Thoughts on yesterday's game and going forward

[Dogg63]

After reflection, here are some thoughts on yesterday’s game and the Colts going forward:

 

The game

Rivers’ played a very good game: “Philip Rivers' 91.9 Total QBR is the 3rd-best in a playoff loss since the metric began in 2006” – he put up 300 yds 2 TDs, no turnovers, w/ 7 drops. If he wants to be a Colt next year, he will be.

 

Reich coached a very good game:

Going for a TD on 4th and goal: The Colts were successful on fourth down during the regular season. They were 15-of-20 on fourth down with fewer than 5 yards to go. Their 15 converted attempts were second in the NFL behind only the Raiders. More rationale is included here.

The 2-point Attempt: Some on the forum don’t understand analytics, which is fine – I didn’t either until recently – but it’s time to learn! Here’s a link to help you understand why Reich went for 2 (and it was absolutely the correct call). 

The challenge: Bad challenge, he admitted it after the game. He rushed the decision even though he had time to be more sure about it.

 

The team played a very good game:  The Colts are the first team to lose in playoff history with 450+ total yards (season-high 472 yards) and 0 turnovers. Teams were previously 11-0 hitting those benchmarks, according to EliasSports. The Colts were 17-1 in franchise history in such games. NFL teams had won 16 straight games with those numbers.

 

In the end, this very young team lost a hard-fought, exciting battle by 3 lousy points. Enough mistakes to go around (missed throws, 7 dropped passes, a missed kick, an offside DE, a bad challenge), and enough to lose the game, but no heads should roll because of it.

 

Going Forward

The Draft: Pretty sure the Colts will pick no worse than 21st in the draft. We can move up to 20th if the Bears beat the Saints today.

We need an impactful edge rusher: This draft looks deep at Edge so Ballard might address that position in RDs 2-3. I’m sure he’ll keep an eye on potential LTs, too.

We need a true #1 receiver: Hilton had 1 target and no catches in the final 52 minutes. That's simply not impactful enough for a WR1. 

 

Rivers: Rivers had a damn good season. Led the Colts to the 11th passing offense. So much for being “washed.” He had a blast this year and getting him in here was a positive step for the franchise. Again, if he wants to be a Colt next year, he will be.

 

Reich: In three seasons as head coach, Frank Reich has two of the top eight scoring teams in Colts history, and two of the top seven teams in Colts history in total yards.

 

Indy has a tremendous young core of players on offense, defense, and special teams. The sky is the limit for this team while Ballard is in charge. I’m pumped!

[SR711]

39 minutes ago, Dogg63 said:

Reich coached a very good game:

Going for a TD on 4th and goal: The Colts were successful on fourth down during the regular season. They were 15-of-20 on fourth down with fewer than 5 yards to go. Their 15 converted attempts were second in the NFL behind only the Raiders. More rationale is included here.

 

The team played a very good game:  The Colts are the first team to lose in playoff history with 450+ total yards (season-high 472 yards) and 0 turnovers. Teams were previously 11-0 hitting those benchmarks, according to EliasSports. The Colts were 17-1 in franchise history in such games. NFL teams had won 16 straight games with those numbers.

 

 

Great post and well stated.  The only part I would have a difference of opinion in is the Reich decisions you highlighted specifically going for it on 4th down late in the 1st half.  

 

As you pointed out, the Colts were the 1st team (out of 12 previously) to lose an NFL playoff game after accumulating 450+ yards of total offense and no turnovers.  That is obviously a pretty good sample size for the Colts to be the outlier.   When you see numbers like that, it implies the team was moving the ball pretty well throughout the game and not giving it back to the opposition.  I would argue the reason for the Colts being the only team with an L with those benchmarks is precisely because of the questionable (in my opinion) decision making that caused them to get nothing out of one of their red zone trips and effectively, was like a turnover.  

[coltsva]

Goal to go - we could not get in on 3 downs and we were moving in the wrong direction. I don't care what analytics say, you had to get some points out of that drive. As SR711 said, that was a turnover, and it was crushing to come away with nothing.

 

I agreed with the decision to go for two once the ball was moved to the 1 yard line.

