Top 10 2019 Rookie Classes: Colts at #8

[Caleb3502]

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000001071509/article/top-10-2019-rookie-classes-jaguars-raiders-newbies-thrive

 

8) Indianapolis Colts

 

Speedy second-round wide receiver Parris Campbell has a bright future, but his much-awaited impact has been waylaid by hamstring and abdominal injuries. The Colts' defense, on the other hand, has benefited from a handful of rookies filling in for injured starters. Second-round cornerback Rock Ya-Sin and fourth-round safety Khari Willis have become mainstays in a secondary that offers more size and physicality than previous iterations. Fifth-round pick Marvell Tell entered the rotation last week, pushing veteran Quincy Wilson to the bench. Linebacker Bobby Okereke and edge rusher Ben Banogu have also generated game-changing plays for a fist-place Colts outfit exceeding expectations without Andrew Luck. This is a deep draft haul with a bright future.

[Pacergeek]

Writer loses credibility mentioning Rock Ya-Sin, whom is terrible. Pretty good take otherwise though. 

[DougDew]

I agree with the write-up.  

 

I can't keep up with other teams' rookie class to opine on the rank.

 

[DougDew]

7 minutes ago, Pacergeek said:

Writer loses credibility mentioning Rock Ya-Sin, whom is terrible. Pretty good take otherwise though. 

To be fair, he didn't really say he was good.  He said he was becoming a mainstay in a secondary that is bigger and more physical than in the past, LOL.

[shasta519]

I don't give as much credence to rankings like this...because they can look quite different in a couple of seasons. But it seems like after the first three or so teams...who have Pro Bowl level rookies on the field...it's about 15-20 teams vying for the next few spots.

 

I also feel like GB would be in that top team tier as well...if Gary wasn't stuck behind the Smithes. Savage is a stud...and Jenkins has been very good. Having your top 3 rookies all on the field and performing well is about as good as it gets (as Colts fans learned last season).

[Calmack]

24 minutes ago, DougDew said:

To be fair, he didn't really say he was good.  He said he was becoming a mainstay in a secondary that is bigger and more physical than in the past, LOL.

Definitely physcial *ahem* grabby... I'll give him that 

[NewColtsFan]

1 hour ago, Pacergeek said:

Writer loses credibility mentioning Rock Ya-Sin, whom is terrible. Pretty good take otherwise though. 

Nobody thought Rock was terrible until last week. 
 

And you should not attack anyone else’s credibility.    Ever.   Seriously. 

[twfish]

10 minutes ago, NewColtsFan said:

Nobody thought Rock was terrible until last week. 
 

And you should not attack anyone else’s credibility.    Ever.   Seriously. 

He's just a troll, always has been. But seriously one bad game so far as a rookie covering their #1 receiver for the first time. I don't understand peoples realistic expectations any how.

[MPStack]

Bump this thread backup in three years. 

[OffensivelyPC]

1 hour ago, NewColtsFan said:

Nobody thought Rock was terrible until last week. 
 

And you should not attack anyone else’s credibility.    Ever.   Seriously. 

I'm pretty sure people just go and look at his PFF rating and say "he's been good/bad."  I had checked Rock's PFF score (before the Texans game) and I don't remember exactly what it was, but I feel like it was in the mid-60's.  I checked again after the Broncos game and it dropped to it's current 48.4. 

 

In two games, it dropped substantially, and I'm pretty sure that's the reason why people's opinions have all the sudden changed.  It's clear his last game was pretty bad, between penalties and just getting beat.  Maybe it's recency bias or lazy film review, but nobody should be acting like he's been all bad all year.  He hasn't and wouldn't be out there if he were.

[Valpo2004]

Rock has clear potential but he still makes some rookie mistakes.

 

Campbell has done everything asked of him, just not much has been asked of him at the moment.  Really hurts to miss reps in camp your rookie year.  

 

Willis appears to be pushing Geathers out of the starting lineup

 

Okereke did well when starting while Leonard was out under concussion protocol.  

 

Banogu has came up with a couple sacks.  

[csmopar]

2 hours ago, Pacergeek said:

Writer loses credibility mentioning Rock Ya-Sin, whom is terrible. Pretty good take otherwise though. 

he's actually not been too bad considering hes a rookie often guarding the team's number 1 WRs... 

[Myles]

45 minutes ago, Valpo2004 said:

Rock has clear potential but he still makes some rookie mistakes.

 

Campbell has done everything asked of him, just not much has been asked of him at the moment.  Really hurts to miss reps in camp your rookie year.  

 

Willis appears to be pushing Geathers out of the starting lineup

 

Okereke did well when starting while Leonard was out under concussion protocol.  

 

Banogu has came up with a couple sacks.  

Yep, that's why I won't really question these rankings.   However, the Colts draft is still pretty much running off of potential.   Probably the same with most teams.   Exceptions maybe Bosa, Lawrence and McLaurin as well as a couple others.

[il vecchio]

Where do the Colts rank with the 2018 class?  Must be higher than #8.

