Hard to come up with a metaphor
 

It was as if you’re walking through a valley, minding your own business, when you get hit in the top of the head with a pebble. You think nothing of it and keep on going, only to be hit by another. Then, when you look up and to your left, you see that the entire mountainside is sliding towards you.

No metaphor is needed. We are half good, half bad, and shit overall. An absolute mess. We can't be like that. This might take years to fix.

We're oddly like the opposite Manning years now. Good defense, shit offense. But that old Manning defense wasn't anywhere near the level of shit our current offense is now. Regardless of year. I have no idea where this team is going.

Right now, they're going absolutely nowhere !!

The Indy fanbase will not support a perennial loser....the stands will be empty or filled with our opponents fans, like with Pittsburgh! Even Cincinnati supported the Bengals when they went through a decade of losing, they didn't even fire their coach! There are a 1/2 dozen cities, with larger metros than Indy, that would love to have an NFL franchise. 5 more years of crap football and the Colts might be going to another city!

What were the colts before manning showed up? People showed up

Lots of empty seats back in the early 90s, I know I was there. They actually had some good teams in the mid 90s and then when Peyton came into town pretty much a sell out. The Dome only held 57,000 and when they were crap it it was never full. Of course for the first 5 years people came because it was new and exciting, didn't matter how good they were, we had an NFL team!

Right now there is enough optimism for the future that most people (including scalpers) are not giving up their season tickets. But they are selling them to the opposing fan base at an alarming rate, and that will only get worse if they don't get this shit show back on track!

I'm just saying that with cities like San Diego, San Antonio, Portland, Austin, and even Columbus OH if this team is in the cellar of the AFC South for the next 5 years....they might be in trouble! The NFL also wants some teams in Europe at some point....you can only have so many franchises or the talent gets too thin!

Good post.

It wasn't that long ago, in that window btwn Harbaugh and Peyton that there was growing sentiment that the Colts could move out to LA- and the noise was getting pretty loud for a bit and of course Peyton shut that shit down basically 3 games into his rookie season and you could see what was coming.

Jim is going to have to massively change things up to keep the fan interest. Gonna have to ditch this Ballard mantra of winning the cap space off season trophy as some sort of great achievement. We are going to have to go very young and try to fill in with some high profile vets that will draw local's attention.

I for one, will be glad to see Ballard gone. Dynasties are cool, they are also in many respects, incredible luck and lack of injuries at the QB position. Today's NFL is a short term play for glory, tear it down, repeat the process. He wants to plan this 20 year model of excellence, it's virtually impossible in today's salary cap world where your super stars rapidly consume too much of the cap to maintain an exceptional overall talent level on your team.

Sure they will. They still support the Pacers, and they supported the Colts in the pre-Manning years.

Yep. I was discussing with a friend the other day - would you rather have a decade of sustained success like the peyton years, but only 1 championship OR a period of ups and downs like the eli years where NYGs won a couple but had some shit years in between?

Shitty to say, but I am old. Now, give me instant gratification. I would not have looked at it that way 10 years ago. Things change, Ballard stays the same.

Two SB wins is better than one. I'm 47 now and hoping that the Colts will be challenging for a championship again at some point in my remaining lifetime.

I WON'T be glad to see Ballard gone. I really, really wanted it to work out, but it just feels...over...now. We're adrift as a football club. Dangerous times here.

I must be fat-fingering my phone and accidentally hitting emoji buttons. A question mark this time. Ffs. I'm posting too much because I'm worried I guess. Time to leave for a while. Smh

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The Colts went directly from Harbaugh in 1997 to Manning in 1998.

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Sorry, probably should have clarified the Harbaugh year where we damn near went to the bowl, to the collapse that was the 3-13 season and talk of expansion and us potentially moving. We battled to make the playoffs the year after Aaron Bailey and then we fell off a cliff and there was talk of no longer being here, then Peyton shut all that talk down near instantly in his rookie year despite the crappy record.

You can rule out San Diego. Qualcomm Stadium where the Chargers played has been torn down. The new stadium where San Diego State plays only seats 35K and is a basic no frills venue. After 42 seasons as an SDSU season ticket holder I'm non-renewing next year. It is not close to being an NFL caliber venue. Petco Park, where the Padres play, is not an option and there are no other stadiums in San Diego County.

