Ballard absolutely killed it this past offseason

[RockThatBlue]

His draft looks amazing and though he didn't do a lot in FA he made huge hits in Autry and Ebron. Its nice to have a great GM again.

[LockeDown]

I can’t wait to see his first 3 picks next draft.  You can bet Colts fans will criticize it and then they will be great.  Our formula for success.

[Dark Superman]

Chris Ballard made me care about the Draft again.

[Fluke_33]

5 minutes ago, DarkSuperman said:

Chris Ballard made me care about the Draft again.

Now I want him to trade down and load up on second rounders

[ColtStrong2013]

1 minute ago, Fluke_33 said:

Now I want him to trade down and load up on second rounders

Why? This first round is gearing up to be loaded with defensive playmakers. You don't want to snag another Leonard type impact player? We have 2 2nd rounders. Who is to say he won't make a move or two to land another without moving our 1st rounder? 

[coltfaninnewyork]

Jets keep losing we have their second 

[Fluke_33]

4 minutes ago, ColtStrong2013 said:

Why? This first round is gearing up to be loaded with defensive playmakers. You don't want to snag another Leonard type impact player? We have 2 2nd rounders. Who is to say he won't make a move or two to land another without moving our 1st rounder? 

I was kidding.  He killed it with all the second rounders this year but I still want a first rounder. 

[ColtStrong2013]

3 minutes ago, coltfaninnewyork said:

Jets keep losing we have their second 

Looking like a top 5 pick also... Green Bay and New England to finish the season = 4 wins for the Jets this year. 

 

Can we add another Braden Smith or Darius Leonard with that? Yes please...

[ColtStrong2013]

Just now, Fluke_33 said:

I was kidding.  He killed it with all the second rounders this year but I still want a first rounder. 

 

I'm good at speaking sarcasm, not good at sensing it. There are several that have made similar comments about moving our first back. If the price is right, by all means... but we could steal a damn good player late in the first. 

[ColtStrong2013]

Keep in mind, it isn't just Ballard that has the eye for talent. He's just the one that pulls the trigger. Ed dodds, rex hogan and co. are some legit scouting leaders that Ballard brought on board. It is paying off. We should all feel very good about this front office.

[Fluke_33]

5 minutes ago, ColtStrong2013 said:

 

I'm good at speaking sarcasm, not good at sensing it. There are several that have made similar comments about moving our first back. If the price is right, by all means... but we could steal a damn good player late in the first. 

Yeah, I should use the sarcasm sign but I feel that weakens it. 

 

I do want a premium pass rusher first and foremost and the best chance for those is round one. 

[WoolMagnet]

23 minutes ago, DarkSuperman said:

Chris Ballard made me care about the Draft again.

Make the Draft Great Again

[ColtStrong2013]

8 minutes ago, Fluke_33 said:

Yeah, I should use the sarcasm sign but I feel that weakens it. 

 

I do want a premium pass rusher first and foremost and the best chance for those is round one. 

 

I'm not sure we'll get a premium pass rusher where we are going to be picking from in the first. My hope is that Turay and Lewis develop into that (looking good so far) and that everyone drafts defensive line heavy early and often (seeing as this defensive line draft will be very good) and that there is serious talent available when we pick. Defensive secondary, linebacker, whatever it may be. Top notch talent that would be top 10-15 on any given year but this one. We might luck into a top notch defensive lineman, but we could put a serious playmaker at cornerback. 

[krunk]

31 minutes ago, ColtStrong2013 said:

 

I'm not sure we'll get a premium pass rusher where we are going to be picking from in the first. My hope is that Turay and Lewis develop into that (looking good so far) and that everyone drafts defensive line heavy early and often (seeing as this defensive line draft will be very good) and that there is serious talent available when we pick. Defensive secondary, linebacker, whatever it may be. Top notch talent that would be top 10-15 on any given year but this one. We might luck into a top notch defensive lineman, but we could put a serious playmaker at cornerback. 

Ballard has his own system for identifying blue chip traits. Turay is a good example. Where we will pick I'm sure there could be another Turay there. A guy most of us didn't think about and when Ballard pulls the trigger we will all be mad because we thought somebody else the "experts" had ranked higher should have been the pick.

[Superman]

Every meaningful draft pick looks like a hit right now. Wilkins seems to be in the dog house, Cain is hurt, and Franklin probably isn't athletic enough. Everyone else looks like a player. It's too early to really know what we have in all these young guys, but the early returns are impressive.

