Colts Texans post game reaction

[KB]

11 hours ago, krunk said:

I think we will beat them the second go round. I think we will hit the run harder. I still don't think Texans defense can shut it down if we press it with intent. We should have Downs back. Don't think they have anybody that can cover AD and Pierce simultaneously.   Gotta control the TOP and dictate to them.

I say we lose the second game, but we pull another 2019 and beat them in the wild card round of the playoffs.

[shasta519]

31 minutes ago, Restinpeacesweetchloe said:

He was on Tunsil quite a bit. For what it is worth Tunsil had one of his lowest  graded games he has ever had. I will see if I can find the tweet. 

 

Tunsil seemed to handle Latu pretty well. But it was his first game against an AP LT though. 

 

 

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

I think colts will get to where Texans are pretty quickly. Texans are so good at passing you have to sell out to stop the pass leaving the run game open. With the way Richardson hit the bombs Sunday it should open up the run game for Taylor. Texans were good at sniffing that out and taking what was there. That’s what colts will get to I think. If they sell out to stop the pass then Taylor will just be wide open. I might be changing my thinking on the game from Sunday.

3 minutes ago, shasta519 said:

 

Tunsil seemed to handle Latu pretty well. But it was his first game against an AP LT though. 

 

 

Tunsil grade was only in thr 40’s

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

Richardson is smart enough that he will start to understand more that  you take what is there. Stroud was very good at doing that   Sunday.  Eventually teams will have to pick their poison with the colts.

[shasta519]

3 minutes ago, Restinpeacesweetchloe said:

Tunsil grade was only in thr 40’s

 

His grade on the season is a 65.  

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

I thought Gus had some good explanation here on what they tried to do. Hopefully this is where colts get to with their offense.

 

5 minutes ago, shasta519 said:

 

His grade on the season is a 65.  

I was talking about passing block grade. I will see if I can find it, I saw it posted but maybe it was wrong. He might of deleted it because it was wrong.

[shasta519]

1 minute ago, Restinpeacesweetchloe said:

I thought Gus had some good explanation here on what they tried to do. Hopefully this is where colts get to with their offense.

 

I was talking about passing block grade. I will see if I can find it, I saw it posted but maybe it was wrong.

 

He might have had a poor pass blocking grade...I don't have PFF. But it wasn't because Latu was beating him, at least not from those clips.

 

Latu will get going, but it takes time to acclimate to consistently playing NFL-caliber LTs. It will also take snaps too. If the Colts can get a lead on GB, I think we will see Latu's snap share count go up.

 

 

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

Doesn’t sound like Flowers was inactive due to not being ready.

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

1 minute ago, shasta519 said:

 

He might have had a poor pass blocking grade...I don't have PFF. But it wasn't because Latu was beating him, at least not from those clips.

 

Latu will get going, but it takes time to acclimate to consistently playing NFL-caliber LTs. It will also take snaps too. If the Colts can get a lead on GB, I think we will see Latu's snap share count go up.

 

 

No one said he was beating Tunsil up. But he was facing an all pro LT and he held his own  and actually came close to sack. That’s pretty good for his first game.

[shasta519]

24 minutes ago, Restinpeacesweetchloe said:

No one said he was beating Tunsil up. But he was facing an all pro LT and he held his own  and actually came close to sack. That’s pretty good for his first game.

 

You implied Latu he was a reason for Tunsil's low pass blocking grade. But in that cutup, the veteran is winning pretty decisively on those snaps. But this is what we would expect. It's nothing against Latu.

 

Only posted it because somebody asked what Latu did in the game and it's actually video of several pass rushing snaps.

 

 

[Restinpeacesweetchloe]

25 minutes ago, shasta519 said:

 

You implied Latu he was a reason for Tunsil's low pass blocking grade. But in that cutup, the veteran is winning pretty decisively on those snaps. But this is what we would expect. It's nothing against Latu.

 

Only posted it because somebody asked what Latu did in the game and it's actually video of several pass rushing snaps.

 

 

I said above the number I saw was deleted. So he must of been incorrect. If it had been correct yes he would of been partially responsible.

[joeb]

 Reasons for the loss.  Joe Mixon was fantastic. Nico Collins is a star. How does this guy get open in the middle of the field. Stroud hits him while running out of bounds throwing across his body.OMG! Let's not forget the catch going out of bounds. We lost but we definitely held our own. 

