ESPN’s Matt Miller says Colts Have Decided on QB

[Defjamz26]

Also for what it’s worth, I think the Panthers have decided who they want as well. Same is probably true for the Texans. The only wild card is the Cardinals at 3. If QBs go 1 and 2 though, I don’t foresee anyone trading up in front of us for one. 

[2006Coltsbestever]

4 minutes ago, Defjamz26 said:

Also for what it’s worth, I think the Panthers have decided who they want as well. Same is probably true for the Texans. The only wild card is the Cardinals at 3. If QBs go 1 and 2 though, I don’t foresee anyone trading up in front of us for one. 

Carolina is in the drivers seat, when they traded to #1 they knew, JMO. 

[DougDew]

1 hour ago, 2006Coltsbestever said:

Carolina is in the drivers seat, when they traded to #1 they knew, JMO. 

Agreed.  A lot of this due diligence is for public presentation and CYA, IMO.  A GM does not want to ever be accused of not even sniffing at the next Pat Mahomes when he had the chance.

 

Now, its possible that Stroud really bombed a processing test, which would then invite second guessing of what he did at OSU.  A product of the system and great players?....but I think this late interest by CAR in BY is probably an attempt to squeeze a little capital out of HOU, JMO.

 

Irsay/Ballard still probably see BY and CJS going 1-2, and nobody willing to trade to 3 for WL.  As I've said, I think  the QB situations with SEA, DET, LVR and ATL make it unattractive to give up capital to move ahead of the Colts.  Only TEN would be so bold as to do that, IMO, since they seem to be headed towards total rebuild while the other teams seem to have more upside with what they have.  SEA and DET aren't even the owners of their picks, so their teams are actually better than what a pick 5 and pick 6 team usually is. 

[Boondoggle]

On 4/15/2023 at 6:32 PM, CR91 said:

It's just clickbait. No one knows what the colts are doing. There are no sources or leaks from the colts because Ballard would never allow it 

You can infer a great deal just by using common sense and looking at the players in question.  That's outside of any inside information that may be out there, which, who knows if any of that is true.

 

But to consider Richardson as QB means you must be willing to be a run-first offense at the QB position.  It is either that or you take him and redshirt him for a year or two while he learns.  What nobody knows is to what extent he'll do the work to be great, which is true with all these players and why it's so hard to draft well.  Maybe he'll do the work.  And it's not some cliche either, but a real mental and life load on these QBs to be able to do the work.  The game has to be a priority for them over a long duration and many of them simply do not have the required dedication nor the right mix of abilities to arrive where they need to down the road.

 

Levis ran the Rams offense two years ago and the 9ers flavors moreso the past year with the OC change he dealt with.  He represents a guy running the same offense the Colts run, in terms of the jargon and much of the scheme.  The Rams offshoot is different from that of the Eagles but where WCOs will differ is in their run game strategy and protections.  Run game strategy follows the OCs and they have distinct flavors, like with Shanahan there is a lead blocker, with McVay there are wideouts being used out of motion to seal the hole, etc.

 

So if you imagine Irsay needing to choose what offense he wants to sit through on gameday, the options being a super basic read-option attack that focuses on Richardson being a runner to move the chains, or running the WCO he hired Steichen to run with Levis, which do you think he will pick.  You can say nobody knows and to some extent that is true.  But I guarantee you that Irsay is not going to want to endure a read-option and/or see his QB redshirted for a year or two.

 

Levis is far ahead of Richardson.  And all the knocks on Levis you hear in the media about his mistakes were brought on while he was running a pro offense with poor protections and after his OC was stolen away by an NFL team.  Chalk it all up and Levis has probably always been ahead for the Colts in terms of options at 4 overall.

 

Now if they don't like Levis because he's dumb as evidenced by drinking mayonnaise in his coffee or eating bananas with their skin or he's a try-hard in the locker room or whatever other reason, then they will move down and go with another QB option.  There are plenty in this draft and we do know which ones fit the offense and direction of the scheme.  But what happens if Levis starts quickly and helps some other QBless team.  Well in that scenario Ballard is on the street and rightly so.  His job is on the line here with this decision.

[sb41champs]

This is - indeed - lying season.

 

I take everything about "who is gonna draft whom" with the proverbial "grain of salt".

 

Do you REALLY think the Colts - or - ANY NFL team is going to divulge to ANY media member what their plans are?

 

I agree with both Bill Polian and Chris Ballard - "Loose lips sink ships".