[TomDiggs]

Hindsight is obviously 20:20, but the other thing about going for it on 4th down there at the end of the first half is that the logic is likely "Hey if we don't succeed they would need to march 95 yards in 2 minutes instead of giving them the ball back only up 13-7 with 2 mins and likely 75 yards or less to go".

 

From that logic it can be argued that it makes sense.

 

However, when you factor in that the Bills were still able to go down and get a TD there, that is basically a 10-14 point swing in a 2 minute period in a game that ended up being a one score game.

 

I totally understand the logic and analytics as to why we went for it, but that decision alone was the true killer.

 

That 10 point swing combined with knowing that the Bills were getting the ball to start the second half was tough.

 

I understand there are not a lot of moral victories when you're playing to win championships, but our team lost to arguably the hottest team in the league with one of the best offenses on the road in a game where they were allowed to have fans for the first time and were amped up. And we had a chance to tie or win at the end.

 

This looks a lot closer than we looked when getting beaten by KC 31-13 two years back.

 

The Bills are a damn good team that is championship caliber and we arguably outplayed them.

 

We have some work to do this off-season but the future still looks bright.

[Dogg63]

3 minutes ago, coltsva said:

I don't care what analytics say, you had to get some points out of that drive.

I understand where you're coming from. The irrational side of me agrees 100%.

 

But let's think about that statement because it's a tale of two cities. We need points, so we should do whatever makes the most sense...in other words, what we have the best chance of succeeding at. That is where we turn to analytics to guide us. Yet needing points and not getting them does not mean the decision was flawed. 

 

When we fail at the best option, that:

A - entices us, in hindsight (which is always 20/20), to question that option being chosen.

B - doesn't make that option any less appropriate - it was the best option and will be the next time too. We just need to execute it better (or the other team to execute it less well).

C - means we most likely would NOT have scored points on any of the lesser options, had we tried one of them.

[coltsva]

The way I try look at these decisions is "what was I yelling at the TV in real time," and not in hindsight.

 

4th and goal - I was saying "kick the FG" The way the drive was coming apart, I was very surprised FR went for it. That is a tough down and distance in that situation. As we saw, it had to be a perfect pass, and it wasn't. Granted, it was inches, but inches or feet it's still incomplete.

Penalty on the extra point - I immediately said "go for two." I'd want Frank to go for this every time. Not getting 1 yard is on the players, not the coach.

Challenge on Moss fumble - took only one replay to say "knee was down." I fault Frank on throwing the flag too soon, but the majority of the fault most likely goes to whoever in the booth said "it's close."

[yankeeclipper]

Colts played a very good game yesterday. They outplayed the Bills for the most part - although Allen made the plays that championship QB's need to make with his arm and his legs. Outcome might have been different if we could take back the following plays:

 

1.  Going for it 4th and goal. should have kicked the FG.  The pass to Pitman was a nice play but Rivers over threw him and Pittman could not make the catch.

2. Turray off-sides on 4th and 3. Might have  resulted in a Bills FG vs. driving for the TD at end of 1st half.

3. Blankenshipp missing the FG 

4. Reich challenge of RB fumble - not sure why he did that. It was clear that his knee was down. 

5. Using a 2nd TO to avoid delay of game - ended up blowing two TO's in 2nd half that we could have used on last drive.

6. Not getting Allen fumble. We would have had great field position  with over 2 minutes to play in 4th Qtr. 

7.  A few dropped balls - 2 by Taylor, 1 by Hines and 1 by Doyle and tipped ball that Pittman could not handle.

8. Blown coverage on TD pass to Diggs (really the only noticeable blown play by the defense yesterday). I thought defense looked very good. Some of the plays the Bills made were just good plays - Allen runs, sideline passes on last drive in first half that extended drives that led to Bills TD. Allen and receivers made great plays.

 

Championship teams make the plays they need to make to win. We just came up short and any one of the above might have led to a different outcome. Any combination of the above might have had the Bills chasing us to overcome a deficit. The team has a lot to be proud of and hopefully we  can build on this season with a good draft, and some FA signings that improve the Colts on offense sand defense.