[Solid84]

This is beautiful. What Buck does to Tunsil is straight up disrespectful, lol.

 

 

[BeanDiasucci]

On 9/8/2024 at 4:04 PM, GoColts8818 said:

Why does Gus Bradley still have a job?

Quite a takedown of Bradley yesterday from former NFL GM Michael Lombardi. https://vsin.com/nfl/michael-lombardi-why-the-colts-cant-win/

 

Quote

Bradley is a high-energy coach with a wonderful, upbeat personality, and he is easy for the organization to work with when it comes to adding talent. His kindness and charming personality make the Colts’ decision-makers overlook the flaws of his scheme. His basic scheme allows young players to play without overthinking, and therein lies the problem. His scheme is too basic, simple, and easy to attack. It provides the quarterback with too many easy throws. It never takes away the other team’s best players.

Quote

 

Last year, the Colts finished 28th in points allowed and 24th overall. In 2022, the same thing—28th in points allowed and 15th overall. When the Colts hired Shane Steichen as their head coach, he was told he had to keep Bradley, because the front office and ownership loved him. For Steichen, this wasn’t a problem. He and Bradley are best friends outside of football. Once again, Bradley’s friendly demeanor and personality keeps people looking at his defensive acumen. 

 

Steichen has clearly demonstrated he is a great playcaller and offensive game planner. He is on par with Kyle Shanahan in terms of scheming a run game and finding ways to get receivers wide-open down the field. What he was able to accomplish in the 43 plays with the Colts offense was magnificent. Had the Colts gotten any help at all from Bradley and his call sheet, they beat the Texans and could win the South. 

 

I know it’s only one game, and for some, it might be too early to pick Bradley, yet this analysis is based on a two-year sample size. The Colts’ lack of defense isn’t a one-time fender bender but a pattern of poor play that should force head coach Steichen to question his defensive coordinator. This ability to question can only occur if he removes the friendship bond from his evaluation. Matt LaFleur in Green Bay was best friends with his defensive coordinator Joe Barry, which clouded his judgment and cost the Packers wins. Eventually, LaFleur had to make a move. But it was a year too late, which appears to be the same path Steichen is proceeding. 

 

Steichen serves as the offensive coordinator of the team, but he is also the head coach. And with that title comes responsibility. Steichen has an obligation to be objective and not let friendships cloud his judgments. He is the leader of the entire team, which means he needs to make tough and sometimes unpopular decisions.  As the great leader Corrado Junior Soprano once said, “That’s what being a boss is. You steer the ship the best way you know. Sometimes it’s smooth. Sometimes, you hit the rocks. In the meantime, you find your pleasures where you can.” 

 

Steichen has hit the rocks, and even though he can find pleasure in Anthony Richardson’s immense talent, he has to lead the team and demand more from Bradley—more scheme, more adjustments, more ways to help the players. When the scheme is so simple, it allows the coach to blame the players when things go wrong.

 

On long runs, coaches will say, we didn’t hold our gaps, or on big pass plays, we didn’t make a play on the ball—which is true. However, it’s a coach’s job to give the players a slight edge, to help them with plays calls, understanding what the offense wants to accomplish. A playcaller on defense is as important as a playcaller on offense. When a call creates a negative play, forcing the offense to play from a disadvantage, the defense can seize the moment. This doesn’t happen in Indy.

 

When the Colts create a negative play, their next call is a soft zone, allowing the quarterback to make an easy throw.  Bradley operates this way, believing the pressure from his defensive line will win. That sounds great in theory, but it doesn’t happen all the time. The Colts had four sacks in the game, and they still allowed 417 yards of offense.  In the 10 possessions the Texans had, they only punted twice, with one of them being blocked. They scored on every other drive, not counting the end of the half.

 

Playing at home, the Colts never stopped the run and never forced the Texans to be uncomfortable, even at the end of the game. When they needed the ball back on 3rd  and 9, they failed to make a play. Yes, the Colts lack talent in the secondary, which is a problem. They also lack answers. Bradley is playing checkers in a game that requires a chess master. Whenever he faces a great offensive mind, don’t bet the Colts, no matter how good Richardson might look. 

 

Steichen knew this last year; he chose to defend his friend.  He violated the Godfather creed, letting family interfere with business.  Now he is stuck. And all he can do is try to convince Bradley to become a chess player—which we know won’t happen. 

