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Moosejawcolt

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12 hours ago, needanoline63 said:

Ummm we have no recievers outside of Hilton, we need two new defensive tackles,a edge rusher, and an elite corner. He’s failed to address that area

You must think that every team is full of pro bowlers. Aside from the passing game, our units are all above average. It's a balancing act. There's only so many early draft slots a team gets. 

 

WR - we signed Funch to upgrade X, and drafted Campbell to upgrade slot/Z.

DT - this is an area I wished we would have addressed last year instead of trading back. That said, we've still done very good against the run.

Edge - We did sign Houston and draft Banogu. 

Corner - We just gave Moore a nice contract, and drafted Ya-Sin early. Desire was expected to be better.

 

In short, Ballard has made substantial attempts to upgrade each position you list except DT, which I agree he should have did more. 

 

If you're big on upgrading the most deficient position, then QB would #1 for the next draft, as we took the biggest step back in terms of unit performance there without a doubt.

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12 hours ago, deedub75 said:

 

No one is psychic here.  You can name who we would have beaten all you want but it means absolutely nothing.  That's why they play the games.  I don't look at games that way in the NFL.  

 

Even if this team would have been the most talented team Luck would have played with, it's not by much and it is not talented enough.  Ballard said he was building a team that didn't totally rely on a QB to win.  So far he hasn't done this and it's obvious because everyone keeps saying we'd be 13-0 or 11-2 right now with Luck.   

You're being a bit disingenuous and anecdotal here. You don't have to be the Amazing Kreskin to predict most of the outcomes this year. Last year was the first year with both a great OL and running game when things settled down after the first third of the season.  Both of those units are still great. And Luck did very well with the same guys that were available most of the year.

 

When Ballard say he wants to build a team that can win regardless of QB, he doesn't mean he's good with a QB that is bad to horrible in most metrics, and only mediocre in a few.  He means he doesn't want a team that is 100% reliant on the QB winning every single game like we did during Luck's tenure, and a lot of Mannings.

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21 minutes ago, EastStreet said:

You must think that every team is full of pro bowlers. Aside from the passing game, our units are all above average. It's a balancing act. There's only so many early draft slots a team gets. 

 

WR - we signed Funch to upgrade X, and drafted Campbell to upgrade slot/Z.

DT - this is an area I wished we would have addressed last year instead of trading back. That said, we've still done very good against the run.

Edge - We did sign Houston and draft Banogu. 

Corner - We just gave Moore a nice contract, and drafted Ya-Sin early. Desire was expected to be better.

 

In short, Ballard has made substantial attempts to upgrade each position you list except DT, which I agree he should have did more. 

 

If you're big on upgrading the most deficient position, then QB would #1 for the next draft, as we took the biggest step back in terms of unit performance there without a doubt.

I was banging the drum when Simmons slid in the draft.  Go up and get him I was screaming.  He is a top 5 pick and a game changing DT is what this D needs.  Then the Titans got him.  The rumour is that the Colts wanted him and then traded out when the Titans picked him

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legit only thing you can blame ballard for is not spending $..coaches game plan is atrocious in the second half of games/ Qb is stuck on reading “one” receiver/ flus is in love with the “Basic zone” where we play 10-12 yards off and when the play starts everyone backpedals further back instead of contesting and knocking guys off thier route many of our games lost were close games..so talent is obviously there blame the correct people 

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11 hours ago, DougDew said:

What a fun thread.  So many apologists making no sense.  I like the way @EastStreet deflected the thread right off the mark.

 

Evidence suggests that if we had a healthy Luck, that the team's record would be just like it was when we've always had a healthy Luck.  13 and 3, 11 and 5; contending for the division or winning it, possibly playing in the AFCCG; just like in the past.  So the question, where would we be with Luck?  The answer: Pretty much where we always were with Luck.

 

Of course, @Moosejawcolt your statement highlights the problem.  Its not where would we be with Luck.  That's irrelevant.  

 

When Luck was hurt, or, not playing at all, the statements were "look how much Luck carries this roster"  as a support for a mob-ish narrative.

 

We now have JB, a lesser QB.  I'll say (but nobody else has the nerve)

 

"Look how much Luck carried this roster"

 

LOL.  In the past, it was said about 550 times in 2 years.  I just said it now.  I've got 549 more times to say it.

 

What a fun thread.

LOL. You're as anecdotal as ever, and blind to the improvements that were made to help take the O and team to another level.

 

This year, we've had the the best and healthiest OL we've had in quite some time. We've also had the best running attack we've had in quite some time.

