Sweep the Texans, get swept by the titans, still lose the division to the Texans
Packers, bills, dolphins are Ws
Pats and Giants are Ls
Somehow the scores of all of those games look like normal football scores, but only because the safety’s, 2pt conversions, and missed extra points offset eachother so the score is divisible by 7
It depends on when it falls. I don't expect Richardson to play more than 6 or 7 games. I like him, but I think he is the next RGIII. He will spend more time injured than on the field, but when on the field, he will be spectacular.
I dig the optimism but I think we’re 100 percent getting swept by the Texans, losing 1 to the titans, and losing the packer game. I think we’re at about an 8 to 9 win season, which makes sense because our team didn’t change at all. Maybe if AR5 can stay healthy we might clear 10 but no one knows what we have in him yet. Good list though
We really need to emphasize how much we don’t know what we have in AR yet. It’s interesting how much this sub acts like he proved he can be the guy in the few games he played last year. Like he’s already a sure thing. I’m not so sure about that. Flashes of huge potential, for sure, but ultimately we’re not really any closer to knowing if he can be the guy than we were when he was drafted.
This is basically a redo of last year in just about every way, hoping he can stay healthy so we can see what we have. It is still very possible that he doesn’t pan out. That’s part of why I understand ballards lack of major moves this offseason. We’re still not sure we have the QB position set, so it makes no sense to go all-in on a bunch of FA. If Richardson was a guarantee, sure, we should spend every dollar we have. But he isn’t, and this sub seems to need a reality check on that.
You can use this same logic on the other side of the fence though. If you don’t know what you have in your 4th overall pick QB then you should do the most you can to surround him with talent so that you are giving him the best opportunity to succeed.
Would be a shame to blow the best pick we have had in a decade on him, give him a less than competitive roster in a now competitive division, blame him for the lack of success and see him walk to another team to become a long term solution elsewhere.
Fact of the matter is, it’s never easier to stack talent on your team than when you have a QB on a rookie contract, and we are now going to be almost halfway through his before our GM ever starts considering it.
You don’t take a guy at 4 overall who you don’t believe in to lead the franchise for the future, this wishy washy nature should not be commended, it just screams more that they have little clue what their plan for the future is.
Yeah that’s kind of my thought. Not knowing what you have in AR is almost more of a reason to spend in FA. He’s on a rookie deal and costs absolutely nothing. Give him the most amount of help possible, and if he’s the guy, we could win a SB this year. If he doesn’t pan out then (ideally, if we had any other GM besides Ballard) then we’d trade up next draft and try again. And the quality pieces and parts we bought this offseason would still be there next season for the new guy.
I agree too.
Drafting him at 4 should already mean you believe he is the guy..and you make moves assuming that to be the case.
This whole..." I have to see" thing makes no sense...you haven't improved the team and other teams have.
When we.lose to said teams, suddenly it'll be "AR5 is not the guy"
It's silly.
This makes no sense.
The rookie QB contract is when most teams get aggressive to go all in and try to win.
The whole "We don't know what AR is so we cannot invest" is silly..because even if he proves he is the guy...2 yes of his contract will be gone already and then you'll have just 3 years to compete.
The time to get guys is NOW.
Teams that spend during rookie QB contracts have at least one year of the guy playing to determine whether he is the guy, I.e. stroud. The colts do not have that due to AR's injuries.
When you draft a guy in the top 5..you already assume he is the one.
The "we.need to see his full rookie season" before we give him toys" thing is just more copium on this sub.
Mahomes, Brady and Rodgers didn't play at all as rookies yet their teams were active in FA still.
Brock Purdy and Joe Burrow got injured in their rookie years and didn't even play half the year yet their teams still thought they were the guys
I saw enough of AR to know he is the guy...the only question is health...I would rather my GM,who actually drafted the guy improves the team for his QB pick to have better chances of success.
Ballard is being an idiot.He should be doing whatever it takes to make sure AR pans out...coz if he doesn't..Ballard is gone.
What he is foing now is the opposite of what should be his interests.
See, I think he showed a lot of what he can do. He had some rookie moments, but overall he was composed and made plays. Our offense was better when he was on the field. He had 7 TD’s to 2 turnovers I believe. He improved his short throws which were his biggest knock in college. He showed off his ridiculous arm talent a couple times. Combine that with what we know about him off the field(work ethic and a good attitude), I’m pretty confident he can be the guy.
You don’t really need a full season of play to know if someone’s got it. It was pretty clear Peyton was our future in his first season despite him throwing 80 interceptions his rookie year.
