Jacoby Brissett Impressions (Perma Merge)

[ColtsBlueFL]

1 hour ago, aaron11 said:

i dont see him doing enough to win a SB, thats my only real complaint about him

 

Is Tom Brady doing enough to win a SB?

 

 

I think Pats schedule was easier, too.  Maybe someone knows the SOS.

 

JB this year-

 

 

Team game. If a QB is doing enough, I don't care other phases are showing up superior.  I'm all in favor of complimentary football.  Pass/Run balance, defense, special teams.

 

It seems people would trade away draft picks that could improve the team to improve the QB slot.  My question is where are those top draft picks more team beneficial?

[aaron11]

3 minutes ago, ColtsBlueFL said:

Is Tom Brady doing enough to win a SB?

 

hopefully not 

 

a down year for him would still be like 4200 yards, that would be a lot for jacoby 

 

i keep maintaining that we may not need to trade up to the top for a QB either.  there are some that could go later this year.  jacoby was a third round pick himself, worth mentioning that 

[Goatface Killah]

24 minutes ago, ColtsBlueFL said:

 

Finally!  Running game is important. Especially in outdoors winter weather. Playoff conditions.

 

 

But a running game and stingy defense are two things that travel well, and survive in poor, windy, wintry weather. Something the Colts haven't really had over the years.  Let's hope the run game and D continue!  I'm all for it, even if that means Brissett won't put up Star Wars numbers...

The funny thing is, the running game and defense are much more reliable than downfield passing. Always have been, always will be. But our fans only want to see a high octane passing game. Anything else is inferior. You'd think they would've learned from all the butt whippings we have taken over the years with those soft teams that couldn't play in January.

 

It's just hating, again, on the team that won big yesterday. It's working. The vision is producing good results, in spite of the kicking woes. And that's why it's the vision in the first place. But some fans can't understand that.

 

These same people say they dont expect JB to be elite.....they say he isn't Andrew Luck and isn't expected to be.....and then they break out the stats only elite QBs produce and use them to discredit what hes doing. They dont even have a basic understanding of the stats and what they actually are, yet they act as if they are an expert.

 

Nick Foles threw for a lot more yards than Jacoby yesterday, but it didn't really get him anywhere did it? Why is that? Maybe because we were the more physical team? Being the more physical team means much more than just passing yards. We had no receivers yesterday, couldn't throw the ball downfield at all, and STILL produced 400 yards of offense and 31 points. Because of our physicality.

 

We should be 9-1, and with the normal Adam Vinatieri we are all used to seeing, we are. Point blank, period. End of story. It speaks for itself. Jacoby has been that good.

 

 

[CoachLite]

Jacoby Brissett may not be the perfect QB, but he is very, very good. I'll take that any day!

[Imgrandojji]

People are pursuing a model that historically doesn't work.

 

Manning won 1 Superbowl here, and let's be honest, he got lucky.  First he got lucky with the Patriots having a rough second half in the AFCCG and then he got lucky that he was facing the Bears in the Superbowl, probably the weakest Superbowl opponent in the last 2 decades was the 2006 Bears

 

Speaking of Luck, he didn't win one, despite being the perfect "elite QB to win the SB"

 

People need to seriously rethink what it takes to win a Superbowl.  An elite QB is great for getting you into the playoffs but you need a lot more than that to win key games in the playoffs with any consistency. 

 

you need a team that can execute as a team, if you don't have that you're going to be trying to force the QB to cover for the weaknesses of the roster against, usually, the best competition in your conference.  That's a gamble that's usually going to fail somewhere down the line unless you focus on shoring up your weaknesses. 

 

And if you can do that, a QB who can make the team play as more than the sum of its parts is what you need to win Superbowls -- even if that QB is not himself elite.

[stitches]

36 minutes ago, krunk said:

But the Colts continue to love him for what reason?  Its certainly not just based on his leadership.  And again we're talking about a guy who started 1 and half seasons and is still growing.   Certainly he can't be the only QB in this league who didn't have exceptional QB indicators in year 2 of his career.  I'm sure RG3 had a good QB indicator in year 1 but what the heck does that mean?  The rest of his career went south. 

I don't think leadership should be underestimated and pretty much everyone you ask seems to think Jacoby is a great leader. You know he probably won't lose his teammates - his OLine will protect him like hell, his RBs will put their bodies on the line for him, hell he's even much closer to the defensive players than any QB I've seen recently. Team cohesion is a good thing to have, it makes everything else run much smoother and this has its own value in the context of the team. 