 

When's the last time we've been able to say, "look how much the running game is carrying us", with top 5ish results instead of bottom 10 or 15ish like in 2017 or 2016.....

 

Or "isn't it nice to have the 26th most sacked QB" instead of the 1st most like in 2017, or 2nd most in 2016... That's even with JB's bottom 5 worst time to throw.

 

Those are absolutely huge improvements over the last couple years that would have allowed the O to go to a new level with a capable QB. Saying otherwise is disingenuous and pure trollish. But it's you, so kind of expected.

 

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On 12/8/2019 at 7:51 PM, EastStreet said:

 

Because we'd be 13-0 likely if we had Luck. I'm not a Ballard worshiper, but this isn't on him. He's upgraded or made solid attempts to upgrade every unit after inheriting what was mostly a dumpster fire in terms of depth and talent.

 

Even the JB fan club knows this boils down to the change of QB.

 

Not saying we don't need upgrades in several areas, but who here thinks we're not at least at 11-2 had Luck not left and playing for a 1 seed right now, even with all the injuries.

 

On 12/8/2019 at 7:55 PM, CanuckColt said:

Maybe not 11-2, but we would be leading the division with a healthy Andrew.

 

We could be 11-2 if our kicking game didn't lose at least 5 games for us this year.... I think Luck is a better QB than Brissett, but I think Brissett has kept us in every game he has played, and has given us a good chance at winning all but 1 game.  Vinatieri is the GOAT in terms of kickers, maybe he was hurt all year, or maybe he should've hung up the cleats... but he lost us several games this year.  The new guy missed one yesterday and we lost by 3.  

 

On 12/8/2019 at 8:05 PM, GoColts8818 said:

I think Ballard will ultimately be judged on what he does or doesn’t do this off-season.  Namely at the QB position.  Most give him a pass right now because there wasn’t much he could do two weeks before the season at that position beyond what he’s done.  This off-season he has to find “the guy” rather it’s Jacoby or someone else.  If he’s right he’s going to be praised.  If he’s wrong it will probably ultimately lead to him being fired.

 

I don't think he's getting fired after next year.  He inherited a very poor team and we have gotten much better with almost a complete roster overhaul.

 

On 12/8/2019 at 8:06 PM, Pelt said:

The guy was building the team with the understanding that Luck was going to be his QB.

 

But Luck screwed the team over 2 weeks before the season opener, which has thrown the trajectory of this build off by a decent margin. 

 

He's had to (Along with the rest of us) sit back and see what he had with Brissett going forward. 

 

And knowing I'm just guessing here, I would say that Ballard going to see Love play recently tells me he's near the same ballpark in being as satisfied with Brissett's play as the rest of us are.

 

I don't think Luck 'screwed the team over.'  He obviously had a worse injury than the media was reporting.  He's already had a lacerated kidney, nearly had a shoulder injury end his career, and who knows what other kinds of injuries.

 

As I stated above, Brissett has played well enough to give us a shot to win all but 1 game.  He can't control our kickers missing FGs and extra-points.  He's had a good season overall.  He rarely turns the ball over and he is doing well, especially considering TY's been out, Parris Campbell has missed significant time, Funchess has missed basically the whole season, Ebron is now out (and had a lot of drops), etc. etc...  if you look at it, our #1 WR right now is a 2nd year guy who was undrafted (Pascal).  

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6 minutes ago, CurBeatElite said:

 

 

We could be 11-2 if our kicking game didn't lose at least 5 games for us this year.... I think Luck is a better QB than Brissett, but I think Brissett has kept us in every game he has played, and has given us a good chance at winning all but 1 game.  Vinatieri is the GOAT in terms of kickers, maybe he was hurt all year, or maybe he should've hung up the cleats... but he lost us several games this year.  The new guy missed one yesterday and we lost by 3.  

 

 

I don't think he's getting fired after next year.  He inherited a very poor team and we have gotten much better with almost a complete roster overhaul.

 

 

I don't think Luck 'screwed the team over.'  He obviously had a worse injury than the media was reporting.  He's already had a lacerated kidney, nearly had a shoulder injury end his career, and who knows what other kinds of injuries.

 

As I stated above, Brissett has played well enough to give us a shot to win all but 1 game.  He can't control our kickers missing FGs and extra-points.  He's had a good season overall.  He rarely turns the ball over and he is doing well, especially considering TY's been out, Parris Campbell has missed significant time, Funchess has missed basically the whole season, Ebron is now out (and had a lot of drops), etc. etc...  if you look at it, our #1 WR right now is a 2nd year guy who was undrafted (Pascal).  

