Running Game

[ColtsFan317]

Why do u think the colts running game never has much success...do you think it's because they don't have a good blocking Fullback

[jbaron04]

where do i start

well undersized linemen

no true full back

bad guards cant create holes for backs

backs a tenative when attacking line in part to allways gettin blown up by bad blocking backs normally gets hit before they reach linebacks

im surprized at how are we able to pass when teams play us for the pass

are run game is so bad that teams normally drop 7 in to coverage and 4 rushing we have 6 blocking and a guy still gets a clean shot

but im optimistic at the girth that we are adding

lt- constanzo 6'7" 311

lg- meclendon 6'3" 324

c - saturday 6'2" 295

rg- ijalana 6'4" 317

rt- deim 6'6" 320

[a06cc]

I personally think it's a combination of things. At times we get over powered, miss assignments, and get beat off the snap. http://www.nfl.com/videos/nfl-network-playbook/09000d5d81d4d004/Playbook-The-Colts-run This video shows it all and the performances of last years offensive line and the defesive line. I hope we find the right guys for both lines.

[Smonroe]

You have to want to run.

[Rich Cannon]

Being a former RB/WR, In my opinion its a combination of blocking and scheme. In the past few years we havent had the offensive lineman to run our schemes. We like to run alot out of single back sets and plays like "stretch" which require the T to pull and seal off the edges and block either a LB/DE and get to the second level. That is just one variation of the stretch play we run. We simply didnt have the offensive lineman quick enough to do the required task. Thats just one example. I could go deeper into other plays but you get my drift.

For those who care to look. This would explain the different types of stretch plays etc.

http://smartfootball.blogspot.com/2005/11/colts-stretch-play.html

[Smitto]

i think all this is gonna change with McClendon... guards are the ones that pull on some running plays and he's a super strong guy and pretty athletic so as long as he keeps learning, this season could be a much different one. I get this strong feeling the colts are gonna be depending on their defense and their running game a bit more than manning this yr.

[chad72]

I expect the Colts to be nothing more than a middle of the pack running team, close to maybe 20th in the league or so, it still will be leaps and bounds better than bottom 3 or 4 in the league, IMO.

Red zone running, something they did do well last year, is what I am more interested in maintaining and carrying over to the playoffs. Short yardage running is where I need to see the real improvement in games, to change those punts to first downs to move the chains against good run Ds like the Steelers, Falcons, Ravens, Patriots etc.

[Rich Cannon]

I expect the Colts to be nothing more than a middle of the pack running team, close to maybe 20th in the league or so, it still will be leaps and bounds better than bottom 3 or 4 in the league, IMO.

Red zone running, something they did do well last year, is what I am more interested in maintaining and carrying over to the playoffs. Short yardage running is where I need to see the real improvement in games, to change those punts to first downs to move the chains against good run Ds like the Steelers, Falcons, Ravens, Patriots etc.

I like the offensive line changes. I know our depth chart will be shuffled again for the 53 man roster, but i anticipate a significant increase in rushing yardage and production this year as well

[chad72]

I like the offensive line changes. I know our depth chart will be shuffled again for the 53 man roster, but i anticipate a significant increase in rushing yardage and production this year as well

Even with Tarik Glenn and Jake Scott in the roster, we were never a top 10 rushing team if I remember right, that is just not the make up of this offense. We did however have a balanced play calling to the extent of 55-45 pass-to-run ratio instead of the recent 2 years around 65-35 due to woeful YPC in the running game (bottom 4 in rushing in 2008, 2009 & 2010). Once we can accomplish that balance and a good YPC (around 4.5 if possible), then we should be able to open up a lot of things for our offense.

[Smitto]

An avg of 4.5 my goodness that would be a god send, if the colt ever accomplish that with peyton then i dont see any team stopping the colts.

[HGRekks]

Even with Tarik Glenn and Jake Scott in the roster, we were never a top 10 rushing team if I remember right, that is just not the make up of this offense.

This is true of the Glenn and Scott line. The only time the Colts were a top 10 rushing team during the Manning era was in 2001, I think.

