Per Reich, no decision from Anthony Castonzo yet

[zibby43]

 

The fact that there is no decision yet signals to me that retirement is very, very much on the table. 

 

That's not a prediction, but LT definitely needs to be addressed now, irrespective of whether AC comes back.

[BProland85]

Really hope he sticks around for at least another year. That would give Ballard more of a chance to find his successor rather than panic to find a LT. 

[richard pallo]

If he does retire maybe we can fix it in FA with Jack Conklin.  This might be the time for Ballard to pay to fix a big hole. 

[ar1888]

Conklin has been playing just at RT I believe. 

[Dogg63]

On Jan 2, Ballard said, "Anthony and I will be in touch here over the next two or three weeks, and he'll make a decision."  It's now Jan 21, so per CB a decision is expected by tomorrow at the latest.  As others have mentioned, AC and AL are very very tight, so I wouldn't be at all surprised if AC hangs up his cleats (based on him getting an earful from AL about saving his body, living comfortably off his millions going forward, etc). If that's the way it goes, I'll be massively disappointed for the Colts and myself as a fan, but not surprised.

[#12.]

Outside of running the ball, I'm not sure what this team does all that well.  If Castonzo goes, perhaps that goes also.   

[Moosejawcolt]

"He set the record for career starts with 54 straight at Boston College and was a Rhodes Scholar nominee in 2010".  In other words, he is very bright.  I think he is gone. Mayb just maybe Castanzo sees a longer rebuild than most. 

[#12.]

21 minutes ago, Moosejawcolt said:

Mayb just maybe Castanzo sees a longer rebuild than most. 

 

If Castonzo goes, I'm not sure what you have.  You would arguably need the four most important positions on the field - QB, LT, high end pass rusher, high end CB.  Maybe Turay and Rock turn into something, maybe they don't.

[ProblChld32]

3 hours ago, zibby43 said:

 

The fact that there is no decision yet signals to me that retirement is very, very much on the table. 

 

That's not a prediction, but LT definitely needs to be addressed now, irrespective of whether AC comes back.

The season hasn’t even ended yet, give the guy some time to mull it over.

[coltsfan_canada]

Exactly the season hasn't ended yet folks lets wait till the preseason come on...

 

[Nickster]

Might be looking at what changes management will make.

[lollygagger8]

Maybe he's waiting to see what they do with the QB situation? 

 

All I know is that I hope Castanzo stays. He's much much better than people give him credit for.  

[csmopar]

40 minutes ago, lollygagger8 said:

Maybe he's waiting to see what they do with the QB situation? 

 

All I know is that I hope Castanzo stays. He's much much better than people give him credit for.  

he'd have to have a decision LONG before then. His contract expires almost two months before the draft.

[Archer]

I believe he’s unmarried, and last I heard, living in an apartment with a dog.  His family is his parents and sisters, so I’m not sure the “spending time with the family” motivation for retirement kicks in.  My point is: the Colts and the OL are largely his band of brothers, and he’s finally on a high-performing line.  Gotta be fun for him.  I bet we can talk him into coming back for one year and mentoring his replacement...(wanogho?)

[OffensivelyPC]

10 hours ago, coltsfan_canada said:

Exactly the season hasn't ended yet folks lets wait till the preseason come on...

 

Well I should hope so.  He was laying it on pretty thick...

 

Great movie

[aaron11]

27 minutes ago, Archer said:

so I’m not sure the “spending time with the family” motivation for retirement kicks in.

 

i dont think its about that, he has plans for life after football.  sounds like hes seriously considering retiring so he can do those things in good health

 

maybe he thinks we wont contend any time soon without his best friend leading the way 

[Myles]

This is looking worse and worse in my opinion.  Started as a rumor that I didn't pay much attention to.   Now it seems serious.  

My guess is that he retires.   He has almost $60 million dollars.  31 years old.   Smart guy.   Some may say it would be smart to play another season for $10-14 million.   He's set for life.  

[lollygagger8]

11 minutes ago, Myles said:

This is looking worse and worse in my opinion.  Started as a rumor that I didn't pay much attention to.   Now it seems serious.  

My guess is that he retires.   He has almost $60 million dollars.  31 years old.   Smart guy.   Some may say it would be smart to play another season for $10-14 million.   He's set for life.  

 

 

I agree, but not happily lol

[dodsworth]

Either you're in or you're out, I don't want anybody playing on this team that don't have the heart and soul for it. 

 

See: Andrew Luck

[Myles]

10 minutes ago, dodsworth said:

Either you're in or you're out, I don't want anybody playing on this team that don't have the heart and soul for it. 

