Colts vs Bengals pre-season finale postgame reaction

[2006Coltsbestever]

1 minute ago, Yoshinator said:

Definitely agree with this. I think the one problem with keeping Sam is that he and Flacco's contract both run out next year, and if we don't keep Bean or Slovis (or they get claimed off the practice squad), then we are down to just AR next year. I don't know if Ballard wants to just have AR as our only QB. He might, but he has to make the cut decision based on all the current information he has. Is that enough to put 100% faith in AR?

I am thinking we may draft another QB next season like in Round 4 to backup AR, after you take care of your 1st 3 rounds with needs. Sometimes you get lucky and that kind of guy who can be good like a Cousins and Prescott who went in Round 4. Of course, we tried that with Eason and he stunk.

[2006Coltsbestever]

12 minutes ago, Yoshinator said:

Yes absolutely. It looked as scripted as possible without being scripted. 7/8 the first drive, and 1/6 after with the pick 6 in the next three drives. Something ruined his confidence, it was probably the pick 6.

I still think he was told to only run if necessary and really not to run at all, so it took away from his game. He was forcing a lot of passes without Taylor in the game.

[John Hammonds]

6 minutes ago, 2006Coltsbestever said:

I am thinking we may draft another QB next season like in Round 4 to backup AR, after you take care of your 1st 3 rounds with needs. Sometimes you get lucky and that kind of guy who can be good like a Cousins and Prescott who went in Round 4. Of course, we tried that with Eason and he stunk.

I expect us to.  Not because Sam is bad.  Rather, simple because he's not worth giving a 2nd contract.  Next year, we thank Flacco for his service, say bye-bye to Sam, and draft a backup in round 4.  Cameron Ward, Miami?

[2006Coltsbestever]

Many like to undervalue the RB position but for AR, having Taylor is a huge important asset. 

[2006Coltsbestever]

2 minutes ago, 2006Coltsbestever said:

Many like to undervalue the RB position but for AR, having Taylor is a huge important asset. 

I say this because AR is young and still raw. If things aren't going well, he can count on Taylor maybe busting one off for 20 yards, he can also use play action with Taylor fairly easy which buys him time. 

[Rhodelesstraveled]

 

the second team D of Cincy shut our ones down.  Not a great thing to see at the end of camp.

[2006Coltsbestever]

9 minutes ago, Rhodelesstraveled said:

 

the second team D of Cincy shut our ones down.  Not a great thing to see at the end of camp.

Yeah, on that 1st drive we had they sure did (sarcasm), we torched them when Taylor was in the game.

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

We didn’t even use our playbook. The hot takes this morning have me turned off of talking all  things colts. From the media to the silly commenters on Amazon last night suggesting Richardson would be pulled for Flacco mid season.

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

Taylor wasn’t even in the game after the first drive.

[Smonroe]

10 minutes ago, Restinpeacesweetchloe said:

We didn’t even use our playbook. The hot takes this morning have me turned off of talking all  things colts. From the media to the silly commenters on Amazon last night suggesting Richardson would be pulled for Flacco mid season.

 

Oh, absolutely they didn't use the most effective weapons (AR and JT RPO's).  But there's no making excuses for AR being so inaccurate.  He was clearly rattled by the pick 6.

 

I don't think Herbie's comment about going with Flacco is silly at all.  If the team is competitive and we lose some close games due to AR's accuracy issues, it's only fair to the rest of the guys to do whatever is needed to make the playoffs.

 

We all want AR to succeed and we all realize he needs reps to gain experience.  But there are 50+ other players who deserve every opportunity to make the playoffs.  I hope it's not even a discussion.

[luv_pony_express]

- I really, really like our defensive front.  I don't think it's being overly optimistic to say that the Colts should have a top 5 defensive front.  I'd feel even better if we still had Ebukam as part of the rotation.  But, even without him, I think we have the horses up front to cause problems for offenses.  Latu looks.....well, he looks as advertised.

 

- Stating the obvious, but I'm less confident in the defensive backfield.  If Nick Cross can be a starting caliber SS and Blackmon can handle FS duties, that will certainly help.  But I'll just say that I really hope we don't have injury problems back there.