 

 

[shasta519]

2 hours ago, BeanDiasucci said:

Quite a takedown of Bradley yesterday from former NFL GM Michael Lombardi. https://vsin.com/nfl/michael-lombardi-why-the-colts-cant-win/

 

 

 

I am not the biggest Bradley fan, but it seems like the Colts players are getting a pretty big pass here. His DL got the pressure they were looking for...just seemed like nobody was making plays.

 

I like Steichen a lot, but being on par with Shanahan? 

[Superman]

3 minutes ago, shasta519 said:

 

I am not the biggest Bradley fan, but it seems like the Colts players are getting a pretty big pass here. His DL got the pressure they were looking for...just seemed like nobody was making plays.

 

I like Steichen a lot, but being on par with Shanahan? 

 

It's obviously a multi-faceted topic. I think the DL got blown off the ball in the run game, and the LBs were all over the place. So the players deserve plenty of blame for the run defense, IMO. And I think Bradley's comment about over-emphasizing the pass defense is more coachspeak than real talk -- again, the DL wasn't holding up to begin with.

 

But I think that's atypical for Bradley's defense. We've been pretty good against the run in his two years as DC, and unless Buckner is out, I think they'll bounce back. 

[Hawkeyecolt]

On the Texans first drive Stroud had a long run on the 3rd and 13 play.  Latu was about to chase him down for a sack but he got picked off by one of his own teammates. 

[krunk]

You watch AR and you see that thing that Irsay didn't see in Wentz. AR has that dawg, that ability to just put the thing on his shoulders and get his team mates to respond. They all believe in him. You didn't see that much with Wentz. When we got down to crunch time and we had to get in the playoffs the team wilted and so did the QB. He couldn't shoulder the load. 

[Goatface Killah]

So last year we faced the Texans with our backup QB, and we played a super tight game that came down to the wire.

 

In the offseason, they signed a boatload of free agents and also got Tank Dell back, and we didnt do much except get Ant back.

 

And this year we played them in another very tight game that came down to the wire.

 

I just dont see this huge impact that some fans seem to think signing all these free agents has on the end result. I dont see it.

 

 

[throwing BBZ]

On 9/10/2024 at 9:49 AM, ColtStrong2013 said:

 

Good for you putting the work in.. I can imagine it's beyond hard. 

I don't think you are alone in your frustrations with the team (obviously you are not alone on this forum) but i also think a great deal of fans feel the same across the league. I don't feel the same as you buddy, at all. I think it's very personal for you and that's something you are going to have to work on. You would rather burn money than have the experience I did on Sunday. I had 6 hours alone with my wife, which is rare. Lucas Oil was beautiful. Energy was great. I would have spent 5 times the amount I spent Sunday had I known how great of a day it would be, and I would do it over and over again regardless of the outcome on the field.

 

I'm not sure I agree that something is wrong if you would rather play Madden then watch the actual team. If that's the outlet you need to channel it, then it's not wrong at all. Clearly watching the team play is triggering for you. Stress stacks itself until it explodes. Be well buddy.  

 

 I really appreciate your thoughtfulness 2013.

Yosh quickly triggered the "oh no another Chloe" button for a quick trip to Ignore for me.

 And I am glad Yosh bared his Colts fandom soul, it's a eye opener, and makes me want to say a prayer for him and everyone struggling to find joy in our team 

 I'm letdown after watching us get whipped so badly in the trenches. Actually shocked is a better word. 

 Bottom line though AR has a ways to go so it will not be a shock if we can't outscore our opponents. 

 Our offense staff is going to have to out coach our opponents and game one wasn't reassuring. Go Colts 💪 

[Dingus McGirt]

On 9/10/2024 at 10:49 AM, krunk said:

I want to play the Texans physical all the way across the board. Dictate to them on both sides. On defense my biggest complaint is we play too much off coverage. You got all them pretty boy receivers on that squad dancing and being finesse. We need to add in some press and put hands on their tails. The whole darn game can't be off coverage. Mix in some press and  Knock of the timing! Heck I don't even care if you get a flag one time or so. Get your hands on the guy and push him into the side lines.

Now, that’s just not nice.

[ColtStrong2013]

5 minutes ago, throwing BBZ said:

And I am glad Yosh bared his Colts fandom soul, it's a eye opener, and makes me want to say a prayer for him and everyone struggling to find joy in our team 

 I'm letdown after watching us get whipped so badly in the trenches. Actually shocked is a better word. 