 

What they like about him? I think they like that he works hard, I think they like his command of the team and his work at the LoS. I think they like his escapability and ability to make special throws out of structure(although, he's nowhere near consistent or prolific enough with this one - so to me this is more of a projected thing for the future - you see the flashes now, you might think he will get even better and more willing to do it in the future). His accuracy has been better this year than in his first stint, his pocket presence has been better too(although I want to see him improve even more and keep his eyes downfield rather than drop them when he leaves the pocket). There are things to like about Jacoby and things you might think will improve with time and coaching. (edit: oh and he doesn't turn the ball over... every coach likes that... just ideally you would like it to be accompanied with more big time throws too)

 

But I also refuse to accept that Reich and Ballard don't see the same recurring problems we muggles see even without being experts or watching every single play on all-22. IMO they know his limitations much better than we do... That's why we run this much. @OffensivelyPC showed me some stats about the division of run vs pass attack of teams in the NFL in general - pretty much all the teams that run the most have either 1. QB that is not a great passer/processer of the game and/or 2. a QB that is key part of their running game(Lamar, Wilson, etc). And the Colts are among those teams. In essence, coaches are not stupid. They know what their players can and cannot do and they try to minimize the harm of the "can't do's" and maximize the effect of the "can do's", so instead of trying to force Brissett to lead the offense through his passing, Reich seems to have decided to lean heavily on the run game. IMO this is not by accident. IMO Reich knows perfectly well what Jacoby's limitations are. 

[Fisticuffs111]

Seems like people are talking about our run game like they did after the Chiefs, like we're going to be able to run down every team's throats. We've seen before and since then, Oakland, Houston, Miami, and other games, that we're not always gonna be so dominant on the ground.

I guess this post doesn't really have much to do with JB, just pointing out that we're about to face the Texans who shut us down on the ground and could very well do it again. Especially without Mack.

[aaron11]

9 minutes ago, GoatBeard said:

The funny thing is, the running game and defense are much more reliable than downfield passing.

 

the super bowl winners are usually good at all of the above 

[Goatface Killah]

22 minutes ago, ColtsBlueFL said:

 

Is Tom Brady doing enough to win a SB?

 

 

I think Pats schedule was easier, too.  Maybe someone knows the SOS.

 

JB this year-

 

 

Team game. If a QB is doing enough, I don't care other phases are showing up superior.  I'm all in favor of complimentary football.  Pass/Run balance, defense, special teams.

 

It seems people would trade away draft picks that could improve the team to improve the QB slot.  My question is where are those top draft picks more team beneficial?

Who is the one team to beat the Pat's this year? I wonder if they ran the ball well and played good defense?

 

8 minutes ago, Imgrandojji said:

People are pursuing a model that historically doesn't work.

 

Manning won 1 Superbowl here, and let's be honest, he got lucky.  First he got lucky with the Patriots having a rough second half in the AFCCG and then he got lucky that he was facing the Bears in the Superbowl, probably the weakest Superbowl opponent in the last 2 decades was the 2006 Bears

 

Speaking of Luck, he didn't win one, despite being the perfect "elite QB to win the SB"

 

People need to seriously rethink what it takes to win a Superbowl.  An elite QB is great for getting you into the playoffs but you need a lot more than that to win key games in the playoffs with any consistency. 

 

you need a team that can execute as a team, if you don't have that you're going to be trying to force the QB to cover for the weaknesses of the roster against, usually, the best competition in your conference.  That's a gamble that's usually going to fail somewhere down the line unless you focus on shoring up your weaknesses. 

 

And if you can do that, a QB who can make the team play as more than the sum of its parts is what you need to win Superbowls -- even if that QB is not himself elite.

Exactly. The TEAM is being assembled to do just that, compete with anyone, anywhere anytime. They aren't concerned with rankings what so ever. And they shouldn't be. That's how bad franchises operate, by analyzing players based off skill set and "talent"

 

The Colts are looking at intangibles first. And I love it. It's clearly working. This defense is gonna be fantastic. The OL should continue to develop. 

 

4 minutes ago, Fisticuffs111 said:

It seems like people are talking about our running game like they did after the Chiefs game, as if they're going to be able to run down every team's throats. We've seen before and since then, Oakland, Houston, Miami, and other games, that we're not always gonna be so dominant on the ground.