I am not saying he will get fired next year.  I am saying If he picks the QB wrong (which he will probably do this off-season) it’s going to lead to him ultimately getting fired.  I’d be shocked if that was next year.

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2 minutes ago, GoColts8818 said:

I am not saying he will get fired next year.  I am saying If he picks the QB wrong (which he will probably do this off-season) it’s going to lead to him ultimately getting fired.  I’d be shocked if that was next year.

 

I don't know that a QB anywhere near Luck's caliber will be available next year (unless Luck comes out of retirement).  I imagine we'll be sticking with Jacoby and giving him another year with hopefully more weapons (weather it means our current guys get healthy or he drafts/signs another WR or two).

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13 hours ago, DougDew said:

The answer: Pretty much where we always were with Luck.

 

The fact that we would probably be in playoff-contention with Luck speaks to how great of a QB Luck is/was.

 

13 hours ago, DougDew said:

When Luck was hurt, or, not playing at all, the statements were "look how much Luck carries this roster"  as a support for a mob-ish narrative.

 

The fact that we have 50% more wins than the last time we were without Luck (and aren't even done with the season) speaks to how good of a supporting cast Brissett has around him.

 

Yes, Luck was that good.

 

And yes, Ballard is doing that good of a job.

 

What a fun thread.  :D

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21 minutes ago, CurBeatElite said:

 

 

We could be 11-2 if our kicking game didn't lose at least 5 games for us this year.... I think Luck is a better QB than Brissett, but I think Brissett has kept us in every game he has played, and has given us a good chance at winning all but 1 game.  Vinatieri is the GOAT in terms of kickers, maybe he was hurt all year, or maybe he should've hung up the cleats... but he lost us several games this year.  The new guy missed one yesterday and we lost by 3.  

 

 

I don't think he's getting fired after next year.  He inherited a very poor team and we have gotten much better with almost a complete roster overhaul.

 

 

I don't think Luck 'screwed the team over.'  He obviously had a worse injury than the media was reporting.  He's already had a lacerated kidney, nearly had a shoulder injury end his career, and who knows what other kinds of injuries.

 

As I stated above, Brissett has played well enough to give us a shot to win all but 1 game.  He can't control our kickers missing FGs and extra-points.  He's had a good season overall.  He rarely turns the ball over and he is doing well, especially considering TY's been out, Parris Campbell has missed significant time, Funchess has missed basically the whole season, Ebron is now out (and had a lot of drops), etc. etc...  if you look at it, our #1 WR right now is a 2nd year guy who was undrafted (Pascal).  

In most stats, JB is horrible to bad, with a a few mediocre average ranks sprinkled in. If "doing enough to keep us in" is what you want from a QB, you should apply the same to all the other positions. 

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11 minutes ago, CurBeatElite said:

 

I don't know that a QB anywhere near Luck's caliber will be available next year (unless Luck comes out of retirement).  I imagine we'll be sticking with Jacoby and giving him another year with hopefully more weapons (weather it means our current guys get healthy or he drafts/signs another WR or two).

I highly doubt they are going to get a QB of Luck’s caliber.  However, I do think they draft one at some point this year.  If that guy or Jacoby doesn’t pan out it will ultimately lead to Ballard getting fired in my opinion.

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Is it just me, or is this forum getting more toxic?

 

I'm spending less and less time here because it seems like a lot of fans are developing stronger and stronger negative opinions without really knowing what they're talking about (other than "we're losing games"...)

 

What happened to all the intelligent football conversations?!?  :(

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2 minutes ago, EastStreet said:

In most stats, JB is horrible to bad, with a a few mediocre average ranks sprinkled in. If "doing enough to keep us in" is what you want from a QB, you should apply the same to all the other positions. 

 

He's thrown 6 INTs, only 3 other QBs who have played the same amount of games as Jacoby have less (Wilson, Cousins, Rodgers).  His completion rate is middle of the pack.  His yards are on the low end (but he's also had less throwing attempts than 23 other QBs).  His TDs are in the middle of the pack.  His RTG is middle of the pack.  His average yards per completion are low (but we haven't really seen many deep ball attempts, nor do we have any real deep ball receiving threats with TY having been hurt).  

 

None of his stats are 'horrible.'  He protects the ball better than almost any QB in the league.  Reich stated before the season that he would establish a run game, which for the most part he's done.  We throw less than most teams.  Brissett's top weapon for several weeks has been a 2nd year undrafted FA.  The 4 WR's everyone expected to be our 'stars' this year have not panned out (TY has been injured for several weeks and played where his injury was very obvious for at least one week, Funchess had a nice TD grab game one and got hurt, Campbell has been mostly hurt, and Cain got cut --- recently Ebron got put on IR).  

