I don't think Ballard has said he will build only thru the draft. It is his primary way and I think we all would agree that your core usually comes thru the draft. I understand how you come down on the side that Ballard will just sit on all this money but I disagree. It makes sense to me to wait until you know what you can address thru the draft before bringing in guys. As far as this being a slow way to build a team, I disagree. I don't think that bringing in 3-4 free agents last year would speed up this rebuild one bit. Can you name one team that was able to build a Super Bowl winner thru free agency. Free agents might make us an average team faster, but the object of this rebuild is Super Bowl wins. I for one am sick of one and done and making the playoff on the shoulders of one player. This is, in my mind, exactly what we should be doing right now. To be clear, I think we should and will spend some money next year.

Taking this one step further, let's assume Kenny Moore and Quincy Wilson are going to be really good starting corners and key contributors by 2019. If so, would they have gotten there with less playing opportunity in 2018?

We have no idea either way, but it's clear that Ballard is using 2018 as a developmental/evaluation year to figure out the answer to those questions.

This is my biggest problem, Luck won't be here forever. If Ballard shits the bed next year, I'm with Omaha, show the fucker the door.

How easy do you think it was, without knowing if Luck could still play, to entice any free agent to sign in Indy?

The offense works, if people catch the ball. Luck can still throw it. This coming year, people will want to play in Indy

however, with the new rules QBs are playing much longer into their careers and still playing at a high level. Luck is 29 and could play for another decade barring serious injury.

I agree that wasting some of Lucks years is a huge problem (not sure Ballard shitting himself is) but given where this team was last year, I don't see any other answer. Lucks loss of years has more to do mismanagement by the prior regime in my opinion.

Yes, but a HOF jacket would not fix him being a _____. It also isn't necessary for sharing thoughts on a message board, even if they are just a word or two.

There wouldnt be any message boards.

I agree. But next year will be Ballard's 3rd year and he needs to fix some shit asap. I'm willing to give him a pass this year, but if he doesn't do enough next year, he absolutely needs to be shown the door.

Yep, but these fuckers running the organization need to surround him with more talent sooner rather than later. Next year will be telling on whether Ballard is worth a shit or not.

Agreed that next year is key. I'm not in love with Ballard, I just think that right now the rebuild is going about as well as I would have thought (and I am not talking about our record). No matter what happens he won't be shown the door next year. Not by Irsay.

Gimme a break - you're talking about showing Ballard the door? Why, because he's improved virtually every facet of this team while saving tons of cap space for the future? What would you have done differently? Please be specific with player names.

Let me list for you the things he's done off the top of my head in the short time he's been here:

2017 Draft - Using an inherited scouting staff, and on short notice, still picked up three starters (Hooker, Mack, Walker), three backups (Wilson, Hairston, Stewart). Two ugly misses (Basham and Banner), but unlike most he didn't keep them around making the situation worse in the hope of saving face. When all is said and done, most teams will have at least two ugly misses in any given draft. Ballard just acknowledged his sooner than most.

2018 Draft - Nearly every pick has made serious contributions, except Lewis/Cain (injured) and Fountain (practice squad). I doubt any other team had a better batting average. Seven games in and we already have two high level starters (Nelson and Leonard) from this draft.

2018 free agency - Signed Ebron, Autry and Miller to cap friendly deals. Jury still out on Grant. Struck out on Howard, but again damage was small ($1-2 million) and cut bait quickly to minimize damage.

Traded for Jacoby Brissett in exchange for an underperforming WR from the prior regime (Dorsett)

Cut/traded multiple mediocre vets (Hankins/Anderson/Simon) in favor of much cheaper youth that are now outperforming those vets.

Kept several vets who have performed at or above their contracts (Hunt, Woods, Sheard, Desir), while not resigning others who are now disappointments with their new teams (Melvin, Moncrief)

Rebuilt two critical areas (offensive line and linebackers) into a strength, after years (and years) of underperformance.

Utilized team-friendly contract structures which incentivized performance and gave the team the flexibility to move on without consequence if things didn't work out.

Jettisoned Pagano, brought in Reich and new coaching staff. Notable embarrassment when McDaniels reneged on informal agreement, but Ballard accepted blame and rebounded well in getting Reich.

Jettisoned multiple failed draft picks/projects from the prior regime (TJ Green, Dorsett, Bond, George)

Those are the things I can think of off of the top of my head. The bottom line is that most of his moves have improved this team, and those that haven't didn't cause much damage. And you're talking about getting rid of this guy?

I think the major rub on Ballard is the HUGE amount of cap space we are sitting on doing nothing. Many fans wanted more of it spent on free agents.

I get it. I also get what Ballard is trying to do in establishing an identity before dropping a ton of cash on "high level" performers. We have signed 4 guys (2 per year) so far to "starter level" contracts (over $5m a year) and one more at $5m a year (Grant).

