What would you do if you were the Colts GM?

[Lucky Colts Fan]

If you were the Colts GM, what would you do?

 

Would you have traded for AB?

 

Which player(s) would you go all-out for, and how much would you offer/guarantee to get the player(s) you want?

[Lucky Colts Fan]

I'd like to see exactly how all the armchair GMs would have done a better job than Ballard.

 

Let's see some numbers and justification for all the criticism.

 

[gspdx]

Why would I think I am smarter about how to build a sustainable winning team than Ballard?

 

Would I have traded for AB - No.

What players would I go all out for - probably none.

[Lucky Colts Fan]

9 minutes ago, gspdx said:

Why would I think I am smarter about how to build a sustainable winning team than Ballard?

 

I don't think anyone is, even @Superman.  (No offense, Supe)

 

And Supe is probably the only one that could give an intelligent explanation for what he would do differently.

 

I have a feeling the majority of the armchair GMs will be conspicuously quiet in a thread where they're asked to provide numbers and show their work...  (crickets)

[Devildog]

I would post on this thread and ask all the armchair GM's for their opinions.

 

or

 

Play Madden and go from there.

 

[Lucky Colts Fan]

7 minutes ago, Devildog said:

Play Madden and go from there.

 

That must be the "Other" strategy that some people are voting for. 

 

As of this moment, nobody has voted for "Outbid every team for the player I want", yet that seems to be what I heard everyone clamoring for that was mad about the Colts not getting the "top" free agents...

 

[DraftMaster]

Exactly what Ballard is doing. In Ballard we trust.

[Behle]

I read a 2015 Boston Globe article that tracked the top 5 free agents for the previous 10 years and found that the teams that got those free agents showed no better record than the previous year. It was expanded to the top 10 free agents and the improvement was .1 of a game better.  The exceptions were Manning and Julius Peppers.  What did show up was the team losing a free agent lost more games without the player.  I know AB was not technically a free agent, but pretty close to it.  I thought that was interesting.

[ProblChld32]

Hypothetically I would’ve took a shot at Amos his contract isn’t crazy, signed Tyrell Williams, Hit Ziggy Ansah with a 1 year deal. I also like the idea of taking a flyer on Morris Claiborne on a 1 year prove it deal also.

[Lucky Colts Fan]

1 minute ago, ProblChld32 said:

Hypothetically I would’ve took a shot at Amos his contract isn’t crazy, signed Tyrell Williams, Hit Ziggy Ansah with a 1 year deal. I also like the idea of taking a flyer on Morris Claiborne on a 1 year prove it deal also.

 

You're just throwing out names.

 

How much would you offer to each?

 

What's your spending ceiling for each player?

[Barry Sears]

I'm going with Ballard's strategy.

 

We can still spend a lot of money and get 4-5 free agents to fill more than one hole, OR spend the same money on one superstar and fill one hole.  I'm for filling more holes, then less holes.

 

This is a team game and teams win Super Bowls, not superstars.

[Valpo2004]

So far my only complaint is that a couple good players signed some good value deals that it makes me wonder why we couldn't beat those numbers.  

 

Not unless they just didn't want to play in Indy for some reason.

 

The two I have in mind are

Jordan Hicks 4/36 - 20 guaranteed to Arizona

Adrian Amos 4/37 - to Pack (Not sure the guaranteed) 

 

Both of those guys are good players at positions of need and got less than 10M per year.  

 

Now I fully admit it's possible that those guys didn't want to play in Indy for some reason.  But if Ballard had a shot at those guys and wasn't willing to beat those contracts by just a little bit to bring them to Indy, I think that is a mistake.

 

 

[Valpo2004]

33 minutes ago, Lucky Colts Fan said:

 

That must be the "Other" strategy that some people are voting for. 

 

As of this moment, nobody has voted for "Outbid every team for the player I want", yet that seems to be what I heard everyone clamoring for that was mad about the Colts not getting the "top" free agents...

 

 

I voted for that, but I specified two guys who where good players at positions of need that got some pretty reasonable deals.  If they were just going to the team that offered them the most it seems to me that Ballard could have offered them both 4 years - 40M and it would have been a great deal and filled some holes.  

 

But like I said, I can't say that I know those guys even had any desire to play in Indy.  

[Bluesmith]

I would hire Chris "Big D" Ballard, and replace myself if I were Colts GM.

[Lucky Colts Fan]

1 minute ago, Valpo2004 said:

But like I said, I can't say that I know those guys even had any desire to play in Indy.

 

It's also possible they did want to play in Indy, but didn't pass the Brian Decker test. 

