Trusting Ballard, as I am merely a fan
 

I love the Colts, I like to think that I know the guys on the roster and how they have played when they suit up in the games. But that is all I or we as fans know, the make up of the players, their medical conditions, attitudes, personality, outside personal issues, are things we have zero access to, so I will trust in the Colts personnel staff when it comes to building the roster.

At the end of last year everyone could see that we needed a starting QB due to Rivers retirement, they made a pre draft trade to bring in Wentz. Castonzo retired, so a huge need was left there, in free agency they have brought in two guys Tevi and Davenport, both of whom have had significant starting experience, I suspect neither are close to the ability level of Castonzo, but they have seen significant game time. We lost Autry and Houston, and have replaced them with Rochelle, and our top two draft picks. Hooker is likely not to be resigned, and we have signed Sean Davis and drafted Shaun Davis. Trey Burton, has been replaced with a productive receiving TE, which fits exactly the sort of player to compliment our existing TE room. Anthony Walker has left, but I think most people have felt comfortable with our backups being ready to step up anyway.

The draft has also brought in a big receiver to compete as a depth player and the same with a promising experienced college QB. And finally added an interior offensive lineman to compete for the final roster spot.

I am content with how most of the issues that were prevalent at the end of last year have been addressed, barring maybe a top quality starting LT. But some resources have been thrown at the position. Maybe we could have looked at spending some draft capital at CB, as we have both Rhodes and Carrie who are closer to the ends of their careers than the beginning.

Overall though I believe management have been able to inject some quality youth into the roster, and we still have some cap space to potentially pick up a LT in free agency or during cut down. I believe going forward we will be better than we were last year, predominantly because we were already a relatively young/inexperienced roster, who have all gained another year of experience and they will get a full offseason, hopefully with a training camp to develop even further. We have lost some experience with Rivers, Castonzo, Houston, Autry and Walker, but we still have a very good group of leaders at those positions, Nelson and Kelly on the offensive line, Buckner is the leader of the defensive line, and Leonard clearly for the linebackers, these were all already the leaders of these groups anyway, so not too much of a hit in my opinion.

Onwards and upwards towards the Superbowl hopefully is where we are headed.

I hope these 2 pass rushers pan out, because I'm totally underwhelmed by the rest of the picks. Esp that QB, I didn't see the point of that one, if we just want a camp arm, then one could be had as a UDFA.

I can only assume that Ballard was influenced by the superbowl. Tampa showed that a dominant pass rush is a winning formula in today's NFL. I've never seen Mahomes as flustered by a pass rush until that game. If we can get anywhere near that, I would think the offense can do what it needs to win - assuming Wentz is the guy, and assuming we find an acceptable LT.

The last two teams Tampa played were missing their starting tackles. If anything it should hammer home how important LT is. Not to discount passrush because we need it too. But if our QB gets hurt, we aren’t going anywhere. So if we head into the season with Davenport and Tevi we are in trouble.

After watching the post draft presser and I feel a lot better love Ballards honesty, big on character and resilience which is exactly what Paye is and I’m sure they know more about these guys than I do, but I want a team full of resilient, hardworking, professional guys and that’s exactly what we have. They’ll sure up left tackle one way or another either way I’m proud to say this is my team, from the owner to Ballard to Reich to the team on the field I like where we’re at so I was disappointed in the draft in May but I’ll probably be ecstatic come January

Playing armchair GM is part of being a fan. It's just odd that after prioritizing the OL in previous off seasons Ballard seems to have gone away from that this year. Maybe Davenport and Tevi are much better than we're giving them credit for, quality depth and human turnstile respectively, but at this point it's more likely that they are what they've been.

Also, for all of the great picks Ballard has made Edge has been one position where he has struggled despite spending some pretty high draft picks on it (CB being the other one that comes to mind). Hope Paye and Odeyingbo buck that trend, but I'm not going to hold my breath.

I am hoping that those guys were victims of circumstances, but will flourish around our linemen.

The reason he was “flustered “ is because the Chiefs two starting TACKLES were out of the game!! Right now Sam Tevi is the starting tackle protecting Wentz’s blindside, God help him!!