I guess this post doesn't really have much to do with JB, just pointing out that we're about to face the Texans who shut us down on the ground and could very well do it again. Especially without Mack.

The point is they can't do it without sacrificing their pass defense. And we absolutely shredded them downfield in the passing game, with the "not good enough" Jacoby Brissett.

 

So either way, it's always effective. You can build an entire offense around that. Teams have to game plan for it, which opens them up.

[krunk]

4 minutes ago, stitches said:

I don't think leadership should be underestimated and pretty much everyone you ask seems to think Jacoby is a great leader. You know he probably won't lose his teammates - his OLine will protect him like hell, his RBs will put their bodies on the line for him, hell he's even much closer to the defensive players than any QB I've seen recently. Team cohesion is a good thing to have, it makes everything else run much smoother and this has its own value in the context of the team. 

 

What they like about him? I think they like that he works hard, I think they like his command of the team and his work at the LoS. I think they like his escapability and ability to make special throws out of structure(although, he's nowhere near consistent or prolific enough with this one - so to me this is more of a projected thing for the future - you see the flashes now, you might think he will get even better and more willing to do it in the future). His accuracy has been better this year than in his first stint, his pocket presence has been better too(although I want to see him improve even more and keep his eyes downfield rather than drop them when he leaves the pocket). There are things to like about Jacoby and things you might think will improve with time and coaching.

 

But I also refuse to accept that Reich and Ballard don't see the same recurring problems we muggles see even without being experts or watching every single play on all-22. IMO they know his limitations much better than we do... That's why we run this much. @OffensivelyPC showed me some stats about the division of run vs pass attack of teams in the NFL in general - pretty much all the teams that run the most have either 1. QB that is not a great passer/processer of the game and/or 2. a QB that is key part of their running game(Lamar, Wilson, etc). And the Colts are among those teams. In essence, coaches are not stupid. They know what their players can and cannot do and they try to minimize the harm of the "can't do's" and maximize the effect of the "can do's"

I just don't think they are as harsh as some of you are here on this forum.  Of course they are looking at stats I just refuse to believe that they take seriously all the same stats that you guys covet.  Especially early on in a players career. 

[aaron11]

7 minutes ago, Imgrandojji said:

people need to seriously rethink what it takes to win a Superbowl.  An elite QB is great for getting you into the playoffs but you need a lot more than that to win key games in the playoffs with any consistency. 

 

look at the qbs that have actually won SBs lately, most are going to be hall of famers

 

foles and flacco have been meh, but their playoff runs were lights out.  they did throw for a lot of yards in those play off runs

 

[aaron11]

3 minutes ago, GoatBeard said:

I wonder if they ran the ball well and played good defense?

 

they ran with their QB.  Jackson is very good imo, the ravens got a steal when several teams needed qbs in front of them 

[Goatface Killah]

1 minute ago, aaron11 said:

 

the super bowl winners are usually good at all of the above 

We are good at all the above. We arent great at everything. But the teams we play dont see Jacoby as incapable, trust me. 

 

You can't comprehend that because you are too busy looking for chinks in the armor.

[SteelCityColt]

40 minutes ago, ColtsBlueFL said:

 

Finally!  Running game is important. Especially in outdoors winter weather. Playoff conditions.

 

 

But a running game and stingy defense are two things that travel well, and survive in poor, windy, wintry weather. Something the Colts haven't really had over the years.  Let's hope the run game and D continue!  I'm all for it, even if that means Brissett won't put up Star Wars numbers...

Very much agree that a run game and D are worth a lot come February...

[Goatface Killah]

Just now, aaron11 said:

 

they ran with their QB.  Jackson is very good imo, the ravens got a steal when several teams needed qbs in front of them 

Yes and we run with our RBs. I dont think they will be able to stop us if we get to play them, regardless.

 

Jackson isn't a great passer, and almost all of his success as a passer can be attributed to the threat of his legs. But I bet you're not as critical of him because hes currently the front runner for MVP and you would look silly. As a passer, hes mediocre at best.

[stitches]

11 minutes ago, krunk said:

I just don't think they are as harsh as some of you are here on this forum.  Of course they are looking at stats I just refuse to believe that they take seriously all the same stats that you guys covet.  Especially early on in a players career. 

I mean... Jacoby is a naturally conservative thrower of the football. He doesn't take chances and he's extremely safe with the ball. Of course they won't go to Jacoby and tell him - you know what ... your anticipation sucks and probably never will be good enough. There are more productive ways to try to make improvements on his game when dealing with him face to face. They need to keep his confidence high so they won't lose even the little aggression he shows every now and then. 