 

He signed five FAs to contracts greater than vet minimum: Autry, Ebron, Grant, Howard, and Slauson. I wasn't impressed by Slauson before he got hurt, but he was at least respectable, and brought some valuable intangibles (just ask his teammates and coaches). Howard wasn't good and is gone, and Grant has been the physical embodiment of "meh." So raw numbers, at worst he went 2/5 in free agency.

 

BUT -- Ebron and Autry have been so good. Like, sooo good. These two guys might be the most cost effective and impactful free agents from the entire 2018 class, league wide. 

 

And Dungy nailed it tonight. He said the Colts had two glaring weaknesses last season: a slow defense, and a bad OL, but now the defense is fast and physical, and the OL is one of the best in the league. In one offseason.

 

Ballard had an excellent offseason. He has set the bar unreasonably high, and if he has a repeat performance next season -- combined with continued development from this year's class -- the Colts will be well on their way.

[zibby43]

Here's a recap of the draft.  Every single player drafted is still on the 53-man roster (Cain is on IR).  All of the healthy guys have played meaningful snaps.

 

Round 1, Pick 6 (No. 6 overall): Quenton Nelson, OG, Notre Dame

 

Round 2, Pick 4 (No. 36 overall): Darius Leonard, LB, South Carolina St.

 

Round 2, Pick 5 (No. 37 overall): Braden Smith, G, Auburn

 

Round 2, Pick 20 (No. 52 overall): Kemoko Turay, DE, Rutgers

 

Round 2, Pick 32 (No. 64 overall): Tyquan Lewis, DE, Ohio State

 

Round 4, Pick 4 (No. 104 overall): Nyheim Hines, RB, North Carolina State 

 

Round 5, Pick 22 (No. 159 overall): Daurice Fountain, WR, Northern Iowa

 

Round 5, Pick 32 (No. 169 overall): Jordan Wilkins, RB, Mississippi State

 

Round 6, Pick 11 (No. 165 overall): Deon Cain, WR, Clemson

 

Round 7, Pick 3 (No. 221 overall): Matthew Adams, LB, Houston

 

Round 7, Pick 17 (No. 235 overall): Zaire Franklin, LB, Syracuse

[Scott Pennock]

I try not to be critical of the draft picks, I try to look at their measurables, merits and watch as much highlights as possible and compare them to other successful players in this style of defense (in particular) and see if I can see what they see.....

 

As an example, I compared Leonard to Derrick Brooks very shortly after the draft.

 

So far he's living up to that comp.....

[Superman]

4 minutes ago, krunk said:

Ballard has his own system for identifying blue chip traits. Turay is a good example. Where we will pick I'm sure there could be another Turay there. A guy most of us didn't think about and when Ballard pulls the trigger we will all be mad because we thought somebody else the "experts" had ranked higher should have been the pick.

 

Turay wasn't exactly a hidden gem. He had one of the best pass rush efficiency rates in college football last season, and he has blue chip measurables. But he was raw (still is) and had some question marks -- competition level, overall production. He's had a decent rookie year but I'm not sure he's the answer at edge rusher. 

[Four2itus]

I started a thread a while back, asking posters to rank the importance of drafting, vs development, vs scheme coaching. I was surprised at how little it was discussed, and the posts that were made, didn't answer my question. 

 

But I'll say what my intent was, because it is worth saying. Drafting the right player, IMO, is NOT as important as having the right coaches, scheme......and MOST importantly....the development of those players. 

 

My point? Not that Mr. Ballard is not choosing good players, but that we are developing our players in a very impressive fashion.

 

[krunk]

17 minutes ago, Superman said:

 

Turay wasn't exactly a hidden gem. He had one of the best pass rush efficiency rates in college football last season, and he has blue chip measurables. But he was raw (still is) and had some question marks -- competition level, overall production. He's had a decent rookie year but I'm not sure he's the answer at edge rusher. 

Did you have Turay on your mind when he made the pick where he made it? I thought he was going with Harold Landry or somebody like that with proven production like Rasheem Greene. My aim in this was to say it wont surprise me if he selects somebody we thought would be available a round or two rounds later. I think most of us had Turay pegged for round 3. Ballard tends to value prospects, their traits, and their fit for the systems we run a bit different than we do in some respects. Even though we will be picking lower this year I still think he will be able to find another quality edge rusher. As for Turay I think he will be even better in year 2.

