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Mike Lombardi on Pat Mcafee


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8 minutes ago, NewColtsFan said:


 

Sorry, you lost me.   You say Belichick would always take responsibility and also that he would throw his assistants under the bus.   I’m not sure you wrote what you intended to say.  

After a loss , he wouldn't sugar coat it. He would say " I have to coach better,  everyone has to coach better" Not sure that is throwing them under the bus but there was always accountability. There was no  "we have to play our gaps better and/or play our zones". It has always been that  way going back to Dungy. If the players just play within the scheme and do what is asked of them, it will all work out. Hope i am making sense, lol?? I have always felt that no matter who was our D coordinator, it always fell on the players feet as to why the defense failed.

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1 hour ago, NewColtsFan said:


When did Ballard say he made a mistake not addressing the defensive backfield?  
 

I think that’s a misinterpretation.   

 

Ballard was trying to take the heat off of Bradley.   He basically said he made Bradley’s job more difficult by not bringing in more talent.   But there was a plan to play the young kids so they’d learn kn the job and I don’t think Ballard was saying the plan was wrong. 

 

Colts GM Chris Ballard defends in-house signings but admits: 'We need to add' to secondary     From March 27th

 

"We know we need to add," Ballard said. "And there's still some vets out there that we will definitely pay attention to. There's still work to be done."

 

1 hour ago, NewColtsFan said:


When did Ballard say he made a mistake not addressing the defensive backfield?  
 

I think that’s a misinterpretation.   

 

Ballard was trying to take the heat off of Bradley.   He basically said he made Bradley’s job more difficult by not bringing in more talent.   But there was a plan to play the young kids so they’d learn kn the job and I don’t think Ballard was saying the plan was wrong. 

 

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Okay, I'm going with Pat - it's game one.

 

(I'm also not to thrilled with "we have to let our young guys play")  The young guys could have used some help by some wily vets.  There's nothing wrong with bring in competition.

 

This has been said so many times, I'm even tired of it.  But apparently, CB isn't hearing it.

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14 minutes ago, NewColtsFan said:


You think it would be good for the Colts to fire Bradley after two weeks?   Instead of the end of the season?  
 

Am I understanding you correctly?  

 

It would take something really bad for Bradley (or any other coach) to be fired after Week 2 -- like him getting arrested or something along those lines.

 

I don't remember a coordinator ever being fired that early in a season, even if things have started out badly.  I'm sure it's happened before.  But the mid-season coordinator firings I can remember are mostly like when Pagano fired Pep Hamilton in 2015.  We were 3-5 when he was fired.  We ended up at 8-8, but missed the playoffs.

 

In that instance, the Colts had been one of the top offenses in the NFL the previous season -- and the offense was spotty those first 8 games.

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Remember this guys? Well here we are again.

 

Ballard says the #Colts will "add fuel" to the CB room this offseason, but he likes the way the young guys responded this year.

 

It's one thing to not be able to identify issues. It's a whole different deal identifying the issues and then saying you are going to fix them and then do absolutely NOTHING!!!!!!!!

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6 minutes ago, DavePSL said:

Remember this guys? Well here we are again.

 

Ballard says the #Colts will "add fuel" to the CB room this offseason, but he likes the way the young guys responded this year.

 

It's one thing to not be able to identify issues. It's a whole different deal identifying the issues and then saying you are going to fix them and then do absolutely NOTHING!!!!!!!!

100%

Then add we might be without Blackmon this week too.

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8 minutes ago, DavePSL said:

Remember this guys? Well here we are again.

 

Ballard says the #Colts will "add fuel" to the CB room this offseason, but he likes the way the young guys responded this year.

 

It's one thing to not be able to identify issues. It's a whole different deal identifying the issues and then saying you are going to fix them and then do absolutely NOTHING!!!!!!!!


I thought all the off-season talk was about adding a vet to the safety room, not corner?    The talk was about adding someone like Simmons.   
 

Now we’re talking about adding to the corner room?   This feels like the story has shifted. 

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1 minute ago, NewColtsFan said:


I thought all the off-season talk was about adding a vet to the safety room, not corner?    The talk was about adding someone like Simmons.   
 

Now we’re talking about adding to the corner room?   This feels like the story has shifted. 

Colts GM Chris Ballard defends in-house signings but admits: 'We need to add' to secondary     From March 27th

 

"We know we need to add," Ballard said. "And there's still some vets out there that we will definitely pay attention to. There's still work to be done."

