen.  Even though Ballard said he hasn't even thrown yet, and that him throwing will tell them a lot, the owner is already promising a return.  Based on Irsays comments during this entire Luck situation, Doyel is exactly right, why should you believe him? The owner deserves the criticism when he cant stop opening his mouth and saying things that arent accurate.

 

That's an unrealistic standard. You want Irsay to cease expressing optimism, and that's not going to happen because he's actually optimistic.

 

I'm not sure where this idea that Irsay shouldn't say what he thinks about Luck coming back comes from. When Irsay announced Luck's surgery, everyone believed Luck would be back by training camp. 

 

If you can't recognize Irsay's optimistic projection as just a projection, rather than a definitive statement about exactly what will happen several months into the future, then that's too bad for you. And if you want to be skeptical about everything Irsay says, that's entirely your prerogative. But it doesn't really matter. No one knows exactly what will happen, but acting like Irsay should never express what he thinks and how he feels about the situation moving forward is just entirely unreasonable, it's overly critical, shaded by a particularly aggressive cynicism that I don't subscribe to. And even if I did, it's Irsay's team, and he's going to express himself when he feels like it. That's entirely his prerogative.

 

And assuming Luck does come back and plays well, I doubt all these people who are being critical of his optimistic outlook are going to give him a thumbs up because it winds up happening. It's entirely out of his control. Being upset at Irsay because Luck didn't play in 2017 is pretty dumb, IMO.

[CR91]

So Ballard doesn't want this to be about Andrew and irsay does. You think irsay would have learned twice now what happens when you rely on one player

[DougDew]

17 minutes ago, indy1888 said:

 

Did you not listen to the press conference. Irsay was very confiedent in Luck returning, even promised that it would happen.  Even though Ballard said he hasn't even thrown yet, and that him throwing will tell them a lot, the owner is already promising a return.  Based on Irsays comments during this entire Luck situation, Doyel is exactly right, why should you believe him? The owner deserves the criticism when he cant stop opening his mouth and saying things that arent accurate.

Its not a matter of believing Irsay.  As in not telling the truth. Irsay is expressing his confidence.  He's not sharing or concealing actual knowledge.

 

The shoulder needs to heal then go through the stress of throwing with no pain or setbacks.  Irsay doesn't actually know if that will happen or not.  Even though he promises, Andrew's shoulder health is beyond Irsay's ability to promise.

 

It was the same last year.  He wasn't concealing information that was contrary to what he said.

 

Doyel doesn't get that.  He thinks there is a constant conspiracy by the Colts who's sole purpose is to make money off of fans by stringing them along.  Or else he's pretending to take Irsay literally in order to then knock him down.

[csmopar]

19 minutes ago, RockThatBlue said:

 

Lord please no

[DougDew]

9 minutes ago, Indeee said:

Exactly. I can't stand how some fans make fun, bash Jim. I love Jim. He is a fan and IMO one of the best owners in the league. It does seem his health is failing and I'm saddened about that but on the presser, I mean what's he really suppose to say. I never expected him to say l"look, Chuck just isn't HC material or anything we all have seen/speculated. At the end of the day it's a business and at least Jim isn't Brown in cincinnatti who seriously doesn't care about his team as marvin Lewis is the protypical evidence of a coach that should've been shown the door years ago and everyone criticizes irsay for keeping pags too long? I get it, but I don't get it. I love Jim

Neither he nor Ballard is going to throw Pagano under the bus.  They realize Chuck probably wants to get another job and there is no reason to bash him in front of the league.

[CF4L]

Hearing Ballard I have faith in what he is saying it shouldn't be just Luck.

Irsay? Not so much and I don't believe a word he says.

[BOTT]

30 minutes ago, RockThatBlue said:

Definitely sounds like he wants Barkley.

Thank god Jim knows he was a horrible GM 

[Indeee]

11 minutes ago, csmopar said:

Lord please no

I still think the Browns take Barkley at 1.