[Rich Cannon]

Even with Tarik Glenn and Jake Scott in the roster, we were never a top 10 rushing team if I remember right, that is just not the make up of this offense. We did however have a balanced play calling to the extent of 55-45 pass-to-run ratio instead of the recent 2 years around 65-35 due to woeful YPC in the running game (bottom 4 in rushing in 2008, 2009 & 2010). Once we can accomplish that balance and a good YPC (around 4.5 if possible), then we should be able to open up a lot of things for our offense.

I know edge led the league twice in rushing for sure 1999 and 2000 and we were a top 10 rushing team http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgerrin_James. I def agree with all your other points

[HGRekks]

I know edge led the league twice in rushing for sure 1999 and 2000 and we were a top 10 rushing team http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgerrin_James. I def agree with all your other points

They were 19th and 16th those years, respectively. The problem was that the Colts didn't run often enough to merit another guy picking up much of anything. The team didn't generate even 200 yards combined behind Edge those two seasons, hence low rushing totals for the team but high for Edge. In fact, Peyton was the #2 rusher both of those seasons.

[Rich Cannon]

They were 19th and 16th those years, respectively. The problem was that the Colts didn't run often enough to merit another guy picking up much of anything. The team didn't generate even 200 yards combined behind Edge those two seasons, hence low rushing totals for the team but high for Edge. In fact, Peyton was the #2 rusher both of those seasons.

very true, but if we could get that run/pass ratio and those ypc, things would be alot easier for us

[indy_nick]

Just food for thought...Remember that stretch play that Edge did so effectively for us? I remember every time Madden was doing the commentary for the Colts he always said that Peyton has to run to the numbers to hand the ball of the Edge while the guard pulls and seals the edge (no pun intended) of the line. Peyton had to sprint to his position to hand the ball off. Am I the only one that feels Peyton isn't that fast anymore, and he might not be able to execute the stretch play as well as in the past...regardless of the line? That was our bread and butter running play when Edge had his 1000 yard seasons. I think we are going to have to transition into attacking more of the A and B gaps instead of the C gap to run effectively. Hence we drafted Delone Carter.

[Coltswarriors]

No, it's not because of a fullback.

I think it's due to poor OL play, when our OL has been good we've had good running games. It's been a while, hopefully this year we can get it kick started again.

[Rich Cannon]

Just food for thought...Remember that stretch play that Edge did so effectively for us? I remember every time Madden was doing the commentary for the Colts he always said that Peyton has to run to the numbers to hand the ball of the Edge while the guard pulls and seals the edge (no pun intended) of the line. Peyton had to sprint to his position to hand the ball off. Am I the only one that feels Peyton isn't that fast anymore, and he might not be able to execute the stretch play as well as in the past...regardless of the line? That was our bread and butter running play when Edge had his 1000 yard seasons. I think we are going to have to transition into attacking more of the A and B gaps instead of the C gap to run effectively. Hence we drafted Delone Carter.

there are different variations of the stretch play http://smartfootball...retch-play.html

its more so finding the blockers to fit our scheme thus all these new offensive lineman. Delone carters running style is friendly to most schemes because he is a one cut and go type of runner vs the running back that wants to dance around tacklers

[Smonroe]

Why do u think the colts running game never has much success...do you think it's because they don't have a good blocking Fullback

Where we end up in rushing compared to the rest of the league has nothing to do with if the running game is a success or not. The running game is a success if it causes enough hesitation in the defense to allow us to do multiple things in our passing game.

It looks like, with the bigger guards and possibly Costanza as well as a couple bigger backs on the roster, we're trying to re-establish that threat again. Our passing game is devastating when the opposing defense has to respect our running game. Which they haven't in three years.

The passing game will be the primary concern for this team as long as Peyton is able to throw the ball.

[Coffeedrinker]

There are several reason for the running game not being consistent the last few years.