[colt18]

Rivers was trash yesterday. Yeah his statline is cool but if you were watching the game, you saw that he routinely threw passes behind WRs and overthrew Pittman in the endzone. His arm is done, I flat out DO NOT want him back next season.

 

JT was a disappointment, then again I don't know why Hines is still underplayed. Hines should be taking the screen passes and checking down, JT is our grinder between the tackles. JT had a couple bad drops but Hines should have been there to begin with.

 

Reich coached a bad game. Going for it on 4th down like it's Madden and blowing TOs on dumb challenges are two things you should not be doing in the playoffs. I like Reich as a coach but he needs to quit with the boneheaded game plan, ALWAYS take the points unless you absolutely need a TD.

 

We lost to the Bills, who are a good team, but we definitely could have won. Ultimately, I  don't care because I never saw us going far with old man Rivers. When we get a good QB we will go far. Until then, meh.

 

P.S. I miss you Andrew Luck

[TimetobringDfence!]

8 hours ago, Dogg63 said:

After reflection, here are some thoughts on yesterday’s game and the Colts going forward:

 

The game

Rivers’ played a very good game: “Philip Rivers' 91.9 Total QBR is the 3rd-best in a playoff loss since the metric began in 2006” – he put up 300 yds 2 TDs, no turnovers, w/ 7 drops. If he wants to be a Colt next year, he will be.

 

Reich coached a very good game:

Going for a TD on 4th and goal: The Colts were successful on fourth down during the regular season. They were 15-of-20 on fourth down with fewer than 5 yards to go. Their 15 converted attempts were second in the NFL behind only the Raiders. More rationale is included here.

The 2-point Attempt: Some on the forum don’t understand analytics, which is fine – I didn’t either until recently – but it’s time to learn! Here’s a link to help you understand why Reich went for 2 (and it was absolutely the correct call). 

The challenge: Bad challenge, he admitted it after the game. He rushed the decision even though he had time to be more sure about it.

 

The team played a very good game:  The Colts are the first team to lose in playoff history with 450+ total yards (season-high 472 yards) and 0 turnovers. Teams were previously 11-0 hitting those benchmarks, according to EliasSports. The Colts were 17-1 in franchise history in such games. NFL teams had won 16 straight games with those numbers.

 

In the end, this very young team lost a hard-fought, exciting battle by 3 lousy points. Enough mistakes to go around (missed throws, 7 dropped passes, a missed kick, an offside DE, a bad challenge), and enough to lose the game, but no heads should roll because of it.

 

Going Forward

The Draft: Pretty sure the Colts will pick no worse than 21st in the draft. We can move up to 20th if the Bears beat the Saints today.

We need an impactful edge rusher: This draft looks deep at Edge so Ballard might address that position in RDs 2-3. I’m sure he’ll keep an eye on potential LTs, too.

We need a true #1 receiver: Hilton had 1 target and no catches in the final 52 minutes. That's simply not impactful enough for a WR1. 

 

Rivers: Rivers had a damn good season. Led the Colts to the 11th passing offense. So much for being “washed.” He had a blast this year and getting him in here was a positive step for the franchise. Again, if he wants to be a Colt next year, he will be.

 

Reich: In three seasons as head coach, Frank Reich has two of the top eight scoring teams in Colts history, and two of the top seven teams in Colts history in total yards.

 

Indy has a tremendous young core of players on offense, defense, and special teams. The sky is the limit for this team while Ballard is in charge. I’m pumped!

After reading this and venting about Reich a lot. Maybe he deserves more time to prove himself. But he has to grow from this. 

This is a franchise altering offseason, we have a lot free agents and decisions to make. 

I feel like Pittman proved hes a dood reciever he made some great plays. Taylor had the yips on some receptions, think hes worried about fumbling. Rodgers has a nose for the ball, but he needs a little more weight. He could push to start with that kind of play. 

Rivers had a great season, but his lack of mobility and declining arm strength is a liability. I personally think I rather start Eason to see if he is our future or bring in a cheaper option as the bridge until we get our guy. Nelson, Leonard, and Smith will need paid soon. We have tough choices on bringing back Walker, Rhodes, and Houston on D. I personally would let Houston walk and draft a DE or sign A younger stud DE to pair with Buckner. Trenches are Ballards baby and if we have a lethal dline everyone behind them is better.