 

All I'm doing is quoting what Ballard said not what we said and he clearly said SECONDARY!!!!

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1 hour ago, NewColtsFan said:


I thought all the off-season talk was about adding a vet to the safety room, not corner?    The talk was about adding someone like Simmons.   
 

Now we’re talking about adding to the corner room?   This feels like the story has shifted. 

 

That's because it has. 

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1 hour ago, NewColtsFan said:


I thought all the off-season talk was about adding a vet to the safety room, not corner?    The talk was about adding someone like Simmons.   
 

Now we’re talking about adding to the corner room?   This feels like the story has shifted. 

 

7 minutes ago, Superman said:

 

That's because it has. 

People here were talking about drafting a corner and/or getting or veteran since after last season. Same with Safety. 
 

The story hasn’t shifted. Stop making people out to be worse than they are. 

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8 minutes ago, Solid84 said:

 

People here were talking about drafting a corner and/or getting or veteran since after last season. Same with Safety. 
 

The story hasn’t shifted. Stop making people out to be worse than they are. 

 

The focus was primarily on safety, up until 3-4 weeks ago. We can pull up the articles, the threads, etc. Yeah, there's been talk about both positions, but primarily safety, most of the offseason.

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2 hours ago, DavePSL said:

Colts GM Chris Ballard defends in-house signings but admits: 'We need to add' to secondary     From March 27th

 

"We know we need to add," Ballard said. "And there's still some vets out there that we will definitely pay attention to. There's still work to be done."

 

All I'm doing is quoting what Ballard said not what we said and he clearly said SECONDARY!!!!


Secondary.   The majority of the talk was about safety.   Very little about corner.   And the only name thrown about here was the chance that Gilmore could be brought back.  

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2 minutes ago, Superman said:

 

The focus was primarily on safety, up until 3-4 weeks ago. We can pull up the articles, the threads, etc. Yeah, there's been talk about both positions, but primarily safety, most of the offseason.

That is most definitely not true Supe. 
 

Since after last season the talk was to go CB or WR in round 1 of the draft. If not CB in round 1, then with another early pick or a veteran
 

Safety was not in on round 1 talks because none of the prospects were good enough for that, so that leaned towards vet from the start. 
 

I can guarantee you veteran CB was being discussed because that’s been my stance since the beginning and if you look it up you’d find I’ve likely made tens of posts discussing this with others here. 

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13 minutes ago, Solid84 said:

 

People here were talking about drafting a corner and/or getting or veteran since after last season. Same with Safety. 
 

The story hasn’t shifted. Stop making people out to be worse than they are. 


“Stop making people out to be worse than they are.”   ???

 

Sorry, but I honestly don’t even know what that means?   
 

As I just stated to poster PSL, the only corner name I recall being talked about here was Gilmore, and that wasn’t very often.    As opposed to Simmons and Diggs being heavily discussed here. 
 

 

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Kendal Fuller

Sean Murphy-Bunting

 

More. That’s just off the top of my head. SEVERAL veteran CBs were being discussed. 
 

Are people overreacting to a second year CB still fighting to prove himself getting injured? Yeah, probably. 
 

Are people overreacting to the contingency plan? Not really. Lackluster at best. 

 

The story hasn’t shifted. 

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1 minute ago, Solid84 said:

Are we forgetting people pounding the table for Sneed here?


Are you forgetting that there many here (including me) who wanted no part of making a trade for Sneed.   No to trading assets to get him.  No to making him one of the highest paid corners in the NFL.   That group thought the argument for Sneed was extremely weak given Ballard history. 

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3 minutes ago, NewColtsFan said:


Are you forgetting that there many here (including me) who wanted no part of making a trade for Sneed.   No to trading assets to get him.  No to making him one of the highest paid corners in the NFL.   That group thought the argument for Sneed was extremely weak given Ballard history. 

Who the cares about what people opinions were on the subject? That's not the point. You and Supe were talking about the story shifting, that's what I'm commenting on. It most definitely has not shifted. The CB talk may have been on the backburner for a while, but adding a veteran CB has been talked about here since WELL before the draft. Same with Safety.

