Band-Aid Ballard

[boo2202]

Every offense we think we’re two or three pieces away from truly contending. But the sad truth is we’re just one giant piece away from being a great team. 
 

Ballard has treated the QB position like a small sore the past three years now. Just applying a band-aid over it until healed. But the problem is it’s still far from better. I know people will defend him and that’s fine, but he’s handled the most important position on this team completely wrong. People will say the draft yields bust every year but the colts QB’s have been busy every year. At some point you got to take your swing. I’d rather strike out swinging than go down looking. 
 

There has been numerous opportunities for Ballard to either trade up and grab a talented young QB or mortgage picks to bring in someone that could give us a chance and add stability. Instead we go halfway in trading a 1st and 3rd for wentz and praying he figures it out. Once again hoping something sticks. Why not just trade a couple 1st and get a more proven guy or trade back and gain more picks for the next years draft to be able to move up. 
 

As we’ve seen over the first day of playoff football, you must have a talented QB to win in January. A good D, a great RB, and a decent online are only going to take you so far. The AFC is stacked with talented young QB’s and until we quit trying to cover it up and find ours we’re truly always going to be one giant piece away. 
 

Here’s to hoping Ballard admits his mistake and tries this offense to actual correct the mess that has been created at the most important position in football. I actually haven’t seen him as agitated as he was at the end of the year presser. Ballard has done some great things but now it’s time for him to find the biggest piece of the puzzle. 
 

GO COLTS

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

Your preaching to the choir. There has been ample opportunity last couple years to fix the QB situation in the draft. What’s funny is even David Mills would be better then where we are now.

[Painterman]

"Numerous opportunities" that's funny. 

[csmopar]

Oh look, another thread saying the same thing...

[boo2202]

4 minutes ago, Painterman said:

"Numerous opportunities" that's funny. 

Three drafts, going on four offseasons, at least plan for the future and stack a few draft picks needed for trading up. 

[CurBeatElite]

I don't know if I agree with you. Obviously Luck retiring was a huge shock, or to your metaphor a giant wound near an artery. It happened in preseason, so there was pretty much nothing Ballard could have done other than put Brissett in. I'd liken it to applying pressure to a wound 3 inches below the femoral artery and hoping it would be enough to avoid a turnicate until the ambulance shows up, and then hoping the paramedics can get them to ER without losing the person or their limb.

 

We were a few missed Vinatieri kicks away from making the playoffs with Jacoby regardless. Not in a spot to draft a future franchise QB with high confidence. And with a bit of gaping holes elsewhere on our roster, not in a great spot to trade a bunch of picks to move up, and probably unlikely that we would have been able to get Burrow anyway and it would have taken a lot to get Herbert and few predicted he'd be off to the start he has been. We'd be furious if Ballard traded up and took Tua and we'd likely be far worse off had he done that... and we'd be without a stud in the middle of the DL, so you'd be posting about how awful Ballard is for getting an early QB and having a horrible defense. 

 

Ballard got Rivers on a reasonable deal, we went to the playoffs and we were very close to winning a playoff game. He didn't harm his ability to build the rest of the team with that signing. That signing may have been like applying stitches to the wound after the patient (team) narrowly survived bleeding out after Lucks retirement the year before. 

 

Rivers retired, and maybe a couple stitches popped out. We didn't have what the Rams had to get Stafford. If we did, we'd be hurting far worse than we are now and we'd likely have been bounced early in the playoffs, assuming we made it, due to lack of weapons at wr/te, oline injuries and inconsistent pass protection, defensive injuries, etc... we didn't have much chance of getting Trevor Lawrence.. and would we really be better off with Zach Wilson, Fields or Lance? I don't think so.. especially as I remain optimistic that Dayo and Paye will develop into legit pass rushers.

 

Wentz had a good year overall. He stunk at the end, but it was pretty apparent that he had bad pass pro and not a lot of help at wr or te. 

 

Maybe there's still a slow leak, or maybe the bleeding has stopped.. but given the situation, Ballard had a lot to repair on this team and he has it in pretty good shape, perhaps even with Wentz if he can add some pieces around him.

 

 

 

[GoColts8818]

 

We have how many topics on the front page discussing Ballard?  Do we really need another one and by the way before someone says I don’t like Ballard being questioned I have zero issue with that.

[Moosejawcolt]

2 hours ago, boo2202 said:

Every offense we think we’re two or three pieces away from truly contending. But the sad truth is we’re just one giant piece away from being a great team. 
 

Ballard has treated the QB position like a small sore the past three years now. Just applying a band-aid over it until healed. But the problem is it’s still far from better. I know people will defend him and that’s fine, but he’s handled the most important position on this team completely wrong. People will say the draft yields bust every year but the colts QB’s have been busy every year. At some point you got to take your swing. I’d rather strike out swinging than go down looking. 
 