 

See: Andrew Luck

He's deciding that.   If he decides to play, he's in.   If he retires, he's out.  

[Nesjan3]

I don't blame the guy, this team has been through a lot, and if Reich and Ballard stick with Brissett we are not winning anything except possibly the worst passing offense ever record.

 

Either way even if he does not retire he is not getting any younger. A LT should be drafted now, so he can start if AC retires, he can sit behind AC if he stays for one more year. One more year should be the max he plays on this team.

[Fisticuffs111]

Gotta start looking for his replacement. Even if he comes back it seems like it’ll only be for a year or two. 

[MTC]

It's never a good sign when a player contemplates retirement during the end of the season. If  if AC comes back for another year or two, Colts need to look at drafting (or signing) a high-profiled tackle. 

[Valpo2004]

15 hours ago, Dogg63 said:

On Jan 2, Ballard said, "Anthony and I will be in touch here over the next two or three weeks, and he'll make a decision."  It's now Jan 21, so per CB a decision is expected by tomorrow at the latest.  As others have mentioned, AC and AL are very very tight, so I wouldn't be at all surprised if AC hangs up his cleats (based on him getting an earful from AL about saving his body, living comfortably off his millions going forward, etc). If that's the way it goes, I'll be massively disappointed for the Colts and myself as a fan, but not surprised.

 

I doubt Luck is actively encouraging him to retire.  That said, the fact that Luck did retire and seeing that his friend has no regrets about the whole thing could be pushing him towards that direction and making him think about the future.

 

Plus at this point you can see where he might not want to start all over again.  He's 31 now, 32 next year.  Next year's team is probably not a SB contender unless we get someone like Rivers or Brees to come in and play.  If the plan doesn't involve grabbing one of them in free agency than the Colts are probably not realistically a contender til he's in his mid 30's and that's if everything goes right.

 

Of course he could always sign with a different team but he doesn't seem to want to do that.  From the way they are talking his options are play for the Colts or retire.  (Maybe he knows that if he doesn't retire the Colts will tag him???)

 

 

[Dogg63]

3 minutes ago, Valpo2004 said:

I doubt Luck is actively encouraging him to retire.

You may be right, but you know what they say about ex-smokers being the most vocal lobbyists for others to stop smoking. I wouldn't be surprised if AL is excited about his decision and expressing that excitement to his best friend - and perhaps even enticing him to follow suit. Dunno.

 

4 minutes ago, Valpo2004 said:

(Maybe he knows that if he doesn't retire the Colts will tag him???)

Interesting, hadn't thought of that angle.

[Valpo2004]

46 minutes ago, MTC said:

It's never a good sign when a player contemplates retirement during the end of the season. If  if AC comes back for another year or two, Colts need to look at drafting (or signing) a high-profiled tackle. 

 

I think he retires.  It would be nice to have him come back because now is not a really good time for the Colts to be needing a new LT.  

 

But I think that's a big thing for him though.  He has maybe 3 or 4 more years until father time takes him out of the game.  How likely is it that we are competing for a SB in those years?  

 

Only way we're a contender is if we bring in Rivers or Brees for a few years.  If the plan is to run with Brissett until a rookie is ready to play, than it's not happening.  

[chad72]

9 minutes ago, Valpo2004 said:

 

I think he retires.  It would be nice to have him come back because now is not a really good time for the Colts to be needing a new LT.  

 

But I think that's a big thing for him though.  He has maybe 3 or 4 more years until father time takes him out of the game.  How likely is it that we are competing for a SB in those years?  

 

Only way we're a contender is if we bring in Rivers or Brees for a few years.  If the plan is to run with Brissett until a rookie is ready to play, than it's not happening.  

 

THIS will change our draft pick priorities and getting both a QB and LT at the same time with the first 2 rounds is imperative now.

[Valpo2004]

6 minutes ago, Dogg63 said:

You may be right, but you know what they say about ex-smokers being the most vocal lobbyists for others to stop smoking. I wouldn't be surprised if AL is excited about his decision and expressing that excitement to his best friend - and perhaps even enticing him to follow suit. Dunno.

 

Interesting, hadn't thought of that angle.

 

Makes some sense that the Colts might tag him.  Important player at an important position who is hitting FA.  And at a time when we are trying to get the QB situation straightened out we don't need to be looking for a new LT.  So the Colts logically would pull out all of the stops that they have to keep him on the team for 2020.  That means a tag.  

[ManningGM]

Luck to Castonzo:

 

"# these fans, # the Horseshoe, Anthony...you need to do what's right for YOU."

[Valpo2004]

11 minutes ago, chad72 said:

 

THIS will change our draft pick priorities and getting both a QB and LT at the same time with the first 2 rounds is imperative now.