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I, for one, never put too much stock into what a media jack says as I don't think they are really reliable sources of information. And sometimes you have to wonder if that person or this person really know what they are talking about. Michael Lombardi for example. Some quick and easy research turned up the fact that he was gm and Vice President of the browns from 2013-2014, only lasted 2 years(not very impressive). I wonder if his stellar draft of 2014 had anything to do with his quick demise. Justin Gilbert at pick no. 8 and the one and only Johnny Manziel at no. 22. After his short 2 year debacle with the Browns the Browns from 2015-2017 won a grand total of 4 games including the impressive ZERO in 2017. So I will continue to ignore anything good ole Mike has to say. Nice job in Cleveland Mike.

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43 minutes ago, Solid84 said:

That is most definitely not true Supe. 
 

Since after last season the talk was to go CB or WR in round 1 of the draft. If not CB in round 1, then with another early pick or a veteran
 

Safety was not in on round 1 talks because none of the prospects were good enough for that, so that leaned towards vet from the start. 
 

I can guarantee you veteran CB was being discussed because that’s been my stance since the beginning and if you look it up you’d find I’ve likely made tens of posts discussing this with others here. 

 

I'm not saying no one was ever talking about corner. I'm saying the primary focus has been on safety, until recently. 

 

But that's not even necessarily a bad thing. I think safety was the bigger concern, and felt that way until we saw Cross look okay in the preseason. It makes sense for the focus to have changed. (And there might still be a legitimate concern at safety, Cross isn't totally proven, and now Blackmon isn't practicing.)

 

Bigger picture, I don't think any of this is important. At least for me, my concern is whether the players we have right now are good enough, at both positions, and I'm waiting for Sunday so we can get some indication of who we have out there, and how it looks. But I do think there's some living on both sides of the fence going on this week.

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20 minutes ago, Solid84 said:

Who the cares about what people opinions were on the subject? That's not the point. You and Supe were talking about the story shifting, that's what I'm commenting on. It most definitely has not shifted. The CB talk may have been on the backburner for a while, but adding a veteran CB has been talked about here since WELL before the draft. Same with Safety.


It’s shifted because people are complaining the Colts didn’t address corner to their satisfaction.  Even though they picked corners in R 5 and 6.  
 

It’s shifted because people are * that Brent’s got hurt otherwise this topic wouldn’t have even been brought up.  
 

You mixed your corner theory’s.  One was that we’d likely use a 1st or 2nd round pick in the draft.  That’s true.  
 

Now it’s why didn’t bring in a veteran corner?   Was there talk about it?   Sure,  a typical off-season conversation.  But there’s no comparison — none at all — of conversation here for the need to sign a vet FA safety vs the need to sign a vet FA corner.   By comparison, safety was a Hot Topic, while corner was almost an afterthought.    That’s my recollection. 

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2 minutes ago, NewColtsFan said:


It’s shifted because people are complaining the Colts didn’t address corner to their satisfaction.  Even though they picked corners in R 5 and 6.  
 

It’s shifted because people are * that Brent’s got hurt otherwise this topic wouldn’t have even been brought up.  
 

You mixed your corner theory’s.  One was that we’d likely use a 1st or 2nd round pick in the draft.  That’s true.  
 

Now it’s why didn’t bring in a veteran corner?   Was there talk about it?   Sure,  a typical off-season conversation.  But there’s no comparison — none at all — of conversation here for the need to sign a vet FA safety vs the need to sign a vet FA corner.   By comparison, safety was a Hot Topic, while corner was almost an afterthought.    That’s my recollection. 

I mean, even the lackluster Colts media were talking about cornerbacks both possible draft-targets and veterans.

 

When people were talking corners they were talking 1st and 2nd rounders and proven veterans. Noone were clamouring for another 5th+ round project. That's not what we needed.

 

I don't think people are * Brents got hurt. It's unfortunate it happened once again and probably derailed his future career. People are really * about the contingency plan, though, because that's been talked about since AT LEAST early March.

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3 hours ago, Superman said:

 

Check this out at the five second mark. Your defense of this is 'it's game one'? 

 

 


Dude, I’m not going to “defend” anything.  I watched both videos.  I’m on record for how I feel about the soft D and the lack of FA DBs that could have been brought in.  
 

All that said, it’s game one.  I’m willing to see how it goes before panicking.   Besides complaining, what else can we do?

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21 minutes ago, NewColtsFan said:


It’s shifted because people are complaining the Colts didn’t address corner to their satisfaction.  Even though they picked corners in R 5 and 6.  
 