 

[CR91]

I think Reich went for it because even if we didn't get it, he probably thought the defense could get the ball back with time with the bills starting inside their own 5.

[TimetobringDfence!]

3 minutes ago, CR91 said:

I think Reich went for it because even if we didn't get it, he probably thought the defense could get the ball back with time with the bills starting inside their own 5.

I'm not upset Reich went for the TD. The play was good, Rivers overthrew it. I'm more upset with that challenge and the call to go for two. Reich needs to reflect and grow or he could end up on the hotseat.

[StatesmanN]

7 hours ago, coltsva said:

Goal to go - we could not get in on 3 downs and we were moving in the wrong direction. I don't care what analytics say, you had to get some points out of that drive. As SR711 said, that was a turnover, and it was crushing to come away with nothing.

 

I agreed with the decision to go for two once the ball was moved to the 1 yard line.

Why?

 

Makes zero sense to me. 

 

You do that so you have a chance to win at the end if you score another td right?

 

They were down 8 when they went for 2.

 

So if you kick the extra point to make the deficit 7, and then you score again?  THEN you can decide to go for the win or not.

 

But if you go for the 2 and don't get it, and score again?  At best you are playing for a tie at the end. 

[StatesmanN]

25 minutes ago, colt18 said:

Rivers was trash yesterday. Yeah his statline is cool but if you were watching the game, you saw that he routinely threw passes behind WRs and overthrew Pittman in the endzone. His arm is done, I flat out DO NOT want him back next season.

 

JT was a disappointment, then again I don't know why Hines is still underplayed. Hines should be taking the screen passes and checking down, JT is our grinder between the tackles. JT had a couple bad drops but Hines should have been there to begin with.

 

Reich coached a bad game. Going for it on 4th down like it's Madden and blowing TOs on dumb challenges are two things you should not be doing in the playoffs. I like Reich as a coach but he needs to quit with the boneheaded game plan, ALWAYS take the points unless you absolutely need a TD.

 

We lost to the Bills, who are a good team, but we definitely could have won. Ultimately, I  don't care because I never saw us going far with old man Rivers. When we get a good QB we will go far. Until then, meh.

 

P.S. I miss you Andrew Luck

Agree all.

[coltfaninnewyork]

Anyone know when Ballard will  have his end of season press conference ?

[Dogg63]

 

2 minutes ago, StatesmanN said:

Why?

 

Makes zero sense to me.

(From OP's post)

Here’s a link to help you understand why Reich went for 2 (and it was absolutely the correct call). 

[Colt.45]

The emotions are still raw so thinking clearly about the QB position next year is tough. I think Rivers hit his ceiling yesterday. The plus is that the ceiling isn't the worst thing in the world. The minus is that you could see his limitations quite clearly. 

If they can get the future at QB, absolutely do it. If not, then roll the dice again with 17.

 

Either way, this season is the crucial season for Chris Ballard. This is that pivotal offseason where he can leap from a good GM to a HoF GM.

[StatesmanN]

7 minutes ago, Dogg63 said:

 

(From OP's post)

Here’s a link to help you understand why Reich went for 2 (and it was absolutely the correct call). 

I have never seen a coach go for 2, down 8, with lots of time to go in my life.

 

And there is a reason for that.

[StatesmanN]

3 minutes ago, Colt.45 said:

The emotions are still raw so thinking clearly about the QB position next year is tough. I think Rivers hit his ceiling yesterday. The plus is that the ceiling isn't the worst thing in the world. The minus is that you could see his limitations quite clearly. 

If they can get the future at QB, absolutely do it. If not, then roll the dice again with 17.

 

Either way, this season is the crucial season for Chris Ballard. This is that pivotal offseason where he can leap from a good GM to a HoF GM.

I think Ballard is good, but hall of fame Gms win SBs.  Or at least get to the SB.

 

Ballard hasn't been close.

 

He has made a ton of mistakes from Jacoby to some iffy drafts to failure to get WRs to failure to get Corners to the McDaniels fiasco to failure to find a long last replacement at QB since Luck left.