[ThorstenDenmark]

I would trade away two 1rd picks for Tom Brady, Bench him behind Luck, and should Luck be injured, Tom would still be our backup behind Brisette;)  

[Barry Sears]

Maybe some of those potential free agents have been reading this Forum and decided not to come to Indy?  

[ProblChld32]

1 hour ago, Lucky Colts Fan said:

 

You're just throwing out names.

 

How much would you offer to each?

 

What's your spending ceiling for each player?

 

Well you don’t want to just throw blind contracts out without knowing what the league average is for guys of certain calibers. Once I have a larger sample size i can update with contract figures. 

[Lucky Colts Fan]

2 minutes ago, ProblChld32 said:

Well you don’t want to just throw blind contracts out without knowing what the league average is for guys of certain calibers. Once I have a larger sample size i can update with contract figures. 

 

The GM doesn't have that luxury.

 

Some of these GMs are resetting the market for certain positions by signing players without the benefit of waiting for larger sample sizes.

 

So I'm a player you want to sign, like Amos or Tyrell Williams.  Let's talk numbers. 

[IrishColt]

Chris Ballard is trying to preach unity through competition. He wants every position rife with players breaking a sweat trying to get the starting job. 

 

If you pay crazy money for a guy, it's hard for the other player to feel like they have a chance at a starting job with their inferiority complex. The same works for the FA signing who feels like a shoe-in. 

 

It's the same culture the Patriots have been so successful with.  I know it hurts but I know Ballard wouldn't pass up on these guys if he didn't have a Marcus Hunt 2.0 waiting in wings.

[jameszeigler834]

1 hour ago, DraftMaster said:

Exactly what Ballard is doing. In Ballard we trust.

You might trust him but im on the 50/50 bandwagon until what he is doing results in this team winning super bowls.

[Rackeen305]

Signed a CB, A Safety, A Rush LB, MLB, and probably a RB and WR too. Hell I have $100M+ and a good eye for the game. Forget anyone else saying that you cant do XYZ.

 

This team has too many wholes and for those who cannot see this is hard to believe. You dont want a repeat of the games where we lost to the Jets BIG do you? Or how about the Chiefs?

 

BTW if we play the likes of the Saints, or even Minnesota, the outcome would have been the same, 2 Ls against playoff teams. Why? Not because of coaching.

 

Saints have 2 solid or had 2 solid RBs and of course a HoF QB (Drew Brees).

MINN had 2 solid RBs, a heck of a Defense.

[kornstar]

I voted “Other”.

 

Clearly the fans know better so i would get everyone to send in their choices of what we should do and collate and pick the consensus.

 

As we are the only horse in the race too, we will get everyone that the consensus is asking for.

 

First i would trade Luck for that sweet draft capital that that dude posted last week.......who needs a franchise QB anyway???

 

Collins would already be here and Funchess would have signed on for league minimum cause the fans want everyone but they don’t want to manage a cap in any way!

 

Bell and AB would also come here for infers cause that’s what they are all about, they wouldn’t think of asking for overs, they are clearly team first guys!!

 

Fans make this stuff simple, GM’s should totally ask what the fans want nothing could ever go wrong!

[Lucky Colts Fan]

8 minutes ago, Rackeen305 said:

Signed a CB, A Safety, A Rush LB, MLB, and probably a RB and WR too.

 

Names and Numbers?

[Lucky Colts Fan]

23 minutes ago, jameszeigler834 said:

You might trust him but im on the 50/50 bandwagon until what he is doing results in this team winning super bowls.

 

Thank you for admitting to everyone that you are a bandwagon fan.

[ColtsAC]

I would make my own decisions, based on staff input... not prefacing every decision with "what would Kansas City do".

[Superman]

This is part of why I do mocks. I can go back and reference what I said at the time, and see how off I was.

 

Two of my five FA targets are gone. Flowers reportedly got $3m more than I said I would offer. Humphries got $1m less. We'll see what Nelson, Fleming and Phillips get.

[stitches]

In my last mock, I gave 12M to Preston Smith... I would have gone higher to out bid the Packers. 

I also gave Humphries the exact deal he got from the Texans. I would have done that too...

 

In my mock I gave Justin Coleman 2/8 and instead he got 4/32... so yah... I'd probably let him go. Same with Landon Collins... he got much more than I expected. 

 

Other than that I don't have someone I would have pursued much harder than Ballard has done so far. 

[coltsfansince65]

47 minutes ago, kornstar said:

I voted “Other”.

 

Clearly the fans know better so i would get everyone to send in their choices of what we should do and collate and pick the consensus.

 

As we are the only horse in the race too, we will get everyone that the consensus is asking for.

 

First i would trade Luck for that sweet draft capital that that dude posted last week.......who needs a franchise QB anyway???

 

Collins would already be here and Funchess would have signed on for league minimum cause the fans want everyone but they don’t want to manage a cap in any way!