I wouldn’t get your hopes up. Chargers laughed at the Tevi turnstile comments last year when they played him. This year they let him go and drafted a LT with their first pick. They would rather start a rookie than have him there.

I don’t have a problem with what Ballard does, it what he doesn’t do that I find perplexing. We seem to go into every year with a hole on the roster and I don’t understand why. It certainly isn’t a lack of money. We have a QB with confidence issues and now his blindside is gonna be protected by backups. You can’t hide LT behind other positions, it’s on an island. You going to park a blocking TE there every play? That really limits you schematically. We got outmaneuvered in the draft. I really hope they bring in a better vet for the position.

This is the problem I have. They got jumped in at least 3 rounds for OTs they wanted by their own admission. The talent they got isn't all that bad (not who I would've chosen, but I'm hoping they pan out now), but they entered the draft with a gaping hole at LT and they left the draft with a gaping hole at LT in the deepest OT class in a decade. That seems like poor planning, exacerbated by the fact that the last viable option in Round 2 was taken the pick before the Colts. Bottom line is Ballard gambled and lost, and now he has his work cut out for him to fill the gaping hole he left on the roster.

Yeah lots of OTs. That doesnt mean quality.

ll of the OT's after Darrisaw were knocked for having short arms. This must be trait that Ballard really values in a LT. He did say that many of them looked like guards to him.

The 9 OTs drafted in the first two rounds of this year's draft (which, to clarify, are Sewell, Slater, Leatherwood, Darrisaw, Jenkins, Eichenberg, Little, Cosmi, and Radunz) will likely be Day 1 starters. Go back over the last few years and see how many OTs were drafted in the first two rounds and how many of those were Day 1 starters. Then you'll understand the depth of this class.

Jenkins had adequate arms. That's the one that's going to endlessly frustrate me. He was the one that was too good to pass up at 21, not Paye.

This is where the variable we have no idea comes into play (character) so they’re sitting there in round 1 looking at Paye vs Darrisaw and I guarantee it came down to character, work ethic, coach ability

Ballard puts those above all so that part I’ll have to trust

I’d rather have the hard worker

I will judge it after they play

If the choice was Paye vs Darrisaw that would be hard, but Teven Jenkins was on the board. That's a no brainer.

Ballard agrees 100% with you. A no brainer it certainly was.

No brainer to go with Darrisaw over Paye. We have enough DL on the roster already who can't get to the QB, but no LTs who can block.

We don’t get to interview teammates and family members and dig into these guys past the way Ballard and his team do

All I know is Paye was mocked as high as 11

Jenkins was a late first everywhere I looked

Tough to swallow but it was the right move

We’ll all be glad Paye was selected in the end

DAM!!!!!!!!! Did you listen to Ballards presser? He said NONE were legit LT's!!!!


NONE. NONE...NONE!!!!!! THEY WEREN'T TARGETS

He knows more than you do!!!!

GET OVER IT!!!!

I highly doubt that he thought Rashawn Slater wasn't a LT, and if he did, that means he does have an arm criteria and it's unreasonable. For arms, 33" is what is needed to be a successful OT. A couple of the guys didn't hit the threshold (Carman Jackson and Liam Eichenberg specifically). Teven Jenkins did, and when you combine his testing and tape, passing on him seems like stubbornly sticking to criteria instead of trusting the evaluation. Maybe you're right and there's something in the medicals or character that I don't know about, but people talked about Kwity Paye being a Top 15 talent based on tape and testing (which is absolutely insane to me watching Paye's tape), in my opinion based on testing and tape, Teven Jenkins was a Top 15 talent in this class EASILY. Lining him up next to Nelson for the next decade would've been so fun to watch.

Also, of course he's going to come out and say he didn't really like any of the OTs in the class as LTs after his gamble backfired. Do you really expect him to come out and say "I gambled that one of the OTs worth taking would last to 54 and lost"? Of course he's not going to do that. I do think he was willing to roll those dice because Eric Fisher, Alejandro Villanueva, and Russell Okung still don't have 2021 teams. I doubt he honestly believes Sam Tevi is a starting LT.