I think the Giants either take Rosen or trade pick to Jets who take Rosen and Giants take a tackle.

I think Colts trade with Denver unless Denver grabs cousins at which point Colts keep pick and take nelson.

Browns take QB at 4, whether it's Allen or Darnold.

 

Only way Barkley falls to 3 is if Browns really want Allen and think Denver wants him if they strike out on Cousins. In that case Browns offer more to colts to swap one position to take Barkley.

 

In any event Barkley won't be there at 3 IMO

[Superman]

7 minutes ago, DougDew said:

Its not a matter of believing Irsay.  As in not telling the truth. Irsay is expressing his confidence.  He's not sharing or concealing actual knowledge.

 

The shoulder needs to heal then go through the stress of throwing with no pain or setbacks.  Irsay doesn't actually know if that will happen or not.  Even though he promises, Andrew's shoulder health is beyond Irsay's ability to promise.

 

It was the same last year.  He wasn't concealing information that was contrary to what he said.

 

Doyel doesn't get that.  He thinks there is a constant conspiracy by the Colts who's sole purpose is to make money off of fans by stringing them along.  He pretends to take Irsay literally in order to then knock him down.

 

I agree.

[GoColts8818]

There were two things to take from this:

 

ballard will lead the search and Irsay will be in final interviews so for all those worried Irsay was going to push someone on Ballard Irsay is going to let Ballard bring people to him.

 

Irsay wants a superstar back to go with superstar QB.  Will he get that?  Time will tell.  I will say that adding Barkley would also be a fail safe if something went wrong with Andrew.  They could then build around Barkley on offense.  

[hoosierhawk]

8 minutes ago, Superman said:

 

That's an unrealistic standard. You want Irsay to cease expressing optimism, and that's not going to happen because he's actually optimistic.

 

I'm not sure where this idea that Irsay shouldn't say what he thinks about Luck coming back comes from. When Irsay announced Luck's surgery, everyone believed Luck would be back by training camp. 

 

If you can't recognize Irsay's optimistic projection as just a projection, rather than a definitive statement about exactly what will happen several months into the future, then that's too bad for you. And if you want to be skeptical about everything Irsay says, that's entirely your prerogative. But it doesn't really matter. No one knows exactly what will happen, but acting like Irsay should never express what he thinks and how he feels about the situation moving forward is just entirely unreasonable, it's overly critical, shaded by a particularly aggressive cynicism that I don't subscribe to. And even if I did, it's Irsay's team, and he's going to express himself when he feels like it. That's entirely his prerogative.

 

And assuming Luck does come back and plays well, I doubt all these people who are being critical of his optimistic outlook are going to give him a thumbs up because it winds up happening. It's entirely out of his control. Being upset at Irsay because Luck didn't play in 2017 is pretty dumb, IMO.

Agree 100%. I would much  prefer an optimist vs a pessimist for an owner.

He does ramble and do wish he left a lot of the talking to Ballard or someone.

[Superman]

20 minutes ago, stitches said:

People are so damn jittery and panicky. It's unreal. Here... look at this one from an "NFL Draft analyst":

 

 

 

In what world do those people live? Even if Luck needs to have the bicep surgery there is close to zero chance we draft a QB/give up on Luck before we see him back on the field or  he retires before the draft. I'd be stunned. To me this would be about the most shocking pick we can make. I wouldn't be shocked if we drafted Roquan Smith or Nelson, or Barkley or McGlinchey or Fitzpatrick or ... hell I don't think I'd be more shocked if we drafted a WR than if we drafted a QB at 3. 

 

It's like people have never seen a QB miss a season due to injury. 

 

I get people accusing the Colts of being less than upfront about Luck's status leading up to the season, even though I don't agree with it. But at this point, if the Colts have doubts about Luck moving forward, they'll put contingencies in place. If they don't believe Luck is going to be okay, they'll do something to replace him. It doesn't matter whether the local media guys or even the fans don't believe them; if they draft a QB early, we'll know they aren't sure about Luck.