 

I don't think this will happen - but - wouldn't it be a HOOT to have the Colts take the best CB at #4 and shock the NFL media world?  

 

HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

[CR91]

1 hour ago, Boondoggle said:

You can infer a great deal just by using common sense and looking at the players in question.  That's outside of any inside information that may be out there, which, who knows if any of that is true.

 

But to consider Richardson as QB means you must be willing to be a run-first offense at the QB position.  It is either that or you take him and redshirt him for a year or two while he learns.  What nobody knows is to what extent he'll do the work to be great, which is true with all these players and why it's so hard to draft well.  Maybe he'll do the work.  And it's not some cliche either, but a real mental and life load on these QBs to be able to do the work.  The game has to be a priority for them over a long duration and many of them simply do not have the required dedication nor the right mix of abilities to arrive where they need to down the road.

 

Levis ran the Rams offense two years ago and the 9ers flavors moreso the past year with the OC change he dealt with.  He represents a guy running the same offense the Colts run, in terms of the jargon and much of the scheme.  The Rams offshoot is different from that of the Eagles but where WCOs will differ is in their run game strategy and protections.  Run game strategy follows the OCs and they have distinct flavors, like with Shanahan there is a lead blocker, with McVay there are wideouts being used out of motion to seal the hole, etc.

 

So if you imagine Irsay needing to choose what offense he wants to sit through on gameday, the options being a super basic read-option attack that focuses on Richardson being a runner to move the chains, or running the WCO he hired Steichen to run with Levis, which do you think he will pick.  You can say nobody knows and to some extent that is true.  But I guarantee you that Irsay is not going to want to endure a read-option and/or see his QB redshirted for a year or two.

 

Levis is far ahead of Richardson.  And all the knocks on Levis you hear in the media about his mistakes were brought on while he was running a pro offense with poor protections and after his OC was stolen away by an NFL team.  Chalk it all up and Levis has probably always been ahead for the Colts in terms of options at 4 overall.

 

Now if they don't like Levis because he's dumb as evidenced by drinking mayonnaise in his coffee or eating bananas with their skin or he's a try-hard in the locker room or whatever other reason, then they will move down and go with another QB option.  There are plenty in this draft and we do know which ones fit the offense and direction of the scheme.  But what happens if Levis starts quickly and helps some other QBless team.  Well in that scenario Ballard is on the street and rightly so.  His job is on the line here with this decision.

 

Far more ahead in terms of what? What did Levis accomplish running the rams and 49ers offense because as far as I'm concerned it was the most simplistic approach to either offense. Go and watch the tape, the majority of his throws are slants, dump offs, and short out routes that he missed. Also don't put Steichen's offense in one hole when he took what a lot of people said was an impossible project in Jalen Hurts and turned him into the highest paid QB in the league. You wanna believe some random source, go ahead.

[Boondoggle]

On 4/19/2023 at 2:42 PM, CR91 said:

 

Far more ahead in terms of what? What did Levis accomplish running the rams and 49ers offense because as far as I'm concerned it was the most simplistic approach to either offense. Go and watch the tape, the majority of his throws are slants, dump offs, and short out routes that he missed. Also don't put Steichen's offense in one hole when he took what a lot of people said was an impossible project in Jalen Hurts and turned him into the highest paid QB in the league. You wanna believe some random source, go ahead.

Far ahead in everything.

 

When a rookie QB comes into the NFL he has to absorb the playbook during OTAs and immediately start demonstrating a handle on getting the play called correctly in the huddle (which with the WCO is like learning a new language for a lot of QB prospects), getting out of the huddle crisply, and checking to ensure the players are all lined up.  By camp they need to start making reads at the LOS on top of all that, both the protection reads and the play-specific reads which typically involve reading safety position and intent.

 

For Richardson all that stuff is going to be new.  Plus the faster speed of NFL defenses, and the smarter coordination of said defenses that dial in to stop what you do well.  This is why rookies almost invariably struggle in the NFL.

 

For Levis he's been running that stuff for 2 years.  He's been doing that.  He's also been getting all the criticism for not running it perfectly while dealing with poor OL protections and an OC change.

 

So for the two QBs entering OTAs and NFL Camps the difference is night and day in terms of the advantages that Levis possesses.  This is why Richardson will need a redshirt year or two.  And it is why Levis will play immediately.

[CR91]

23 minutes ago, Boondoggle said:

Far ahead in everything.