[Yoshinator]

1 hour ago, il vecchio said:

Where do the Colts rank with the 2018 class?  Must be higher than #8.

We are no1 in 2018 with Nelson, Leonard, and Braden Smith alone. The rest of the class just adds to it.

[DerekDiggler]

10 hours ago, csmopar said:

he's actually not been too bad considering hes a rookie often guarding the team's number 1 WRs... 

WHAT??????  they are only the other teams number one receivers when Rock is guarding them

 

He does not take the 1's .       

 

In his defense he's a rook .   and hes gonna get picked on.   

 

Think about it this way.    If Manning were the opposing QB   who would he target against our D?    YEP .  Rock

 

 

[TyTheGhost13]

I think the last half of the season will tell us much more than we know now. Patience on the Rock criticism 

[EastStreet]

10 hours ago, Valpo2004 said:

Rock has clear potential but he still makes some rookie mistakes.

I'm OK with most of the mistakes he's making because they're all coachable. He's leading all CBs in Ts. He's also been asked to do a lot for a rook.

 

Quote

Campbell has done everything asked of him, just not much has been asked of him at the moment.  Really hurts to miss reps in camp your rookie year

Hate all the time he's lost in TC and in the season. He's 10 of 14 so far in pretty shallow targets, which is a very decent catch rate. But yes, it's all about potential here, not production.

 

Quote

Willis appears to be pushing Geathers out of the starting lineup

Really happy with Willis. He was not one of my favorite draft picks. Tied with Geathers in Ts, but they did decrease his snaps vs Denver. Geathers had twice the snaps of Willis. I know Willis went out in the third (foot), but seemed like Geathers was playing as much as Willis before he got hurt. They were on the field together several times and I think even combine for a tackle. That penalty on Willis that negated the Banogu sack close to our goal line really hurt. Thank god we still held them to a FG that series.

 

Quote

Okereke did well when starting while Leonard was out under concussion protocol.  

He's been asked to do a lot, but he's been a detriment vs the run. I just don't see him developing into a 3 down MLB. I do like him vs the pass though. They used him at SAM a bit this last week which I thought was interesting.

 

Quote

Banogu has came up with a couple sacks. 

I hate that we lost Turay, but I really like that Banogu is getting more experience. He got almost 50% of the D snaps last week. He's probably getting more "me" time with Houston. 

 

To add, Tell was in for half the D snaps last week (we played a lot of 3 CB sets even though we played a lot of 3 S sets). I don't recall any big mistakes. 

 

 

[Myles]

8 hours ago, DerekDiggler said:

WHAT??????  they are only the other teams number one receivers when Rock is guarding them

 

He does not take the 1's .       

 

In his defense he's a rook .   and hes gonna get picked on.   

 

Think about it this way.    If Manning were the opposing QB   who would he target against our D?    YEP .  Rock

 

 

He did against Denver.

[Pacergeek]

How is being a Rookie any excuse for Rock holding every single time? He had 5 penalties, but it could have easily been 10. For a 2nd round pick, you expect much better fundamentals. He isn't a potential guy we took a flyer on late in the draft. 

 

Also, Ballard made it seem like Rock was a steal to fall in the second round. Seems like Ballard is using a Grigson tactic, forcing a high pick to play when they are not ready or good.

[Myles]

20 minutes ago, Pacergeek said:

How is being a Rookie any excuse for Rock holding every single time? He had 5 penalties, but it could have easily been 10. For a 2nd round pick, you expect much better fundamentals. He isn't a potential guy we took a flyer on late in the draft. 

 

Also, Ballard made it seem like Rock was a steal to fall in the second round. Seems like Ballard is using a Grigson tactic, forcing a high pick to play when they are not ready or good.

I agree that he hasn't looked good.   I put most of it on the coaches.

From his pre draft assessment:

Body-beautiful cornerback with good size and potential, but just one year of FBS football experience. Ya-Sin needs technique work across the board, but the ability to handle the duties of the position are all in place and waiting to be unlocked. He has the strength, toughness and feet to go from shadowing presence to a more disruptive one as a press-man corner.

 

Draft Projection

Rounds 1-2

 

I still think Ballard did good with him.  He just needs some coaching.  He only played 1 year of Division 1 college ball.  

[AZColt11]

8 hours ago, EastStreet said:

He's been asked to do a lot, but he's been a detriment vs the run. I just don't see him developing into a 3 down MLB. I do like him vs the pass though. They used him at SAM a bit this last week which I thought was interesting.

I like it and hope to see more of it.  I think we should try to get our best 3 LB's on the field together, which they are obviously doing, and make our defense that much more stout.  Leonard, Walker, and Okereke is a pretty good combo IMHO.

[csmopar]

9 hours ago, DerekDiggler said:

WHAT??????  they are only the other teams number one receivers when Rock is guarding them

 

He does not take the 1's .       

 

In his defense he's a rook .   and hes gonna get picked on.   

 

Think about it this way.    If Manning were the opposing QB   who would he target against our D?    YEP .  Rock

 

 

with Desir out, he's the number 1 CB... he's been playing guys like Hokpins and such.