 

I think Ballard would scrap the idea of drafting a QB high and just get a LT with his first round pick.  

 

He takes a lot of pride in the trenches and probably doesn't want to bring in a QB to expose him to a beating that is coming from his blindside.  

 

Might get a QB in 2nd than.   That said there seems to be enough high OT prospects that one could expect a decent one to fall to us at 34.  

 

He could potentially try to fill one of those positions in FA.  

[Four2itus]

You know, as I think about this from a fan perspective, rather than a Castonzo perspective, I try to play the"window of opportunity" game. 

 

When one looks at the assembled players in the last 2 or 3 years and juxtapose that with the team build and future growth, Anthony sits a little outside that window. I love him as a player, and I think he has been vastly underappreciated by fans. I even see some who practically called him trash, now wringing their hands at his possible departure. 

 

I think most of the players at his age see this as a body/earnings business decision far more than fans are willing to recognize. We can discuss the window of opportunity angle till the cows come home, and as seen here, the conjecture will abound. In the end, for the player, it is far more likely that his decision is about whether he wants to put more degradation on his body, regardless of who the QB is or the immediate future possibility of a SB. 

[danlhart87]

If AC retires 

Draft QB round 1 or Kinlaw

Draft Jones OT round 2

[Pelt]

IF AC retires and IF Wirfs is still there at 13, I wouldn't be surprised to see the Colts take him there...

 

Lotta IFs...

[NannyMcafee]

Damn sure feels like the team is falling apart. 

[Thunderbolt]

Let the man go, don't beg him to stay, get another Tackle.

[NewColtsFan]

12 hours ago, Myles said:

This is looking worse and worse in my opinion.  Started as a rumor that I didn't pay much attention to.   Now it seems serious.  

My guess is that he retires.   He has almost $60 million dollars.  31 years old.   Smart guy.   Some may say it would be smart to play another season for $10-14 million.   He's set for life.  

He doesn’t have $60 million.   He’s probably EARNED $60 mill. But that is different. 
 

But taxes eat up half, so now he has $30 mill.    He’s been living on some of that...   so maybe he has spent $10 over the course of his career.   Now he has $20.   No one is crying poor, we’re not taking up a collection for AC.   I’m just saying he’s not as rich as one might think... 

[Imgrandojji]

On 1/21/2020 at 5:22 PM, zibby43 said:

 

The fact that there is no decision yet signals to me that retirement is very, very much on the table. 

What it tells me is that pro ballplayers have a code of etiquette not to make announcements during the playoffs that can wait for the offseason. 

 

Tom Brady has Patriot fans on tenterhooks as well and I expect it's for the exact same reason.  Right now the football world is focused on the 49ers and Chiefs and it's considered really bad form to drop news bombshells during that time that distract from those 2 teams, especially if it can wait a week or 2.

 

Also agents do't like to release news in that time window either because it's easier to get buried in Superbowl news which doesn't give their client the attention they fee they deserve

 

Within about 2 weeks of the end of the Superbowl a lot of metaphorical shoes are going to drop at once.  Lots of players and teams are biding their time right now and things aren't getting out unless there's a leak in the FO or agency in question

[Myles]

9 hours ago, NewColtsFan said:

He doesn’t have $60 million.   He’s probably EARNED $60 mill. But that is different. 
 

But taxes eat up half, so now he has $30 mill.    He’s been living on some of that...   so maybe he has spent $10 over the course of his career.   Now he has $20.   No one is crying poor, we’re not taking up a collection for AC.   I’m just saying he’s not as rich as one might think... 

Yeah, it's probably less than $50 million.   The sites I looked at had his net worth at $57 million.   Either way, anything over $20 million would make retirement a good option.   

[Dingus McGirt]

Isn't it instructive these days - we're talking about a fellow who has done nothing in life other than attend college and play football (very well)...with astronomical $$ figures being tossed around regarding his possible net worth.

 

Of course, guys like this have no financial reason to continue in the sport.

[Barry Sears]

If AC decides to retire, then it's another unexpected event that Ballard has to deal with, although at least Ballard has had a bit of time to consider options.

 

The McDaniels fiasco 2 years ago, then Luck's late retirement last year and now possibly your LT retiring at a younger age than expected.

 

So...let's say AC hangs up the cleats...now our draft board and focus changes completely.

 

You'd have to take a LT at #13, right?  From the mocks I've seen, the top 2-3 tackles may be gone by the time we pick.

 

Do we trade up to get a LT?  Many want us to trade up for a QB, but to me, LT is even more valuable to us next year than a rookie QB...JMO