There has been numerous opportunities for Ballard to either trade up and grab a talented young QB or mortgage picks to bring in someone that could give us a chance and add stability. Instead we go halfway in trading a 1st and 3rd for wentz and praying he figures it out. Once again hoping something sticks. Why not just trade a couple 1st and get a more proven guy or trade back and gain more picks for the next years draft to be able to move up. 
 

As we’ve seen over the first day of playoff football, you must have a talented QB to win in January. A good D, a great RB, and a decent online are only going to take you so far. The AFC is stacked with talented young QB’s and until we quit trying to cover it up and find ours we’re truly always going to be one giant piece away. 
 

Here’s to hoping Ballard admits his mistake and tries this offense to actual correct the mess that has been created at the most important position in football. I actually haven’t seen him as agitated as he was at the end of the year presser. Ballard has done some great things but now it’s time for him to find the biggest piece of the puzzle. 
 

GO COLTS

 U r correct, however I think his failure  to establish an adequate pass rush has hurt this team more

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

Ballard always talks about short term solutions until the long term solution comes along. Truth is that just creates a weakness. The great teams fix their issues and aren’t looking for a cheap bandaid to fix a hole.

[zibby43]

34 minutes ago, CurBeatElite said:

 

Wentz had a good year overall. He stunk at the end, but it was pretty apparent that he had bad pass pro and not a lot of help at wr or te. 

 

 

 

Wentz’ collapse down the stretch overrides everything when considering his overall play.  Up until that point, I would say he had an average year overall.  He was good at limiting INTs, and he was top 10 on deeper throws off play action (PA).

 

Outside of that, he was below average at passing the football in non-PA, and the TOs he did surrender often came at the worst possible time, which served as a reminder that he still refuses to just “eat” a bad play.  
 

Wentz is who he is, and that is an average QB with incredible physical tools.  His inability to read coverages and make simple reads, inconsistent mechanics (leading to frequent high throws on gimme opportunities), and bad decision-making (ignoring checkdowns, forcing the ball downfield, trying to flick the ball in the grasp of a sack, etc.) are baked-in traits that even Reich couldn’t break.

[CurBeatElite]

Just now, zibby43 said:

Wentz’ collapse down the stretch overrides everything when considering his overall play.  Up until that point, I would say he had an average year overall.  He was good at limiting INTs, and he was top 10 on deeper throws off play action (PA).

 

Outside of that, he was below average at passing the football in non-PA, and the TOs he did surrender often came at the worst possible time, which served as a reminder that he still refuses to just “eat” a bad play.  
 

Wentz is who he is, and that is an average QB with incredible physical tools.  His inability to read coverages and make simple reads, inconsistent mechanics (leading to frequent high throws on gimme opportunities), and bad decision-making (ignoring checkdowns, forcing the ball downfield, trying to flick the ball in the grasp of a sack, etc.) are baked-in traits that even Reich couldn’t break.

Give me a scenario where we would definitely be in better shape as a team with different decisions made by Ballard since Luck retired.  Please include who our QB would be, the salary cap, what draft picks and players would be different and a logical reason why we would be better off had Ballard done things differently in regards to qb (e.g., if instead of trading for Buckner, we used that pick to trade up for a qb, justify how our DL and overall D wouldn't be a major liability).  I'm asking since the original post and my response were about Ballard's inability to do more than put a bandaid on the qb position. 

[boo2202]

1 hour ago, CurBeatElite said:

Give me a scenario where we would definitely be in better shape as a team with different decisions made by Ballard since Luck retired.  Please include who our QB would be, the salary cap, what draft picks and players would be different and a logical reason why we would be better off had Ballard done things differently in regards to qb (e.g., if instead of trading for Buckner, we used that pick to trade up for a qb, justify how our DL and overall D wouldn't be a major liability).  I'm asking since the original post and my response were about Ballard's inability to do more than put a bandaid on the qb position. 

Trade last years 21st and 2022 1st, jumped in front of pats and took Mac jones. Before you say look what happens yesterday, he looked good this year. Can read defense’s and gets the ball out quick. Just one theory. Just sucks we’re without a 1st this year and in the same situation and needs. 

[Blueblood23]

5 hours ago, boo2202 said:

Every offense we think we’re two or three pieces away from truly contending. But the sad truth is we’re just one giant piece away from being a great team. 
 

Ballard has treated the QB position like a small sore the past three years now. Just applying a band-aid over it until healed. But the problem is it’s still far from better. I know people will defend him and that’s fine, but he’s handled the most important position on this team completely wrong. People will say the draft yields bust every year but the colts QB’s have been busy every year. At some point you got to take your swing. I’d rather strike out swinging than go down looking. 
 

