Wildcard Possible Even With A Rookie Qb?

[horseshoepower]

It's a long long way off but, let's not write off 2012 just yet,Dalton, Sanchez, Flacco, Ryan all rookie QB's between 2008-2011 got their team to the wildcard round or farther so it really is possible. the 4th place schedule will be the Colts first since they joined the AFC south in 2002. just imagine A Colts vs. Broncos wildcard game would be quite a story.

[mahagga73]

It's a long long way off but, let's not write off 2012 just yet,Dalton, Sanchez, Flacco, Ryan all rookie QB's between 2008-2011 got their team to the wildcard round or farther so it really is possible. the 4th place schedule will be the Colts first since they joined the AFC south in 2002. just imagine A Colts vs. Broncos wildcard game would be quite a story.

Those QB's had much better rosters around them.The Polians,with the horrible stupid contracts for average players,and even worse drafting,have &--#62;&--#62;&--#62;ed us for at least a couple years from being competitive i think.Hope your right though.

[Jules]

Anything is possible.

[21isSuperman]

It's a long long way off but, let's not write off 2012 just yet,Dalton, Sanchez, Flacco, Ryan all rookie QB's between 2008-2011 got their team to the wildcard round or farther so it really is possible. the 4th place schedule will be the Colts first since they joined the AFC south in 2002. just imagine A Colts vs. Broncos wildcard game would be quite a story.

But those teams all had a solid running attack and a good defense.

[MTC]

No one expected the Bengals to make it and .. hey they made the wild card. You never know.

[Jules]

No one expected the Bengals to make it and .. hey they made the wild card. You never know.

People expected Cincy to be the worst in the league. Or among the worst.

I felt better when Reggie came back.

[mahagga73]

No one expected the Bengals to make it and .. hey they made the wild card. You never know.

they had a top flight young defense.Dalton doesn't really need to be all that good for them to win.

[CR91]

but we're also becoming a young tough defense along with building the o-line to not only help luck, but improve our running game. we also still have wayne collie and white three really reliable wrs along with drafting luck some talent cough coby fleener cough cough.

[Gavin]

while I believe wildcard is possible I wont put any pressure like that on them this year, its about learning to jell together and become a team besides we dont have all the pieces, My hope is we get a more physical more bruising back among other things after our obvious needs, a corner or two, a nose tackle, a center that is used to the position would be nice, a Tight End if Tamme leaves, I really hope he dont I think he would help Luck quite a bit I see him as fullfilling the Fleener roll, Id like us to go to a two Tight End set more often and use Eldridges blocking ability to our advantage that has been way underused, so many ideas I believe we can do when we get more pieces to the puzzle and all will come together in time, it wont always be pretty to watch the team come together but with good communication and perhaps even dumbing it down a bit at first I believe were on the path to success

[jvan1973]

If this team goes 8-8 Pagano will win Coach of the year

[Wyld1]

If this team goes 8-8 Pagano will win Coach of the year

I completely agree!

[CR91]

If this team goes 8-8 Pagano will win Coach of the year

have some faith

[jvan1973]

have some faith

I do have faith.. But if Pagano can turn around what we saw last year in one off season he would deserve COY

[Wyld1]

have some faith

He's being realistic and I have to agree. I am always optimistic regarding the Colts but realize their hands are tied in Free Agency with cap troubles from execuives of the past and the draft can't possibly fill all the holes in the roster. I do however feel in 2013 we will truly see this team blossom.

[Deano1818]

I dont expect it..... Too much change.....

6-10 would be more like it

[Flash7]

I am please that we have addressed some of our needs in the off season. With the draft coming up, we can address more needs and add depth. I think we can field a very competitive team, and in a shorter time than expected. I am hopefull for the upcoming season. We definitely have less holes now than we did earlier in the season, IMO.

[JoKeR]

The 2012 colts will not be the final product after some rebuilding but it will be a better team than last years squad. I don't see Pagano and Griggs leaving glaring holes throughout the roster. Instead I see good, capable FAs filling spots that are not taken by franchise type players( mostly highly touted rookies).