 

I would rate him a B- so far. 

[Colt.45]

Just now, StatesmanN said:

I think Ballard is good, but hall of fame Gms win SBs.  Or at least get to the SB.

 

Ballard hasn't been close.

 

He has made a ton of mistakes from Jacoby to some iffy drafts to failure to get WRs to failure to get Corners to the McDaniels fiasco to failure to find a long last replacement at QB since Luck left.

 

I would rate him a B- so far. 

 

Definitely.

To be fair to him, it's good to keep in mind that HoF GMs tend to have an accompanying QB. Ditto HoF coaches.

It's hard when you don't have that position.

 

I don't know that Jacoby was a failure par se. Luck leaving put the team in a unique awkward position. Maybe he got too emotional in giving JB that contract. That McDaniels decision is one I definitely hang on Ballard, just bad process. 

However the failure to find a long term replacement for Luck is hard to blame on him. Maybe he could have rolled the dice last year and tried to move up for Herbert or one of those guys but it'd have been hard. 

 

This offseason is the make or break I think.

 

[TimetobringDfence!]

21 minutes ago, StatesmanN said:

Agree all.

He's not skilled enough to be a one dimensional pocket passer anymore. He's a game manager and back up at this point. Definately not worth another 25 mil. I miss have a QB that can scramble for easy yards, or throw past 45 yards.

[TimetobringDfence!]

With the Oline we have and JT stepping up big should we consider a more mulriple TE sets. We could be more of a passing threat out of running formations and be harder to read. To do this we would have let Burton walk and get a good blocking TE. I like MAC and Doyle. But think we could upgrade the position. Especially if we bring back Rivers.

[wordofmouth]

37 minutes ago, StatesmanN said:

I think Ballard is good, but hall of fame Gms win SBs.  Or at least get to the SB.

 

Ballard hasn't been close.

 

He has made a ton of mistakes from Jacoby to some iffy drafts to failure to get WRs to failure to get Corners to the McDaniels fiasco to failure to find a long last replacement at QB since Luck left.

 

I would rate him a B- so far. 

Wow!   Really?

 

Do Hall of Fame GM's win the super bowl in their first 4 years?  Especially after taking over a skeleton of a team built around a Franchise QB that unexpectedly quits right before the start of a season. Meaning they had no time to draft/sign accordingly until the next season.  

 

So his mistake was paying too much money for the highly touted backup to take over.  That's pretty minor. The salary cap is in great shape so it really is a nonissue. 

 

So we have positions like CB and Reciever that need to be upgraded, do we?  Well, welcome to the NFL. Every team is weak at certain positions. 

Two out of our three starting corners are very good ( Rohdes, Moore) The other has struggled but still has the chance to be a decent player.  We have two young CB's that can challenge next year in Rodgers and Tell. Yes, it's a position that needs to be upgraded but is hardly a train wreck. 

 

WR?  We need a #1 with Hilton getting older.  Campble ( If he can stay healthy) Pitman and Pascal can be a nice core to add to. 

Again, welcome to the NFL.  

 

His drafts have been far from "iffy". Has he made some "iffy" draft picks? Of course. So has every GM in every sport. Many times. 

 

McDaniels fiasco?!? Come on!  As a matter of fact, his ability to recover from that followed by the Luck retirement are proof of his being an excellent GM

 

Finally, He has basically had one season ( see above) to find a "long term" replacement for Luck. Yes, I wish we hired Merlin the Magician as GM as well but I don't think he was available.  What he has done is drafted a possible Long Term replacement while finding a short term replacement who by any measure has been very good. Manning? Luck? no.  It's back to reality as far as QB's are concerned. Many teams go 20 years without finding someone who is close to Rivers. 

 

IMO anything under a B+ is ridiculous. 

 

OK enough of that

[Moosejawcolt]

2 hours ago, colt18 said:

Rivers was trash yesterday. Yeah his statline is cool but if you were watching the game, you saw that he routinely threw passes behind WRs and overthrew Pittman in the endzone. His arm is done, I flat out DO NOT want him back next season.