There has been numerous opportunities for Ballard to either trade up and grab a talented young QB or mortgage picks to bring in someone that could give us a chance and add stability. Instead we go halfway in trading a 1st and 3rd for wentz and praying he figures it out. Once again hoping something sticks. Why not just trade a couple 1st and get a more proven guy or trade back and gain more picks for the next years draft to be able to move up. 
 

As we’ve seen over the first day of playoff football, you must have a talented QB to win in January. A good D, a great RB, and a decent online are only going to take you so far. The AFC is stacked with talented young QB’s and until we quit trying to cover it up and find ours we’re truly always going to be one giant piece away. 
 

Here’s to hoping Ballard admits his mistake and tries this offense to actual correct the mess that has been created at the most important position in football. I actually haven’t seen him as agitated as he was at the end of the year presser. Ballard has done some great things but now it’s time for him to find the biggest piece of the puzzle. 
 

GO COLTS

Ballard took a big swing to bring in Wentz. Wentz has all the physical attributes one would want in a quarterback. Frank thought he could fix the 4” between the ears. He did to a degree, but not totally. The offensive line was not good almost all year. The receivers are not all that either. I would trade the receivers the Colts have for almost any receiving core in the league. There are many flaws the team had offensively whether it was Wentz, the receivers, Franks play calling or decision making, or poor play from the line. 
 

I’ve been critical of Ballard, but to say he hasn’t tried to fix the quarterback spot is not one of them. It hasn’t worked out so far for reasons above. 

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

3 minutes ago, Blueblood23 said:

Ballard took a big swing to bring in Wentz. Wentz has all the physical attributes one would want in a quarterback. Frank thought he could fix the 4” between the ears. He did to a degree, but not totally. The offensive line was not good almost all year. The receivers are not all that either. I would trade the receivers the Colts have for almost any receiving core in the league. There are many flaws the team had offensively whether it was Wentz, the receivers, Franks play calling or decision making, or poor play from the line. 
 

I’ve been critical of Ballard, but to say he hasn’t tried to fix the quarterback spot is not one of them. It hasn’t worked out so far for reasons above. 

Sometimes it’s better to take a short term set back for a long term gain. Bandaids don’t really get you where you need to go.

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

17 minutes ago, boo2202 said:

Trade last years 21st and 2022 1st, jumped in front of pats and took Mac jones. Before you say look what happens yesterday, he looked good this year. Can read defense’s and gets the ball out quick. Just one theory. Just sucks we’re without a 1st this year and in the same situation and needs. 

Bears only were one spot ahead and got fields. That could of happened too. Ballard has failed to have a plan. He is just winging it Instead Of having a plan in place. He did the same thing with LT.

[ChuggaBeer]

5 hours ago, boo2202 said:

Every offense we think we’re two or three pieces away from truly contending. But the sad truth is we’re just one giant piece away from being a great team. 
 

Ballard has treated the QB position like a small sore the past three years now. Just applying a band-aid over it until healed. But the problem is it’s still far from better. I know people will defend him and that’s fine, but he’s handled the most important position on this team completely wrong. People will say the draft yields bust every year but the colts QB’s have been busy every year. At some point you got to take your swing. I’d rather strike out swinging than go down looking. 
 

There has been numerous opportunities for Ballard to either trade up and grab a talented young QB or mortgage picks to bring in someone that could give us a chance and add stability. Instead we go halfway in trading a 1st and 3rd for wentz and praying he figures it out. Once again hoping something sticks. Why not just trade a couple 1st and get a more proven guy or trade back and gain more picks for the next years draft to be able to move up. 
 

As we’ve seen over the first day of playoff football, you must have a talented QB to win in January. A good D, a great RB, and a decent online are only going to take you so far. The AFC is stacked with talented young QB’s and until we quit trying to cover it up and find ours we’re truly always going to be one giant piece away. 
 

Here’s to hoping Ballard admits his mistake and tries this offense to actual correct the mess that has been created at the most important position in football. I actually haven’t seen him as agitated as he was at the end of the year presser. Ballard has done some great things but now it’s time for him to find the biggest piece of the puzzle. 
 

GO COLTS

Fo who?

[Nesjan3]

Ive been a fan of Ballards, I think he has built a pretty good roster. While being quite critical of Frank, especially this season as I believe he was the main catalyst of the Wentz trade that I absolutely loathed from the moment it was even a thought. 

 

Ballard did sign off on the trade though, and he has failed to find the long term solution at the most important position in all of football. Someone posed a very interesting question the other day I seen. Ballard with no QB or Grigson with Luck who will play 10 years. Right now at this moment its definitely an interesting question lol.