 

Luck relied on comebacks in many of his wins.  It was not like we were consistently blowing teams out when he was our QB.  He could win games by himself it seemed at times, but he also had a lot of his comebacks because of careless mistakes early in games (INTs).  Brissett rarely throws INTs (Luck had the 3rd most INTs in the league last year, Brissett has the 4th least).  If not for our kicking game alone, this team should have at least 9 wins (probably 11).  

 

Very few QBs in the NFL can consistently win games by themselves (this year we have Brees, L. Jackson and Rodgers who seem to be able to do it, maybe Wilson, maybe Brady though he's looked vulnerable the past several weeks).  Brissett has played well enough for us to be a 9-11 win team (he doesn't kick field goals or hold snaps).  

 

I don't think Brissett is better than Luck was, by any means.  I don't know for certain that Brissett is our future franchise QB.  However, I don't see many (if any) better options this offseason.  I think it's fair to give Brissett another year and hopefully see him improve with increased weapons (that'll involve TY healthy, Campbell healthy and with a bit more experience, and the addition of at least another very good WR and potentially improvements to the TE position).  

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4 minutes ago, CurBeatElite said:

 

He's thrown 6 INTs, only 3 other QBs who have played the same amount of games as Jacoby have less (Wilson, Cousins, Rodgers).  His completion rate is middle of the pack.  His yards are on the low end (but he's also had less throwing attempts than 23 other QBs).  His TDs are in the middle of the pack.  His RTG is middle of the pack.  His average yards per completion are low (but we haven't really seen many deep ball attempts, nor do we have any real deep ball receiving threats with TY having been hurt).  

 

None of his stats are 'horrible.'  He protects the ball better than almost any QB in the league.  Reich stated before the season that he would establish a run game, which for the most part he's done.  We throw less than most teams.  Brissett's top weapon for several weeks has been a 2nd year undrafted FA.  The 4 WR's everyone expected to be our 'stars' this year have not panned out (TY has been injured for several weeks and played where his injury was very obvious for at least one week, Funchess had a nice TD grab game one and got hurt, Campbell has been mostly hurt, and Cain got cut --- recently Ebron got put on IR).  

 

Luck relied on comebacks in many of his wins.  It was not like we were consistently blowing teams out when he was our QB.  He could win games by himself it seemed at times, but he also had a lot of his comebacks because of careless mistakes early in games (INTs).  Brissett rarely throws INTs (Luck had the 3rd most INTs in the league last year, Brissett has the 4th least).  If not for our kicking game alone, this team should have at least 9 wins (probably 11).  

 

Very few QBs in the NFL can consistently win games by themselves (this year we have Brees, L. Jackson and Rodgers who seem to be able to do it, maybe Wilson, maybe Brady though he's looked vulnerable the past several weeks).  Brissett has played well enough for us to be a 9-11 win team (he doesn't kick field goals or hold snaps).  

 

I don't think Brissett is better than Luck was, by any means.  I don't know for certain that Brissett is our future franchise QB.  However, I don't see many (if any) better options this offseason.  I think it's fair to give Brissett another year and hopefully see him improve with increased weapons (that'll involve TY healthy, Campbell healthy and with a bit more experience, and the addition of at least another very good WR and potentially improvements to the TE position).  

Below are stats pre TB that I listed in another thread... 

 

In the individual stats, he's got 2 bad, one horrible, one average, and one barely good (INT%). If you take into account his low attempts, he's not that great at all. QBR and AVG are the two best measurements overall for a QB IMO, and well, both bad... 

 

In short, I weigh a lot more on what he "does do" that's good (which is very little), rather than "what he doesn't do" that's bad (INT%).

 

Quote

 

Unit Performance (Layer 1 - Basic)
Pass O - 26th (BAD)
Rush O - 4th (ELITE
Pass D - 12th (GOOD)
Rush D - 9th (GOOD)
FG - 29th / XP - 32nd (HORRIBLE)
P - 17th (AVERAGE)
KR - 16th (AVERAGE)
PR - 3rd (ELITE)

 

Other Performance (Layer 2)
OFFENSE
OL POWER - 7th (GOOD)
OL SACK - 11th (GOOD)
QBR - 22nd (BAD)
QB CMP% - 17th (AVERAGE)
QB AVG - 24th (BAD)
TIME TO THROW - 28th (HORRIBLE)
QB INT% - 12th (GOOD/Barely)
RB AVG - 14th (AVERAGE)
RB FUM - 4th (ELITE)
 

DEFENSE
DL POWER - 32nd (HORRIBLE)
DL STUFF - 5th (ELITE)
SACK - 17th (AVERAGE)
QB PRES - 17th (AVERAGE)
INT - 21st (BAD)

 

Rating Tiers
1-5 Elite
6-12 Good
13-20 Average
21-27 Bad
28-32 Horrible

 


 

 

 

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2 hours ago, EastStreet said:

Below are stats pre TB that I listed in another thread... 