It’s shifted because people are * that Brent’s got hurt otherwise this topic wouldn’t have even been brought up.  
 

You mixed your corner theory’s.  One was that we’d likely use a 1st or 2nd round pick in the draft.  That’s true.  
 

Now it’s why didn’t bring in a veteran corner?   Was there talk about it?   Sure,  a typical off-season conversation.  But there’s no comparison — none at all — of conversation here for the need to sign a vet FA safety vs the need to sign a vet FA corner.   By comparison, safety was a Hot Topic, while corner was almost an afterthought.    That’s my recollection. 

Lol. Yeah, I think I remember this headline in the Indy Star: “Ballard solves CB issue with 5th, 6th round picks, urges satisfaction and delayed gratification” 

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3 hours ago, DavePSL said:

Remember this guys? Well here we are again.

 

Ballard says the #Colts will "add fuel" to the CB room this offseason, but he likes the way the young guys responded this year.

 

It's one thing to not be able to identify issues. It's a whole different deal identifying the issues and then saying you are going to fix them and then do absolutely NOTHING!!!!!!!!

 

 You see the Lie there right?  You change adding fuel to fixing. Show some character. We could list the CB's added after March 27 but clearly you have a venomous agenda.

 Ballard Does Not, Never Has, Never Will operate alone. YOU KNOW NOTHING about who we talked to, what there interest was in coming here, or what we offered them. You are crazy mad we drafted Latu over your CB, whatever. You don't know what happened but you sure know how to whine about it.

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17 hours ago, Restinpeacesweetchloe said:

 

So here’s a look back at Bradley against Sub-par/unproven QBs last season:

 

Against Raiders and Aidan O’Connell: 299 Pass Yards and 2 TDs

 

Against Titans and Tannehill in October: 264 pass yards
Against Titans and Will Levis in December: 300 pass yards

 

Against Bengals and Jake Browning: 274 pass yards and 2 TDs

 

Against Saints and Dereck Carr: 310 pass yards (not including Taysom Hills pass) and 2 TD.

 

 

300 yards given up to two rookies in Levi’s and O’Connell and 350 total to the Saints. And that’s even counting the number of 3rd and long conversions each team had, or the number of explosive passing plays they completed. It’s hard to think that this should be a cake walk for Bradley.

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10 hours ago, Goatface Killah said:

The fans operate on a 1 year plan every single year.

 

The front office is not on the same timetable.

 

I have no doubt they want to add. But sometimes it doesnt make sense to rush out there and make an addition just for the sake of it. 

 

Next year will be the same. He will go draft and add but have the excuse they are young. Only way to fix this and move forward is to sign a couple proven vets.

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13 hours ago, Solid84 said:

I mean, even the lackluster Colts media were talking about cornerbacks both possible draft-targets and veterans.

 

When people were talking corners they were talking 1st and 2nd rounders and proven veterans. Noone were clamouring for another 5th+ round project. That's not what we needed.

 

I don't think people are * Brents got hurt. It's unfortunate it happened once again and probably derailed his future career. People are really * about the contingency plan, though, because that's been talked about since AT LEAST early March.

 

I think CB was a bit overshadowed by the lack of a proven FS (after Thomas had a down year and Cross is still unproven). And Ballard also mentioned FS early in the offseason, so the local media latched onto that position all offseason.

 

But there were certainly people who were talking about addressing the CB room. There was a large contingent of fans who wanted CB at #15 in the draft, as one example.

 

And it made sense. The boundary CBs on the roster were Brents (injured half of his rookie year after missing a lot of camp), Jones (a R7 pick who had an up and down rookie season), Flowers (who tore his Achilles) and Baker (who was not good). 

 

I don't think the story has shifted...it's just that it died down a bit until the season started and we had some data. It took one week and the lack of a contingency plan might be backfiring.

 

 

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14 hours ago, Solid84 said:

Kendal Fuller

Sean Murphy-Bunting

 

More. That’s just off the top of my head. SEVERAL veteran CBs were being discussed. 
 

Are people overreacting to a second year CB still fighting to prove himself getting injured? Yeah, probably. 
 

Are people overreacting to the contingency plan? Not really. Lackluster at best. 

 

The story hasn’t shifted. 

 

Awuzie was another one. What I wanted to see was them save money on slot CB and bring in a proven boundary CB.