Of those four over $5m (Hankins, Sheard, Ebron, Autry), Hankins is the only one who has not worked out so far. Sheard and Ebron are delivering starter level performance and so has Autry when heathy.

I fully expect 2019 to be a bit different assuming that this trend continues for the rest of the season of a rising defense of talent (Leonard, Walker, Turay, Hunt, Hooker) and an offense that re-estabilishes itself as a top ten offense.

Those two things happen by the end of 2018, I fully expect the checkbook to be opened in 2019 with us bidding aggresively on veterans who will fit the culture and another draft class hopefully like 2018.

Anyway, I am glad Ballard is here and I am good with his plan. However, if he sits on $50m of cap space in 2019, my opinion will probably start turning.

Walk Worthy,

I think something people are forgetting is that the big splash contracts usually require money up front. Irsay just paid Grigson to go away and then Pagano. Maybe he doesn't have much liquidity left to go after the top guys, but will have more flexibility next off-season.

Also, businesses that throw around money "just because they have it" do not last very long. That is an awful business model.

This offensive line is on its way (hopefully) to being one of the most dominant in the league. It is changing everything about this team. I love the Nelson pick and think, in my mind, he would have been worth the #1 for this team as a guard. Undervalued position my ass. Seeing Luck have a clean pocket two games in a row (not to mention actual holes opening up for the running game) is worth every bit of investment we have in this line. Freaking loving it.

I did not love the pick, but was ok with it. Especially with Chubb off the board already. And when it happened, I wanted Ballard to really commit and get a 2nd lineman early to knock the OL out as a big need. So the Smith pick was a good thing IMO. We have 3 1st rounders and a 2nd rounder as our starters. That is more than enough investment in terms of draft capital. With Castonzo back, it appears to be paying off. Now Ballard just needs to maintain it rather than build it. Watching a 220 yard rushing effort was a real treat.

I didn't love it at first either. Because I listened to all the so call experts saying that you can't pick a guard at 6 because of it being a 'low value' position. Maybe for some teams, but not for this one. I'm not putting everything on Nelson (Coaching has a huge impact. There was a recent article that stated the Colts start breaking down opponents blitzes on the Thursday 10 days before the game. When we finish a game the coaches have every blitz that the team we are about to face has done in the last 2 years set up on a film ready to be studied) but this offensive line is gelling into something special and I never want to go back to the shit show we have lived with for the last umteen years' Great pick because the line is playing so well. It’s taken forever to get here.

Well said, I think Ballard has done a ton already to prove he deserves time. Just hitting on draft picks is a huge step in the right direction.

I really am glad we got Reich over McDaniels. A former QB, a great offensive mind, a much better leader for a head coach. McDaniels is such a worm, reneging on his word just shows what his character is like. I was in Denver when he was there, he rubbed ALL the players wrong. All of them. No one liked him, guys didnt want to play for him. I remember talking to one of their players out one night, a DB I think, and he said McDaniels was a dodgy pos who would duck you in hallways rather than talk to you. You can come up with all the great routes and schemes you want, but if your players hate you, you’re not doing much. Gruden is the only other coach I can think of that is so despised by his players.

Any talk of firing Ballard next year (or whenever) is crazy. I’ve been a critic of some of his moves, but even I see the good in what he has done. And you have to give a GM a chance to implement their plan and their vision.

Anyone calling for Ballard to be fired anytime soon are just ridiculously impatient.

That’s exactly what Grigson did: signed a bunch of free agents, made us a playoff team real fast, but a team with a mercenary culture that fizzled into mediocrity after a few years. When the struggles started, there was no team, just some guys ready to jump ship for greener pastures. You need a culture where guys are invested in being a Colt.

Say we are 6-10 this year and next with a healthy Luck? Would that be acceptable? I don’t think so.

I also don’t think that will happen but we got beat pretty easily by the jets

I agree on next season, but there are a lot of reasons this team has struggled early this year.

Fair enough, great points. I guess I am a little impatient and tired of wasting all of Luck's years. Colts have a lot of cap space and hopefully they use some of that money next year. I do love his draft this year.

Not going to happen. This team is still learning how to win. If we beat Oakland and do it without making critical mistakes, then this team may have finally turned the corner, of at least not beating themselves.

A year and a half isn’t “soon” in the NFL.

The Colts will win the division next year, so I’m not even playing out a 6-10 2019 scenario.

We are in year 2 of a rebuild, the first year of that rebuild where Ballard had his own scouting info to go by on the draft,a competent coaching staff to work with, and new offensive and defensive schemes.

If you didn't expect this year and possibly next to be rebuild years, then you aren't looking at things realistically. They even told you it would be a multi year process.