 

In the individual stats, he's got 2 bad, one horrible, one average, and one barely good (INT%). If you take into account his low attempts, he's not that great at all. QBR and AVG are the two best measurements overall for a QB IMO, and well, both bad... 

 

In short, I weigh a lot more on what he "does do" that's good (which is very little), rather than "what he doesn't do" that's bad (INT%).

 


 

 

 

 

Never called him great... just saying he's played well enough for us to win just about every week.  While his time to throw is high, he's the 26th least sacked QB in the league.  I know he's missed a few reads throughout the season, but he's not turning the ball over or taking many sacks.  I think it's worth keeping in mind that after Campbell went to IR,  we currently have three TEs who were all undrafted free agents in the past, and one healthy WR who was drafted (in the 3rd round by AZ in 2017, Chad Williams), the rest are UDFAs until TY gets healthy.  He's not really surrounded with much talent to get the ball to when he's not handing it off.  

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Looking at Ballards term as GM it most certainly hasn’t been easy,

 

his first year coming in has to keep a HC he didn’t want and had to deal with Lucks injury. 
 

then in The second year but his first full offseason. He loses his first selection for  head coach and has to find a new one late in the process. 
 

Now in his third season he loses his franchise QB right before the season starts and has 4 WRs on IR (Funchess, Rogers, Campbell, Fountain)

 

Dude hasn’t caught a break lol

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6 hours ago, Lucky Colts Fan said:

Is it just me, or is this forum getting more toxic?

 

I'm spending less and less time here because it seems like a lot of fans are developing stronger and stronger negative opinions without really knowing what they're talking about (other than "we're losing games"...)

 

What happened to all the intelligent football conversations?!?  :(

 

It's not you... I have avoided it largely over the last few weeks. My life is too busy and hectic to get worked up over nonsense. 

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9 hours ago, EastStreet said:

You're being a bit disingenuous and anecdotal here. You don't have to be the Amazing Kreskin to predict most of the outcomes this year. Last year was the first year with both a great OL and running game when things settled down after the first third of the season.  Both of those units are still great. And Luck did very well with the same guys that were available most of the year.

 

When Ballard say he wants to build a team that can win regardless of QB, he doesn't mean he's good with a QB that is bad to horrible in most metrics, and only mediocre in a few.  He means he doesn't want a team that is 100% reliant on the QB winning every single game like we did during Luck's tenure, and a lot of Mannings.


I’m not being disingenuous at all. Only speaking the truth. Luck has lost his share of games that most thought he’d easily win. The Jags at their worst have gotten him on a few occasions. I don’t subscribe to revisionist history. 

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In early August, the Colts were the 5th best odds to win the Super Bowl.   That is how far Ballard had brought us until Luck quit.   

I haven't seen a Colts team this good in a long time.   Great O-line.   Good RB group.  Good TE group of Doyle Ebron and Cox.  Good WR group of Hilton, Funchess, Campbell, Pascal, Rogers and Fountain.  A much improved defense that is right in the middle in YPG and PPG despite having a poor passing offense.  

This team would be in the hunt for a 1st round bye with Luck or another good QB.

 

Ballard has done great.  Think about how thin and poor this team was when he took over.   

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49 minutes ago, Myles said:

In early August, the Colts were the 5th best odds to win the Super Bowl.   That is how far Ballard had brought us until Luck quit.   

I haven't seen a Colts team this good in a long time.   Great O-line.   Good RB group.  Good TE group of Doyle Ebron and Cox.  Good WR group of Hilton, Funchess, Campbell, Pascal, Rogers and Fountain.  A much improved defense that is right in the middle in YPG and PPG despite having a poor passing offense.  

This team would be in the hunt for a 1st round bye with Luck or another good QB.

 

Ballard has done great.  Think about how thin and poor this team was when he took over.   

 

Those early odds to win the Super Bowl were based on Luck being there and not how good the odds makers thought the team was.  Colts had around 15-1 to win the SB with Luck.  Immediately after he retired those odds plummeted to around 50-1 without Luck.  