 

But really, it's like DougDew said (and I rarely agree with Doug). It's intellectual dishonesty from a columnist who is determined to be contrary, no matter what. He wanted to incite a reaction from Irsay, and he did; he writes to incite a reaction from his readers, and does. He should not be taken seriously, nor should his expressed disbelief. 

 

The Colts actions will tell us what they think about Luck moving forward. 

[csmopar]

5 minutes ago, Indeee said:

I still think the Browns take Barkley at 1.

I think the Giants either take Rosen or trade pick to Jets who take Rosen and Giants take a tackle.

I think Colts trade with Denver unless Denver grabs cousins at which point Colts keep pick and take nelson.

Browns take QB at 4, whether it's Allen or Darnold.

 

Only way Barkley falls to 3 is if Browns really want Allen and think Denver wants him if they strike out on Cousins. In that case Browns offer more to colts to swap one position. 

 

In any event Barkley won't be there at 3 IMO

Eh while Cleveland is stupid, they need a QB desperately. I think they'll take a QB for sure. Now I think the Giants are the real ones to take Barkley. I think they'll ride Eli for another season

[Indeee]

Just now, csmopar said:

Eh while Cleveland is stupid, they need a QB desperately. I think they'll take a QB for sure. Now I think the Giants are the real ones to take Barkley. I think they'll ride Eli for another season

That's possible too, however I think the Jets make the move and the Giants cash in, especially if a back like Ingram or Hyde is on the market. Giants need a lot more than a running game too. Jets NEED the QB

[Superman]

4 minutes ago, hoosierhawk said:

Agree 100%. I would much  prefer an optimist vs a pessimist for an owner.

He does ramble and do wish he left a lot of the talking to Ballard or someone.

 

Yeah, his rambling answer about whether Luck would be ready was painful to listen to. But there was nothing wrong with what he said, or him saying it.

 

And he was baited by a troll who I personally don't think should even be credentialed.

 

To the credit of the other guys asking questions, they got to the heart of the issue for the most part. I'm happy with how they handled the presser, wish they had spent more time talking about the roster and coaching search rather than falling right back into the Luck narrative, but that's understandable. I think we got some good information from both Ballard and Irsay about how they'll move forward with the coaching search.

[hoosierhawk]

I'm a little concerned about Jimmie being in the interview process. In a 4 hour interview, Ballard may only get to ask a question or two and the interviewee may only get to answer a few questions. Ballard will definitely do the preliminary interviews without Irsay in presume.

[csmopar]

Just now, hoosierhawk said:

I'm a little concerned about Jimmie being in the interview process. In a 4 hour interview, Ballard may only get to ask a question or two and the interviewee may only get to answer a few questions. Ballard will definitely do the preliminary interviews without Irsay in presume.

They said as much, Ballard does the first interviews and then brings a select number before Irsay to interview and then a joint decision made. 

[DougDew]

6 minutes ago, GoColts8818 said:

There were two things to take from this:

 

ballard will lead the search and Irsay will be in final interviews so for all those worried Irsay was going to push someone on Ballard Irsay is going to let Ballard bring people to him.

 

Irsay wants a superstar back to go with superstar QB.  Will he get that?  Time will tell.  I will say that adding Barkley would also be a fail safe if something went wrong with Andrew.  They could then build around Barkley on offense.  

I agree that is what Irsay said, but if that's what he meant, he is being inconsistent.

 

He's basically saying that his GM has control over the HC decision, but not who will be picked at #3.

 

I think part of his disclosure about his like for a RB is to help pump the value of Barkley.  What would you give to trade up for the next EJ?

[Superman]

3 minutes ago, csmopar said:

Eh while Cleveland is stupid, they need a QB desperately. I think they'll take a QB for sure. Now I think the Giants are the real ones to take Barkley. I think they'll ride Eli for another season

 

I think Cleveland and NYG both take QBs at #1 and #2. Cleveland has been stupid; I don't think John Dorsey is stupid, I think he's an excellent GM who knows how to build a roster and how to run a draft.