 

About the stats - even Reich said a week or two ago that he takes the yards per attempt stats extremely serious. Even if we stop talking about the stats, we can watch the tape and pin point throws that need to be made and are not(this will result in better stats too, but lets ignore them for the purpose of this conversation). 

[Imgrandojji]

7 minutes ago, aaron11 said:

look at the qbs that have actually won SBs lately, most are going to be hall of famers

 

"recently," Most of them are Tom Brady.

 

And 2 of those 3 Brady wins were carried more by their defense than by Brady.  Holding one of the most potent offenses in the NFL to 3 points, and taking the ball away from the Seahawks when they had a nearly 100% chance to score.

 

Not to mention several extremely impressive defensive plays in the Superbowl that everyone identifies as Tom Brady's magnum opus, SB51.

 

Russel Wilson and Peyton similar stories, Manning was nowhere near what he used to be in SB50 and was carried by his D. 

 

Russel Wilson was talented, but a literal rookie in SB48 and had the Legion of Boom to back him up. 

 

Flacco was talented but declined over the years, but he is a success story in that he was a high profile draft pick that accomplished what he was drafted before -- behind one of the stoutest defenses in NFL history.

 

So you're doing a great job of arguing that elite defenses win Superbowls.  Elite defenses also do a fantastic job of making a QB look better than he actually is, which is good news for teams with great defenses and a great QB.  Bad news for the QB theory though.

 

The most consistent feature of SB winners is not elite QB, but elite defenses.

[SteelCityColt]

30 minutes ago, ColtsBlueFL said:

 

Is Tom Brady doing enough to win a SB?

 

 

I think Pats schedule was easier, too.  Maybe someone knows the SOS.

 

JB this year-

 

 

Team game. If a QB is doing enough, I don't care other phases are showing up superior.  I'm all in favor of complimentary football.  Pass/Run balance, defense, special teams.

 

It seems people would trade away draft picks that could improve the team to improve the QB slot.  My question is where are those top draft picks more team beneficial?

To be clear I wouldn’t what to use capital to move up unless the value was very good, unlikely with this year’s prospects IMO.

 

Taking a guy who drops though, knowing you have the luxury of sitting him a year. That’s more interesting.

[stitches]

13 minutes ago, Fisticuffs111 said:

Seems like people are talking about our run game like they did after the Chiefs, like we're going to be able to run down every team's throats. We've seen before and since then, Oakland, Houston, Miami, and other games, that we're not always gonna be so dominant on the ground.

I guess this post doesn't really have much to do with JB, just pointing out that we're about to face the Texans who shut us down on the ground and could very well do it again. Especially without Mack.

 

Watt won't play so my hope is that we do better against that run defense this time. He wrecked our OLine in the first game. 

[Imgrandojji]

1 minute ago, stitches said:

 

Watt won't play so my hope is that we do better against that run defense this time. He wrecked our OLine in the first game. 

Either way we're going to be counting on our QB to do some damage through the air.

[aaron11]

5 minutes ago, GoatBeard said:

Yes and we run with our RBs. I dont think they will be able to stop us if we get to play them, regardless.

 

Jackson isn't a great passer, and almost all of his success as a passer can be attributed to the threat of his legs. But I bet you're not as critical of him because hes currently the front runner for MVP and you would look silly. As a passer, hes mediocre at best.

i have always been in Lamar Jackson's corner i thought he should have been a top 5 pick

 

he may not play until hes 40 but i thought he would be a big spark to whatever team drafted him.  

[stitches]

1 minute ago, Imgrandojji said:

Either way we're going to be counting on our QB to do some damage through the air.

Yeah, we might need him to. Their pass-defense is not great and Watson can explode in any given game...  

[Goatface Killah]

16 minutes ago, stitches said:

But I also refuse to accept that Reich and Ballard don't see the same recurring problems we muggles see even without being experts or watching every single play on all-22. IMO they know his limitations much better than we do... That's why we run this much. @OffensivelyPC showed me some stats about the division of run vs pass attack of teams in the NFL in general - pretty much all the teams that run the most have either 1. QB that is not a great passer/processer of the game and/or 2. a QB that is key part of their running game(Lamar, Wilson, etc). And the Colts are among those teams. In essence, coaches are not stupid. They know what their players can and cannot do and they try to minimize the harm of the "can't do's" and maximize the effect of the "can do's", so instead of trying to force Brissett to lead the offense through his passing, Reich seems to have decided to lean heavily on the run game. IMO this is not by accident. IMO Reich knows perfectly well what Jacoby's limitations are. 