 

JT was a disappointment, then again I don't know why Hines is still underplayed. Hines should be taking the screen passes and checking down, JT is our grinder between the tackles. JT had a couple bad drops but Hines should have been there to begin with.

 

Reich coached a bad game. Going for it on 4th down like it's Madden and blowing TOs on dumb challenges are two things you should not be doing in the playoffs. I like Reich as a coach but he needs to quit with the boneheaded game plan, ALWAYS take the points unless you absolutely need a TD.

 

We lost to the Bills, who are a good team, but we definitely could have won. Ultimately, I  don't care because I never saw us going far with old man Rivers. When we get a good QB we will go far. Until then, meh.

 

P.S. I miss you Andrew Luck

I agree with u on Rivers arm. His lack of mobility and arm strength limits what the offence can do. Defences dont respect him going deep so they crowd the line. Now get Stafford and that would change. I am all for drafting the future next year or going with Eason. May take a step  back but I beleive we r only dealing the inevitable. Its like a band aid with Rivers. Time to tear it off and fast

[chad72]

Reich, IMO, sometimes coaches too much on analytics and can kill momentum. Charles Davis in the booth was saying if you lose yardage on 3rd and goal, you kick the FG. Reich gave Allen too much credit, IMO. When push came to shove, we stopped Allen and allowed us to come back from 24-10 to 27-24. So, Reich should have taken the 3.

 

However, coaches coach and players play. Given the plays called, the players failed to execute. Turay's offsides and Rodrigo's miss came back to haunt us and we do not have the offensive firepower to make a team pay. It is not possible to build an all worldly defense in this day and age that limits everyone to 20 points without selling the farm in terms of draft picks, something teams like the Rams and Saints are willing to do, but not Ballard.

 

Rivers did not hit Pittman on the 4th and goal. Rivers missed Pittman that was wide open on another big play. Rivers cannot wing it in before a good safety closes in on passes beyond 20 yards. Rivers cannot do boot legs, soon it will become a pitch instead of a hand off and we would have wasted another year with Rivers, IMO. His ceiling is limited, cannot even do a QB sneak with him, and he misses enough easy throws that a vet at his age is supposed to hit. We will waste the talent on the OL and running game if we cannot maximize the QB position. I am all in for Stafford at this point if Detroit decides to rebuild. Given all these parameters, Rivers is the odd man out.

[Moosejawcolt]

43 minutes ago, chad72 said:

Reich, IMO, sometimes coaches too much on analytics and can kill momentum. Charles Davis in the booth was saying if you lose yardage on 3rd and goal, you kick the FG. Reich gave Allen too much credit, IMO. When push came to shove, we stopped Allen and allowed us to come back from 24-10 to 27-24. So, Reich should have taken the 3.

 

However, coaches coach and players play. Given the plays called, the players failed to execute. Turay's offsides and Rodrigo's miss came back to haunt us and we do not have the offensive firepower to make a team pay. It is not possible to build an all worldly defense in this day and age that limits everyone to 20 points without selling the farm in terms of draft picks, something teams like the Rams and Saints are willing to do, but not Ballard.

 

Rivers did not hit Pittman on the 4th and goal. Rivers missed Pittman that was wide open on another big play. Rivers cannot wing it in before a good safety closes in on passes beyond 20 yards. Rivers cannot do boot legs, soon it will become a pitch instead of a hand off and we would have wasted another year with Rivers, IMO. His ceiling is limited, cannot even do a QB sneak with him, and he misses enough easy throws that a vet at his age is supposed to hit. We will waste the talent on the OL and running game if we cannot maximize the QB position. I am all in for Stafford at this point if Detroit decides to rebuild. Given all these parameters, Rivers is the odd man out.

Hmmmm. Frank is criticized for not going for the field goal. Does anyone want to revisit stats. The offence has struggled in the 2nd half of ball games. Thats a stat that cannot be disputed. The defence. Well, they play great in one half and collapse the next. So lets step back and examine. What is Frank thinking? I need 7 and to go up by 10 and go into the half leading 17-7. My offence struggles in the 2nd half. My defence has played good in the 1st half. Yet if I go by stats and history, they r do for a 2nd half collapse. I have no problem with the call. Frank  felt he needed the points based on analytics, stats and the history of the 2021 Colts offence and defensive performances.