 

If anything, I could see Dorsey doing a Bears/Niners type swap with Dorsey for #3, so they can come back for Barkley. 

 

What I hope they do is take Barkley #1, then do the trade with the Colts for #3 to come back up for their QB, knowing the Colts will sell that pick to another QB thirsty team like the Broncos, Jets or Bengals, who are all within range to get in front of the Browns at #4. That way, there's no chance for the Colts to fall in love with taking Barkley at #3.

[indy1888]

8 minutes ago, Superman said:

 

That's an unrealistic standard. You want Irsay to cease expressing optimism, and that's not going to happen because he's actually optimistic.

 

I'm not sure where this idea that Irsay shouldn't say what he thinks about Luck coming back comes from. When Irsay announced Luck's surgery, everyone believed Luck would be back by training camp. 

 

If you can't recognize Irsay's optimistic projection as just a projection, rather than a definitive statement about exactly what will happen several months into the future, then that's too bad for you. And if you want to be skeptical about everything Irsay says, that's entirely your prerogative. But it doesn't really matter. No one knows exactly what will happen, but acting like Irsay should never express what he thinks and how he feels about the situation moving forward is just entirely unreasonable, it's overly critical, shaded by a particularly aggressive cynicism that I don't subscribe to. And even if I did, it's Irsay's team, and he's going to express himself when he feels like it. That's entirely his prerogative.

 

And assuming Luck does come back and plays well, I doubt all these people who are being critical of his optimistic outlook are going to give him a thumbs up because it winds up happening. It's entirely out of his control. Being upset at Irsay because Luck didn't play in 2017 is pretty dumb, IMO.

 

I'd rather Irsay just be real, like Ballard was.  You didn't hear any promise from Ballard. All Ballard said was he hasn't thrown yet and when he does it will tell them a lot.  Thats all that needs to be said on the issue. Ballard also said that any guy that wants to coach the Colts because of Luck is probably not the right fit. Interesting comment.

 

Everyone believed Luck would be back by training camp based on what exactly?  A statement from Jim Irsay? Even when it was clear Luck wouldn't be back by then, he still said he would be back early in the season. He even didn't rule him out for week 1 just 10 days before the season.  I don't call that optimism, i call it absurdity. But the more you listen to Irsay speak, it's not surprising.

 

An optimistic projection is not what happened today and it's not what happened last winter either. A promise is what happened today.  There is a difference. When you promise something that is about as definitive as you can get given the circumstances. The statement last winter was also definitive. "Will be back for start of the season".  If you want to call that a "optimistic projection" then thats your right, but most people will and did take that as a definitive statement.

 

 

[Superman]

5 minutes ago, hoosierhawk said:

I'm a little concerned about Jimmie being in the interview process. In a 4 hour interview, Ballard may only get to ask a question or two and the interviewee may only get to answer a few questions. Ballard will definitely do the preliminary interviews without Irsay in presume.

 

One of the few people more wordy than Irsay is Bill Polian, and they were able to hire two outside head coaches together. Irsay, for all his warts and word whiskers and rambling, knows what he's doing, and he has a track record of deferring to his GM, as he mentioned today.

[GoColts8818]

8 minutes ago, DougDew said:

I agree that is what Irsay said, but if that's what he meant, he is being inconsistent.

 

He's basically saying that his GM has control over the HC decision, but not who will be picked at #3.

 

I think part of his disclosure about his like for a RB is to help pump the value of Barkley.  What would you give to trade up for the next EJ?

I don’t think he said Ballard doesn’t have control of it.  He said what he wanted, and even then more hinted at how nice it would be to have that.  He didn’t say it’s what they were going to do.  He also mentioned rather they keep the pick or trade it it will be a great assist so I don’t think a decession has been made at all.