I'm not saying they will move tomorrow, stadiums can be built, but San Diego and even San Jose are huge markets and I can't see the NFL expanding to more teams, talent is already watered down...I see unsuccessful teams being moved, and Indianapolis would be one of the first if they could find the right excuse. Not say it is going to happen, hoping and praying it doesn't happen...but some markets are so big or so well established that they can weather a decade of bad football, I don't think Indy can!

Houston is huge, they will be fine and you know they are going to get back, Jacksonville is young and has talent, I can see them getting better, maybe even very good! Titans have a much better organization right now than the Colts and the NFL loves that market....Indy could find themselves in the cellar of that division if they don't find some answers soon!

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The now-retired Steve Fisher ignited that previously-moribund basketball program, also.

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You just described the transformation of the Colt's offensive line from one of the best in the NFL for 2 consecutive years in 2020 and 2021 to one of the worst in the NFL in 2022.

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I don't see any chance at all that the Colts would leave Indianapolis in the foreseen future for 3 reasons ......


A) ) Jim Irsay and his family ...... the last thing in the world that Big Jim and his family would want would be to give all of those narcissistic whiners who endlessly claim that the Colts were "stolen" from Baltimore any more ammunition for their complaints, and for the l "You see ??? You See ??? The Irsays did it again" l talk to complement their already nauseating demands about giving the Colts' name and franchise records back to the city of Baltimore.


B) ) Peyton Manning ...... as long as that living legend is still alive and breathing, the Colts wouldn't dare jeopardize the eternal, legendary legacy that he left behind with a move out of Indianapolis. Manning didn't just save the Colts from leaving Indianapolis in the first place, he firmly entrenched them as a mainstay and a staple in Indianapolis in the second place.


C) ) Eminent domain ...... I'm pretty sure that the city of Indianapolis would not be as head-strong and short-sighted as the city of Baltimore was in early 1984, when they essentially forced Robert Irsay's hand by threatening to literally take his team away from him within 24 hours ...... there is a good reason why Irsay snuck of town overnight in the Mayflower trucks.

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WTF is everyone talking about. I'm 70 years old, been a Colts fan since I was 11. Been runs of many years when this franchise put up crap for a team. Only thing that mattered was that I was less emotionally invested, have to be an idiot not to. Teams run through cycles, the fans will support the team, they have in the past. This team is going nowhere, at least anytime soon.

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Fans tend to be reactionary/hyperbolic when things are going badly for the team on the field ...... and this is no exception.

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Neither San Diego or Portland have a stadium or property to build a stadium. Those tree hugging Oregonians arent going to pony up for football, they cant even get a stadium for their soccer team.

San Diego got fucked by the NFL. The Padres without being asked volunteered the use of Petco Park, to do whatever to help keep the Chargers and make it so it was profitable. The only way SD gets a team, is if the chargers are sold to a new owner and they bail out of LA.

Columbus? They already have a pro team.

RIMSHOT!

Nobody is saying they are leaving, only that the direction of the team has us worried...and when you consider the number of cities that want a franchise, are larger markets, and the way they have been moving teams lately (San Diego to Los Angeles, Oakland to Las Vegas, St Louis to LA) there is reason for concern if the right changes aren't made soon!

That Pittsburgh game made us look terrible...43% Steeler fans, and the Colts were coming off a win and had just taken the best team in the league down to the wire, and probably should have won the game! How much worse will it be we are regularly stinking the joint up like we did in Dallas? I think they will get it straightened out, I am just not sure major changes in the organization won't have to be made to get it done. Hopefully I feel a lot better when they settle on a new coach and get a new QB next season!

Excellent!

I am going to chill out, I am usually a very positive person, just don't like the direction of this team right now, not sure how long it will take to build it back?

I don't think that is likely, I think we turn things around in couple of years. I was just stating the facts, we are a small market, there are larger markets that want teams, and when 43% of your stadium is filled with the opponent's fans, it is worrisome!

I live in Indiana, and a Padre fan since forever. I love Petco, and you are right, it wouldnt be a great place for football. It would at least still be in SD.

FYI, I’ve gone to St Louis twice to see the Padres, great ball park. Not as good as Petco.

I understand the sentiment from Cletus because I think about it the same from $.