 

- I'm less worried about miscues between AR and his receivers (such as the one that resulted in a Pick 6) than I am the poor throws that should be easy.  Miscues are to be expected with young quarterbacks as they develop a mind-meld with receivers.  That usually takes time and reps.  But AR has got to do better about being somewhere near 95-98% on target with his bunny throws.  It feels like he's more around the 80-90% range.  And that isn't going to cut it in the NFL.

 

- I'm not crazy about our TE room.  I think it's the one place offensively that Ballard just hasn't gotten figured out.  Really, they should be in a position to move on from MAC.  That he's firmly in our top 2 is good for him...but it's not where the Colts should want to be.

 

- Jason Bean's football career isn't over.  I don't know if he'll ever catch on in the NFL (I wouldn't bet against it).  But he'll be taking snaps somewhere.  He's fun to watch.  I would not be unhappy if Ballard made more of an effort to hang on to Bean than Ehlinger.

 

- I also wouldn't be unhappy if we gave Spencer Shrader a real chance to challenge Matt Gay for PK duties.  Shrader has not only PK'd well, he also did a pretty good job punting against the Cardinals.  Had one go 63 yards -- and had the returner scrambling backwards to get it.

[cdgacoltsfan]

I think, on the after game cam, I see Josh Downs walking with AD. He was walking pretty good with no limp 

[cdgacoltsfan]

48 minutes ago, Rhodelesstraveled said:

 

the second team D of Cincy shut our ones down.  Not a great thing to see at the end of camp.

Didn't the Colts score on a near perfect drive the first time they had the ball?

[FRW]

Not overly impressed. Our firsts against their seconds early and we didn't exactly light it up. AR looked good the first drive, but after that he showed little to make anyone think he was worth a #4 pick. I watched his limited tapes from college and wasn't impressed with his throwing acumen. Everybody blamed it on his WRs, but I'm not sure. He has a strong arm, runs well and is physical, but his accuracy is suspect. I'm guessing this will be a learning year for him. We'll see how he does in his second "rookie" season. The running backs look solid and the defense as a whole looked good, but then they weren't playing against Burrows and the starters. It's hard to tell about the WRs because of AR performance. I don't expect a divisional championship and have doubts about the playoffs. But who knows, that's sometime more dependent on how other teams do.

[RollerColt]

I will say: The overthrow in the 2nd quarter looked like a mechanics issue. He wasn't really set yet, and threw across his body almost like a Mahomes no-look pass. 

[shasta519]

10 hours ago, Smonroe said:

This game proved nothing as far as the secondary.  They faced a backup QB and were never tested.  

 

Agree entirely. Logan Woodside is their 3rd string QB. Preseason is all about guys making roster spots and fantasy football content.

 

But it is funny to see Colts fans when AR is shaky against 3rd stringers say "It's just preseason...don't worry about it. He just needs some more time."

 

But when the secondary holds their own (I guess) against 3rd stringers: See...the secondary is good.

[Dingus McGirt]

8 minutes ago, RollerColt said:

I will say: The overthrow in the 2nd quarter looked like a mechanics issue. He wasn't really set yet, and threw across his body almost like a Mahomes no-look pass. 

Agreed.  That miss was the only one that really got my attention.  AD was wide open.  It had to be frustrating for him.

[shasta519]

8 minutes ago, FRW said:

Not overly impressed. Our firsts against their seconds early and we didn't exactly light it up. AR looked good the first drive, but after that he showed little to make anyone think he was worth a #4 pick. I watched his limited tapes from college and wasn't impressed with his throwing acumen. Everybody blamed it on his WRs, but I'm not sure. He has a strong arm, runs well and is physical, but his accuracy is suspect. I'm guessing this will be a learning year for him. We'll see how he does in his second "rookie" season. The running backs look solid and the defense as a whole looked good, but then they weren't playing against Burrows and the starters. It's hard to tell about the WRs because of AR performance. I don't expect a divisional championship and have doubts about the playoffs. But who knows, that's sometime more dependent on how other teams do.