 

When a rookie QB comes into the NFL he has to absorb the playbook during OTAs and immediately start demonstrating a handle on getting the play called correctly in the huddle (which with the WCO is like learning a new language for a lot of QB prospects), getting out of the huddle crisply, and checking to ensure the players are all lined up.  By camp they need to start making reads at the LOS on top of all that, both the protection reads and the play-specific reads which typically involve reading safety position and intent.

 

For Richardson all that stuff is going to be new.  Plus the faster speed of NFL defenses, and the smarter coordination of said defenses that dial in to stop what you do well.  This is why rookies almost invariably struggle in the NFL.

 

For Levis he's been running that stuff for 2 years.  He's been doing that.  He's also been getting all the criticism for not running it perfectly while dealing with poor OL protections and an OC change.

 

So for the two QBs entering OTAs and NFL Camps the difference is night and day in terms of the advantages that Levis possesses.  This is why Richardson will need a redshirt year or two.  And it is why Levis will play immediately.

 

And what has he accomplished? You didn't answer that. What about Levis's game makes him more pro-ready? 

[Jason_]

2 minutes ago, CR91 said:

What about Levis's game makes him more pro-ready?

 

uh, did you read the post that you quoted? lol

[CR91]

5 minutes ago, J@son said:

 

uh, did you read the post that you quoted? lol

 

He's in a pro system. I get that. What has he accomplished? What makes his game better then AR

[Jason_]

24 minutes ago, CR91 said:

 

He's in a pro system. I get that. What has he accomplished? What makes his game better then AR

 

I'm just saying, Boondoggle answered those questions except for what he's accomplished.  

[CR91]

10 minutes ago, J@son said:

 

I'm just saying, Boondoggle answered those questions except for what he's accomplished.  

 

Being in a pro system does not make you pro ready if you accomplished nothing in that system.

[Jason_]

5 minutes ago, CR91 said:

 

Being in a pro system does not make you pro ready if you accomplished nothing in that system.

 

well I don't think many would agree with you that he accomplished 'nothing'.  

[CR91]

11 minutes ago, J@son said:

 

well I don't think many would agree with you that he accomplished 'nothing'.  

 

Did he win? No. Did he have ridiculous stats? No. Did he make Kentucky a power house? No. 

[AustexColt]

Ballard is going to let the draft come to them. If Stroud is there, the Colts will take him. If AR does not pass the Ballard "feel" test they will be going with Levis. If both are gone then they are drafting Will Anderson.  

[NewColtsFan]

12 minutes ago, CR91 said:

 

Did he win? No. Did he have ridiculous stats? No. Did he make Kentucky a power house? No. 

Kentucky won 8 games his first season.   And Levis is getting most if the credit.   
 

This year, injuries, a much worse supporting cast and not as good coaching combine for a poorer season.   But most don’t seem to be holding it against Levis.    
 

Then there’s you…..    

 

 

[CR91]

4 minutes ago, NewColtsFan said:

Kentucky won 8 games his first season.   And Levis is getting most if the credit.   
 

This year, injuries, a much worse supporting cast and not as good coaching combine for a poorer season.   But most don’t seem to be holding it against Levis.    
 

Then there’s you…..    

 

 

 

8 games is winning? That's worth a top 4 pick?

[Jason_]

34 minutes ago, CR91 said:

 

8 games is winning? That's worth a top 4 pick?

 

Yeah because that's how GMs and HCs evaluate qbs

[CR91]

Just now, J@son said:

 

Yeah because that's how GMs and HCs evaluate qbs

 

You need to actually be successful in college. You're completely basing your point in what could be not what hes done.

[Jason_]

23 minutes ago, CR91 said:

 

You need to actually be successful in college. You're completely basing your point in what could be not what hes done.

 

If you've paid attention to anything about the draft you'd know that's exactly how they evaluate players.  What can they become?  

[CR91]

1 minute ago, J@son said:

 

If you've paid attention to anything about the draft you'd know that's exactly how they evaluate players.  What can they become?  

 

You don't take projects in the top 5.

[jvan1973]

1 hour ago, CR91 said:

 

8 games is winning? That's worth a top 4 pick?

Mahomes never won 8 games in a season in college

[CR91]

6 minutes ago, jvan1973 said:

Mahomes never won 8 games in a season in college

 

Omg stop it. You're better then that. You wanna choose one outlier 

[jvan1973]

Just now, CR91 said:

 

Omg stop it. You're better then that. You wanna just one outlier 

I can find a lot of qbs that went on to have good nfl careers that didn't win 8 games

[Gigc]

24 minutes ago, CR91 said:

 

You don't take projects in the top 5.