 

In addition, the Colts were hands down favorites to win the division with Luck but those odds plummeted after Luck retired.  Our win total also from 9.5 to 6.5.  

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4 hours ago, Zoltan said:

Looking at Ballards term as GM it most certainly hasn’t been easy,

 

his first year coming in has to keep a HC he didn’t want and had to deal with Lucks injury. 
 

then in The second year but his first full offseason. He loses his first selection for  head coach and has to find a new one late in the process. 
 

Now in his third season he loses his franchise QB right before the season starts and has 4 WRs on IR (Funchess, Rogers, Campbell, Fountain)

 

Dude hasn’t caught a break lol

Those don't count to many fans. Easy things to overcome.

 

Most teams that lose their top level QB, pro bowl WR and top TE (previous year pro bowler). Sprinkle in the replacement QB missing some time, our top 2 corners also missing time.

 

But it's easy to win in the NFL looking around this forum. 

 

Some fans sound like the type of people that if a meteor hit your house obliterating everything you have they'd ask you 3 days later why your performance at work has slipped or why you aren't your usual chipper self.

 

% happens, unfortunately it happened to us, big time.

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6 minutes ago, deedub75 said:

 

Those early odds to win the Super Bowl were based on Luck being there and not how good the odds makers thought the team was.  Colts had around 15-1 to win the SB with Luck.  Immediately after he retired those odds plummeted to around 50-1 without Luck.  

 

In addition, the Colts were hands down favorites to win the division with Luck but those odds plummeted after Luck retired.  Our win total also from 9.5 to 6.5.  

Losing Luck was devastating.  

 

I think the difference Ballard has made can be seen in comparing this season without Luck to 2017 without Luck.   Colts went 4-12.  That team didn't have the injuries we have had this season.   A healthy Gore, Hilton and Doyle.  I think that without half of this seasons injuries, the Colts would have 2-3 more wins.  Even if they finished 8-8, that is a 4 game improvement from what Grigson left us.  

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14 minutes ago, Chloe6124 said:

Because Luck could put up so many points he covered up holes in this defense. Ballard needs to fix those holes now.

I'd say he's working on it. The last 2 years, the colts have been around the 15-18 mark in total D, during the Grigson/Pagano era, we were mostly in the mid 20s or lower. We need some work in the DB area and the pass rush but we're pretty stout in the run. Currently 7th in most of the rushing categories per NFL.com. But Passing, we're down about 22nd.  

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14 hours ago, EastStreet said:

You must think that every team is full of pro bowlers. Aside from the passing game, our units are all above average. It's a balancing act. There's only so many early draft slots a team gets. 

 

WR - we signed Funch to upgrade X, and drafted Campbell to upgrade slot/Z.

DT - this is an area I wished we would have addressed last year instead of trading back. That said, we've still done very good against the run.

Edge - We did sign Houston and draft Banogu. 

Corner - We just gave Moore a nice contract, and drafted Ya-Sin early. Desire was expected to be better.

 

In short, Ballard has made substantial attempts to upgrade each position you list except DT, which I agree he should have did more. 

 

If you're big on upgrading the most deficient position, then QB would #1 for the next draft, as we took the biggest step back in terms of unit performance there without a doubt.

i think our fs position could be upgraded, hooker is below average

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7 hours ago, Zoltan said:

Looking at Ballards term as GM it most certainly hasn’t been easy,

 

his first year coming in has to keep a HC he didn’t want and had to deal with Lucks injury. 
 

then in The second year but his first full offseason. He loses his first selection for  head coach and has to find a new one late in the process. 
 

Now in his third season he loses his franchise QB right before the season starts and has 4 WRs on IR (Funchess, Rogers, Campbell, Fountain)

 

Dude hasn’t caught a break lol

 

I don't know if I buy this argument that Ballard has not been able to catch a break.

 

One might argue that he showed some naivete and got played by NE during the McDaniels hiring (it certainly appears that they played the Colts)...and that Ballard was actually really lucky that PHI went to the Super Bowl and that Reich was still available to hire at that point.

 

And Ballard did end up with a #3 pick after the lost first season...and because of Luck...he had the luxury of trading back a few spots for a haul...and the NYJ gave up that haul (THREE additional 2nd round picks). I would say that's a pretty good break that most GMs would never get.

 

He definitely has had some bad luck though...not going to argue that.

 

 

 

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12 hours ago, CurBeatElite said:

 

 

We could be 11-2 if our kicking game didn't lose at least 5 games for us this year.... I think Luck is a better QB than Brissett, but I think Brissett has kept us in every game he has played, and has given us a good chance at winning all but 1 game.  Vinatieri is the GOAT in terms of kickers, maybe he was hurt all year, or maybe he should've hung up the cleats... but he lost us several games this year.  The new guy missed one yesterday and we lost by 3.  