 

His accuracy and mechanics are very real problems. It's not unreasonable to acknowledge. They were issues last year. But there was also a weekly highlight to share and that's what many remember. 

 

This offseason, all of his coaches and AR have talked about what they had been working on...mechanics, varying speeds, etc. But in the 1/2 half we have seen, he doesn't really look any different. 

 

 

[lollygagger8]

AR overthrows and constant sailing high balls are kinda concerning. 

 

[tfunky14]

I was pleased with everything.  They finally played some meaning snaps. The Colts defense impressed me the most. 

 

[lollygagger8]

Also, JT's helmet cover reminded me of something 

 

[cdgacoltsfan]

6 minutes ago, lollygagger8 said:

Also, JT's helmet cover reminded me of something 

 

I was thinking the same thing.

[cdgacoltsfan]

28 minutes ago, shasta519 said:

 

Agree entirely. Logan Woodside is their 3rd string QB. Preseason is all about guys making roster spots and fantasy football content.

 

But it is funny to see Colts fans when AR is shaky against 3rd stringers say "It's just preseason...don't worry about it. He just needs some more time."

 

But when the secondary holds their own (I guess) against 3rd stringers: See...the secondary is good.

The secondary was " good" because the D line was mauling them....like they should have.

[luv_pony_express]

46 minutes ago, RollerColt said:

I will say: The overthrow in the 2nd quarter looked like a mechanics issue. He wasn't really set yet, and threw across his body almost like a Mahomes no-look pass. 

I can’t shake the fear that we’re still going to be talking about AR’s accuracy 2, 3, 4 years from now.

 

He doesn’t have to become the most accurate passer in the league.  And I’m sure he never will.  But he needs to become acceptable.  There’s only so much that his athleticism, speed, size, and arm strength can overcome.

 

As it stands, his accuracy on the chip shots is not at an acceptable level for the NFL.  He misses some throws that any 2nd or 3rd string NFL QB would virtually never miss.

 

Whether it’s his mechanics or his reads or whatever, it absolutely needs to improve.

[Smonroe]

8 minutes ago, luv_pony_express said:

I can’t shake the fear that we’re still going to be talking about AR’s accuracy 2, 3, 4 years from now.

 

He doesn’t have to become the most accurate passer in the league.  And I’m sure he never will.  But he needs to become acceptable.  There’s only so much that his athleticism, speed, size, and arm strength can overcome.

 

As it stands, his accuracy on the chip shots is not at an acceptable level for the NFL.  He misses some throws that any 2nd or 3rd string NFL QB would virtually never miss.

 

Whether it’s his mechanics or his reads or whatever, it absolutely needs to improve.

Agree that it needs to improve.  He’s better in the hurry up.  We haven’t seen the RPO, but that should give him more time to process.  
 

Every player is different but Josh Allen was about 53% his first season, 59% his second.  Then the light came on.  I think AR has at least that much potential.   Big difference is that Josh started more than one year in college.  
 

AR has less starts since high school than any starting QB in the NFL, including the rookies.  

[richard pallo]

11 hours ago, CS Coltsfan said:

 time will tell.... our division got loaded up with WR talent... hope and pray that we can cover, but with Bradley's scheme and are limited young talent me tinks we will get burnt... Hope I am wrong... again time will tell 

Bradley needs the right players for his defense.  No different than any other coordinator.  Hopefully he has them this year.

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

1 hour ago, Smonroe said:

 

Oh, absolutely they didn't use the most effective weapons (AR and JT RPO's).  But there's no making excuses for AR being so inaccurate.  He was clearly rattled by the pick 6.

 

I don't think Herbie's comment about going with Flacco is silly at all.  If the team is competitive and we lose some close games due to AR's accuracy issues, it's only fair to the rest of the guys to do whatever is needed to make the playoffs.

 

We all want AR to succeed and we all realize he needs reps to gain experience.  But there are 50+ other players who deserve every opportunity to make the playoffs.  I hope it's not even a discussion.

Good grief 

[MFT5]

2 hours ago, Rhodelesstraveled said:

 

the second team D of Cincy shut our ones down.  Not a great thing to see at the end of camp.