One) Since 2007 because of retirements, injuries and lack of player development the Colts have not been able to settle on an starting oline. I forget the exact numbers but in 2007 but in 16 games the Colts had 11 or 12 different starting offensive lines and it was very similar in 2008. 2009 was somewhat improved and in 2010 CJ, DeVan, Saturday, Pollack and Diem started 11 or 12 games together. That is why you saw Addai and Hart both averaging 4.3 ypc.

Two) Injuries to the RB. Addai got hurt bad in the Patriots game and he wasn't the same the rest of the year and it affected his running style in 2008. The people who talk about Addai dancing in the backfield they are still living 3 years in the past and they don't understand the difference between dancing in the backfield and a skip step in the hole. Because once he got fully recovered from his injury and got over that hesitation about getting hit again he started running hard. And he ran well in 2009 and 2010. Then along with that is the guys running the ball because of injuries. I've talked about Brown in other threads and I won't rehash that here. Brown, IMO is a good runner but not a good fit running behind a zone blocking scheme. J. James is not an NFL cailber runner.

Three) Last year Metz had some growing pains which was to be expected. Most people thought since he had been working under Mudd for the past few years everything would be the same. Well it wasn't Metz has his own ideas on blocking schemes. Some of them worked real well and and some of them did not. To his credit he seemed to get rid of the ones that did not work rather than trying to make them work.

Four) Some of the blame falls on Manning. He was very predictable on the situations in which he called a running play. At one point over 60% of the time he would call a running play on first down. Guess what, if a DC is 60+% certain that a play is going to be a run, he's going to call a defense to stop the run. Conversely he was under 20% calling a running play on 2nd down and under 30% calling a running play on 3rd down. Manning changed that in the in the last 4 or 5 games of the season and the running game became more effective.

[Superman]

Why do u think the colts running game never has much success...do you think it's because they don't have a good blocking Fullback

This is a misnomer. The run game was fine up until 2008. The stats in 2007 weren't off the charts, but they were decent, and we were second in the league in rushing touchdowns. Was also Addai's first year as the full time starter and the last time he hit 1,000 yards. Then the next year, we lost Jake Scott to free agency and Ryan Lilja to injury, and Jeff Saturday was hurt and recovering in the first half of the season. We started three rookies on the interior line to start the season. Plus, we had to scrap the stretch play because Manning's knee was still recovering. On top of that, Addai was hurt all year. Our rushing attack got burned at every turn that year.

We picked it up a little in 2009, but were still far from where we had been or needed to be. Still, improvement was good, we converted a lot of 3rd and shorts on the ground, and we scored a good amount of touchdowns. Ryan Lilja came back, Kyle Devan played decent, and things looked to be trending in the right direction.

Last year, we cut Lilja, which turned out to be a mistake. We were unsettled at guard and our tackle play fell off as well.

Either way, this is a three year problem. It's easy to mess your ground game up, not so easy to fix it. It takes time, especially with young linemen. But I'm optimistic that we'll at least be better this season.

[Smitto]

Was just listening to addais interview on colts.com and he mentioned brown as a track guy and he was coming from a hamstring injury which explains why he wasnt in the postseason playing. I really do believe with how full the colts backfield is this year they should flourish.

[chrisfarley]

Sorry to say but our running game will again be down there with the Packers. Manning is the whole key, Chris Collinsworth said we will not make playoffs and that Manning is setting up for a VERY disappointing season. Ugh. I wish (hoping)Chris was wrong.

[Gunsdontkill_Bullitdoes]

where do i start

well undersized linemen

no true full back

bad guards cant create holes for backs

backs a tenative when attacking line in part to allways gettin blown up by bad blocking backs normally gets hit before they reach linebacks

im surprized at how are we able to pass when teams play us for the pass

are run game is so bad that teams normally drop 7 in to coverage and 4 rushing we have 6 blocking and a guy still gets a clean shot

but im optimistic at the girth that we are adding

lt- constanzo 6'7" 311

lg- meclendon 6'3" 324

c - saturday 6'2" 295

rg- ijalana 6'4" 317

rt- deim 6'6" 320

Agreed, our past linemen have been terrible. They gave our offensive no time to do anything. But, I am definitely optimistic if they use that line-up

[doogansquest]

Sorry to say but our running game will again be down there with the Packers. Manning is the whole key, Chris Collinsworth said we will not make playoffs and that Manning is setting up for a VERY disappointing season. Ugh. I wish (hoping)Chris was wrong.