After the final roster cuts, I think we're going to see what should be a very competitive team, maybe not the final build, definitely not a joke of a team, but one that could easily be a .650 team.

Don't judge next years team because of 2011, that team had no cap to work with, underwhelming ageing vets, and nothing at QB. 2012 will have little cap room too but the Colts should have about 7-10 highly touted rookies and a mix of vets that seemed hand picked by the coaches( not just a warm body).

I think most of the Colts losses will be because of a lack of cohesiveness and experience , not from a lack of quality in its players.

[oldunclemark]

It's a long long way off but, let's not write off 2012 just yet,Dalton, Sanchez, Flacco, Ryan all rookie QB's between 2008-2011 got their team to the wildcard round or farther so it really is possible. the 4th place schedule will be the Colts first since they joined the AFC south in 2002. just imagine A Colts vs. Broncos wildcard game would be quite a story.

I think that defensively we are starting to look pretty good and our defensive scheme will change which speaks to good things hopefully.

I hate to say it out loud but almost EVERYTHING depends on Andrew Luck...

we arent going to be able to stack all pros or high draft choices around him..in 2012 or 2013

we dont have any extra high choices

He has to be as good as people say.....and nthikng is impssible.

Denver was 8-8 and Cincy was 9-7..both were playoff teams

[JoKeR]

I think that defensively we are starting to look pretty good and our defensive scheme will change which speaks to good things hopefully.

I hate to say it out loud but almost EVERYTHING depends on Andrew Luck...

we arent going to be able to stack all pros or high draft choices around him..in 2012 or 2013

we dont have any extra high choices

He has to be as good as people say.....and nthikng is impssible.

Denver was 8-8 and Cincy was 9-7..both were playoff teams

Wont beable to stack weapons around Luck? You certainly can with a 2nd and 3rd round pick. Could draft Lucks future #1WR with the 2nd pick and get his TE in the 3rd. Just depends on what Grigs wants to concentrate on.

[hawkeyes]

Playoffs? Playoffs? PLAYOFFS?

I dont see it, not with the way the Texans can play.... dont see a wc team coming out of the South.

[coltsgoodin]

It's a long long way off but, let's not write off 2012 just yet,Dalton, Sanchez, Flacco, Ryan all rookie QB's between 2008-2011 got their team to the wildcard round or farther so it really is possible. the 4th place schedule will be the Colts first since they joined the AFC south in 2002. just imagine A Colts vs. Broncos wildcard game would be quite a story.

AFC South Champs!

[JoKeR]

WC can require a very good record sometimes. Maybe the WC is not a good standard to measure success of a rebuilding team.

[rkemp10]

The leadership and nucleus of the team is gone....playoffs are ways off. Like to be wrong, but its reality...give it some time.

[Gavin]

it could happen but I dont set that as a goal for them only thing I am hoping for is them to grow as a team anything else is great

[GrizzColt]

How lucky are we? This draft is big on receivers and cornerbacks....the 2 things we need the most, imo. Because we are obviously playing the free agent game (as opposed to the Polian years) we can get good quick if they make good decisions and like you guys said, Luck plays well.

[Gavin]

we still need a nose tackle and a corner or two and I think a center in my opinion someone that is use to starting at Center

[Gavin]

I am thinking if we dont have someone starting at center that has played the position before and is a natural center it will be open season on Luck and we sure dont need that

[subvet]

The great thing about a forum like this is we all can post all kinds of wild a** stuff like this and get a discussion started.

Way to soon to know but hey, I posted to it.......

[Andy]

Look at Andy Dalton last year, and look at Tebow who was playing in his first year as a starter. I just don't think our overall team was better than theirs. They had top 10 defenses coming down the stretch, and we haven't had a top 10 defense since the first couple of Dungy years.

[GAColt]

The defense could be significantly better just based on scheme. Offenses figured out that cover 2 defense a few years ago, and it became very ineffective.

Looking at the contenders for the WC:

East : Jets - not seeing any reason to think they will improve from last year, maybe worse

Central: Steelers - getting old, does Wallace return. Bengals - last year a fluke? Mike Brown does still run the team.