You know, back in 1999, the Colts had just traded their all pro, HOF running back, Marshall Faulk. We had the 4th pick in the draft and EVERYONE expected we'd jump at the chance to draft Ricky Williams--- the Heisman Trophy winner who had had averaged over 2k yards a year for two seasons at Texas, and who had scored 44 TDs in two years. He was. The MAN.

but we shocked everyone, took more of a project. A RB two good seasons, really good ones, but definitely less stellar, at Miami.

And Edge was the right pick...

[Jason_]

49 minutes ago, CR91 said:

 

You don't take projects in the top 5.

 

It happens all the time lol

[Jason_]

30 minutes ago, CR91 said:

 

Omg stop it. You're better then that. You wanna choose one outlier 

 

With your last few posts in this thread you're the LAST person to tell anyone else to "stop it" lol

[CR91]

30 minutes ago, Gigc said:

You know, back in 1999, the Colts had just traded their all pro, HOF running back, Marshall Faulk. We had the 4th pick in the draft and EVERYONE expected we'd jump at the chance to draft Ricky Williams--- the Heisman Trophy winner who had had averaged over 2k yards a year for two seasons at Texas, and who had scored 44 TDs in two years. He was. The MAN.

but we shocked everyone, took more of a project. A RB two good seasons, really good ones, but definitely less stellar, at Miami.

And Edge was the right pick...

 

Ricky was not a bum. He was actually really good in Miami. Edge was great for us. Not so much after he went to Arizona.

2 minutes ago, J@son said:

 

With your last few posts in this thread you're the LAST person to tell anyone else to "stop it" lol

 

Why? Because I'm not a Levis fan? Trust me I'm not alone.

33 minutes ago, jvan1973 said:

I can find a lot of qbs that went on to have good nfl careers that didn't win 8 games

 

That were picked top 5? Good luck

[Gigc]

11 minutes ago, CR91 said:

 

Ricky was not a bum. He was actually really good in Miami. Edge was great for us. Not so much after he went to Arizona.

 

Why? Because I'm not a Levis fan? Trust me I'm not alone.

 

That were picked top 5? Good luck

I think you missed my point. I wasn't trying to say Ricky Williams was a bum in the NFL, although he definitely was considered an underperformer.

I was trying to say sometimes the really shiny thing is not as good as the one we don't really see... anywho

[Jason_]

17 minutes ago, CR91 said:

 

Why? Because I'm not a Levis fan? Trust me I'm not alone

 

Lmao...no, that's not why.

 

 

[NewColtsFan]

2 hours ago, CR91 said:

 

8 games is winning? That's worth a top 4 pick?

8 games is a big deal for Kentucky.   As for worthy of pick 4,  that’s for Ballard and Steichen to figure out.   You can make simple arguments about Richardson as well.   And you could conclude that he hasn’t done anything to be worth the 4th overall pick either.    Being an athletic freak isn’t enough.   
 

You’re looking for simple easy answers for very complex questions.   There aren’t any. 
Whatever the Colts do there will be people who will say that they were right and Ballard was wrong.   That comes with the territory.  

[CR91]

4 minutes ago, NewColtsFan said:

8 games is a big deal for Kentucky.   As for worthy of pick 4,  that’s for Ballard and Steichen to figure out.   You can make simple arguments about Richardson as well.   And you could conclude that he hasn’t done anything to be worth the 4th overall pick either.    Being an athletic freak isn’t enough.   
 

You’re looking for simple easy answers for very complex questions.   There aren’t any. 
Whatever the Colts do there will be people who will say that they were right and Ballard was wrong.   That comes with the territory.  

 

For the record, I don't think AR deserves to go 4 either. I personally want Stroud, but if I'm forced to pick between AR and Levis it won't be Levis.

[NewColtsFan]

4 minutes ago, CR91 said:

 

For the record, I don't think AR deserves to go 4 either. I personally want Stroud, but if I'm forced to pick between AR and Levis it won't be Levis.

I understand.   You’ve made your views on Levis 100 percent clear in dozens of posts over the past 4-6 weeks.   I just hope whoever we take is good enough to be worthy of the pick.   If he is, then we’ll all be happy. 

[Aces101]

At UF, Richardson played for 2 different coaching staffs, learned 2 completely different offensive schemes, and did not have a dedicated QB Coach. 
 

Going into a franchise with a successful offensive coordinator turned head coach, a highly regarded QB Coach, a veteran QB like Minshew to mentor him, and a great running attack would set AR up for success. 