[Superman]

12 minutes ago, krunk said:

Did you have Turay on your mind when he made the pick where he made it? I thought he was going with Harold Landry or somebody like that with proven production like Rasheem Greene. My aim in this was to say it wont surprise me if he selects somebody we thought would be available a round or two rounds later. I think most of us had Turay pegged for round 3. Ballard tends to value prospects, their traits, and their fit for the systems we run a bit different than we do in some respects. Even though we will be picking lower this year I still think he will be able to find another quality edge rusher. As for Turay I think he will be even better in year 2.

 

I didn't really have a projection on Turay, but I thought Landry would fit better in a 3-4 so I didn't expect us to draft him, and he was gone when Turay got picked anyway. I think I was more interested in Christian Kirk (also gone, #47), Justin Reid, James Washington, Lorenzo Carter, etc. But I did think Turay made sense for us once I watched him.

[HectorRoberts]

1 hour ago, ColtStrong2013 said:

Keep in mind, it isn't just Ballard that has the eye for talent. He's just the one that pulls the trigger. Ed dodds, rex hogan and co. are some legit scouting leaders that Ballard brought on board. It is paying off. We should all feel very good about this front office.

I totally agree I wouldn’t be surprised if Ed Dodd gets some serious interest for a gm job this offseason or next offseason 

[NewColtsFan]

2 hours ago, ColtStrong2013 said:

Keep in mind, it isn't just Ballard that has the eye for talent. He's just the one that pulls the trigger. Ed dodds, rex hogan and co. are some legit scouting leaders that Ballard brought on board. It is paying off. We should all feel very good about this front office.

 

Your post is true....     but don't forget who brought in Dodds and Hogan....

 

Chris Ballard.     The defense we're running is his vision....    the offense we're running is his vision.   The coaches are executing it beautifully,   but what we are seeing came from the mind of Chris Ballard.

 

[chad72]

1 hour ago, Superman said:

Every meaningful draft pick looks like a hit right now. Wilkins seems to be in the dog house, Cain is hurt, and Franklin probably isn't athletic enough. Everyone else looks like a player. It's too early to really know what we have in all these young guys, but the early returns are impressive.

 

He signed five FAs to contracts greater than vet minimum: Autry, Ebron, Grant, Howard, and Slauson. I wasn't impressed by Slauson before he got hurt, but he was at least respectable, and brought some valuable intangibles (just ask his teammates and coaches). Howard wasn't good and is gone, and Grant has been the physical embodiment of "meh." So raw numbers, at worst he went 2/5 in free agency.

 

BUT -- Ebron and Autry have been so good. Like, sooo good. These two guys might be the most cost effective and impactful free agents from the entire 2018 class, league wide. 

 

And Dungy nailed it tonight. He said the Colts had two glaring weaknesses last season: a slow defense, and a bad OL, but now the defense is fast and physical, and the OL is one of the best in the league. In one offseason.

 

Ballard had an excellent offseason. He has set the bar unreasonably high, and if he has a repeat performance next season -- combined with continued development from this year's class -- the Colts will be well on their way.

 

This is my biggest concern. But then, you cannot be fearful of success too soon .

 

Only a division title and/or a bye would suffice next year, it seems like, if this is how we start.

[LockeDown]

But Ballard focuses on other things just as much.  Locker room, guys who were captains , guys who are high character, easily coachable.  guys who buy into the system and integrate quickly. 

[Jackie Daytona]

2 hours ago, Superman said:

 

Turay wasn't exactly a hidden gem. He had one of the best pass rush efficiency rates in college football last season, and he has blue chip measurables. But he was raw (still is) and had some question marks -- competition level, overall production. He's had a decent rookie year but I'm not sure he's the answer at edge rusher. 

Agree on everything but competition level.... Dude played in the BIG 10, and in the same div. as Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State.....  his college competition was fine.

[Maniac]

I remember seeing Leonard, Lewis and Turay and complaining about not getting Jackson, Guice and Oliver among others.

 

Man, I think this has taught me to know my role when it comes to drafting, listen to less mock drafts and fake experts. Ballard knows his stuff, knows what makes a footballer, knows how to build a team.

 

This team is in good hands, if Ballard is ever in Australia, I'll buy him drinks for an entire night.

 

Pick 36, Darius Leonard.

 

COME ON!

[Yoshinator]

6 minutes ago, BlackPanther said:

I remember seeing Leonard, Lewis and Turay and complaining about not getting Jackson, Guice and Oliver among others.

 

Man, I think this has taught me to know my role when it comes to drafting, listen to less mock drafts and fake experts. Ballard knows his stuff, knows what makes a footballer, knows how to build a team.