 

As for what I would trade it all depends on how bad a team needs a running back or values Barkley. I think the better question is what do the Colts want for the pick and the answer to that is as much as they can get.  I will say I wouldn’t take any trade that doesn’t include a top 10 pick this year and another first either this year or next plus some mid round picks.  

[NannyMcafee]

1 hour ago, strt182 said:

kinda hard to watch with all the uh and umms. If i had a dollar for each one said from Jimmy alone id beable to eat at st. elmos

Haha! Man... it's the same everytime. 

[Indeee]

3 minutes ago, Superman said:

 

I think Cleveland and NYG both take QBs at #1 and #2. Cleveland has been stupid; I don't think John Dorsey is stupid, I think he's an excellent GM who knows how to build a roster and how to run a draft.

 

If anything, I could see Dorsey doing a Bears/Niners type swap with Dorsey for #3, so they can come back for Barkley. 

 

What I hope they do is take Barkley #1, then do the trade with the Colts for #3 to come back up for their QB, knowing the Colts will sell that pick to another QB thirsty team like the Broncos, Jets or Bengals, who are all within range to get in front of the Browns at #4. That way, there's no chance for the Colts to fall in love with taking Barkley at #3.

This is the scenario I presented as well. FA from QB perspective will be key on who swaps/trades picks and who doesn't. I just think that if the Giants are content with Eli one or more years, then they could trade #2 to a team like the Jets. I'm not sure Rosen would want to sit behind eli. From what I have heard big ego on that kid. If Denver doesn't get QB via FA and likes Allen, Browns may take Allen at 1, Jets trade up to get Rosen at 2 and Browns swap with colts to take Barkley at 3 if they believe the niners are leaning towards Barkley. Maybe the Colts take an offer they can't refuse here

[DougDew]

Just now, GoColts8818 said:

I don’t think he said Ballard doesn’t have control of it.  He said what he wanted, and even then more hinted at how nice it would be to have that.  He didn’t say it’s what they were going to do.  He also mentioned rather they keep the pick or trade it it will be a great assist so I don’t think he’s made a decession at all.

 

As for what I would trade it all depends on how bad a team needs a running back or values Barkley. I think the better question is what do the Colts want for the pick and the answer to that is as much as they can get.  I will say I wouldn’t take any trade that doesn’t include a top 10 pick and another first either this year or next plus some mid round picks.  

I know, he didn't say anything specific.  But in the world of pre-draft nuances, he made it fairly clear what he wanted (EJ was picked #4) in terms of a player, but made no mention of the type of coach he wanted, which I think is normal.  He's talking about players and not the coach.  If Irsay is being sincere, I think a GM would want to be able to get him the next EJ.

 

But with sincerity or not, I don't think he had any reason to talk about wanting an EJ type of player next to Luck in this presser unless he wanted the rest of the NFL to hear it.

 

Opposite of that, if he said that he thought an EJ type of player is no longer relevant in the NFL, other teams might not going to have to bid as much to get the pick.

[Superman]

2 minutes ago, indy1888 said:

 

I'd rather Irsay just be real, like Ballard was.  You didn't hear any promise from Ballard. All Ballard said was he hasn't thrown yet and when he does it will tell them a lot.  Thats all that needs to be said on the issue. Ballard also said that any guy that wants to coach the Colts because of Luck is probably not the right fit. Interesting comment.

 

Everyone believed Luck would be back by training camp based on what exactly?  A statement from Jim Irsay? Even when it was clear Luck wouldn't be back by then, he still said he would be back early in the season. He even didn't rule him out for week 1 just 10 days before the season.  I don't call that optimism, i call it absurdity. But the more you listen to Irsay speak, it's not surprising.

 

An optimistic projection is not what happened today and it's not what happened last winter either. A promise is what happened today.  There is a difference. When you promise something that is about as definitive as you can get given the circumstances. The statement last winter was also definitive. "Will be back for start of the season".  If you want to call that a "optimistic projection" then thats your right, but most people will and did take that as a definitive statement.