[chad72]

5 minutes ago, Moosejawcolt said:

Hmmmm. Frank is criticized for not going for the field goal. Does anyone want to revisit stats. The offence has struggled in the 2nd half of ball games. Thats a stat that cannot be disputed. The defence. Well, they play great in one half and collapse the next. So lets step back and examine. What is Frank thinking? I need 7 and to go up by 10 and go into the half leading 17-7. My offence struggles in the 2nd half. My defence has played good in the 1st half. Yet if I go by stats and history, they r do for a 2nd half collapse. I have no problem with the call. Frank  felt he needed the points based on analytics, stats and the history of the 2021 Colts offence and defensive performances.

 

That is a negative way to coach, anticipating a drop off in offensive production based on what has happened in the regular season. You coach with a positive outlook, otherwise the 2006 Colts wouldn't have pulled the rope-a-dope after ranking 32nd in rush D in the regular season.

 

Guess what, we scored 10 in the first half and 14 in the second half vs the Bills,, the D gave up 14 in the first half and 13 in the second half. Frank went for the extra 4 points, I get it and he probably gave Allen a lot more credit too. That is why I said Rivers should have hit Pittman because we did not execute and Rivers was a big part of us not executing. He could not stretch the field initially when he needed him to and missed several key throws. We cannot even do a QB sneak with him that we have to play JB for it and telegraph it,, not something we'd do with a younger QB, IMO.

[Moosejawcolt]

1 minute ago, chad72 said:

 

That is a negative way to coach, anticipating a drop off in offensive production. Guess what, we scored 10 in the first half and 14 in the second half, the D gave up 14 in the first half and 13 in the second half. Frank went for the extra 4 points, I get it and he probably gave Allen a lot more credit too.

 

That is why I said Rivers should have hit Pittman because we did not execute and Rivers was a big part of us not executing. 

I thinl Frank may have gone for it based on the defences performances this year

[chad72]

2 minutes ago, Moosejawcolt said:

I think Frank may have gone for it based on the defences performances this year

 

Given Frank going for it vs Jags in 2018, 2019 and 4th & 2 vs Texans in 2018, it is just in his nature to go for it. We live and die by the sword, he is purely thinking about offensive execution and that play. A better throw from Rivers to Pittman and we come out on top.

[SR711]

7 minutes ago, Moosejawcolt said:

I thinl Frank may have gone for it based on the defences performances this year

 

I agree with you and he will never admit it publicly, but it had to have factored into his decision making there having seen multiple times over the course of the season where his defense went into meltdown mode during stretches of games especially against good offenses.  

 

That being said, until they actually started exhibiting poor play, he should have had more faith in the D because I really thought, all things considered, yesterday was one of the better efforts over the last several weeks. 

[TimetobringDfence!]

2 hours ago, StatesmanN said:

I think Ballard is good, but hall of fame Gms win SBs.  Or at least get to the SB.

 

Ballard hasn't been close.

 

He has made a ton of mistakes from Jacoby to some iffy drafts to failure to get WRs to failure to get Corners to the McDaniels fiasco to failure to find a long last replacement at QB since Luck left.

 

I would rate him a B- so far. 

Draft failures, Hes been draft gold. I guarantee he's drafted better than anyone since becoming a GM. 

[deedub75]

Rivers' stats were misleading. He left a lot of plays and points on the field. 

 

Also, what happened in the 4th quarter? Rivers was flirting with delay of game penalties on too many plays. You could also tell that many it was sinking in that this may be the final game of his career. He was pressing a lot and barking at teammates more than normal. He was barking at Hynes after one play where maybe Hynes went the wrong way. You could almost tell they didn't practice the whole week.

 

So let's say that there was not 7th seed this year or if we had lost one and possibly both of the games against Houston. How would we be looking at Ballard, Reich, this team now? 

 

[Rivers4SB]

Rivers is playing with A lot of Rookies in key positions. TY is not Rivers type of #1 WR. TE is also a concern for Rivers style. They had no Pre-Season which is vital for a new QB.

