Running Back by Committee

[Scott Pennock]

Do I think adding someone as talented as Ajayi would be beneficial, heck yeah. But, since we haven't seen the Colts play lately, here are some highlight videos to remind us of how talented Mack, Hines and Wilkins are - especially as a trio. As a 1st year starter and 2 rookies they will only play better and produce more this year as well.

 

 

 

One does have to wonder though, with every starter (counting Funchess & Houston) accounted for will the FO pull the trigger on a highly rated RB if he's the BPA on their board?

 

Or do think the FO has removed RB's as it's not an immediate or even near future need?

[akcolt]

I think if somehow a RB is head and shoulders above every other player when it’s our selection that will be the pick. Its been established if it’s a close call then we are adding to our fronts. I have a difficult time seeing a scenario in this draft where RB is the pick in the early rounds. 

 

I don’t think RB has been removed from the draft board. In fact based on our  interest in Ajayi I think we may be looking to add to that room. I am a fan of the RB’s that we have on the roster but it’s not a group that can’t be upgraded. 

[richard pallo]

I am of the opinion the FO will pull the trigger on a highly rated RB if he's the BPA on their board.     I wouldn't rule it out at all.  Reich's comments today and our interest in Ajai pretty much signal they are open to upgrading the RB group. 

[crazycolt1]

I don't rule out Ballard selecting or signing any position if he thinks it's an upgrade.

[cbear]

I'm fine with these three myself.  With the oline intact and humming from day one (unlike last season where it took several games to get solidified), I think we'll end up around top 10-12 in rushing. 

[NewColtsFan]

 

I think the chances of the Colts drafting a RB with one of our first four picks (R1-3) are pretty close to zero.

 

Day 3,  that's another story.   

 

But at this latest owner's meeting, Ballard has once again repeated that he likes Mack and sees him as a 3-down back who can handle the load.    I'm not sure if Ajayi is being brought in for a time share or as a backup.    I'd lean toward back-up in case Mack gets hurt.

 

[crazycolt1]

25 minutes ago, NewColtsFan said:

 

I think the chances of the Colts drafting a RB with one of our first four picks (R1-3) are pretty close to zero.

 

Day 3,  that's another story.   

 

But at this latest owner's meeting, Ballard has once again repeated that he likes Mack and sees him as a 3-down back who can handle the load.    I'm not sure if Ajayi is being brought in for a time share or as a backup.    I'd lean toward back-up in case Mack gets hurt.

 

Is it certain that Ajayi is being signed?

[NewColtsFan]

25 minutes ago, crazycolt1 said:

Is it certain that Ajayi is being signed?

 

No....   it's not.    Sorry I was not more clear.    But since he's pretty much the only RB we've been linked to in FA,  I was using him as an example.

 

I think some posters see him as a 1a time share with Mack.    I see him simply as the backup.

 

[CurBeatElite]

48 minutes ago, NewColtsFan said:

 

I think the chances of the Colts drafting a RB with one of our first four picks (R1-3) are pretty close to zero.

 

Day 3,  that's another story.   

 

But at this latest owner's meeting, Ballard has once again repeated that he likes Mack and sees him as a 3-down back who can handle the load.    I'm not sure if Ajayi is being brought in for a time share or as a backup.    I'd lean toward back-up in case Mack gets hurt.

 

 

I think the reason we're looking at guys like Ajayi (I don't know if we're talking to any other RBs or not) is because he's got a different style than the guys currently on our roster.  Mack is a very good RB, and I think the plan will be for him to be our primary back .. but his biggest weakness is pounding the ball in short yard situations.  Hines is more of a Sproles-type, quick and a good receiver who can line up in the slot and other places in the offense.  Wilkins, although he has the size, is knocked for not running 'big' (and for ball security).  It sounds like (from Reich's interview) that they want the ability to be more multi-faceted in the run game.  Where our run game struggled most last year was in short yardage situations when we needed to get a tough yard or two.  I think that's part of the reason we ran several plays on 3rd and short that almost seemed like trick plays.  My take is - Ajayi is a 6'0" 220 lbs. that can power his way forward better than others we currently have on the roster.  Ajayi also played in Reich's system while he was in Philly.