 Bottom line though AR has a ways to go so it will not be a shock if we can't outscore our opponents. 

 Our offense staff is going to have to out coach our opponents and game one wasn't reassuring. Go Colts 💪 

I found myself at a bottom when the team melted at the end of 2021. My attitude was really bad, I acted like a fool in front of my kids and I let the last two games and entire offseason dictate my mood. At some point I found it wasn’t really the team that was causing it, but the rest of the stress in my life and it was coming out during the games. Pretty well from then on I decided to be positive and just try and enjoy the moments, both with the Colts and especially in the rest of my life. After ‘22, I felt like anything to show growth would be a good thing. I didn’t expect the team to turn anything around quickly, regardless of what a small handful of other teams were doing in the league, and i figured if they were going to fully rebuild that would be the time. The Irsay family clearly did not want to do a rebuild nor felt it was necessary and last year showed they weren’t wrong. I’ve seen enough to stay patient and hope that it pays off down the road. It’ll be more than worth it if we ever become a true contender. If not, it’s just a game and one that so many franchises have had decades of pain in… 

 

I don’t like seeing us get run over, but something tells me it was an anomaly. I don’t see it being a common problem throughout the year and if that’s the case, AR won’t have to outscore teams as much as we are all predicting after week 1. 

[Dingus McGirt]

2 minutes ago, ColtStrong2013 said:

I found myself at a bottom when the team melted at the end of 2021. My attitude was really bad, I acted like a fool in front of my kids and I let the last two games and entire offseason dictate my mood. At some point I found it wasn’t really the team that was causing it, but the rest of the stress in my life and it was coming out during the games. Pretty well from then on I decided to be positive and just try and enjoy the moments, both with the Colts and especially in the rest of my life. After ‘22, I felt like anything to show growth would be a good thing. I didn’t expect the team to turn anything around quickly, regardless of what a small handful of other teams were doing in the league, and i figured if they were going to fully rebuild that would be the time. The Irsay family clearly did not want to do a rebuild nor felt it was necessary and last year showed they weren’t wrong. I’ve seen enough to stay patient and hope that it pays off down the road. It’ll be more than worth it if we ever become a true contender. If not, it’s just a game and one that so many franchises have had decades of pain in… 

 

I don’t like seeing us get run over, but something tells me it was an anomaly. I don’t see it being a common problem throughout the year and if that’s the case, AR won’t have to outscore teams as much as we are all predicting after week 1. 

Anomaly is spelled G-u-s.

[Solid84]

Some stuff on our WRs

 

 

This is going to be good.

[Moosejawcolt]

Listen to Lombardi podcast and he loved what Richardson did and loves Steichen as a play caller and play designer. He said that Gus Bradley and the defense is going to cost people their jobs. Very vanilla, and easy for the offense.  Love him and/or hate him but Lombardi has never liked the Colts defense and always said they are vanilla and it will never lead to success. He feels that the front office is in tight with Bradley but need to basically get rid of him and the D. Couldn't agree more and that is why I have always said that I attach Gus and Ballard together rather than Steichen and Ballard. It is frustrating to watch the allegiance this front office has for Gus and this scheme...beyond frustrating!! I believe that Richardson, barring injury, will flourish under Steichen but I do not think they make the playoffs. This defense will limp along and in all reality cost this team playoff success. Ballard needs to go if this defense does not improve over the season and I don't expect it will.  I think Steichen is the future and Lombardi kind of hints that Gus and Steichen are close, which I don't know if that is true. However, I would like to see Steichen and Richardson succeed and at the end of the year. He brings in his own GM and a new D and D coordinator.

[Solid84]

Bradley defense man...

 

 

[ColtStrong2013]

6 minutes ago, Dingus McGirt said:

Anomaly is spelled G-u-s.

could be. And right now we have 1 game (against what will be imo a top 5 offense) as a sample for the 2024 season. Give me 3 more to evaluate and I’ll have a pretty good idea what the defense is going to look like and make predictions. At this point, it’s kind of a moot point. 

[ColtStrong2013]

8 minutes ago, Solid84 said:

Some stuff on our WRs

 

 

This is going to be good.

max speed was faster than worthy? That’s insane… 

[Stephen]

2 minutes ago, ColtStrong2013 said:

max speed was faster than worthy? That’s insane… 

Worthy is quicker over 40 but that  doesn't  always translate to faster over longer distances 

[Solid84]

6 minutes ago, ColtStrong2013 said:

max speed was faster than worthy? That’s insane… 

 

2 minutes ago, Stephen said:

Worthy is quicker over 40 but that  doesn't  always translate to faster over longer distances 

Also, Combine-times aren't game-times where players wear full gear.