 

 

 

So you got that from Ballard. Irsay is the owner, and he's a more emotive guy than Ballard. 

 

We know Ballard will lead the search, and present his finalists to Irsay, which is what has always happened with the Colts. I think the head coaching search will be in very good hands.

 

As for everyone believing Luck would be back, I'm pretty sure the guys in the building weren't basing their belief on Irsay. I'm pretty sure Irsay was basing his belief on what he heard from the guys in the building, including the surgeon, the doctors and medical staff, and most of all, Luck himself. That's why, all along, everyone said there was no timetable for Luck's return, and that he'd be back when he was ready, not a moment sooner. Anyone who chose to hold Irsay's optimism against him did so despite all the caution and reserved comments from the staff.

 

But there's still plenty of precedent for QBs to return from shoulder surgery within 9 months, so the idea that Luck would be ready by the start of the season, or even training camp, was never unreasonable.

 

If you want to take what Irsay said last January or even today as a literal promise, then you do so at your own peril. Most reasonable people understand that Irsay could not be certain that Luck would be back and ready to play by the start of the season, because that's not how injury recovery works. And the same is true now. What Irsay said today was an expression of his confidence, but if you choose to view it as something more, that's on you. I think that's unreasonable, because, as Irsay said, he can't foresee the future. 

 

Anyone holding Irsay to his statement last January or today strikes me as intellectually dishonest, because we all know Irsay doesn't know for sure what will happen nine months in advance.

 

The only time that I felt Irsay wasn't being straightforward was just prior to the season when he said he still hoped Luck would be ready for the opener. I think everyone know Luck wouldn't be ready at that point, and while Irsay might have still hoped something amazing would happen over the next few days, there was no legitimate basis for that hope, and I didn't think he was being genuine at that point. On the other hand, we all knew that the Colts weren't going to throw Luck out there on a whim without him having practiced at least a couple weeks, and Ballard had already said as much. 

[NannyMcafee]

57 minutes ago, Fisticuffs111 said:

Yeah, didn't think of the possibility of Ballard/Irsay not being on the same page about the pick.

Not that I can't see Ballard wanting Barkley but just a thought.

 

Ballard is BPA. He's already said that. And I'm sure he will again when we get closer to the draft. He wants stars, just look at Malik Hooker. He wants play makers that jump off the screen. If Barkley fits that mold absolutely he will agree with the pick. 

 

Im not saying I agree or disagree with his methods. But regardless im excited for this offseason. 

[DougDew]

22 minutes ago, indy1888 said:

 

I'd rather Irsay just be real, like Ballard was.  You didn't hear any promise from Ballard. All Ballard said was he hasn't thrown yet and when he does it will tell them a lot.  Thats all that needs to be said on the issue. Ballard also said that any guy that wants to coach the Colts because of Luck is probably not the right fit. Interesting comment.

 

Everyone believed Luck would be back by training camp based on what exactly?  A statement from Jim Irsay? Even when it was clear Luck wouldn't be back by then, he still said he would be back early in the season. He even didn't rule him out for week 1 just 10 days before the season.  I don't call that optimism, i call it absurdity. But the more you listen to Irsay speak, it's not surprising.

 

An optimistic projection is not what happened today and it's not what happened last winter either. A promise is what happened today.  There is a difference. When you promise something that is about as definitive as you can get given the circumstances. The statement last winter was also definitive. "Will be back for start of the season".  If you want to call that a "optimistic projection" then thats your right, but most people will and did take that as a definitive statement.

 

 

Think of Jimmy using the word "promise"  "believe" like many use Faith.  He believes that special kid will be back.  He knows it and promises it to everybody.

 

Not even Luck himself knows how his shoulder will perform, so how can Jimmy know it....then lie about it.

 

You can't take those words literally.