Ballard had a solid draft this year. It's possible with the weak division that with another solid draft and him ramping up FA spending that we could compete next year.

I'm not ready to axe the guy though because in a clear rebuild year that's exactly what we're seeing.

You've been a Ballard hater though, so it's not surprising that you are reacting how you are.

We have Andrew luck and play in a shitty division. That is the reality. Competing and winning this division should t take long at all.

I don’t hate Ballard. I just disagree with some of the moves. Or non moves. Taking 3 years to be competitive with a great qb is nonsense

I think we should all get a grip and wait for the end of this season.

He got stuck with Pagano and NO qb last year. Last year needs to chucked out the window.

I see what you did there.

Because fans know so much about money and football. Not aimed at you sherck, but anyone. Was there one guy the Colts could have signed that would have made them instant contenders this season?

AND..... why would they sign with the Colts when NO ONE knew Luck would ever play again? I think that needs to be put into the equation.

This is a football message board where people express their thoughts and opinions about the colts and football in general. You don’t seem to understand that or like it.

Why are you here? If we shouldn’t question the colts, seems like this would be a very boring place.

One guy? That guy's name is:

Von Sammy Nate Trumaine Malcolm Miller Wakins Solder Johnson Butler

Sign THAT guy and we would have been a contender.

Walk Worthy,

Awesome. Then come back at the end of the year. Seriously why are you here?

Beating the teams in our division is nice, but what good is it if we get smoked in the playoffs by NE, KC or PIT? The underlying principle that I think is driving Ballard's decisionmaking is the idea that to be truly great you need a solid foundation of home-grown players.

As more discussion for "The Build:"

State of the Offensive Line

Wow, over the past two weeks, it has been a joy to be shown again what good offensive line play looks like! It has been SO long since the Colts had a line that could run block (not since the days of Edge) as well as it pass blocked (last time in about 2008ish?).

LT = Anthony Castonzo [8th season]
LG = Quinton Nelson [Rookie]
OC = Ryan Kelly [3rd season]
RG = Mark Glowinski [4th season]
RT = Braden Smith [Rookie]

Depth = Le’Raven Clark [3rd season], Denzelle Good [4th Season], Joe Haeg [3rd season]

That is a core of eight guys whom have now shown me that, sometime in the past couple of years, they could be trusted to play at a minimum of NFL Average during games. In today’s NFL environment with its lack of quality offensive linemen, that is a HUGE deal.

Contract Decisions Needed:

2019 = Glowinski (UFA), Good (UFA)
2020 = Castonzo (UFA), Clark (UFA), Haeg (UFA)
2021 = Kelly (UFA)
2022 = Smith (UFA)
2023 = Nelson (UFA) (assuming the 5th year option is exercised)

This is to say that while we have had two great games so far and I hope that will prove out for the rest of the season, the relentless tyrant of time marches on and we cannot rest on whom we have. We basically have to make a decision on one starter each season and then maintain quality depth behind them.

Glowinski will be 27 years old for 2019 and was a 4th round draft pick in 2015. He started 18 games for Seattle over the 2016/2017 seasons before losing his job after week 2 of 2017 and then being cut after week 15 of 2017 and was claimed off waivers the next day by the Colts. He is showing that he has perhaps found a home with us. If he continues to play well, we should be offering him a 4-year starter level contract at the end of the season.

Good? 7th round pick in 2015 who will be 28 years old for 2019. Starter material for us once upon a time but appears to have been supplanted and cannot stay healthy. Offer perhaps a depth 3-year contract and probably see him signed away based on his starting potential. Draft a rookie in 2019 in rounds 3 – 5 to replace him.

Castonzo will be 31 at the start of the 2019 season. Still in his “prime” as an Offensive Lineman but we need to start having a viable backup/succession plan in place because his ability to protect the blindside could start slipping at any minute. First five weeks of this season showed how valuable he is when he was not there. Pay the man.

Clark / Haeg. 3rd and 5th round choices in 2016. Again, have shown starter potential but either not the health or the consistency to be a long-term starter. Offer 3-year depth level contracts and know you will have to replace one or both of them. Draft 1 or 2 O-Linemen in the 5th round or before to do so.

Assuming Kelly, Smith and Nelson continue to look good, sign them when needed.

We have gotten lucky in 2018 with Smith showing that he can be a very viable RT as a rookie and Glowinski showing that he has above average starter capabilities. Those are great finds but also highlight that neither were the season starters at the spot and so the importance of quality depth is so critical.

Long post to say “Draft an O-line man in the early to middle rounds in EVERY draft!”

Walk Worthy,

It’s amazing that there was not a single additional player available in free agency that could improve on a 2-5 team. I guess if a player doesn’t make you an instant super bowl contender they provide no value.

Apparently to discuss football with you