[chad72]

16 minutes ago, Solid84 said:

Bradley defense man...

 

 

 

Good thing the Packers' D is not that far off, lol  

[Solid84]

15 minutes ago, Moosejawcolt said:

Listen to Lombardi podcast and he loved what Richardson did and loves Steichen as a play caller and play designer. He said that Gus Bradley and the defense is going to cost people their jobs. Very vanilla, and easy for the offense.  Love him and/or hate him but Lombardi has never liked the Colts defense and always said they are vanilla and it will never lead to success. He feels that the front office is in tight with Bradley but need to basically get rid of him and the D. Couldn't agree more and that is why I have always said that I attach Gus and Ballard together rather than Steichen and Ballard. It is frustrating to watch the allegiance this front office has for Gus and this scheme...beyond frustrating!! I believe that Richardson, barring injury, will flourish under Steichen but I do not think they make the playoffs. This defense will limp along and in all reality cost this team playoff success. Ballard needs to go if this defense does not improve over the season and I don't expect it will.  I think Steichen is the future and Lombardi kind of hints that Gus and Steichen are close, which I don't know if that is true. However, I would like to see Steichen and Richardson succeed and at the end of the year. He brings in his own GM and a new D and D coordinator.

I don't mind the basic scheme as such - 4-3+Zone coverage. It's not my favorite, but it can work. It's just what Bradley does within that 4-3+Zone framework that I REALLY dislike. It's so dumbed down any QB knows what we're doing. No disguises. No Blitzing. Very little deviance from cover2 and cover3. We can switch DC and keep the overall scheme/framework, but man do we need a more aggressive guy in there calling plays on defense.

[chad72]

12 minutes ago, ColtStrong2013 said:

max speed was faster than worthy? That’s insane… 

 

Just wish they can connect. This is a good game for them to connect, versus the Packers for AR2AD.

 

I will be watching in the home of a good friend of mine that is a BIG Packers fan. So that will be interesting. He has already told me he swears a lot during Packers games, lol, I am ready for it   Been a friend for over a year now, but first time watching the Packers game at his place. 

[jvan1973]

33 minutes ago, Moosejawcolt said:

Listen to Lombardi podcast and he loved what Richardson did and loves Steichen as a play caller and play designer. He said that Gus Bradley and the defense is going to cost people their jobs. Very vanilla, and easy for the offense.  Love him and/or hate him but Lombardi has never liked the Colts defense and always said they are vanilla and it will never lead to success. He feels that the front office is in tight with Bradley but need to basically get rid of him and the D. Couldn't agree more and that is why I have always said that I attach Gus and Ballard together rather than Steichen and Ballard. It is frustrating to watch the allegiance this front office has for Gus and this scheme...beyond frustrating!! I believe that Richardson, barring injury, will flourish under Steichen but I do not think they make the playoffs. This defense will limp along and in all reality cost this team playoff success. Ballard needs to go if this defense does not improve over the season and I don't expect it will.  I think Steichen is the future and Lombardi kind of hints that Gus and Steichen are close, which I don't know if that is true. However, I would like to see Steichen and Richardson succeed and at the end of the year. He brings in his own GM and a new D and D coordinator.

Where was Lombardi successful?

[Moosejawcolt]

5 minutes ago, Solid84 said:

I don't mind the basic scheme as such - 4-3+Zone coverage. It's not my favorite, but it can work. It's just what Bradley does within that 4-3+Zone framework that I REALLY dislike. It's so dumbed down any QB knows what we're doing. No disguises. No Blitzing. Very little deviance from cover2 and cover3. We can switch DC and keep the overall scheme/framework, but man do we need a more aggressive guy in there calling plays on defense.