 

I know a lot of people say that young/unproven players have to play to develop, but there's no rule that young/unproven players have to start by default. They are on cheap, rookie deals, which gives a team a lot of flexibility.

 

Remember when Ballard went the young/unproven route with the DL back in 2021? Well, since then, he has brought in DL FAs and (repeatedly) retained his own proven vets. Even a guy like Latu, who had a ton of hype, only played 39% of the snaps (even with Ebukam being on IR).

 

I know Ballard is a trenches guy, so he is going to invest more in the DL. But the approach to each position group is wildly different. And it's not just a move like the Sneed trade...there's a lot of space between that and filling out the CB room with young/unproven players (many of which are late-round draft picks and UDFAs). 

 

And with their only real cap investment (and proven CB) in the secondary is a 29 year-old slot CB, they were taking a pretty big risk without much of a contingency plan. 

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Seems like Ballard forgot his philosophy when you draft young late round picks. Franklin and speed had to earn their stripes on special teams. Then they improved to be starters in a few years. Guys like jones should be a backup  to a vet for a couple of years and earn the starting job. If they are going to continue to just throw young guys in the secondary won’t move forward:

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2 hours ago, shasta519 said:

 

I think CB was a bit overshadowed by the lack of a proven FS (after Thomas had a down year and Cross is still unproven). And Ballard also mentioned FS early in the offseason, so the local media latched onto that position all offseason.

 

But there were certainly people who were talking about addressing the CB room. There was a large contingent of fans who wanted CB at #15 in the draft, as one example.

 

And it made sense. The boundary CBs on the roster were Brents (injured half of his rookie year after missing a lot of camp), Jones (a R7 pick who had an up and down rookie season), Flowers (who tore his Achilles) and Baker (who was not good). 

 

I don't think the story has shifted...it's just that it died down a bit until the season started and we had some data. It took one week and the lack of a contingency plan might be backfiring.

 

 

 

1 hour ago, shasta519 said:

 

Awuzie was another one. What I wanted to see was them save money on slot CB and bring in a proven boundary CB.

 

I know a lot of people say that young/unproven players have to play to develop, but there's no rule that young/unproven players have to start by default. They are on cheap, rookie deals, which gives a team a lot of flexibility.

 

Remember when Ballard went the young/unproven route with the DL back in 2021? Well, since then, he has brought in DL FAs and (repeatedly) retained his own proven vets. Even a guy like Latu, who had a ton of hype, only played 39% of the snaps (even with Ebukam being on IR).

 

I know Ballard is a trenches guy, so he is going to invest more in the DL. But the approach to each position group is wildly different. And it's not just a move like the Sneed trade...there's a lot of space between that and filling out the CB room with young/unproven players (many of which are late-round draft picks and UDFAs). 

 

And with their only real cap investment (and proven CB) in the secondary is a 29 year-old slot CB, they were taking a pretty big risk without much of a contingency plan. 

I'm with you 100%

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1 hour ago, Restinpeacesweetchloe said:

Seems like Ballard forgot his philosophy when you draft young late round picks. Franklin and speed had to earn their stripes on special teams. Then they improved to be starters in a few years. Guys like jones should be a backup  to a vet for a couple of years and earn the starting job. If they are going to continue to just throw young guys in the secondary won’t move forward:

 

Franklin and Speed were stuck behind Shaq and Oke too. But that allowed them to develop because they had proven starters at those positions.

 

Lots of examples:

  • Rodgers didn't start immediately. It wasn't until year 4 that he was going to be a full-time starter.
  • This is year 4 for Dayo and he's never been thrust into a starting role
  • Turay and Banogu weren't relied up on as starters 
  • Cross didn't become a starter until year 3
  • The rookie OL picks this year are getting at least a year to develop
  • Woods wasn't immediately the starter at TE as a rookie

 

Guess it depends on the player, but CB and S are positions that can take time to acclimate to the NFL. It's one thing to have a guy or two developing, but 3/5 of a secondary being young and unproven seemed like a gamble, especially with $20M in cap space unused.

 

 

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19 hours ago, Superman said:

 

The focus was primarily on safety, up until 3-4 weeks ago. We can pull up the articles, the threads, etc. Yeah, there's been talk about both positions, but primarily safety, most of the offseason.