 

This team is in good hands, if Ballard is ever in Australia, I'll buy him drinks for an entire night.

 

Pick 36, Darius Leonard.

 

COME ON!

It's definitely tough to see picks that are perceived by the experts as "reaches" picked for our team and then not criticize them and try to have faith, especially when you look at how bad Grigson was. Luckily, Ballard has now proven he knows what he is doing, and we are in good hands. When he says "build through the draft", he can back it up, and we can now trust him.

[Yoshinator]

This is such a good draft for us though. Not only did we get Autry and Ebron, but we had the best or second best draft class this year (depending on how you grade the Browns). Everyone has potential. Nelson, Leonard, Smith and Hines are thriving. Turay, Lewis, and Adams are doing excellent as rotation players. The rest can still contribute as well. No clear miss in 11 picks. I was looking at a past Jets draft in comparison in 2014, and it makes me thankful that Ballard knows what he is doing. All the picks in the world don't mean a thing if you are throwing darts at a wall. Luckily for us, there is a method to Ballard's madness. Finish the year strong and continue to improve next year!

[Maniac]

1 minute ago, Jared Cisneros said:

This is such a good draft for us though. Not only did we get Autry and Ebron, but we had the best or second best draft class this year (depending on how you grade the Browns). Everyone has potential. Nelson, Leonard, Smith and Hines are thriving. Turay, Lewis, and Adams are doing excellent as rotation players. The rest can still contribute as well. No clear miss in 11 picks. I was looking at a past Jets draft in comparison in 2014, and it makes me thankful that Ballard knows what he is doing. All the picks in the world don't mean a thing if you are throwing darts at a wall. Luckily for us, there is a method to Ballard's madness. Finish the year strong and continue to improve next year!

 

Don't forget we came around with another 2nd round pick on top of everything.

 

[Yoshinator]

4 minutes ago, BlackPanther said:

 

Don't forget we came around with another 2nd round pick on top of everything.

 

Yep. We can grab a 1st round talent that falls, or someone else that Ballard likes at that point that wouldn't fall to our 2nd round pick.

[coltsnation]

Imagine if Ballard had his scouts for the 2017 class O_o

[crazycolt1]

36 minutes ago, coltsnation said:

Imagine if Ballard had his scouts for the 2017 class O_o

Ballard did not bring in a bunch of his own scouts. We have scouts for this team that have been here over 15 years.

[crazycolt1]

2 hours ago, LockeDown said:

But Ballard focuses on other things just as much.  Locker room, guys who were captains , guys who are high character, easily coachable.  guys who buy into the system and integrate quickly. 

Exactly.

After looking at the draft picks after the draft, that is one thing that did draw my attention.

Most drafts we have to wait 2 or 3 years to see the results. We didn't have to wait.

[Dark Superman]

Can't wait to see what CB does this offseason in free agency and the 2019 Draft.

[smittywerb]

TBH I had no doubt with Chris Ballard coming in.  After what I saw he did with KC I was sold.  Especially seeing how upset KC fans were that he was leaving.  Ballard struck me as a guy that knew what he was doing.  And it didn't come off as a jerkish way like Grigson.  

[Crunked]

Left handedly pleased:

Left handed definition: I thought the Colts could go 7-9 to 10-6 somewhere in that range this year, but not in this way....I thought we would beat the beatables, lose the losables, and the gain in win total would be a combo of Luck's return, easier schedule, and a game or two improvement on talent from the draft.....although we are going to finish 8-8 to 10-6 the high end of my expectations, I did not see it going down like this, tough, well coached, hard working team winning when it counts........maybe I am both handedly pleased now that I think about it

 

[ColtStrong2013]

7 hours ago, NewColtsFan said:

 

Your post is true....     but don't forget who brought in Dodds and Hogan....

 

Chris Ballard.     The defense we're running is his vision....    the offense we're running is his vision.   The coaches are executing it beautifully,   but what we are seeing came from the mind of Chris Ballard.

 

 

Hence the part of my post that said those gentlemen were some "legit scouting leaders that Ballard brought onboard." 

[Myles]

I hope we can all remember that the bar has been set at a level that most likely will not be achieved again.   So we shouldn't give Ballard too much crap if he misses on a couple.  

He's obviously put the league wide numbers to shame with the 2018 draft.  

[lollygagger8]

Not only has he completely turned the culture around, and transformed the team in one season, he handled the Mctrash incident perfectly. 

 

GM of the year no question, and that's not being a homer either.