 

preaseason is literally practice fans get to watch lol … 

[MFT5]

5 minutes ago, richard pallo said:

Bradley needs the right players for his defense.  No different than any other coordinator.  Hopefully he has them this year.

 

good coordinators build schemes around what they have … yu don’t force square pegs en round holes 

[richard pallo]

3 hours ago, John Hammonds said:

I'll say the words out loud:  If we weren't already paying Gay so much money, we would have a kicker battle in camp.

Gay is the better kicker.  It has nothing to do with money.  He won a game all by himself with 50 plus kicks last year.  He hit five 50 yard kicks in the practice against the Bengals last week.  He has a new holder in the Cardinal game and he misses.  Not a big deal but apparently it is to some.  Not to Shane obviously.

[richard pallo]

Ju Ju Jones is going to be an all pro someday.

[chad72]

1 hour ago, Smonroe said:

 

Oh, absolutely they didn't use the most effective weapons (AR and JT RPO's).  But there's no making excuses for AR being so inaccurate.  He was clearly rattled by the pick 6.

 

I don't think Herbie's comment about going with Flacco is silly at all.  If the team is competitive and we lose some close games due to AR's accuracy issues, it's only fair to the rest of the guys to do whatever is needed to make the playoffs.

 

We all want AR to succeed and we all realize he needs reps to gain experience.  But there are 50+ other players who deserve every opportunity to make the playoffs.  I hope it's not even a discussion.

 

This team will be in the range of 7-10 wins, based on how a few close games go. Hate to say it, our D and ST might need to be the reason why we win a few close games to make the difference between a playoff team and one looking from the outside. Because right now, the O needs that margin for error, clearly.

 

Making the playoff is a MUST for me, to defend Ballard's roster construction. Winning the division would be gravy.

[John Hammonds]

18 minutes ago, chad72 said:

 

This team will be in the range of 7-10 wins, based on how a few close games go. Hate to say it, our D and ST might need to be the reason why we win a few close games to make the difference between a playoff team and one looking from the outside. Because right now, the O needs that margin for error, clearly.

 

Making the playoff is a MUST for me, to defend Ballard's roster construction. Winning the division would be gravy.

I'm still on the rosey-er side of your window, with a 10-win prediction.  But that relies on all of our "IF's" trending the right direction.  IF Richardson can perform competently without too many mistakes, IF Taylor can run freely for 1,500 yards taking pressure off of the quarterback, IF our defense creates enough turnovers, IF our pass rush puts consistent pressure on opposing quarterbacks, IF our kicker can make most of his field goals, and IF we don't sustain bad injuries at important positions.  Any of those IF's take a bad knock, and we trend into the worse part of your window.

Crossing fingers that they don't!

[tfunky14]

1 hour ago, luv_pony_express said:

I can’t shake the fear that we’re still going to be talking about AR’s accuracy 2, 3, 4 years from now.

 

He doesn’t have to become the most accurate passer in the league.  And I’m sure he never will.  But he needs to become acceptable.  There’s only so much that his athleticism, speed, size, and arm strength can overcome.

 

As it stands, his accuracy on the chip shots is not at an acceptable level for the NFL.  He misses some throws that any 2nd or 3rd string NFL QB would virtually never miss.

 

Whether it’s his mechanics or his reads or whatever, it absolutely needs to improve.

They said the same thing about Lamar Jackson.  

[Superman]

5 hours ago, krunk said:

What's great is AR does read the defense correctly most of the time. I'm not worried about what's going on upstairs. And we know his competitive fire is awesome. Nothing to worry about there. Just got to continue working on the ball placement and the feet when releasing the throw. I liked most of what I saw though. As I said before there's going to be a few games where he throws a few clunkers, we will be mad and then the lights will come on for him.

 

I'm not worried about his reads, but I will say, he'll have to do a better job of connecting his eyes with his feet. It's very fast for him right now, and throwing the ball fast and far comes so easy for him, so he has a habit of making quick throws without lining up properly. And that costs him in accuracy and timing. 