 

Funny - I thought we had been talking about both CB and safety for months (cornerback talk highlighted in red and this is just a partial sample). I may be wrong, but I am persistent. 😄

 

Colts offseason discussion / Ballard Grievances (merge)

BeanDiasucci replied to Restinpeacesweetchloe's topic in Colts Football

I think that should be a goal of every team now - let's be great, not good - at QB, DE, WR, LT, and CB, the most important positions in a passing-dominated league. The Colts are hopefully improving at most of these positions, but still have some teams ahead of them. They need AR to work out, as everybody knows, and still need to get better to be elite at DE, WR, and CB. Yes, I think almost everyone already knows all of this, but it's hard not to keep talking about it...

Posted March 21 (before the draft) - (and yes, I know you say our CBs don't have to be that good in Bradley's scheme)

 

Posted July 16 (after the draft)

BeanDiasucci replied to AwesomeAustin:

Here's an analysis of the most valuable NFL positions based on an average of the top 10 salaries for players at each position. https://lastwordonsports.com/nfl/2023/07/07/most-valuable-positions-in-football/  It ranks the most valuable positions, in order, as QB, WR, Edge Rusher, LT, CB, RT, and S. (Yes, I know there is plenty to debate about this, including the offensive and defensive scheme for a particular team and how that impacts what positions are most valuable to them. Nonetheless, I think the emphasis teams are putting on investing in the offensive and defensive passing games is clear).

 

I've been very glad to see the Colts do more the past couple of drafts to improve their QB, WR, and Edge Rusher talent. I'd like to see them put more emphasis on CB and S. 

 

Training camp July 31st

BeanDiasucci replied to Restinpeacesweetchloe's topic in Colts Football

I don't like what we have going at FS or Jaylon Jones at one CB (56.8 PFF in 17 games last season: 100-90 Elite, 89-85 Pro Bowler, 84-70 Starter, 69-60 Backup, 59-0 Replaceable). I really like the rest of the Colts team, but still think they should improve the quality and depth of their defensive backfield, especially facing the following QBs within the first seven games: CJ Stroud, Jordan Love, Caleb Williams, Trevor Lawrence, and Tua Tagovailoa.

Posted July 31 (at least the Colts won't have to face a couple of these QBs now)

 

BeanDiasucci Replied to AustexColt

I think the young group they have will probably be okay - maybe league average even - but is okay really good enough at a premier position, trying to contain the best receivers in an increasingly passing-dominated league? JuJu Brents, a 2nd-round pick who played only half a season his rookie year seems promising. Jaylon Jones, despite Ballard's praise, seems like more of a question mark. A 7th-round pick who had mixed scouting reports (excellent size and run support, more questionable in pass coverage (https://www.nfldraftbuzz.com/Player/Jaylon-Jones-DB-TexasAANDM) wasn't even an all-conference player in three years at Texas A&M and had mixed results in his rookie season for the Colts. Dallis Flowers, a 3rd-year player who was an undrafted signee, seems okay, but probably a low-ceiling player. 

 

Maybe these guys will improve significantly and pre-season concerns from fans like me will seem ridiculous. If not, I'll be hoping for a new DC who might help to bring a new approach to how the Colts address the cornerback position.  

Posted August 2

 

Training Camp August 2nd

BeanDiasucci replied to Restinpeacesweetchloe's topic in Colts Football

Ballard has had more than a year to acquire veteran upgrades at safety and cornerback. I think he should have done that. Hope I'm wrong. The free agents available now are just one part of the possible upgrades that could have happened through trades or signings.