The Colt brand is awesome. It’s fucking awesome and it will be awesome wherever it goes. We’ve got the cleanest uniforms in the fucking league and everyone has been trying to copy our all white look for years now.

I just wonder if Jim’s daughters are about it like him. How many more years will Jim be cognizant?( I’m not trying to be shitty, I love him- just saying).

My brain is with OldColt, just chill the fuck out. My heart is a little concerned.

I hope they figure it out.

I might have 10-15 left with my folks and I’d like to share that with them one more time.

Thankful we got it in 06 though. So it is what it is.

I'm not sure why you think what I said originally is different than what I am saying now? I never said they were leaving, I said 5 years of losing and they MIGHT be in trouble, I stand by that! I don't want to rehash the reasons I have given repeatedly why Indy would be less protected than some other locations.

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OK, good. You stand by your original statement, inferring that the Colts might leave to 5 different specific cities if they continue losing.

If the Colts leave Indianapolis in the next 5 to 10 years, you can say that you saw it coming, especially if they wind up in San Diego, San Antonio, Portland, Austin, or Columbus.

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To be completely fair and objective, sports franchises have been extremely "fluent" over the past 40 years ...... who would have expected Oakland to lose the Raiders TWICE, or the Rams to return to Los Angeles after they started playing in an almost brand-new dome in St. Louis in 1995 ??? Especially after making it to 2 Super Bowls in 3 years with The Greatest Show on Turf just a few years after they arrived in the great Midwest ???

So, the notion of it being impossible for the Colts to leave Indianapolis if they become a perennial loser over the next 5 to 10 years is not something that I would bet my life on ...... although I would be absolutely shocked if it happened in Jim Irsay's lifetime, as he has done everything that he could to distance himself from his father's legacy ...... the last thing that Big Jim would want would be to become synonymous with what his father is most infamous for.

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You said that better than I could have, but that is what concerns me if the Colts don't figure this thing out. It isn't just the losing, they seem to be making some really bad decisions lately so my confidence of them building a contender is not that high....but I still think they'll figure it out!

The Rams bailed on LA because the Colosseum sucked (and still does). They came back for the overblown mega football church that normal people can’t afford to attend.

The Raiders left the undermanaged stadium to the shit hole LA stadium where they could sell their gangsta uniforms and score cheap drugs right after games. They finally got their super stadium in the middle of a desert and city that wont have drinking water or electricity two years from now.

The Colts have a fabulous stadium and connecting infrastructure that allows them to host the combine and Super Bowl. And the city has shown they can do damn near anything after hosting the NCAA tourny in in the covid year, using every available gym in the state and never had a hiccup.

The Colts may suck, but the stands will be filled. Other fans show up, money is still being made. Irsay is note leaving because the team is struggling. He will find someone to help build it back up to a winner. This is not jacksonville

I don't want to beat a dead horse (no pun intended), and you may be right that no matter how bad this team gets they will stay right here in Indy. But it is no secret that the league wants to expand to Canada, Europe, and maybe even Mexico. Then you have some of the cities I mentioned that desperately want a team, especially San Antonio. I can't see them adding more teams, so how do you get a franchise in San Antonio, or London, or Toronto...you have to move existing teams. You make some good arguments why we shouldn't worry about us being one of those teams, but I still worry that a long stretch of losing might make us vulnerable...now I am going to shut up about all of this because I never intended to raise such a ruckus!:D

Its not a ruckus, it is lively discussion. Irsay has his team ingrained into the city and the state, hell in the region. There are cars from every boarder state on Sunday game days. That stadium may have been built by Peyton Manning, the seeds were planted by Jim Irsay

I still remember the last home game that was locally blacked out

Colts - Titans Mannings 2nd season

I wanted to see the game so bad I took some of my hard earned MCL cafeteria money and bought tickets off a scalper

We beat their ass and people stopped doubting Peyton after that atleast locally

I remember our first home playoff game against Titans when Manning was QB. The Titans fans were louder than the Colts fans


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Any mega-millionaire can plant seeds. The Irsays planted the seeds, yes, but they didn't grow until Bill Polian came. They got some plants here and there, but not a harvest. Notice any difference since Polian left? It isn't just Irsay, and it can't be just Irsay and be successful. And, yes, it was time for Bill to go. Nothing lasts forever.