 

 

I don't think he's getting fired after next year.  He inherited a very poor team and we have gotten much better with almost a complete roster overhaul.

 

 

I don't think Luck 'screwed the team over.'  He obviously had a worse injury than the media was reporting.  He's already had a lacerated kidney, nearly had a shoulder injury end his career, and who knows what other kinds of injuries.

 

As I stated above, Brissett has played well enough to give us a shot to win all but 1 game.  He can't control our kickers missing FGs and extra-points.  He's had a good season overall.  He rarely turns the ball over and he is doing well, especially considering TY's been out, Parris Campbell has missed significant time, Funchess has missed basically the whole season, Ebron is now out (and had a lot of drops), etc. etc...  if you look at it, our #1 WR right now is a 2nd year guy who was undrafted (Pascal).  

it’s been more than one game yes Vinny lost us games but who missed throws prior to us going for the attempt..it’s the OFFENSE and granted he’s played good in the first half and has vanished in the second and boy his awareness to run when somethings not there is horrendous as his actual speed haha 

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On 12/9/2019 at 10:24 AM, DEFENSE said:

we dont have to tank, we wont win another game if our below average receivers keep dropping passes, and unless hooker starts playing up to his hype

Our below average receivers are dropping passes behind them, out in front of them, over their heads or simply into triple coverage. JB has made his receivers look way worse than they are. My case in poin is what did Cain do for this team all season long? Now compare it to what he has done with a 4th string QB in Pitt, after only a few weeks of playbook knowledge. I’m with kevin Bowen here, CB screwed this up and let him go when there was no reason to do so. 

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14 hours ago, CurBeatElite said:

 

 

We could be 11-2 if our kicking game didn't lose at least 5 games for us this year.... I think Luck is a better QB than Brissett, but I think Brissett has kept us in every game he has played, and has given us a good chance at winning all but 1 game.  Vinatieri is the GOAT in terms of kickers, maybe he was hurt all year, or maybe he should've hung up the cleats... but he lost us several games this year.  The new guy missed one yesterday and we lost by 3.  

 

 

I don't think he's getting fired after next year.  He inherited a very poor team and we have gotten much better with almost a complete roster overhaul.

 

 

I don't think Luck 'screwed the team over.'  He obviously had a worse injury than the media was reporting.  He's already had a lacerated kidney, nearly had a shoulder injury end his career, and who knows what other kinds of injuries.

 

As I stated above, Brissett has played well enough to give us a shot to win all but 1 game.  He can't control our kickers missing FGs and extra-points.  He's had a good season overall.  He rarely turns the ball over and he is doing well, especially considering TY's been out, Parris Campbell has missed significant time, Funchess has missed basically the whole season, Ebron is now out (and had a lot of drops), etc. etc...  if you look at it, our #1 WR right now is a 2nd year guy who was undrafted (Pascal).  

If you honestly believe the crap you just typed, I don’t know what to tell you. JB has not performed well all season, except a few parts of games this year. Every metric a QB gets rated by has to be near the bottom for JB, with the exceptions of int’s perhaps, I’ll give him that. No matter what excuse you put on him, he just is what he is, a back up QB, he is NOT a starter and hopefully after this season, he gets placed back on the bench where he does his best work. Great guy and teammate I’m certain. Good QB, extremely debatable. 

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34 minutes ago, Jdubu said:

My case in point is what did Cain do for this team all season long? Now compare it to what he has done with a 4th string QB in Pitt, after only a few weeks of playbook knowledge. I’m with Kevin Bowen here, CB screwed this up and let him go when there was no reason to do so. 

 

Am I missing something here with Deon Cain with the Steelers?

 

Week 12 - 1 catch for 35 yards

Week 13 - 1 catch for 5 yards

Week 14 - 1 catch for 22 yards

 

Yes, for them to release Deon Cain with so many unknowns on the injury front, was an oversight. But to use his production as a Steeler as a compelling argument falls flat, IMO, if your argument is just that 1 > 0.

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6 minutes ago, BleedBlue4Shoe86 said:

I agree. I believe that Ballard truly thought he had built a team that could win without an elite quarterback. He hasn’t yet. The question of the offseason is does he continue to try and build a team that isn’t reliant on an elite QB, and stays with JB or does he go out after a possible Elite QB. 
 

we will see. 