Posted August 4

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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    • #1: JT could possibly go off and score a game winning TD, something that is not wanted.   #2: Maybe make a rift with JT OR start out something like 0-5 and season is lost anyway and explore trade possibilities to more preferable teams and get out from his contract. I have no idea what are ramifications of his contract if traded. Just throwing it out there and possibility #1 is more realistic BUT wouldn't a team like KC, Pittsburgh, etc... use  him better than the colts?   
    • Its a idea but not fair to AR. Having the misfortune to be drafted by a sub par franchise AND THEN traded to a even worse one. 
    • Yeah, but otherwise the colts are in looking good. 
    • @John Hammonds   John more of a follow-up to your recent reply post.  Notre Dames' players draft stock to me are on a big decline this year from last year and so is Michigan.   Your Round 1 pick of CB Benjamin Morrison is probably around my 25th best DB so far with a 64.8 overall season grade.  Gone from a Day 1 pick to Day 3.   Round 2 WLB Danny Stutsman is among the top 10 this season.  Yahoo Sports released a recent article giving him a 73.2 PFF grade on 156 snaps after 3 weeks and R9 on the Sooner team.   PFF lists Stutsman with a 78.4 overall season grade.   Round 3 pick of FS Rod Moore has more questions needing to be answered as he hasn't played yet this year due to a torn ACL in practice.  With all the Colts injuries am shying away from players with priors now that Brents is done, again. Another flag to me where he missed some time in 2023 for an undisclosed reason.   RG Will Fries off to a hot start and needs to have his contract extended before end of 2025 season if he continues strong play. RT Braden Smith is the weakest link. Got a contract work to our advantage to move him (trade/cut). RT Matt Goncalves – still need to see more to be sold on him as our future starter.  Draft options do like Grey Zabel played multiple positions in college and now starting LT seemed to do well against Colorado.  Jonah Savaiinaea, Armand Membou, Ajani Cornelius is very risky-penalty prone. WR Michael Pittman Jr appears to have that “I got paid” but still not happy mentality after two weeks.  End of 2025 potential trade or going to step up his game? DT Grover Stewart isn’t getting any younger and hard to find a gem like him.  Walter Nolen is a Day 1 pick.  Even see about moving Vernon Broughton to NT with his run-stopping abilities.  Omarr Norman-Lott and Gavin Meyer who has flashed in run-support at times make the list.  Joey Slackman whom I was excited to see excel as a transfer student has continued to show his dominance.  Deone Walker who stock imo has dropped below other mentioned and Tonka Hemingway rounds out the list of options for replacement. MLB Zaire Franklin – still not sure why we extended him as he is serviceable not elite like Okereke.  Now seems got to wait until 2026-2027 to move to free up cap space. DT DeForest Buckner – man the Colts can’t catch a break this year with team injuries.  Only expect future of NFL to become more like this pattern of events with less pre-season games and an extended schedule. Edge Samson Ebukam – another tough loss to start the season.  Could be another cap release for 2025.  Some top talented edge rushers could replace him with Umanmielen and Baron. Edge Tyquan Lewis – We got a great tandem on one side of the field but aging players like Lewis and Ebukam need replaced with Umanmielen, Baron, Bogle, Tuimoloau or Juncaj. QB Anthony Richardson is still a WIP.  Wish was more a true pocket passer not a omg run first pass later.  Honestly tried to buy into the hype but like most recent draft QBs see us not extending his contract and look to the 2027 draft to replace him (Raiola). NCB Kenny Moore -can’t ask for much more from a player like him and defensive leader on this team but do have to find a future replacement to groom now.  Is that person on the roster now, FA, or draft one?  Got Jordan Hancock at the top of my list than a big drop off to Andrew Mukuba unless you consider Sebastian Castro for the role between those two. K Matt Gay – another misfortunate events of paying a player who is now injured.  K Dominic Zvada (Arkansas St) is a junior and maybe the best college kicker with 50+ accuracy.  Could Zvada declare early with upside for a team? TE Mo Alie-Cox – love him or hate him he still has been a solid key piece of our offense.  Loveland, Warren, or Ferguson would be similar draft replacements. TE Kylen Granson – coin flip as both MAC and Granson are very similar just a younger version here.  Oronde Gadsden II would be a clone of Granson. SS Julian Blackmon – when healthy has been solid in our current defensive scheme.  Tested FA last year and glad to see him rejoin.  Given his injury history flat out inform he like to resign him but must compete for starting role and may end up as a career backup with strong abilities and chance to start.  In the draft, Emmanwori is my top replacement followed by Sabb, Ransom and Trader Jr. DT Raekwon Davis – should feel very fortunate that the Colt’s medical staff diagnosed his high blood pressure concerns.  