 

To make the PO and almost beat one of the hottest Teams is a true test Rivers was a great pickup for Colts 

 

Future looks great if Rivers comes back.

[TimetobringDfence!]

2 hours ago, TimetobringDfence! said:

He's not skilled enough to be a one dimensional pocket passer anymore. He's a game manager and back up at this point. Definately not worth another 25 mil. I miss have a QB that can scramble for easy yards, or throw past 45 

Alright he can still be a pocket passer and win games yes. But he isn't gonna win playoff games and take anyone to a superbowl. Hes not worth 25 mil.

[Moosejawcolt]

14 minutes ago, SR711 said:

 

I agree with you and he will never admit it publicly, but it had to have factored into his decision making there having seen multiple times over the course of the season where his defense went into meltdown mode during stretches of games especially against good offenses.  

 

That being said, until they actually started exhibiting poor play, he should have had more faith in the D because I really thought, all things considered, yesterday was one of the better efforts over the last several weeks. 

Yes.  Honestly, I expected a 2nd half meltdown and they played better than i thought. Franks decsion reminded me of Bellicheks famous going for 4th down at his own 30 against Manning years back. He had zero faith in his defense. 

[Moosejawcolt]

15 minutes ago, TimetobringDfence! said:

Draft failures, Hes been draft gold. I guarantee he's drafted better than anyone since becoming a GM. 

Incorrect. Their are 13 other play off teams that could argue with that statement.

[TimetobringDfence!]

4 minutes ago, Moosejawcolt said:

Incorrect. Their are 13 other play off teams that could argue with that statement.

I guarantee no other coach has drafted more quality starters. Mack, Walker Jr., Smith, Nelson, Leonard, JT, Pittman, Blackmon, Glasgow, Stewart, Hines. And we have some good backups from him too.

8 minutes ago, Moosejawcolt said:

Incorrect. Their are 13 other play off teams that could argue with that statement.

The Brain Freeze is strong up North.

[Tsarquise]

3 hours ago, colt18 said:

Rivers was trash yesterday. Yeah his statline is cool but if you were watching the game, you saw that he routinely threw passes behind WRs and overthrew Pittman in the endzone. His arm is done, I flat out DO NOT want him back next season.

 

JT was a disappointment, then again I don't know why Hines is still underplayed. Hines should be taking the screen passes and checking down, JT is our grinder between the tackles. JT had a couple bad drops but Hines should have been there to begin with.

 

Reich coached a bad game. Going for it on 4th down like it's Madden and blowing TOs on dumb challenges are two things you should not be doing in the playoffs. I like Reich as a coach but he needs to quit with the boneheaded game plan, ALWAYS take the points unless you absolutely need a TD.

 

We lost to the Bills, who are a good team, but we definitely could have won. Ultimately, I  don't care because I never saw us going far with old man Rivers. When we get a good QB we will go far. Until then, meh.

 

P.S. I miss you Andrew Luck

I understand your sentiments, but....

 

Andrew Luck sure played great against the Chiefs. 

[Moosejawcolt]

23 minutes ago, TimetobringDfence! said:

I guarantee no other coach has drafted more quality starters. Mack, Walker Jr., Smith, Nelson, Leonard, JT, Pittman, Blackmon, Glasgow, Stewart, Hines. And we have some good backups from him too.

The Brain Freeze is strong up North.

I am just saying their are 13 other play off teams. They didnt get their by drafting poorly

[TimetobringDfence!]

15 minutes ago, Moosejawcolt said:

I am just saying their are 13 other play off teams. They didnt get their by drafting poorly

Never said they did. But Ballard has done more with his picks than any other GM hands down. He landed Buckner by trading a pick.

[EastStreet]

My thoughts on yesterday...

It was a very unnecessary loss. Bad coaching in several areas, and some key mistakes by players. Player mistakes always happen, and I don't think any one player was egregious on the whole. Coaches however aren't supposed to impact the game to the negative near as much. 

 

My thoughts on going forward.... 

I expect us to re-sign most of our starting FAs. I expect another good draft to fill the holes left by FAs we don't resign. I expect one big new FA signing. And I pray they move play calling responsibility to someone else.