Collinsworth is often very wrong too. He's a commentator who once played the game. That doesn't mean he's a fortune teller.

P.S. Ijalana will likely play RT, not RG. I know we all fantasize about the diversity with which we drafted our stud linemen, but he's projecting to play RT right now. At least, that's been the word from camp.

[crazy blue]

I think it's the undersized linemen. The smaller, athletic OL's are great for running stretch plays (see Edge 1999-2000), but not so much for a downhill running game. I think the recent draft picks will help Indy improve greatly in this area. They won't lead the league in rushing, but with Manning as your QB, you just need to keep opposing defenses honest. Look at how the Colts offense has performed over the last 3 seasons with zero run game. I think that changes this season. If our RB's can average at least 4 ypc this season, the offense will look like 2004 all over again.

[OJl]

Why do u think the colts running game never has much success...do you think it's because they don't have a good blocking Fullback

Fullback has nothing to do with it.

It has been the inability to replace talent along the offensive line that has led to the running game's decline (and to a lesser extent the inability to replace talent at running back). Tarik Glenn's retirement hit hard. Tony Ugoh's de-evolution into a pile of dog crap made it hit harder. Jake Scott and Rian Lilja were excellent guards who were allowed to leave via free agency. As of last year, they were never adequately replaced. Pollack and Devan are pedestrian at best. If Jacques McClendon turns into a player this year, it will help a ton.

As for RB, Edge was the gold standard for this offense. He ran like a beast. He caught the ball. He blocked. He could take it to the house (before the knee injury). Addai has been an average replacement for Edge at best. Addai is injured way too much and he does not have the propensity for the big play or the consistent running that Edge provided. Many games, I remembered Edge gaining most of his yards when it mattered most - in the 4th quarter! I think if the talent on the line could have stayed consistent, Addai would have been better.

[BlueCrew]

• 2010-11 - 29th - 393 Attempts - 1483 Total Yards - 3.8 Yards/Rush - 92.7 Yards/Game - 13 Touchdowns
  
• 2009-10 - 32nd - 366 Attempts - 1294 Total Yards - 3.5 Yards/Rush - 80.9 Yards/Game - 16 Touchdowns
  
• 2008-09 - 31st - 370 Attempts - 1483 Total Yards - 3.8 Yards/Rush - 92.7 Yards/Game - 13 Touchdowns
  
• 2007-08 - 18th - 446 Attempts - 1706 Total Yards - 3.8 Yards/Rush - 106.6 Yards/Game - 19 Touchdowns
  
• 2006-07 - 18th - 439 Attempts - 1762 Total Yards - 4.0 Yards/Rush - 110.1 Yards/Game - 17 Touchdowns
  
• 2005-06 - 16th - 465 Attempts - 1703 Total Yards - 3.7 Yards/Rush - 106.4 Yards/Game - 18 Touchdowns
  
• 2004-05 - 15th - 427 Attempts - 1852 Total Yards - 4.3 Yards/Rush - 115.8 Yards/Game - 10 Touchdowns
  
• 2003-04 - 19th - 453 Attempts - 1695 Total Yards - 3.7 Yards/Rush - 105.9 Yards/Game - 16 Touchdowns
  
• 2002-03 - 26th - 434 Attempts - 1561 Total Yards - 3.6 Yards/Rush - 97.6 Yards/Game - 12 Touchdowns
  Source: ESPN.com Stats

The Key here is the Attempts numbers. Compare the YPR with similar seasons, and you can see the true reason we've ranked so low in Team Rushing...

Peyton :manning: Manning

[Smitto]

Oh wow there was a big drop between 08 and 09, i bet they are gonna be running more this year with his neck injury and all.