[LJpalmbeacher2]

2 hours ago, CurBeatElite said:

Give me a scenario where we would definitely be in better shape as a team with different decisions made by Ballard since Luck retired.  Please include who our QB would be, the salary cap, what draft picks and players would be different and a logical reason why we would be better off had Ballard done things differently in regards to qb (e.g., if instead of trading for Buckner, we used that pick to trade up for a qb, justify how our DL and overall D wouldn't be a major liability).  I'm asking since the original post and my response were about Ballard's inability to do more than put a bandaid on the qb position. 

 

I'll give you a scenario.

But first I'll say hindsight is 20/20 and Don't really blame Ballard on this but he could have re-signed Rivers for one more season instead of trading for Wentz. Rivers wanted/would have come back if the colts showed they wanted him back.

He then could have packaged some picks to move up to get Jones but when Fields dropped unexpectedly turn his sights on him. We didn't expect Fields to be there when Chicago moved up to get him so again I don't blame him. But at the very least he probably would have been able to get Jones who didn't look too bad in his rookie year. I would have preferred Fields over Jones but it looks like there was a chance Ballard could have had one of them which I think would have been preferable over Wentz for '22 and beyond.

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

5 minutes ago, LJpalmbeacher2 said:

 

I'll give you a scenario.

But first I'll say hindsight is 20/20 and Don't really blame Ballard on this but he could have re-signed Rivers for one more season instead of trading for Wentz. Rivers wanted/would have come back if the colts showed they wanted him back.

He then could have packaged some picks to move up to get Jones but when Fields dropped unexpectedly turn his sights on him. We didn't expect Fields to be there when Chicago moved up to get him so again I don't blame him. But at the very least he probably would have been able to get Jones who didn't look too bad in his rookie year. I would have preferred Fields over Jones but it looks like there was a chance Ballard could have had one of them which I think would have been preferable over Wentz for '22 and beyond.

They could of went and got  a more bridge QB too if they wanted to move up. Someone like Foles. There were other options too. Sometimes you just have to take a small step back so you have a long term option.

[Blueblood23]

37 minutes ago, TaylorTheStudMuffin said:

Bears only were one spot ahead and got fields. That could of happened too. Ballard has failed to have a plan. He is just winging it Instead Of having a plan in place. He did the same thing with LT.

And who knows how good Fields will be. So far he hasn’t been to good. 

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

1 minute ago, Blueblood23 said:

And who knows how good Fields will be. So far he hasn’t been to good. 

He is tough has had food accuracy in college. I have seen a lot of good stuff from him this season. I think with the right coaching he is going to be great.

[AwesomeAustin]

I don’t agree with what you are saying but I love the nickname!   Good job on that one lol

[Dark Superman]

Six years into Ballard's tenure as Colts GM needs to be the year he finally ripe off the band-aid approach and becomes more aggressive acquiring talent. QB, LT, DE, and WR, all need to be upgraded for starters. The excuses have run dry and it's time to produce or walk.

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

1 minute ago, Dark Superman said:

Six years into Ballard's tenure as Colts GM needs to be the year he finally ripe off the band-aid approach and becomes more aggressive acquiring talent. QB, LT, DE, and WR, all need to be upgraded for starters. The excuses have run dry and it's time to produce or walk.

No matter what we do until we get that QB nothing will change.We are better off targeting someone in the draft. Using players and picks to trade up. Just rip off the bandaids approach at QB. Yes we will take a small step back but it’s for the long term gain.

[zibby43]

6 hours ago, CurBeatElite said:

Give me a scenario where we would definitely be in better shape as a team with different decisions made by Ballard since Luck retired.  Please include who our QB would be, the salary cap, what draft picks and players would be different and a logical reason why we would be better off had Ballard done things differently in regards to qb (e.g., if instead of trading for Buckner, we used that pick to trade up for a qb, justify how our DL and overall D wouldn't be a major liability).  I'm asking since the original post and my response were about Ballard's inability to do more than put a bandaid on the qb position. 

I was addressing Wentz alone.  Nonetheless, I’ll bite.

 

The easiest example would be in 2020, when Ballard could’ve drafted Justin Herbert.  That could’ve been easily accomplished, as he was selected only a mere few spots away from where we would’ve picked, but for the Buckner trade.

 

Ballard would admit today he and his staff whiffed on their Herbert evaluation.  Devastating mistake for the franchise.

 

Or, last year, trading similar assets to what we surrendered for Wentz to move up for someone like Mac Jones, who was my favorite QB prospect in the class, along with Fields.

 

I think Ballard has done a great job at finding both diamonds in the rough and a steady stream of contributors in the middle rounds.  
 

But . . . he and his team of assistant coaches, scouts, and talent evaluators are not very good at evaluating young QB talent, edge talent, and WR talent.  And those are, unfortunately for our roster construction, the 3 most important position groups in the league right now.

