OFFICIAL GAME THREAD: Win the Game, Make the Playoffs (vs. TEXANS, 1/06)

[Dam8610]

Originally Posted by ChaosTheory

Better team by way of just outclassing us at QB. Stroud can hit a 75-yard bomb on the first play of a game, Minshew can't. He also made some stupid-good throws at the end of the game where I thought he was dead to rights.

Minshew just doesn't have the talent or even the coolness to match that. He gets antsy and balls get away from him.

I don't feel that way about the rest of the IND/HOU rosters.

I absolutely agree with you on that. The problem with that is I'm not sold the Colts have the QB position solved, I am sold the Texans have the QB position solved, and as we saw for about 20 years, an elite QB outclasses a superior roster with a middling or inept QB every time.

[bertjones]

Tough to see the season end on such a pants shitting play.
I think not having taylor in there will be second guessed. He willed himself back
into the game, you ride him to the end.
In the end though this was a very flawed team that went a lot further than
people had reason to expect. The coach is a keeper. All eyes will be on
Richardson next year. We all saw the light go on with him but he has to
show he can stay healty or it wont matter. And hopefully Ballard will
avoid the habit of leaving certain areas of this team embarassingly thin
which seems to happen year after year.

[apballin]

After riding Taylor down the field to take him out right there has got to be the dumbest shit I’ve ever seen. It’s 4th and 1 not 4th and 5… not to mention you telegraph the play having Goodson in there, and let’s not forget Minshew hadn’t thrown a pass the entire fuckin drive. That should be an easy slam dunk… two biggest paid guys on the fuckin team Taylor runs right behind Nelson…. WTF are we doing

Overall I mean whatever this team over exceeded due to the weakest schedule in NFL history they played 3 maybe 4 actual NFL qbs this year so it would’ve ended with an embarrassing playoff loss most likely. It will not surprise me if the Texans and jags get totally blown out in round 1. AFC south is a joke

[Hoopsdoc]

Originally Posted by bertjones

Tough to see the season end on such a pants shitting play.
I think not having taylor in there will be second guessed. He willed himself back
into the game, you ride him to the end.
In the end though this was a very flawed team that went a lot further than
people had reason to expect. The coach is a keeper. All eyes will be on
Richardson next year. We all saw the light go on with him but he has to
show he can stay healty or it wont matter. And hopefully Ballard will
avoid the habit of leaving certain areas of this team embarassingly thin
which seems to happen year after year.

Good post. My thoughts exactly.

Colts went a lot further than anyone thought they would.

Its hard to see that now, after a loss like that, but it’s true.

It’s up to AR how far they can go in the future.

Plus, now they have a 3rd place schedule next season. That can only help.

The future is still bright.

[CletusPyle]

After a good night's sleep, I still hate the way that game ended! But now the thing troubling me the most is I see the Colts as the third best team in the AFC South next season too! You know Houston is going to get a stud RB and add another quality WR next season. Jaguars are already a very good team and will only be better next year. So even if we improve and AR stays healthy, we could be a better team and still finish third again!

[CletusPyle]

Originally Posted by apballin

After riding Taylor down the field to take him out right there has got to be the dumbest shit I’ve ever seen. It’s 4th and 1 not 4th and 5… not to mention you telegraph the play having Goodson in there, and let’s not forget Minshew hadn’t thrown a pass the entire fuckin drive. That should be an easy slam dunk… two biggest paid guys on the fuckin team Taylor runs right behind Nelson…. WTF are we doing

Overall I mean whatever this team over exceeded due to the weakest schedule in NFL history they played 3 maybe 4 actual NFL qbs this year so it would’ve ended with an embarrassing playoff loss most likely. It will not surprise me if the Texans and jags get totally blown out in round 1. AFC south is a joke

Outside of about 3 or 4 teams the entire NFL is a joke right now! I still think the Jags are a pretty decent team and if Lawrence is back 100% they could win at least 1 playoff game. At one point during this season, I honestly felt the Jags were contenders, if they can get healthy at the right time, they are still a very damgerous team!

[Racehorse]

Last night was an exception for me. Usually, when we lose close games with that much at stake, I rerun the mistakes in my head and can't sleep. Last night, I was upset with the last offensive play, but went to bed and was able to get to sleep quickly. This team vastly overachieved, given the circumstances. AR will return, and that will be an upgrade. Taylor should be ready to pair up with him immediately, instead of having no snaps together. Downs proved he was the right pick, and will only get better. AR will be able to get the ball to Pierce, making the run game open up even more. The young guys on the Oline should get better. The young secondary now has a season of experience, and should get another piece through the draft. Have to extend Pittman Monday. Have to get another WR and Edge rusher in the draft. Maybe sign Tee Higgins.

As Ed would always say, the future is bright, so

[Indystu2]

OK, I slept and...I am still mad. When the game was on the line and you HAD to have ONE yard, they got cute with the pay call. Your best offensive weapon, a RB, was not on the field on a day when the pass game was ridiculously bad and a RB who NOT been on the field for a single play was in the game, not even RB2, but RB3/4! I am sure the thinking was the other team would not expect the ball to go to RB3. Keeping the ball on the ground and out of the QBs hands was CLEARLY working. So on the most important play of the game, they left it to a QB with maybe 100 yards passing. I get it, it was a short pass, but COME ON! They got cute and outsmarted themselves. That is all.

[IndyNorm]

Originally Posted by CletusPyle

After a good night's sleep, I still hate the way that game ended! But now the thing troubling me the most is I see the Colts as the third best team in the AFC South next season too! You know Houston is going to get a stud RB and add another quality WR next season. Jaguars are already a very good team and will only be better next year. So even if we improve and AR stays healthy, we could be a better team and still finish third again!

Possible silver lining is that Hou just barely beat us w/ our back QB, and they needed to make some great plays along w/ some really bad mistakes from us to do so. Makes me think that if AR had stayed healthy and continued to progress through the year that we very well could have beat them handily.

Hou will probably get better in the offseason as they have plenty of cap space and due to the Watson trade and another trade w/ Philly pretty much have their normal allotment of draft picks.

The Jaguars probably won't be able to add anything in FA and might have to release some guys. They don't have much cap space and have to pay Josh Allen along w/ some other players like Ridley. Also, they need to figure out what to do w/ Lawrence.

Ballard's going to have his work cut out for him this offseason. Not only do we have plenty of our own we need to re-sign (MPJ, Grover, Blackmon) and possibly extend (Defo, Franklin, Speed), but we need some serious improvement in the secondary at both CB and S, more pass rush, and more weapons for AR.

[IndyNorm]

Originally Posted by bertjones

Tough to see the season end on such a pants shitting play.
I think not having taylor in there will be second guessed. He willed himself back
into the game, you ride him to the end.
In the end though this was a very flawed team that went a lot further than
people had reason to expect. The coach is a keeper. All eyes will be on
Richardson next year. We all saw the light go on with him but he has to
show he can stay healty or it wont matter. And hopefully Ballard will
avoid the habit of leaving certain areas of this team embarassingly thin
which seems to happen year after year.

Well said and unfortunately I share your concern highlighted.

For instance down the stretch has shown that we desperately need improvement in the secondary. But it would be a very Ballardesque thing to do to just stick w/ what we have and maybe add 1 or 2 mid round high RAS development guys to the mix.