Well, yeah of course they do. They wouldn't keep thier jobs very long asking him to do things hes not good at. That's just being a good coach.

 

But, you leave out the fact that the Colts are playing exactly the way Reich said he wanted to play even when he had Andrew Luck at QB. Jacoby is a much better fit for that type of team than a downfield passer who takes risks and makes high risk throws.

 

You're conflating two separate issues and making assumptions. I dont think Reich values these advanced analytics nearly as much as fans who are searching for understanding of the game. He knows what he wants his team to do, and they are doing it. I dont think he is gonna take JB for granted and sacrifice him in pursuit of better stats. He wants to win, and we are absolutely winning. 

 

He is gonna look at it and say, if we got better special teams play, we are 9-1 and tied for the best record in football. We have a very young team with a lot of room to improve. It is not broken. Why try to fix something that isn't broken? 

[krunk]

14 minutes ago, stitches said:

I mean... Jacoby is a naturally conservative thrower of the football. He doesn't take chances and he's extremely safe with the ball. Of course they won't go to Jacoby and tell him - you know what ... your anticipation sucks and probably never will be good enough. There are more productive ways to try to make improvements on his game. They need to keep his confidence high so they won't lose even the little aggression he shows every now and then. 

 

About the stats - even Reich said a week or two ago that he takes the yards per attempt stats extremely serious. Even if we stop talking about the stats, we can watch the tape and pin point throws that need to be made and are not(this will result in better stats too, but lets ignore them for the purpose of this conversation). 

Him being conserative is something I appreciated this last game versus what we got out of Hoyer.  I just don't believe we/he couldn't adjust and improve some of that especially considering right now we don't really have very many deep threats.  I mean it took Luck many years to cut down on the wild turnovers and what not.  I'm not ready to dump him in the toilet year this early in his career with some of this stuff. 

[Goatface Killah]

3 minutes ago, aaron11 said:

i have always been in Lamar Jackson's corner i thought he should have been a top 5 pick

 

he may not play until hes 40 but i thought he would be a big spark to whatever team drafted him.  

So you're a hypocrite?

 

He is more flawed as a passer than JB and could go down with a knee injury at any moment. 

 

Then, what good is the "spark"

[aaron11]

4 minutes ago, GoatBeard said:

So you're a hypocrite?

 

He is more flawed as a passer than JB and could go down with a knee injury at any moment. 

 

Then, what good is the "spark"

hes better than jacboy over all and its not close

 

JB just had a knee injury himself ftr 

 

the "flawed passer" also has a lot more yards and higher rating and has missed less time with injuries

[krunk]

I don't think Lamar is a better passer than Jacoby.  I think they've got a one read system in place for Lamar as well.  It's the other intangibles that help him get people open. 

[Goatface Killah]

Just now, aaron11 said:

hes better than jacboy over all and its not close

 

JB just had a knee injury himself ftr 

Yeah, a very minor one.

 

You remind me of the Robert Griffin fanboys that actually thought he was better than Luck.

 

It can all come tumbling down at any moment. Lamar is a gimmick and it won't last. He won't be able to stay healthy very long taking hits the way he does. I promise. 

[aaron11]

Just now, GoatBeard said:

Yeah, a very minor one.

 

You remind me of the Robert Griffin fanboys that actually thought he was better than Luck.

 

It can all come tumbling down at any moment. Lamar is a gimmick and it won't last. He won't be able to stay healthy very long taking hits the way he does. I promise. 

 

hes more vick than rg3 

[stitches]

2 minutes ago, krunk said:

Him being conserative is something I appreciated this last game versus what we got out of Hoyer.  I just don't believe we couldn't adjust and improve some of that especially considering right now we don't really have very many deep threats. 

In games where you have the clear talent edge you don't need the QB to be particularly aggressive. In fact aggressively bad performance from the QB is more likely to lose you games like this. (which is what happened with Hoyer)

 

Even when we had all our deep threats(TY 3.37, Campbell 3.31, Cain 4.43) we were not throwing downfield. I don't even need him to throw deep deep... He just needs to see the intermediate-deep threats better... the 15 to 35 yard throws that require him to release the ball before the receiver is open. The throws that require him to throw the receiver open. 