 

If we draft a running back or bring in a FA who is not just a camp-body, I assume it will be in later rounds and it will be a power-style back, built mainly to get tough yards on the goal line or on 3rd/4th and short.

 

23 minutes ago, crazycolt1 said:

Is it certain that Ajayi is being signed?

No, he just has visited and the Colts have shown interest in him.  No official reports anywhere that he has signed.

[throwing BBZ]

7 hours ago, crazycolt1 said:

Is it certain that Ajayi is being signed?

 

 chuckle

[shasta519]

I would be willing to bet that a RB (not currently on the depth chart) will be on the opening day roster...likely someone that slots in behind Mack and pushes him for carries.

 

Reich said he wants to be a top 10 run team (not sure by which metric) to have the offense where it needs to be...he also had Ballard looking at RBs at the Combine. And if you look at that 2017 PHI team...they had 4 guys they used (when healthy)...Blount, Ajayi, Clement, Smallwood. Sproles.

 

 

[Coffeedrinker]

9 hours ago, NewColtsFan said:

 

No....   it's not.    Sorry I was not more clear.    But since he's pretty much the only RB we've been linked to in FA,  I was using him as an example.

 

I think some posters see him as a 1a time share with Mack.    I see him simply as the backup.

 

 

I agree, if the Colts sign Ajayi (which I don't think they will) , I see him more filling the role of Wilkins.  But to me, he's not someone that can carry the load consistently.

[Valpo2004]

I don't think we can really trust Wilkins to hang onto the football at this point.

 

Hope that changes but I don't know that we can count on it changing.  

 

Ajayi would help in terms of depth.  Keep your RB's fresh and you have more than one good one on the roster in case of an injury.  

 

I keep harping on this and it's true.  If Mack gets injured . . . You have Hines who's good as a pass catcher but his yards per carry average is about the same as Trent Richardson's and you have Wilkins who can't be trusted to not fumble the ball.

 

Those arn't great options.  

[dodsworth]

Our running backs are in year 2 and 3 of their careers. We will

know soon enough if Wilkins and Hines  have made the sophomore

jump. 

 

I really like Wilkins but he has to hang onto the ball better.

[richard pallo]

TBH I'm more concerned with our RB group than I am with our WR group.  Funchess is going to turn out to be a great addition IMO.  I think Cain is going to come back healthy and pick up where he left off.  Inman would strengthen it more if he returns.  The RB group is one Mack injury away of being nothing to get excited about.  If Mack gets injured again we drop off significantly.  I think Reich know's it and that's why he feels we need to upgrade the group.  I don't see this current group getting us to a top 5 or 10 running game.  I don't see Mack going 16 games without missing significant time.  I hope I'm wrong but his history speaks for itself.  

[CurBeatElite]

29 minutes ago, Valpo2004 said:

I don't think we can really trust Wilkins to hang onto the football at this point.

 

Hope that changes but I don't know that we can count on it changing.  

 

Ajayi would help in terms of depth.  Keep your RB's fresh and you have more than one good one on the roster in case of an injury.  

 

I keep harping on this and it's true.  If Mack gets injured . . . You have Hines who's good as a pass catcher but his yards per carry average is about the same as Trent Richardson's and you have Wilkins who can't be trusted to not fumble the ball.

 

Those arn't great options.  

 

17 minutes ago, dodsworth said:

Our running backs are in year 2 and 3 of their careers. We will

know soon enough if Wilkins and Hines  have made the sophomore

jump. 

 

I really like Wilkins but he has to hang onto the ball better.

 

 

To his credit, Wilkins only fumbled the ball 2x last year.  Mack, although he had a lot more carries, also fumbled the ball 2x last year.