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

12 minutes ago, zibby43 said:

I was addressing Wentz alone.  Nonetheless, I’ll bite.

 

The easiest example would be in 2020, when Ballard could’ve drafted Justin Herbert.  That could’ve been easily accomplished, as he was selected only a mere few spots away from where we would’ve picked, but for the Buckner trade.

 

Ballard would admit today he and his staff whiffed on their Herbert evaluation.  Devastating mistake for the franchise.

 

Or, last year, trading similar assets to what we surrendered for Wentz to move up for someone like Mac Jones, who was my favorite QB prospect in the class, along with Fields.

 

I think Ballard has done a great job at finding both diamonds in the rough and a steady stream of contributors in the middle rounds.  
 

But . . . he and his team of assistant coaches, scouts, and talent evaluators are not very good at evaluating young QB talent, edge talent, and WR talent.  And those are, unfortunately for our roster construction, the 3 most important position groups in the league right now.

Although we could of tried to move up for Herbert or even TUA probably would not of happened. First giants and lions have to agree to move down. The first thing they do is call chargers and dolphins and say hey want you move up a couple more spots because colts want to move up. They take that over the colts because they don’t have go move down as far.

 

The more realistic thing was 2020 draft. Fields or Jones would of been there. Just go get a vet bridge as insurance and try to move up.

[CurBeatElite]

2 hours ago, zibby43 said:

I was addressing Wentz alone.  Nonetheless, I’ll bite.

 

The easiest example would be in 2020, when Ballard could’ve drafted Justin Herbert.  That could’ve been easily accomplished, as he was selected only a mere few spots away from where we would’ve picked, but for the Buckner trade.

 

Ballard would admit today he and his staff whiffed on their Herbert evaluation.  Devastating mistake for the franchise.

 

Or, last year, trading similar assets to what we surrendered for Wentz to move up for someone like Mac Jones, who was my favorite QB prospect in the class, along with Fields.

 

I think Ballard has done a great job at finding both diamonds in the rough and a steady stream of contributors in the middle rounds.  
 

But . . . he and his team of assistant coaches, scouts, and talent evaluators are not very good at evaluating young QB talent, edge talent, and WR talent.  And those are, unfortunately for our roster construction, the 3 most important position groups in the league right now.

If we traded up to get Herbert, we wouldn't have Buckner and we likely wouldn't have Pittman, Taylor, or Paye.  You failed to mention what we would have had to give up and discuss other holes in our roster. 

 

I don't think Ballard would readily admit he whiffed on Herbert, as we would have had to traded with or surpassed the Chargers and that would have taken a ton to give up, if it was even possible. 

 

In 5 years, I believe the only players left on our team are Kelly, TY and Doyle. Ballard has totally overturned the roster.  I don't think it's fair to say he is bad at evaluating WR, DE or QB. He got a good young WR in Pittman, we should be all right with Paye and Dayo and perhaps Turay and Lewis if they stay healthy. Campbell has been good when healthy. And he hasn't really gone for a young QB who we'd expect to be a franchise qb.

 

 

[zibby43]

8 minutes ago, CurBeatElite said:

If we traded up to get Herbert, we wouldn't have Buckner and we likely wouldn't have Pittman, Taylor, or Paye.  You failed to mention what we would have had to give up and discuss other holes in our roster. 

 

I don't think Ballard would readily admit he whiffed on Herbert, as we would have had to traded with or surpassed the Chargers and that would have taken a ton to give up, if it was even possible. 

 

In 5 years, I believe the only players left on our team are Kelly, TY and Doyle. Ballard has totally overturned the roster.  I don't think it's fair to say he is bad at evaluating WR, DE or QB. He got a good young WR in Pittman, we should be all right with Paye and Dayo and perhaps Turay and Lewis if they stay healthy. Campbell has been good when healthy. And he hasn't really gone for a young QB who we'd expect to be a franchise qb.

 

 

Turay is going to be gone.  Can’t stay healthy.  Banogu will be gone.  Paye looks like a quality starter, but not a game changer.  Lewis finally started to contribute before getting hurt.  Too early to say on Dayo.  

 

Campbell has played in 15 out of a possible 50 games.  Pittman looks like a strong #2.  Literally can’t think of another meaningful WR he drafted.

 

Big whiff on Eason.  Kind of a wasted pick there.

 

I gave Ballard credit everywhere else, but we are where we are because he hasn’t nailed the money positions.  RB is a luxury position.  Love JT, but I’d trade him for Rodgers or Wilson 10/10 times and twice on Sunday.

[CurBeatElite]

6 hours ago, zibby43 said:

Turay is going to be gone.  Can’t stay healthy.  Banogu will be gone.  Paye looks like a quality starter, but not a game changer.  Lewis finally started to contribute before getting hurt.  Too early to say on Dayo.  