 

I'm not saying he will never be able to do it, but this is something that I don't think is easy to improve... it's more about innate feel and vision of the field and the movement of the players. Lets hope he does get there. 

[Goatface Killah]

1 minute ago, aaron11 said:

 

hes more vick than rg3 

I dont think hes nearly as good of a passer as Vick. 

[aaron11]

Just now, GoatBeard said:

I dont think hes nearly as good of a passer as Vick. 

 

lamar is productive, actually thrown for a pretty good number this year and has a high rating.  rg3 never threw for that much  

[Imgrandojji]

10 minutes ago, aaron11 said:

 

lamar is productive, actually thrown for a pretty good number this year and has a high rating.  rg3 never threw for that much  

We've seen this too many times.  Best case scenario is he flashes in the pan for a few years then defenses figure out a set of adjustments that take away his strengths.  At that point he'll still clobber bad defenses that don't have the personnel to beat him but his days as a force in the league will be behind him.

 

Worst case scenario is an injury due to the extreme wear and tear his style demands.

 

 

[Goatface Killah]

10 minutes ago, aaron11 said:

 

lamar is productive, actually thrown for a pretty good number this year and has a high rating.  rg3 never threw for that much  

Hes not a great passer, regardless.

 

If you are gonna complain about Jacoby not progressing thru his reads and use it to condemn him as a starting QB, you can't claim Lamar is a good QB. He can make 1 read, and then use his legs. That's it. He is an incredible athlete, no doubt about that. But he is on borrowed time. Somebody, sometime, is gonna hit him and take away some of that athleticism. He is exposing himself to great risk every single game and has to to be successful. Give it some time.

 

If you are a fan of stats & probabilities, you have to acknowledge that. It's more than likely to happen because it happens to almost everyone at some point.

 

Beyond that, teams have a way of solving these puzzles. They did it with Vick. And he was much more talented as a QB than Jackson and every bit as athletic. 

 

But he still never won anything. 

[aaron11]

1 minute ago, Imgrandojji said:

We've seen this too many times.  Best case scenario is he flashes in the pan for a few years then defenses figure out a set of adjustments that take away his strengths.  At that point he'll still clobber bad defenses that don't have the personnel to beat him but his days as a force in the league will be behind him.

Worst case scenario is an injury due to the extreme wear and tear his style demands.

 

 

 

i think he will be fine like Vick was until he got in trouble.  the league never really figured him out they either. they either had the speed or they didnt, but he could throw too

 

i think Lamar is not a bad passer now and is getting better.  he is actually producing this year through the air and on the ground 

Just now, GoatBeard said:

But he still never won anything. 

never won a super bowl thats true.  neither has jacoby though, so why bring that up?

[aaron11]

Vick passed and ran for a lot of yards in his career, i dont agree that the league ever really figured him out so to speak 

[ColtsBlueFL]

1 hour ago, stitches said:

Reich seems to have decided to lean heavily on the run game.

 

This is fact.

 

Quote

IMO this is not by accident.

 

Unarguable.

 

Quote

IMO Reich knows perfectly well what Jacoby's limitations are. 

 

I bet he does, but it's not his reason for the emphasis on the run game.  Back in March of 2019, while Andrew Luck was still to be our starting quarterback, and Jacoby Brissett was to be his backup, Reich was quoted-

 

“Our goal will be to be a top-five, top-seven, rushing team,” he told reporters this week at the NFL Owners Meetings in Phoenix.

 

Reich believes an effective run game keep an opposing defense off-balance is key, especially in an era in which passing records are seemingly being broken left and right.

 

“I just have a really strong conviction of that’s what it takes. In this day of high scoring, crazy pass offenses, and that’s all true, but if you look at the numbers, you gotta be good at running the football,” Reich said. “There’s exceptions to that, but the percentages are with you... if you’re a top-10 rushing team, you gotta much better (chance to win).”

 

This was an off season choice/goal for the season. Even with Andrew Luck at the helm.  A team only gets so many snaps a game. Better success at running means you will also run more, and lowers passing attempts some.  But adds offensive balance, and does increase defenses being off-balance.

 

'Factor everything together — the continuity up front and in the backfield and the addition of a fresh approach from a coaching perspective — and Reich is confident he’ll see those rushing numbers improve dramatically in 2019.'