 

I think the fear with Wilkins (and why he pretty much got benched) is the way he was holding the football makes it prone to pop loose.  This is coachable, for sure.  Give him the off-season and pre-season and I don't think this will be an issue any more.

 

I am likely wrong, since I am not in the coaching room, but it seemed to me that when Wilkins was drafted at 6'1" 217 lbs., the Colts may have thought they were getting a guy who they could mold into a power back.  He is very shifty and  good in space, but power at the line of scrimmage doesn't really seem to be a part of his game (at this point, anyway).  I could see Rathman, who was a bruising fullback in front of Roger Craig, having some dislike for Wilkins based on the fact that he doesn't seem to like to put his head down and power through the whole even though he's a physical monster.

 

Wilkins did average 5.6 yards per carry last year, which is pretty good for a back-up. 

[cbear]

I'm not sure why Wilkins continues to get a bad rap.  He fumbled the ball twice.  Too small a sample size to say he's now a fumbler.  Also, the guy is a tough runner and picks up hard yards after first contact.  He is hard to bring down.  Add to that his vision and decent speed, shiftiness and I wouldn't have a problem with him taking over for Mack in case of injury.  Not with that line in front of him. 

[coltsfan_canada]

I love both of our rookies Wilkins and Hines and for some reason Hines somewhat makes me think he can be as good as Sproles. 

[akcolt]

12 hours ago, richard pallo said:

TBH I'm more concerned with our RB group than I am with our WR group.  Funchess is going to turn out to be a great addition  

I think the RB group could use some help too. I like Mack he did a great job when he was healthy last season. Hines was good as our receiving back. Wilkins showed he could play Sunday ball spelling Mack. When those 3 guys were healthy the backfield looked fine.

 

When Mack wasn't able to go the backfield struggled.  I think CB and Reich saw this as and that's why we brought Ajayi in for a look. This isn't a knock on any of our guys. They are great in their roles but when Mack wasn't  there our backs looked a lot like our WR's without TY.

 

The WR group didn't have a guy that could be a WR1 We signed Fuchness to remedy that problem. I think we need to add a guy to the RB mix to help if Mack can't go. 

 

That could be Ajayi depending on what happened during his visit. We could draft a 1A type guy. I think  Montgomery would be ideal in that role or maybe we just add more competition The word is we are high on Williams. 

[Dark Superman]

The Colts do not need to add another RB behind the three guys they have already. I feel like a lot of people are sleeping on Wilkins. But, I would love a guy like Ajayi because he brings a different running style to our offense. Mack, Ajayi, Wilkins, and Hines, would be amazing.

[Valpo2004]

On 3/27/2019 at 1:41 PM, CurBeatElite said:

 

 

 

To his credit, Wilkins only fumbled the ball 2x last year.  Mack, although he had a lot more carries, also fumbled the ball 2x last year.

 

I think the fear with Wilkins (and why he pretty much got benched) is the way he was holding the football makes it prone to pop loose.  This is coachable, for sure.  Give him the off-season and pre-season and I don't think this will be an issue any more.

 

I am likely wrong, since I am not in the coaching room, but it seemed to me that when Wilkins was drafted at 6'1" 217 lbs., the Colts may have thought they were getting a guy who they could mold into a power back.  He is very shifty and  good in space, but power at the line of scrimmage doesn't really seem to be a part of his game (at this point, anyway).  I could see Rathman, who was a bruising fullback in front of Roger Craig, having some dislike for Wilkins based on the fact that he doesn't seem to like to put his head down and power through the whole even though he's a physical monster.

 

Wilkins did average 5.6 yards per carry last year, which is pretty good for a back-up. 

 

This is correct, the way he fumbled was really bad.  It wasn't because someone got a good shot on the ball, it was because he was just holding the ball too loose.

[DerekDiggler]

On 3/28/2019 at 1:45 AM, DarkSuperman said:

The Colts do not need to add another RB behind the three guys they have already. I feel like a lot of people are sleeping on Wilkins. But, I would love a guy like Ajayi because he brings a different running style to our offense. Mack, Ajayi, Wilkins, and Hines, would be amazing.