Contrary to what Ballard thinks, this is not a cheap defense to play. The argument has always been that it is supposedly simple to learn and you can draft corners and line backers in the later rounds.  I partially agree with that, however you better have that elite front 4 and I mean elite. That is where all your pressure is generated as other defenses can disguise their pressure. He has never built an elite front 4 and to me they have been average at best the 8 years he has been here. Ballard  has poured tons of resources and draft capital in the D line with average results.  You name me the defenses that have run this style of D and I would argue that they were loaded from the front four to the back end. How much do you think it would cost now a days to run the Legion of Boom and/or the famous Tampa 2?  Those defenses had hall of fame players and Buckner maybe our only hall of fame worthy player after 8 yeas of constructing this defense. I dont blame Bradley, to a point of not blitzing. It has shown that when he has, it costs the Colts dearly. He dials up a  blitz and they dont  get pressure and the corners are left on an island and usually get torched. I just dont get why the Colts front office dont see this when pretty well everyone on this board, i would say, shares the same sentiment. Gus and this D need to go and Ballard can tag along.

[Moosejawcolt]

Just now, jvan1973 said:

Where was Lombardi successful?

Lombardi has been around the league and I love it how everyone throws that out. Lombardi is never shy about the mistakes he has made and what he would do differently. He went to some pretty dysfunctional teams and some great teams as well. People always throw out the line "well what has Lombardi done"? rather than actually agreeing or disagreeing with his comments!

[jvan1973]

1 minute ago, Moosejawcolt said:

Lombardi has been around the league and I love it how everyone throws that out. Lombardi is never shy about the mistakes he has made and what he would do differently. He went to some pretty dysfunctional teams and some great teams as well. People always throw out the line "well what has Lombardi done"? rather than actually agreeing or disagreeing with his comments!

Yeah,   because he has no idea what he is talking about.   I don't take Rick Venturi seriously either.   Give me someone that has had success.   I'll listen

[Moosejawcolt]

7 hours ago, BeanDiasucci said:

Quite a takedown of Bradley yesterday from former NFL GM Michael Lombardi. https://vsin.com/nfl/michael-lombardi-why-the-colts-cant-win/

 

 

Totally agree

[Moosejawcolt]

3 minutes ago, jvan1973 said:

Yeah,   because he has no idea what he is talking about.   I don't take Rick Venturi seriously either.   Give me someone that has had success.   I'll listen

Okay then answer this. Do you like Bradley as a coach? Do you like the scheme the Colts use? Do you think Ballard has hired the right coaches, and/or drafted well on the defensive side of the ball? Do you think the Colts could win the Superbowl if AR becomes elite and we still allow Bradley and Ballard to stay on and continue to build and/or run this defense? 

[Superman]

8 minutes ago, Moosejawcolt said:

Contrary to what Ballard thinks, this is not a cheap defense to play. The argument has always been that it is supposedly simple to learn and you can draft corners and line backers in the later rounds.  I partially agree with that, however you better have that elite front 4 and I mean elite. That is where all your pressure is generated as other defenses can disguise their pressure. He has never built an elite front 4 and to me they have been average at best the 8 years he has been here. Ballard  has poured tons of resources and draft capital in the D line with average results.  You name me the defenses that have run this style of D and I would argue that they were loaded from the front four to the back end. How much do you think it would cost now a days to run the Legion of Boom and/or the famous Tampa 2?  Those defenses had hall of fame players and Buckner maybe our only hall of fame worthy player after 8 yeas of constructing this defense. I dont blame Bradley, to a point of not blitzing. It has shown that when he has, it costs the Colts dearly. He dials up a  blitz and they dont  get pressure and the corners are left on an island and usually get torched. I just dont get why the Colts front office dont see this when pretty well everyone on this board, i would say, shares the same sentiment. Gus and this D need to go and Ballard can tag along.

 

I don't think the argument is that the defense can be built cheaply. The argument is that you don't need to spend a lot of resources on the corner position. Which is why I never thought the Colts were going CB in the first round, and why I didn't think they'd trade for Sneed, and why I don't think they're freaking out about losing Brents right now. You still need good players at corner, but not the super expensive, freakishly quick man coverage guys. 

 

Instead, the philosophy is to prioritize DE, DT, Will, and Safety. Which is basically what the Colts did this offseason.

 

Regarding Gus, Ballard, and Steichen... once Steichen retained Gus after the 2023, his hands are just as dirty. Go listen to your boy Lombardi again. He makes it clear why Steichen is just as tied to Gus as anyone else -- the working relationship with Gus and Steichen actually pre-dates the working relationship between Gus and Ballard. Everyone likes to talk about Steichen as if he's going to right all of Ballard's wrongs. This is a great example of why I think that reasoning is faulty.