 

“My expectations this year for our run game are really, really high,” Reich said. “Really high.”

 

https://www.colts.com/news/colts-want-a-top-five-rushing-attack-in-2019

[OffensivelyPC]

35 minutes ago, GoatBeard said:

But, you leave out the fact that the Colts are playing exactly the way Reich said he wanted to play even when he had Andrew Luck at QB. Jacoby is a much better fit for that type of team than a downfield passer who takes risks and makes high risk throws.

 

The bolded is patently false.  They are leaning on the running game far more than they were before Andrew Luck retired.  The same was true under Pagano when Jacoby took over in 2017. 

 

In the 2016 and 2018 season while Andrew Luck led the team we passed more often in terms of the pass to run ratio, passing roughly 62% and running 38% of the time in both years.  That made us 15th in 2016 and 9th in 2018.  In 2017 under Pagano when Jacoby was the QB, we passed 55% of the time and ran the other 45% of offensive plays (which puts us at 27th in 2017).  This year so far  we are passing just 53% of the time and running 47% (which puts us at 29th).  Prior to JB's injury, this ratio was a tad higher, but we were still bottom 5 or 6. 

 

That's a significant change in scheme and the trend exists under two entirely different coaching infrastructures.  And say what you will about Jacoby's weapons being a limitation on his game (which I would argue is also patently false), Jacoby and Luck have had the same offensive personnel in 2018 and 2019.  The same offensive line.  The same running backs.  The same receivers and tight ends.  There's obviously some variation in the health of those groups, but there's nothing anyone can do about that.  

 

There is clear indication that Jacoby is being protected from having to be the guy this team is structured around.  Whereas Andrew Luck was whom the entire offense was run through and depended on, the offensive line is now the shoulders on which this team stands.  That does not change the fact that Jacoby is still a heck of a player and an absolute necessity for this team's success.  Does he have significant flaws?  Sure.  Not many QBs play like Aaron Rodgers.  He's still a better option considering the current roster's QBs or the field of available free agents 

 

 

[stitches]

19 minutes ago, ColtsBlueFL said:

 

This is fact.

 

 

Unarguable.

 

 

I bet he does, but it's not his reason for the emphasis on the run game.  Back in March of 2019, while Andrew Luck was still to be our starting quarterback, and Jacoby Brissett was to be his backup, Reich was quoted-

 

“Our goal will be to be a top-five, top-seven, rushing team,” he told reporters this week at the NFL Owners Meetings in Phoenix.

 

Reich believes an effective run game keep an opposing defense off-balance is key, especially in an era in which passing records are seemingly being broken left and right.

 

“I just have a really strong conviction of that’s what it takes. In this day of high scoring, crazy pass offenses, and that’s all true, but if you look at the numbers, you gotta be good at running the football,” Reich said. “There’s exceptions to that, but the percentages are with you... if you’re a top-10 rushing team, you gotta much better (chance to win).”

 

This was an off season choice/goal for the season. Even with Andrew Luck at the helm.  A team only gets so many snaps a game. Better success at running means you will also run more, and lowers passing attempts some.  But adds offensive balance, and does increase defenses being off-balance.

 

'Factor everything together — the continuity up front and in the backfield and the addition of a fresh approach from a coaching perspective — and Reich is confident he’ll see those rushing numbers improve dramatically in 2019.'

 

“My expectations this year for our run game are really, really high,” Reich said. “Really high.”

 

https://www.colts.com/news/colts-want-a-top-five-rushing-attack-in-2019

Except I'm talking about frequency of runs, not how good the run game is. BTW this year the run game is a tad better(4.6 YPA vs 4.2 YPA last year)... 

[ColtsBlueFL]

32 minutes ago, stitches said:

Except I'm talking about frequency of runs, not how good the run game is. BTW this year the run game is a tad better(4.6 YPA vs 4.2 YPA last year)... 

 

Reich isn't.  He said we were 20th last year. And the Colts were, at 107.4 yards per game as the metric.

 

** And in 2018, while it wasn’t among the worst in the league, the Colts’ run game, Reich said, just wasn’t good enough — “We were 20th last year,” Reich said with a scowl, referring to the team’s NFL ranking in yards per game.  **

 

This year, Colts are 4th (top 5-7)  at 141.1 yards per game.

 

This year Colts are 4th in rushing attempts (frequency) as well in 2019.  Last year the Colts were 17th in attempts.

 

Seems to be just as Reich envisioned.