No he doesn’t.    He is a better receiving version of Mack.  Which is a great thing. We won’t miss a beat of Mack gets hurt 

[Valpo2004]

9 hours ago, DerekDiggler said:

No he doesn’t.    He is a better receiving version of Mack.  Which is a great thing. We won’t miss a beat of Mack gets hurt 

 

Also allows us to keep the RB's fresh for the end of the game. 

[chad72]

10 minutes ago, Valpo2004 said:

 

Also allows us to keep the RB's fresh for the end of the game. 

 

Like in the mock draft we are running, this forum's fans better pray Josh Jacobs does not drop to No.59 (might even be BPA at No.34 on their board if he is there) and give Ballard a dilemma. This board is going to be whiny, yes, very whiny, if that happens i.e. Ballard choosing an RB. Hopefully, the best outcome that satisfies everyone is that he can get both of the Eagles' 2nd rounders (53 and 57) for Josh Jacobs if he is there at No.34. 

[crazycolt1]

14 minutes ago, chad72 said:

 

Like in the mock draft we are running, this forum's fans better pray Josh Jacobs does not drop to No.59 (might even be BPA at No.34 on their board if he is there) and give Ballard a dilemma. This board is going to be whiny, yes, very whiny, if that happens i.e. Ballard choosing an RB. Hopefully, the best outcome that satisfies everyone is that he can get both of the Eagles' 2nd rounders (53 and 57) for Josh Jacobs if he is there at No.34. 

We already know this are going to be whiny, very whiny. It always is.

[stitches]

 

[NewColtsFan]

Here’s the funny thing about young players, especially rookies.   They have this odd tendency to get better.

 

The game will slow down.  What coaches say will make more sense.   They will gave another off season of camp and practices and they will get better.

 

And the idea that on a team with tons of very young players we have a coach that won’t like a player because of two fumbles is getting a bit carried away.  We’ve literally seen what happens when a coach isn’t what Frank Reich wants.  They get fired.  

 

Now...  if Wilkins or Hines still has a problem this year,  that’s another story.  But let’s at least wait until we see for sure if we have a problem before the jury comes back with a guilty verdict. 

 

Just a thought.

 

[BOTT]

On 3/26/2019 at 10:55 PM, richard pallo said:

I am of the opinion the FO will pull the trigger on a highly rated RB if he's the BPA on their board.     I wouldn't rule it out at all.  Reich's comments today and our interest in Ajai pretty much signal they are open to upgrading the RB group. 

Kicking on the tires on a rb coming off acl surgery doesn't signal much at all.  Colts may draft a rb but it won't be with a premium pick.

On 3/27/2019 at 1:33 PM, richard pallo said:

TBH I'm more concerned with our RB group than I am with our WR group.  Funchess is going to turn out to be a great addition IMO.  I think Cain is going to come back healthy and pick up where he left off.  Inman would strengthen it more if he returns.  The RB group is one Mack injury away of being nothing to get excited about.  If Mack gets injured again we drop off significantly.  I think Reich know's it and that's why he feels we need to upgrade the group.  I don't see this current group getting us to a top 5 or 10 running game.  I don't see Mack going 16 games without missing significant time.  I hope I'm wrong but his history speaks for itself.  

Can we stop acting as though Mack has two reconstructed knees?  He missed  time last year with a hamstring.

[Four2itus]

2 hours ago, chad72 said:

 

Like in the mock draft we are running, this forum's fans better pray Josh Jacobs does not drop to No.59 (might even be BPA at No.34 on their board if he is there) and give Ballard a dilemma. This board is going to be whiny, yes, very whiny, if that happens i.e. Ballard choosing an RB. Hopefully, the best outcome that satisfies everyone is that he can get both of the Eagles' 2nd rounders (53 and 57) for Josh Jacobs if he is there at No.34. 

That would be a great move considering the 700-560 trade value differential.