Moving from more of a 2-gap system with the Dolphins to our penetration style football hopefully will work out in the end for Davis. Edge Kwity Paye – hoping Paye returns after 2025 and creates solid rotational tandem with Latu.  Obviously, his contract amount will double+. LCB Julius Brents – Injury risk player coming out of college.  Much like Blackmon can’t stay healthy enough to evaluate and be reliable starter.  Can see the Colts draft another option hoping for a solid 1-2 backup plan.  Travis Hunter is a Day 1 option with ability to play WR-Z role. Looking at Johnson, Hill, and McCoy early and Grimes as a deeper 3-4 option. TE Jelani Woods – another victim of the injury bug but has potential.  Wish can stay healthy because liked what we saw in limited camp. WR Alec Pierce – I been pro-Pierce for a while many have been down on him.  Pierce has potential and has shown what he is truly capable of after first two weeks when given a chance.  Should continue to have a home with the Colts after 2025.  We just drafted Gould who should have a role on offense.   Draft could consider Tai Felton, Pat Bryant, or Jerjuan Newton. SAF Nick Cross – hoping the transition to FS pays off for the Colts.  After first two games seems to be working out. FS Rodney Thomas - Jahdae Barron top starter pick depending on how Cross does or if we decide to move him back to SS.  Robert Spears-Jennings if he declares is making a name for himself after 3 weeks. Tamarion McDonald or Sebastian Castro as potential upgrades.  Xavier Watts still not sold on him seemed to miss too many tackles in 2023.  Hunter Wohler was initially very high on in the off-season, and he disappointed against Alabama and dropping farther down on my list. OT Blake Freeland – hoping he can vastly improve his game in year two much like Will Fries has done.  LT draft options, Grey Zabel, Michael Tarquin, Jalen Rivers, Josh Simmons, J.C. Davis.  Jack Nelson is an option at LT but 13 penalties in 2023 is a big issue or Marcus Bryant could be options. OC Ryan Kelly – back to being one of the top 5 centers in the NFL.  Concussion history is a concern and age are another. Draft could see us draft Jake Slaughter or Jacob Gardner.  Connor Tollison, if he declares early, would push Slaughter as top center in the draft. OC/LG Tanor Bortolini – still early what his future role is.  Didn’t like his penalty history in college. LDT Adetomiwa Adebawore – very athletic for his weight.  Still think he should drop 20-30 pounds and move to Edge compete with Avery as 3rd spot.  Draft, do like T.J. Sanders, Rayshaun Benny, and Jordan Burch.  Convert Vernon Broughton to more 4-3 left side role than his 3-4 RDT. RCB Jaylon Jones – is off to a bad start much like the rest of the team after two weeks.  Seems to be another issue of concern with our defense.  Shavon Revel would be a Day 1 pick after that a major drop off to Day 3 options of Jason Marshall Jr., Jabbar Muhammad, Azareye’h Thomas, Benjamin Morrison. WLB EJ Speed – Collin Oliver is a Day 1-2 prospect.  Smael Mondon Jr. was on my watchlist with strong potential and already against Clemson and Kentucky is proving to be a top replacement on Day 2 as is Barryn Sorrell (still haven’t found his grades against Michigan and wasn’t listed as one of the top players.  Jamon Dumas-Johnson had solid outings against Southern Miss and South Carolina but let me down against Georgia.  Jack Kiser had high hopes for as well to start this season and Week 1 was off to a strong start holding ranked Texas A&M to just 3.8 yards per carry then dropped off against Northern Illinois and Purdue.  D’Eryk Jackson had a good day against South Carolina and struggled against a good Georgia team with his tackling and run defense.  While both Barrett Carter and Harold Perkins Jr. are lucky to be draft on Day 3 after 3 weeks. MLB Zaire Franklin – decent but not good-to-great as Okereke was.  Jay Higgins would be a Day 1-2 option but am concerned with his timed 40-yard might be too slow against NFL players. MLB Cameron McGrone – another player on IR.  Bryce Boettcher is a newcomer for me making a case as one of the top MLB in the draft currently behind Jay Higgins after 3 weeks.  Francisco “Kiko” Mauigoa and MLB Carson Bruener who since 2022 has excelled in coverage with an 84.3 grade, second among Power Five LBs (Jay Higgins #1) are strong candidates.   Pretty much an accumulation effort of my draft notes and players grades after 3 weeks in college and outlook for the Colts roster.  Without paying content to get a full player workup and google not returning what I am looking for can make a person go mad trying to constantly update these players.  Too many players where I have them but can't find any data for them to capture where they fall in the upcoming draft class.  With 100+ pages too time consuming to continue researching daily between my normal job duties.     Why we leave it up to the professionals to draft for us.  Oh, wait how has that worked out for us this year?  Anyways, continue to be arm-chair GMs.   Enjoy All  
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