 

Campbell has played in 15 out of a possible 50 games.  Pittman looks like a strong #2.  Literally can’t think of another meaningful WR he drafted.

 

Big whiff on Eason.  Kind of a wasted pick there.

 

I gave Ballard credit everywhere else, but we are where we are because he hasn’t nailed the money positions.  RB is a luxury position.  Love JT, but I’d trade him for Rodgers or Wilson 10/10 times and twice on Sunday.

 

You're still not talking about how the rest of our roster would be different if we traded for Herbert. We'd have no Buckner, no Pittman, no Taylor likely at least. Probably no Paye.  Would Herbert with less weapons than Carson has really be lighting the world on fire? How bad would our D be without Buckner and Probably Paye?

 

In terms of evaluating talent, Ballard has been unfortunate that Campbell has been hurt. He had 0 injury history when he was drafted. He has shown that he can be very explosive when healthy. That's not a knock on Ballard for evaluating WR talent, he simply has been unlucky with injuries.  Pittman, I'm also not sold is a true #1 but he was in the top half of WRs in the league production wise and that is pretty impressive considering his supporting cast and how little we threw. He's also one of the best blocking WRs in the NFL.  Ballard did good getting him.

 

Turay did have injury history, but his injuries since he has been in the NFL aren't related to his Rutgers ones. He's a pretty productive pass rusher when he is on the field. Lewis looked very good before getting hurt this year, again unlucky. Too early to tell on Dayo and Paye, but I'm optimistic about them. I think Ballard would admit he should have tried to retain Houston and/or Autry, but I don't think he's really whiffed on the DL in the draft. Most of the real studs drafted on the DL, especially at DE are in the top 10 and we haven't been there. If you want to consider Buckner a draft pick, Ballard got an all-pro caliber player there.

 

Not disagreeing that RB is somewhat of a luxury position in today's NFL, but JT is special. Would Herbert, without Pittman, JT and even more glaring holes in the D shine with the rest of our roster? I don't think so. I can almost guarantee that if he needed to rely solely on Hines to help him get out of major jams, he would be sorely disappointed. 

 

In terms of Rodgers and Wilson, they both eat up 10 mil more than Wentz does salary cap wise. They'd hinder our ability to give competitive offers to our young core players and our ability to get solid FAs at other positions. And, neither is a long-term answer. Say we got Rodgers next year, and lost in the AFC CHampionship game.. we would also have caused other holes on the roster to get him and ifhe retired after a year, people like you would be furious that Ballard dismantled the team and we didn’t win multiple superbowls.  

 

I'm not saying Ballard is perfect, but he has dealt with having to overhaul a pretty crappy roster along with an unprecedented issue of a franchise qb retiring in his prime during preseason. 

[Painterman]

1 hour ago, CurBeatElite said:

 

You're still not talking about how the rest of our roster would be different if we traded for Herbert. We'd have no Buckner, no Pittman, no Taylor likely at least. Probably no Paye.  Would Herbert with less weapons than Carson has really be lighting the world on fire? How bad would our D be without Buckner and Probably Paye?

 

In terms of evaluating talent, Ballard has been unfortunate that Campbell has been hurt. He had 0 injury history when he was drafted. He has shown that he can be very explosive when healthy. That's not a knock on Ballard for evaluating WR talent, he simply has been unlucky with injuries.  Pittman, I'm also not sold is a true #1 but he was in the top half of WRs in the league production wise and that is pretty impressive considering his supporting cast and how little we threw. He's also one of the best blocking WRs in the NFL.  Ballard did good getting him.

 

Turay did have injury history, but his injuries since he has been in the NFL aren't related to his Rutgers ones. He's a pretty productive pass rusher when he is on the field. Lewis looked very good before getting hurt this year, again unlucky. Too early to tell on Dayo and Paye, but I'm optimistic about them. I think Ballard would admit he should have tried to retain Houston and/or Autry, but I don't think he's really whiffed on the DL in the draft. Most of the real studs drafted on the DL, especially at DE are in the top 10 and we haven't been there. If you want to consider Buckner a draft pick, Ballard got an all-pro caliber player there.

 

Not disagreeing that RB is somewhat of a luxury position in today's NFL, but JT is special. Would Herbert, without Pittman, JT and even more glaring holes in the D shine with the rest of our roster? I don't think so. I can almost guarantee that if he needed to rely solely on Hines to help him get out of major jams, he would be sorely disappointed. 

 

In terms of Rodgers and Wilson, they both eat up 10 mil more than Wentz does salary cap wise. They'd hinder our ability to give competitive offers to our young core players and our ability to get solid FAs at other positions. And, neither is a long-term answer. Say we got Rodgers next year, and lost in the AFC CHampionship game.. we would also have caused other holes on the roster to get him and ifhe retired after a year, people like you would be furious that Ballard dismantled the team and we didn’t win multiple superbowls.  