 

His only incompletion on the first drive is an example. That was a tight window throw, and Ogletree had a chance to catch it, so it's not an obvious example of an accuracy issue. But I think Richardson saw the throw a hair too late, and then had to throw it so fast and hard to make up for it, which resulted in a very difficult to catch ball. If he sees/anticipates that a little sooner, he can get into the throw with a little more time/room to spare, and maybe Ogletree can adjust and have a better chance to make the catch. 

 

Then on the next drive, the first two passes are examples of the same thing. His feet were all over the place, he's throwing across his body, not transferring weight, falling away, etc. All of that will lead to inconsistencies with accuracy. Just minor things that I think are connected to how fast his eyes are seeing things, and his feet aren't properly connected to his eyes yet. Which is understandable, he's still very inexperienced. 

 

And at the same time, there were multiple examples of him reading, being properly lined up, throwing with anticipation, etc. The deep over to Pierce was perfect. Even the INT, his mechanics were great, and there was a miscommunication. 

 

Bottom line, game speed and throwing mechanics are the things he has to work on, and if he can make improvements there, I think his inconsistencies will shrink significantly. 

[smittywerb]

6 hours ago, #12. said:

If you have any interest in actually winning football games, you have to rely on Richardson's legs, expose him to harm, and let the chips fall where they may.  You made your bed with the pick.  

 

The notion that you can significantly cut down on his running and win with him dealing from the pocket - forget it.

 

See, this is where I getting at with my assessment of how AR should’ve been handled this preseason.

 

let him get the In game reps without using his legs.  That way he can be accustomed to in game throwing speed and get his bearings.  Were three preseason games going to fix his inaccuracy and inconsistency…no, but it would’ve made some progress.  Keep the playcall vanilla to where he doesn’t need to use his legs and keep him upright.
 

But like you said, now I feel AR is being rushed.  First game is against the loaded Texans.  So much pressure is on this game.  I think we’re going to see what we saw in the rams game, a lot of hero ball.  As long as AR gets down, I’m ok.  Just don’t want him feeling the pressure and thinking he has to be the one to win it.

[ADnum1]

2 hours ago, Smonroe said:

I don't think Herbie's comment about going with Flacco is silly at all.  If the team is competitive and we lose some close games due to AR's accuracy issues, it's only fair to the rest of the guys to do whatever is needed to make the playoffs.

 

We all want AR to succeed and we all realize he needs reps to gain experience.  But there are 50+ other players who deserve every opportunity to make the playoffs.  I hope it's not even a discussion.

If AR is healthy I think he will play the whole season, even if we go 4-13 and miss the playoffs.

 

We have to know if AR is the guy and we may not know until end of 2025.

 

I think we'll need at least 2 full years to know.

 

I hope Colts fans can wait that long.

[krunk]

I think AR will be fine as long as he makes sure his feet are set properly before his throw. He gets where the ball should go and I think he threw decisively. 

[luv_pony_express]

1 hour ago, Smonroe said:

Agree that it needs to improve.  He’s better in the hurry up.  We haven’t seen the RPO, but that should give him more time to process.  
 

Every player is different but Josh Allen was about 53% his first season, 59% his second.  Then the light came on.  I think AR has at least that much potential.   Big difference is that Josh started more than one year in college.  
 

AR has less starts since high school than any starting QB in the NFL, including the rookies.  

 

I hear you.  From your keyboard to God's ears.

 

I just hope that we find ourselves talking less about AR's potential and more about AR's performances as time goes on and he gains experience.

 

I'm going to constantly remind myself to be patient with this.  And we all need to be.  There are a lot of expectations right now.  And I think it would be wise for all of us to temper those a little bit - and reminded of this every time I see how many games Richardson has played at all levels.

 

But nobody has limitless patience -- especially when it comes to the NFL.

[chad72]

12 minutes ago, ADnum1 said:

If AR is healthy I think he will play the whole season, even if we go 4-13 and miss the playoffs.

 

We have to know if AR is the guy and we may not know until end of 2025.

 

I think we'll need at least 2 full years to know.

 

I hope Colts fans can wait that long.

 

That is inevitable, and could be the end of Ballard's lease, based on how 2025 goes with AR.