West: Chargers - lost Vincent Jackson, Gates getting the injury bug

South: Titans 9-7 last yr., Britt was injured, CJ off year or got paid and won't return to form?

I am assuming Pats, Ravens, Broncos, and Texans all win their divisions (big assumption all 4 of last yrs winners repeat). Looking at this list, if the Colts could go 9-7, that might be enough to get the 2nd WC in a weak AFC.

It's possible, but not likely. A good draft this year then 2013 is a good possibility.

[chrisfarley]

our wildcard will get stolen by the Broncos. W.C.A.G.A

[Gavin]

Good picks I think those are pretty accurate for this year, Im not sold on Denver even with Manning just yet thought, If Im a Broncos fan Im wanting My wide receivers to step up, Manning can throw it very accurate but it still has to be caught

[GAColt]

Good picks I think those are pretty accurate for this year, Im not sold on Denver even with Manning just yet thought, If Im a Broncos fan Im wanting My wide receivers to step up, Manning can throw it very accurate but it still has to be caught

They did have Tebow throwing to them, so it's hard to tell how good those receivers are.

[UnitastoOrr]

best prepare for a long season, if you have not noticed in the last couple of years, awsome defenses, except Ravens back when, do not win you championships. It is all offense, that is what sells tickets and that is how you win championships in the NFL. The last time I looked our offense has no QB yet and our offense was poor to mediocre last year. I predict we will be in contention for the first round draft pick next year

[04DarkShadowGT]

I am pretty excited about the signings so far, especially Reggie and the D. But I still think its far fetched for a Wildcard spot, but not impossible. If we have a quality draft and have those guys contribute right away we could be at least a competitive team and win 7-8 games.

I am preparing for another sub 5 win season, but hoping for the best.

[Thewholefnshow28]

I think fans just need to prepare themselves for a very inconsistent year next year. They just have to prepare themselves to not get to high after a win and not get to low after a loss.

We still have a lot of holes that we still need to fill, we will probably have young guys playing at key positions, and will have a first time head coach as well. There will be times when we look at Luck and just go OMG he is amazing and then there will be times when we go OMG what the heck was he thinking.

Our defense will be converting to a hybrid 3-4, we are thin at TE and WR, and our running game will have two guys who at times look good and at other times look awful.

I think talking playoffs or anything is just going to get yourself to high and then when we struggle which we will you will get to low.

This season and next are all about rebuilding and retooling.

[FightLikeSin]

I think it is going to be hard to predict how this season turns out. With all new coaches in the building running different schemes on offense and defense, we could be decent or have a Texans-style 1-year turnaround. I'm hoping for the latter, but not holding my breath. The front office seems to be improving the O-line with 3 FA pickups and getting the right personnel for the 3-4 D. I hope they add a veteran NT soon so we can focus on offensive weapons in the draft. That is what Luck will need if we hope to have a winning record anytime soon. WR and TE are going to be a priority if Tamme isn't resigned.

[oldunclemark]

Wont beable to stack weapons around Luck? You certainly can with a 2nd and 3rd round pick. Could draft Lucks future #1WR with the 2nd pick and get his TE in the 3rd. Just depends on what Grigs wants to concentrate on.

What I said was that we wont be able to stack high draft choices or all-pros around him...

and we wont..we dont have them.

Andrew is supposed to be very good and we need him to be to make the playoffs

..which is my goal EVERY season.

[Ohio Colt]

I dont see it. Just hoping for a competitive football team that doesn't get Andre Luck killed. I honestly don't think Irsay & co CARE if they go 3-13 this year. They want everything to paralell the Peyton situation. Next year they'll find their Edgerrin James. The problem is he's in this draft. He's trent richardson. They should use next year's 1st to get Trent and pair him with Luck

[BrentMc11]

I dont expect it..... Too much change.....

6-10 would be more like it

I predicted 7-9. If the defense attacks like I 'know it will' and Pagano's motivation, the players will exceed expectations. We also have a rookie QB who is better than last years rookies and most succeeded.(Cam Newton was off the charts good and Dalton was 'solid.') I said the first time I saw Luck at the line of scrimmage he reminded me of 18.