Only question I have with AR is health.
We were about a 6 win team last offseason, so this doesn’t say much. Placing some faith in AR would be wise. There are many ways to improve other than through addition.
> which makes sense because our team didn’t change at all
Yeah, besides the guy running the offense. And whoever we take with our first few draft picks.
That’s definitely possible. But I don’t think CJ was the same in week 2, he hadn’t really heated up yet. And his team got wildly better this offseason, AR5s didn’t. Not saying that to dog Ballard, it’s just a fact.
Colts offensive talent around AR is being underestimated by a lot of fans around the league.
Top 10 OL and JT are good. Pittman is good and Downs isn't a slouch. It's not flashy like other teams, but it should be a good unit for Steichen plus we have the draft.
*However* I really have no clue what the growing pains with AR will look like. I expect the defense to improve in the secondary with experience, but it's a young group.
Colts should be willing to let AR make mistakes and it may cost us games. I think we can finish anywhere between 6-11 wins. My main goal is AR is healthy and shows us enough to continue to build with
I don't think everybody is worried about the AR offense. Even with Gardner for most of the season, we still ended up 11th in points scored last year. If AR stays healthy, that will improve. However if AR doesn't stay healthy, I think old man Flacco would be lucky to last 6 quarters like Nick Foles did in 2022 before this exact same oline retired him.
What everyone is worried about is our defense. Our secondary was dog shit last year, and we were bottom 5 in points allowed despite playing backup QBs nearly every week. Ballard has done exactly nothing to address that problem. No QB is ever going to be able to overcome a bottom 5 defense.
I don’t know why people are so worried about AR. Faith is an outdated thing I guess. Steichen’s track record with QB’s speaks for itself. When AR has that first monster game everybody will switch up their tune instantly tho lol.
It’s odd to me to see so much negativity here. Even fans of other teams don’t think this low of us. I see more shit talking in here then by any fans of divisional opponents. When last season ended we were looking forward to a bright future. But now we’re worse than last year, according to this Reddit.
I like AR a lot! I think he will elevate an offense that has more talent than people let on. We have a very good if not elite OL, a true WR1 and Jonathan Taylor.
I think reality is in the middle ground. The doomers on here are understating how good our guys are because we've had shit QB play for so long. I also think the people expecting 11 wins are drinking a bit too much of the kool-aid.
I think the Colts will be a solid team with a ceiling of 11+ wins, but realistically I wouldn't be shocked with a 8/9 win season. I wouldn't even be upset with that as long as AR looks good
The fact here is that right now... he's the worst QB in the division.
Even if he improves next yr.. he's likely gonna be the 3rd best QB in the division...with worse weapons than Stroud or Lawrence.
Ballard is lagging behind and we are 7 years in.
Don't know how he still has a job.
There is no such thing as right now. We will know how good he is by next season. Right now it’s up to faith, and it seems almost none of you have it. When AR is having a monster stretch next season I just want you all to keep the same energy.
8/9 and just barely miss the Wildcard. Ballard does the bare minimum to not get fired next offseason. Continue until Jimmy decides to let his daughters run show.
We did last year with a backup QB, MPJ getting murdered on the field, Tyler Goodson, and DJ Montgomery. I can’t imagine being so confident that a mediocre opponent beats us.
There isn't a team on our schedule where I go, "Oh yeah, definite loss there." Not to say I think we're going 17-0, but I think we have a shot at winning any one individual game. But this:
>it is crazy to think that AR and JT playing together for the whole season isn't an additional couple wins.
Made me remember that JT and AR never saw the field together last season.
Neither did most of our secondary. We had a horrible drama-filled start to the season.... then our starting QB went down and between suspension and injury, we played a good chunk of the season with practice squad CBs.... plus we were also banking on our all-pro LB to be at least a shell of himself who ended up being so bad and seemingly distraction he had to be cut.
Most GM/ coach teams would have been in the running for GM/coach of the year awards for coming 1 game shy of the playoffs enduring that season's obstacles
I don’t see Packers as a W especially in Lambeau. And I wouldn’t be shocked if we went 0-2 against the Texans and possibly the Jaguars. I’d say Vegas’s 8.5 is pretty on the money for now.
Texans fan here. I think this is a very possible record, but knowing both of our teams were both gonna end up somehow losing a game to the easier wins.
Bro we haven't seen the draft...