You really are stubborn, aren't you?

He’s watching more film

I honestly feel like they didn’t expect Paye to be there and he made a difficult decision but stuck to his guns

Jenkins is big strong and nasty. Believe me I was pissed about this pick but the more I research the more I agree with it

Paye next to Buckner and Stewart should be just as nasty. Josh allen ran circles around our defense he singlehandedly beat us in the playoffs

Paye is a rare freak at a position of need, he played fucking running back in high school the dude was on the 4*100 track team he put up everson griffin type numbers on his pro day and his sack numbers are low because he played in a run heavy conference

I was pissed now I can’t wait for the first time he slams Henry

Yet Ballard thinks that Turnstile Tevi is good. Everyone has their shortcomings, and it looks like OT evaluation could be one of Ballards.

If Paye is so great the why the fuck did he never actually get to the QB in college?

There are others words besides stubborn that come to mind:D

I believe there’s some truth in there though. Just my opinion but I think that Ballard was expecting to have better LTs available at 54. When he says “not prototypical LT” I read that as not good enough for 21, but he would have taken one at 54. Unfortunately there was run on LTs and all the decent ones were gone. Ballard chanced it and it didnt roll his way.

Hopefully paye will turn out good for the D, lots in the media seem to think so. I dont watch college football so that’s all I have to go one besides whats been said on this esteemed board.


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For me, whether Ballard miscalculated or he wasn’t as impressed with the options everyone else was is mostly irrelevant. What is relevant is that the team has a huge hole at LT and salary cap space. Does he work to correct the issue this year? Or does the team roll into the season risking their QB because Ballard didn’t find a clear enough win this offseason? That’s where I have had an issue with Ballard’s methods in the past - the constant look to the future at the expense of today. If he signs one of the vets I think there is little to complain about. If he doesn’t then I think there is valid reason to be pissed

100% agree.

Lots of complaining on here but we have not seen the finished product yet.

Once we sign a vet OT, we are in great shape for an improved season.

Other big ten teams were better and Michigan hasnt been very good on either side of the ball. Takes 22 guys, not just one. If Mich. cant stop the run, hard to shine as a Pass rusher. Maybe he needed some help?

How did the Colts find Mainiac at SC state. All the bowl games they played? How did Leonard drop to the second round?

Its not scientific, there is a lot of unmeasurable factors that are used.

Bigger question, why did he last to pick 21 ?

Maybe, just maybe Paye isn’t a finished product. Maybe he was taught run stopping technique in college and hasn’t learned the pass rush just yet. Maybe you are not that good at projecting what Paye. can do with coaching or maybe he is just crap. We will find out but I’m betting with Ballard on this.

Big ten teams run the ball primarily

It doesn't matter what facts you point out, the bitching will continue until he gets his 10 plus sacks. Lol

5 QBs in the top 15. No absolute dominant top 5 pass rusher this year. A top 5 TE. Pennei Sewell dropped to 7 which should not happen in a normal year.

He needs 8 if he is a direct replacement for Houston or Autry. Which is a tall order for a rookie.

His responsibilities differ at Michigan than what they will be here. He was asked to set the edge at Michigan first, which he did well. Then asked to go. On passing downs he showed good speed and ability to get the tackles hands off him. But they were a run stop oriented defense first and the B1G runs a lot. He is far from polished in the pass rush area, but he shows promise and that ever valuable quick first step. He will be asked to just rush upfield a lot in Indy. No checks offs, no reads, just go.

Other teams think some of those guys are LTs. Some will work out. To me that is what he gets paid for, to identify those players. But if they didn’t like any of them, then that’s their opinion. I agree we have a huge hole there now and we knew it was coming as an issue. Have to see what he does, still plenty of time. But if we go into the season with Tevi as the LT, I’ll see it as a failure. Unless the guy has some miraculous turnaround.

What gets me is that Castonzo hinted at retirement two years ago. The Colts should have been looking to bring in a replacement back then, draft pick or however. Now we're screwed with Tevi in that spot. The Colts HAVE to bring somebody in. Fischer, maybe that dude the Bears are letting go... someone.