 

I'm not saying Ballard is perfect, but he has dealt with having to overhaul a pretty crappy roster along with an unprecedented issue of a franchise qb retiring in his prime during preseason. 

I agree with everything you said here except with the word retiring. Players retire in the off season they QUIT in the preseason. AL=quitter 

[DougDew]

QBs are hard to find.  And with Luck retiring, it sort of put Ballard into a bind where band-aiding the issue until a QB comes along is sort of unavoidable.

 

What's bad is that Ballard has been band-aiding the #1WR and LT spots in the same way.  Anybody who followed the Colts knew that TY and AC were getting old.   I guess Ballard likes FSs, Gs, and ILBs better.

 

Could say the same about Mathis retirement and the band-aids put in place at EDGE until Paye was drafted.

[Colt.45]

19 minutes ago, Painterman said:

I agree with everything you said here except with the word retiring. Players retire in the off season they QUIT in the preseason. AL=quitter 

Quitter, retiree, doesn't matter what you term it. It's a sport and he he owes no one a dime or any sentiments, if grown men want to cry in their beer because he prioritized his mental and physical health, that's a choice they need to own individually. The kid came in, and did every single thing we needed to win multiple SBs in his short time. Every. Single. Thing.

[stitches]

4 minutes ago, DougDew said:

QBs are hard to find.  And with Luck retiring, it sort of put Ballard into a bind where band-aiding the issue until a QB comes along is sort of unavoidable.

 

I didn't mind bandaiding the QB position for a bit after such a shocking retirement of your franchise QB. But at some point it needs to stop and you need to make your bet on a long-term solution that hopefully will stabilize the position for you. Now, Ballard is kind of being sneaky here because he's passing (knowingly or not) Wentz as just another bandaid... but that's not what he was... Wentz was the first bet Ballard made on a long-term QB solution and it failed(at least in my books). But even if he doesn't think it failed(in his press-conference it seemed like he was admiting defeat on that one)... is Ballard willing to die on that hill? Because he will not survive another shameful ending like this year. If Frank and Ballard decide to go with Wentz for one more year and we don't make significant improvements next season, IMO both are gone, especially after it seems like Irsay is * off at Wentz and done with him. 

 

4 minutes ago, DougDew said:

What's bad is that Ballard has been band-aiding the #1WR and LT spots in the same way.  Anybody who followed the Colts knew that TY and AC were getting old.   I guess Ballard likes FSs, Gs, and ILBs better.

 

Could say the same about Mathis retirement and the band-aids put in place at EDGE until Paye was drafted.

Agree, we missed on some chances to address LT and WR earlier. We kind of spent reasonable number of picks on WRs(2 2nds + a bunch of day 3 picks), but LT was neglected. IMO the moment AC started talking about possible retirement(the year before he retired), we should have been looking into addressing the position long-term. 

[Painterman]

1 hour ago, Colt.45 said:

Quitter, retiree, doesn't matter what you term it. It's a sport and he he owes no one a dime or any sentiments, if grown men want to cry in their beer because he prioritized his mental and physical health, that's a choice they need to own individually. The kid came in, and did every single thing we needed to win multiple SBs in his short time. Every. Single. Thing.

Every. Single. Thing. Except keep his word... AL set this franchise back  big time!

[throwing BBZ]

17 hours ago, Blueblood23 said:

Ballard took a big swing to bring in Wentz. Wentz has all the physical attributes one would want in a quarterback. Frank thought he could fix the 4” between the ears. He did to a degree, but not totally. The offensive line was not good almost all year. The receivers are not all that either. I would trade the receivers the Colts have for almost any receiving core in the league. There are many flaws the team had offensively whether it was Wentz, the receivers, Franks play calling or decision making, or poor play from the line. 
 

I’ve been critical of Ballard, but to say he hasn’t tried to fix the quarterback spot is not one of them. It hasn’t worked out so far for reasons above. 

 

 Thank you Blue for this more reasonable POV.

  ALL of the moves Ballard has made has no question had a Heavy Reich influence. Frank is a better leader (Harbaugh like) than a co-ordinator/play designer/caller/QB Guru. KNOW thyself Frank!!

[Colt.45]

15 minutes ago, Painterman said:

Every. Single. Thing. Except keep his word... AL set this franchise back  big time!

 

What word? What do you think this is? A farm where the players are sheep? He had a bonded contract, he was allowed to leave, legally and morally. He is the last rookie QB i can remember who delivered everything promised from day 1. He gave us an elite QB from the first day till the last. Even Peyton wasnt elite right away! The kid delivered and you come out and say he broke a promise? What promise was that? He doesnt owe you a full career till 40 if that's what you think. That isn't promised, and isnt how this sport works. These are not characters in your personal movie, they're human beings who deal with serious things like we all do. He owes you nothing.