[Patrick Miller]

Gut feeling says we are taking Richardson.  Minshew will start most of the season. AR is not who I want btw. I’d rather have stroud or Levis.

[Peter Nova]

4 minutes ago, Patrick Miller said:

Gut feeling says we are taking Richardson.  Minshew will start most of the season. AR is not who I want btw. I’d rather have stroud or Levis.

I don't see it and I doubt AR goes in the top 10. The athletic measures are great and all, but everything else about him spells raw project with bust potential.  

[Boondoggle]

8 hours ago, CR91 said:

 

And what has he accomplished? You didn't answer that. What about Levis's game makes him more pro-ready? 

[Boondoggle]

In the projection of these QBs they all have their question marks.  If someone believes Levis is gonna bust I'm not gonna tell them they're wrong.  Because I have no idea who's going to succeed from this group.

 

But I can tell you that running a pro style offense in college is an advantage as a QB.  Tried to explain that too.

 

Now if him running said offense quite well two years ago and in a more hit/miss style last season is not enough for you to give him credit for the fact that he knows the jargon and can speak the language, or to acknowledge that advantage in making the adjustment to the NFL, then we'll never be able to have a conversation on these guys.

 

Lastly for the record I'm not 100% certain about Levis by any stretch.  I simply think he's the best candidate of this class by virtue of the fact he's familiar with the offense he'll be running here if he is the pick.  And the others scare me more than he does in different ways.

 

I'm not sure Stroud is all-in.  As I have said he might not have enough dog in him.  The guy reminds me a lot of Goff.

 

Young it's the size.  He's sold me quite well this offseason, just listening to his takes, where I have a higher estimation of the guy's mind, but the physical limits are undeniable.

 

And Richardson it's the film.  He reminds me a bit of a guy the Raiders took some years back.  Even if he's locked in mentally he's going to need a ton of work and if he plays early he's gonna be running read-option.

 

Meanwhile Levis has run a pro style offense.  He had a dip in his play last year but there were some reasons for those.  Might bust like the rest of these guys but when I line them up it's pretty clear that Levis has potential to be that guy everyone overlooked.  I'm still surprised he isn't gonna go one overall.  And honestly that gives me some pause, as in I am wondering if he's a really weird dude in interviews like Rodgers was.  Because that made Rodgers fall quite a bit when he came out.

[CR91]

26 minutes ago, Boondoggle said:

In the projection of these QBs they all have their question marks.  If someone believes Levis is gonna bust I'm not gonna tell them they're wrong.  Because I have no idea who's going to succeed from this group.

 

But I can tell you that running a pro style offense in college is an advantage as a QB.  Tried to explain that too.

 

Now if him running said offense quite well two years ago and in a more hit/miss style last season is not enough for you to give him credit for the fact that he knows the jargon and can speak the language, or to acknowledge that advantage in making the adjustment to the NFL, then we'll never be able to have a conversation on these guys.

 

Lastly for the record I'm not 100% certain about Levis by any stretch.  I simply think he's the best candidate of this class by virtue of the fact he's familiar with the offense he'll be running here if he is the pick.  And the others scare me more than he does in different ways.

 

I'm not sure Stroud is all-in.  As I have said he might not have enough dog in him.  The guy reminds me a lot of Goff.

 

Young it's the size.  He's sold me quite well this offseason, just listening to his takes, where I have a higher estimation of the guy's mind, but the physical limits are undeniable.

 

And Richardson it's the film.  He reminds me a bit of a guy the Raiders took some years back.  Even if he's locked in mentally he's going to need a ton of work and if he plays early he's gonna be running read-option.

 

Meanwhile Levis has run a pro style offense.  He had a dip in his play last year but there were some reasons for those.  Might bust like the rest of these guys but when I line them up it's pretty clear that Levis has potential to be that guy everyone overlooked.  I'm still surprised he isn't gonna go one overall.  And honestly that gives me some pause, as in I am wondering if he's a really weird dude in interviews like Rodgers was.  Because that made Rodgers fall quite a bit when he came out.

 

If I took a master class and failed, does that make me better then someone who didn't?

[NewColtsFan]

1 hour ago, Boondoggle said:

Levis ran an NFL offense in his first year, his better year if the two.   He used NFL verbiage, NFL concepts.   It’s the system used by a guy who was an NFL OC for the Rams.    
 

Not sure how you got to a week before the draft without knowing this?    Something tells me you do know this but are still not convinced.