[EastStreet]

1 hour ago, AZColt11 said:

I like it and hope to see more of it.  I think we should try to get our best 3 LB's on the field together, which they are obviously doing, and make our defense that much more stout.  Leonard, Walker, and Okereke is a pretty good combo IMHO.

I'm with you on both accounts.

 

I also think Speed could develop with some time as well. Very raw but has the athleticism. 

[WarGhost21]

What so many people in here are failing to put prominence to is that these are all rookies. They will have there lumps, they are going to struggle sometimes when given tough assignments, and you can't expect them to do everything perfectly. When you look at rookies, you can't just look at all the negatives of their play. If anything, look at everything they have done well, and leave out the negatives. Those positives will be more insightful as to how they will play in years to come, as many of the negatives will soon slide off as they get into the next few years of play. It's crazy to label them as failures after just 7 games of play, even fewer for some of them. They need time, and we need to be able to give that to them without becoming so upset.

[Stephen]

4 hours ago, Pacergeek said:

How is being a Rookie any excuse for Rock holding every single time? He had 5 penalties, but it could have easily been 10. For a 2nd round pick, you expect much better fundamentals. He isn't a potential guy we took a flyer on late in the draft. 

 

Also, Ballard made it seem like Rock was a steal to fall in the second round. Seems like Ballard is using a Grigson tactic, forcing a high pick to play when they are not ready or good.

Rather he get the penalties  than give up a long td

[Mr.NotSoCreative]

On 11/1/2019 at 8:09 AM, Pacergeek said:

How is being a Rookie any excuse for Rock holding every single time? He had 5 penalties, but it could have easily been 10. For a 2nd round pick, you expect much better fundamentals. He isn't a potential guy we took a flyer on late in the draft. 

 

Also, Ballard made it seem like Rock was a steal to fall in the second round. Seems like Ballard is using a Grigson tactic, forcing a high pick to play when they are not ready or good.

These guys have to play. CB is hording draft picks to use these guys, not to use as capital to trade for veteren FA. It is risky but he is counting on his staff to build them up. Willis has met the challenge imo. Rock is on his way also, heck with exception of maybe Desir, he was our best corner on our squad the moment he signed up. If you want to look at a rook that was a high pick based on potential, it was Campbell. Has he disappointed to this point? Sure, but he now has an opportunity to change that narrative. Lets evaluate them after a full season, my guess we rank higher up. Will also note, we didn't draft in the first round.

[John Hammonds]

On 10/31/2019 at 10:37 AM, Caleb3502 said:

http://www.nfl.com/news/story/0ap3000001071509/article/top-10-2019-rookie-classes-jaguars-raiders-newbies-thrive

 

8) Indianapolis Colts

 

Speedy second-round wide receiver Parris Campbell has a bright future, but his much-awaited impact has been waylaid by hamstring and abdominal injuries. The Colts' defense, on the other hand, has benefited from a handful of rookies filling in for injured starters. Second-round cornerback Rock Ya-Sin and fourth-round safety Khari Willis have become mainstays in a secondary that offers more size and physicality than previous iterations. Fifth-round pick Marvell Tell entered the rotation last week, pushing veteran Quincy Wilson to the bench. Linebacker Bobby Okereke and edge rusher Ben Banogu have also generated game-changing plays for a fist-place Colts outfit exceeding expectations without Andrew Luck. This is a deep draft haul with a bright future.

I was very happy with with this draft.  And CB showed he knew what he was doing -- again.

 

He knew that QW, despite his new-found insights into be a pro last year, was still lagging in developing into a true starter.  Thus, Rock Ya-Sin.  He knew that Geathers' production was probably not going to equal the hype he was getting while he was injured.  Thus, Khari Willis.  He knew (as all of us did) that he needed help with the receiving corps.  Thus, Parris Campbell.  He knew that he needed more twitch at the aging DE position.  Thus, Ben Banogu.

 

My only issues with this draft was that we did not select a big DT replacement for Al Woods, and that my favorite player in the draft, Joe Jackson, was still available when we selected Marvell Tell.  But I think CB knocked it out of the park.  Again.

[GoColts8818]

Banogu has flown under the radar in terms of having a nice rookie season.  He hasn’t been spectacular but he gets to the QB and is around the QB when he gets a chance to play.  I look forward to seeing what he does in the second half of the season and if takes advantage of the chance he’s getting with Turey out.

[GoColts8818]

On 11/1/2019 at 12:17 AM, TyTheGhost13 said:

I think the last half of the season will tell us much more than we know now. Patience on the Rock criticism 

People are over reacting to last week when he was forced into a situation he wasn’t ready for due to injuries.  

[ColtStrong2013]

On 10/31/2019 at 10:44 AM, Pacergeek said:

Writer loses credibility mentioning Rock Ya-Sin, whom is terrible. Pretty good take otherwise though. 

 

Ironic.

 

Credibility: the quality of being trusted and believed in... 

 

Something you don't have much of around here.