[Painterman]

14 minutes ago, Colt.45 said:

 

What word? What do you think this is? A farm where the players are sheep? He had a bonded contract, he was allowed to leave, legally and morally. He is the last rookie QB i can remember who delivered everything promised from day 1. He gave us an elite QB from the first day till the last. Even Peyton wasnt elite right away! The kid delivered and you come out and say he broke a promise? What promise was that? He doesnt owe you a full career till 40 if that's what you think. That isn't promised, and isnt how this sport works. These are not characters in your personal movie, they're human beings who deal with serious things like we all do. He owes you nothing.

Me? You're right, he owes me nothing! He QUIT on his team after having just spent the number three overall pick in the draft. Retire in a off season and give your team a chance. 

[throwing BBZ]

20 minutes ago, Painterman said:

Me? You're right, he owes me nothing! He QUIT on his team after having just spent the number three overall pick in the draft. Retire in a off season and give your team a chance. 

 

 He Quit on his owner that gave him that contract. Waiting as he did was a dagger in the back imo. 

 And he sure looked physically ready to play. I get all the injuries taking the joy away. It was cowardly the way he did it, but he and his agent came out of it smoothly with that last 'unearned" $23-26 Million.

[DougDew]

2 hours ago, stitches said:

 

I didn't mind bandaiding the QB position for a bit after such a shocking retirement of your franchise QB. But at some point it needs to stop and you need to make your bet on a long-term solution that hopefully will stabilize the position for you. Now, Ballard is kind of being sneaky here because he's passing (knowingly or not) Wentz as just another bandaid... but that's not what he was... Wentz was the first bet Ballard made on a long-term QB solution and it failed(at least in my books). But even if he doesn't think it failed(in his press-conference it seemed like he was admiting defeat on that one)... is Ballard willing to die on that hill? Because he will not survive another shameful ending like this year. If Frank and Ballard decide to go with Wentz for one more year and we don't make significant improvements next season, IMO both are gone, especially after it seems like Irsay is * off at Wentz and done with him. 

 

Agree, we missed on some chances to address LT and WR earlier. We kind of spent reasonable number of picks on WRs(2 2nds + a bunch of day 3 picks), but LT was neglected. IMO the moment AC started talking about possible retirement(the year before he retired), we should have been looking into addressing the position long-term. 

I was thinking about...maybe somebody with better forum skills than me can do it......creating a Poll about what positions on a football team have the most value.  Sure, more talent anywhere is better than less anywhere, but given equal talent, how do the positions rank?  Another way to think about it is how difficult is it to find high talent at the given positions.  You want better talent at the important positions, so how easy is it to find said talent at the position.  I'm sure that everybody would answer that QB is the most important position, but how do the others rank?  Here are the categories, not in any particular order:

 

LT

Gs

C

RT

 

Deep threat WR

Possession WR

Slot WR

 

Big Play TE

Possession TE

 

RB

All Purpose Back

 

Pass rushing EDGE

Penetrating DT

Run stuffing DT

Edge Setting EDGE

 

SAM

MIKE

WILL

 

Outside Corner

Slot Corner

SS

FS

 

I think its hard to find the QB.  I think its hard to find the LT,  I think its hard to find the Pass Rush EDGE.  And then the other positions follow.  JMO.

 

[compuls1v3]

2 hours ago, stitches said:

 

I didn't mind bandaiding the QB position for a bit after such a shocking retirement of your franchise QB. But at some point it needs to stop and you need to make your bet on a long-term solution that hopefully will stabilize the position for you. Now, Ballard is kind of being sneaky here because he's passing (knowingly or not) Wentz as just another bandaid... but that's not what he was... Wentz was the first bet Ballard made on a long-term QB solution and it failed(at least in my books). But even if he doesn't think it failed(in his press-conference it seemed like he was admiting defeat on that one)... is Ballard willing to die on that hill? Because he will not survive another shameful ending like this year. If Frank and Ballard decide to go with Wentz for one more year and we don't make significant improvements next season, IMO both are gone, especially after it seems like Irsay is * off at Wentz and done with him. 

 

Agree, we missed on some chances to address LT and WR earlier. We kind of spent reasonable number of picks on WRs(2 2nds + a bunch of day 3 picks), but LT was neglected. IMO the moment AC started talking about possible retirement(the year before he retired), we should have been looking into addressing the position long-term. 

If Wentz is the long term solution, how you say he failed only after one year?  Yeah he failed in the two most critical games in the season, but it’s still only one year.  My biggest issue is that both  LT and WR#1 weren’t addressed with AC retiring and TY’s career coming to an end.