 

If a particular position needs an upgrade, you do it. The team with a non-elite QB still needs an ability to come back from deficits and finish off games in the 4th qtr. with plays made by the QB. Non-elite doesn't mean you should have to game plan around your QB, the most important position, bottom line.

 

Once you get a reliable level of play making by your QB, then you put together a well rounded team so that your QB doesn't have to make plays all the time, it still means your QB has to make plays most of the time.

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10 minutes ago, chad72 said:

 

Am I missing something here with Deon Cain with the Steelers?

 

Week 12 - 1 catch for 35 yards

Week 13 - 1 catch for 5 yards

Week 14 - 1 catch for 22 yards

 

Yes, for them to release Deon Cain with so many unknowns on the injury front, was an oversight. But to use his production as a Steeler as a compelling argument falls flat, IMO, if your argument is just that 1 > 0.

It’s more than he did for us and again, we used our starter at QB, who is the Steelers using now, UPS guy? Cain is a head scratcher for sure. Had a beastly preseason and camp by everyone’s account,  it just the team Pom Pom coaching staff who would speak highly of Quin Picock if he were on the team, but anyone who attended the practices.  And to then just flat out die once the regular season starts, just weird. My point was the potential of Cain and releasing him, you had other options imho. 

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Johnson had more yards Sunday in three catches then Cain has had with the Steelers and colts combined. Johnson also has better measurables then Cain. He is faster and has a better vertical. Now maybe we could of had both right now.  I think Jacoby has way more trust in Johnson then he had in Cain. Which is understandable because he worked with Johnson on the scout team last year. Johnson had opportunities to sign elsewhere and decided to stay here because of Reich. 

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I'll put it this way...if it weren't for Ballard's drafts and FA signings, we'd be 2-11, most likely.

 

Lots of reasons we're 6-7, but primarily, it's because Ballard drafted and built this roster with Andrew Luck as the QB.  Luck with healthy WRs (Hilton, Funchess, Campbell, Pascal, etc.) and our TEs, plus the running game and we'd be 11-2, most likely.  The missed kicks by AV wouldn't have cost us close games, because we would have had bigger leads.

 

Losing Luck, the numerous serious injures and JB not having weapons at the skill positions has contributed to the 6-7 record.

 

Now, I am disappointed in our defense...yes, there have been injuries, but nothing close to what we've had on the offensive side of the ball.  I expected our defense to be much better this year.

 

Then, there's the kicking game, but we all know the problem with that without going into detail.

 

Get some proven veteran offensive skill players for JB to work with next season, and add that to the running game and we win more games and put more points on the board.

 

I do feel that a QB will be drafted and prepared to take over in 2021.  Hopefully we sign some veterans on both sides to help these young guys.  The foundation is there, now it's time to build with quality, proven players.

 

Also disappointed in our OL play and I have no thoughts on way they have regressed.

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22 minutes ago, Barry Sears said:

I'll put it this way...if it weren't for Ballard's drafts and FA signings, we'd be 2-11, most likely.

 

Lots of reasons we're 6-7, but primarily, it's because Ballard drafted and built this roster with Andrew Luck as the QB.  Luck with healthy WRs (Hilton, Funchess, Campbell, Pascal, etc.) and our TEs, plus the running game and we'd be 11-2, most likely.  The missed kicks by AV wouldn't have cost us close games, because we would have had bigger leads.

 

Losing Luck, the numerous serious injures and JB not having weapons at the skill positions has contributed to the 6-7 record.

 

Now, I am disappointed in our defense...yes, there have been injuries, but nothing close to what we've had on the offensive side of the ball.  I expected our defense to be much better this year.

 

Then, there's the kicking game, but we all know the problem with that without going into detail.

 

Get some proven veteran offensive skill players for JB to work with next season, and add that to the running game and we win more games and put more points on the board.

 

I do feel that a QB will be drafted and prepared to take over in 2021.  Hopefully we sign some veterans on both sides to help these young guys.  The foundation is there, now it's time to build with quality, proven players.

 

Also disappointed in our OL play and I have no thoughts on way they have regressed.

 

True. The depth of the roster, except on the play making skill position front, has allowed us to stay competitive and win our share of close games to sit at 6-7. The lack of play making on O, including at the QB position and continual special teams gaffes has not allowed us to survive the small margin for error we had thus catching up to us as the second half of the season went on. Our best play makers on O - probably TY and Marlon Mack, having injuries, did contribute to our margin of error shrinking further.

 

It was going to be a 3 year rebuild, and the 2017 year was probably a mulligan because of the lame duck HC and a system Ballard was not fully vested in. 2020 with FA moves and more O related draft picks should put us in contention for the division title again.

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