[Four2itus]

21 minutes ago, stitches said:

 

B..B..but I thought Anthony was an average tackle? 

[NewColtsFan]

18 minutes ago, stitches said:

 

Left tackle?    LEFT TACKLE?!?    That’s impossible!   Everyone knows that’s where Anthony Costanzo plays and everyone knows that he SUCKS!   He hasn’t even been to a Pro Bowl!!

 

Thus can’t be true!   This has to be false!   Oh...   it’s PFF and they suck!  

[chad72]

23 minutes ago, stitches said:

 

 

That left side of the line, I am sure AC is an overrated bum!!!  

[BOTT]

2 hours ago, chad72 said:

 

Like in the mock draft we are running, this forum's fans better pray Josh Jacobs does not drop to No.59 (might even be BPA at No.34 on their board if he is there) and give Ballard a dilemma. This board is going to be whiny, yes, very whiny, if that happens i.e. Ballard choosing an RB. Hopefully, the best outcome that satisfies everyone is that he can get both of the Eagles' 2nd rounders (53 and 57) for Josh Jacobs if he is there at No.34. 

Well, you traded down and just missed out on Parris Campbell at 46 to draft a slow butt rb at 49.  That would be gross.

[chad72]

Just now, BOTT said:

Well, you traded down and just missed out on Parris Campbell at 46 to draft a slow butt rb at 49.  That would be gross.

 

Yep, I guess everyone thinks like you. I know where you stand!!!

[stitches]

2 minutes ago, Four2itus said:

B..B..but I thought Anthony was an average tackle? 

 

2 minutes ago, NewColtsFan said:

Left tackle?    LEFT TACKLE?!?    That’s impossible!   Everyone knows that’s where Anthony Costanzo plays and everyone knows that he SUCKS!   He hasn’t even been to a Pro Bowl!!

 

Thus can’t be true!   This has to be false!   Oh...   it’s PFF and they suck!  

 

2 minutes ago, chad72 said:

 

That left side of the line, I am sure AC is an overrated bum!!!  

 

That whole left side of the line is spectacular, especially in run blocking. But I have to point out that this is Marlon Mack's grade specifically. It's his grading given what his line provided for him. In a way you can say Mack is better than other backs in using good blocking, not necessarily that the blocking itself gave him this high of a grade. I don't know if I make sense... 

[Four2itus]

3 minutes ago, chad72 said:

 

That left side of the line, I am sure AC is an overrated bum!!!  

Shhhhh, some fans now have to acknowledge that either Mack, or Castonzo is the real deal. 

 

You're going to really upset them.....

[BOTT]

3 minutes ago, chad72 said:

 

Yep, I guess everyone thinks like you. I know where you stand!!!

Just in case my vomit gif didn't make that clear, I wanted to clarify lol

[chad72]

3 minutes ago, Four2itus said:

Shhhhh, some fans now have to acknowledge that either Mack, or Castonzo is the real deal. 

 

You're going to really upset them.....

 

If the coaches wanted him gone, he'd be gone now. Now, if we extend him, I bet there will be other folks chiming in to complain. Can't please everyone on the forum.  

[NewColtsFan]

56 minutes ago, stitches said:

 

 

 

That whole left side of the line is spectacular, especially in run blocking. But I have to point out that this is Marlon Mack's grade specifically. It's his grading given what his line provided for him. In a way you can say Mack is better than other backs in using good blocking, not necessarily that the blocking itself gave him this high of a grade. I don't know if I make sense... 

Mack isn’t successful over left tackle if AC isn’t very good at his job.  If that’s what you’re saying,  then I’m with you. 

[Chucklez]

Where is this hating on Castonzo coming from? He has been an above average left tackle for us and we have had him on what can be considered a pretty decent deal compared to his output for quite some time now. Careful what you wish for, the grass isnt always greener.

 

Not to mention.... some of you have the memory of a goldfish.... remember when AC was the best player on our O-line? It wasnt all that long ago.... Count your blessings to be complaining about him as the weak link.