 

Bell and AB would also come here for infers cause that’s what they are all about, they wouldn’t think of asking for overs, they are clearly team first guys!!

 

Fans make this stuff simple, GM’s should totally ask what the fans want nothing could ever go wrong!

I would have posted something almost exactly like this    ^^^

[ProblChld32]

1 hour ago, Lucky Colts Fan said:

 

The GM doesn't have that luxury.

 

Some of these GMs are resetting the market for certain positions by signing players without the benefit of waiting for larger sample sizes.

 

So I'm a player you want to sign, like Amos or Tyrell Williams.  Let's talk numbers. 

 

Thts not all the way true, but sure I’ll play along 

 

Adrian Amos- I’ll give him a 4 year deal given his age and performance @ $35 million $18-19 guaranteed. 

 

Tyrell Williams - 3 year deal at $26 Million with $15-16 being guaranteed 

[Lucky Colts Fan]

3 minutes ago, ProblChld32 said:

Adrian Amos- I’ll give him a 4 year deal given his age and performance @ $35 million $18-19 guaranteed.

 

No deal, Green Bay offered me 4-yr, $37 Mil, $21 guaranteed.

 

4 minutes ago, ProblChld32 said:

Tyrell Williams - 3 year deal at $26 Million with $15-16 being guaranteed

 

I'm a #1 WR, I want at least $14/yr.  Don't insult me with <$9/yr.

[aaron11]

I would be interested in flowers and bell, and bring desir back

[Four2itus]

1 hour ago, jameszeigler834 said:

You might trust him but im on the 50/50 bandwagon until what he is doing results in this team winning super bowls.

Superbowls? Only one team has won multiple SB's in the last 10 years...only 4 in the last 20 years. So Ballard has to accomplish this before you so daringly risk hopping off that safe fence?

 

That, is quite the fan filter. 

 

 

[Lucky Colts Fan]

7 minutes ago, aaron11 said:

I would be interested in flowers and bell, and bring desir back

 

Numbers?

[ProblChld32]

32 minutes ago, Lucky Colts Fan said:

 

No deal, Green Bay offered me 4-yr, $37 Mil, $21 guaranteed.

 

 

I'm a #1 WR, I want at least $14/yr.  Don't insult me with <$9/yr.

 

You’re too caught up in the Salary, players would be willing to accept less to play for particular organizations. But nonetheless you look at what Brown and Jamison Crowder Got compare it to that offer it’s within the ballpark of what the average is going for RIGHT now.

[Lucky Colts Fan]

1 minute ago, ProblChld32 said:

You’re too caught up in the Salary

 

  Is that what you're going to tell the player?

 

I guess Landon Collins was "too caught up in the salary"?

 

I guess CJ Mosley was "too caught up in the salary"?

[chad72]

It was too lopsided, had to go with the outbid department

 

On a serious note, can we wait and see how the year plays out, please?

[Peterk2011]

I almost wrote a long post here, but I deleted it. It just does not worth the effort, sorry. Being a GM is a dynamic chain of acts. You negotiate, you give counter offers, you get out of deals, you bid over others or not. It can't be simulated by writing down a plan, because anything I write down is written in stone. If I write down that I want to sign Bradley Roby for 3 years, 26M. 11M guaranteed, it's written in stone. I can't change my mind, can't alter my deal, can't get out of it. I will never be right, because things never happen exactly as they are expected, and I can't react to the events.

 

So, I appreciate the OP's proposal, but I skip this opportunity. I rather sit back, and a) read those people's posts, who have enough time (and willingness) to write down a complete mock, b) I react to what's happening in the real world. There's no need to put down a complete plan to have an opinion about it.

[ProblChld32]

14 minutes ago, Lucky Colts Fan said:

 

  Is that what you're going to tell the player?

 

I guess Landon Collins was "too caught up in the salary"?

 

I guess CJ Mosley was "too caught up in the salary"?

So what your saying is a player has never taken a deal with lesser monies because he wanted to play for a specific organization, coach , or QB? Or better yet you know exactly what every player is thinking or wants lol gotcha.

[Lucky Colts Fan]

3 minutes ago, ProblChld32 said:

So what your saying is a player has never taken a deal with lesser monies because he wanted to play for a specific organization, coach , or QB? Or better yet you know exactly what every player is thinking or wants lol gotcha.

 

No.  I know Tom Brady has taken less with the Pats than he could have gotten from another team multiple times.

 

I'm saying all these people talking about "I would have signed player X" or "I would have traded this for player Y" aren't GMs.  They're just armchair GMs that couldn't actually close a deal, much less run an entire team.

 

It's funny to me when a fan thinks they know better than the GM that runs their team.