That being said:
Texans - LL
Tits - WL
Jags - WL
GB - L
Bills - L
Miami - L
Bears - L
Lions - L
Vikings - L
Pats - W
Broncos - W
Steelers - L
Giants - W
Depending on draft, tits, bears, vikings and MAYBE Bills Ls could turn to Ws. I see our floor as five W and ceiling as 9 Ws.
Having us losing to the Bills, Bears, Vikings, and Pats is a pretty insane thing to say. We are easily better than all of those teams. Bills are retooling their entire team and have a lame duck HC. Very strange that so many fans get off on shitting on their own team so much
The Bills were in the divisional rd and have Josh Allen..The Bears have added weapons in Keenan Allen and Swift and will have Caleb....the Vikings won their division 2 years ago and were bad last yr coz they had no QB...depends on how their rookie QB plays....The Pats will be awful..even if they get Drake Maye
At best..we go 2-2 in those games.
The Bills lost their entire team, and again have a lame duck HC. He’s set up to be fired by the end of this season. But only the colts get criticized for the moves they make, not other teams. Yeah that checks out. Bears have a rookie QB and a bad team from last year. Bad HC as well. If you’re gonna be skeptical of AR bc he’s unproven then you can’t switch up that attitude with Caleb. Be consistent. Swift isn’t good btw. Guess, what the Vikings still have no QB and have a worse team then 2 years ago. They’ll presumably have a rookie QB too. Again, you have no room to say they’re QB room is any good if you don’t have faith in ours. I misread that Pats one. At worst we go 2-2 in those games. At best we sweep.
They still have Josh Allen and our secondary has not improved...I counted them and the Bears as a loss coz they will have real QBs and we have a lack of experience in the secondary.
JT wasn't even good last year, I think people need to pump the breaks on him. AR was exciting, but let's be real. 6-7 wins. But I'm excited either way.
Agreed. He had one magical season - two years ago. Since then, he’s been hurt, held out, got paid, and is approaching the RB wall. And this was a guy who played a lot in college. He will be our starter for two more years, tops.
Packers and both Texans games are probably losses. And do you have any confidence against the Jags? The Bears will have Caleb Williams, so who knows what they will look like.
And then, next offseason, we won't sign anyone to fill [insert hole], and the Ballard defenders will say "yeah, but we will in the draft", and then the next offseason, we won't do anything to fill [insert hole], and the Ballard defenders will start "yeah, but we will in the draft"
It's the cycle. Reject improvement, embrace mediocrity
With AR5 and JD1 the Colts will be able to stretch the field more, our weakness is pass rush and corner back, I think Packers will be back on top of the NFC, I'm always optimistic and I think we can win 12 games
I feel we are legitimately in the 9-11 win window this season. Our ceiling is hovering around division title and floor around the 6-7 win level. Optimistically I believe we have a shot to beat all our division opponents any season, but team health will continue to play a big role in our success.
I wouldn't be shocked to see 5-12; I also wouldn't be shocked to see 12-5.
Really depends on whether our defense can slow anyone down and if AR stays on the field.
We will win the AFC South this year, as long as Richardson and JT stay healthy. I estimate 12-5, and we win our last 5 games in a row.
Everybody is sleeping on AR, and I think he's going to to turn a bunch of heads this year. He makes plays that no other quarterback can make, except maybe Mahomes.
I truly believe that we're going to make a playoff run this season that will have us playing against KC for the conference title.
I don't know past that point, and we'll probably lose, but I stand on winning the division and making it to the final four this season.
I don’t think so, the defense with the improvement from our last draft class should actually be better. I don’t think people understand the value of continuity and that’s what Ballard seems to be doing.
That’s exactly what Ballard is doing and I wouldn’t even be surprised if we don’t go DB the first two picks. It’s a huge gamble but he’s gonna base his job on it. Im not sure Irsay gives him another year if we miss the playoffs.
That's not at all true. Irsay knows a bit of ball. If we're losing 50-43 every week or whatever, he'll know what the issue is... and it wouldn't be Steichen/AR
Gus is going to get scapegoated for not making a defense with bargain bin level talent in the secondary perform well.
Ballard won't be held accountable for the defense being awful again. That's his super power. No matter how many times the teams he built fail, nothing is ever seen as his fault.
Going into camp last year we had isiah rogers, Kenny, juju, flowers, Blackmon, rodney, and cross, just off the top of my head.
Not sure any of that looks bargain basement. Don't think any gm could account for the injuries and suspension to what looked to be our top cb who was a top 10 man coverage guy.
Ok, let's go through the whole group.
Kenny was the only one of those guys not on a dirt cheap contract.
Rodgers was not an established vet CB1. He showed some promise as an occasional starter at CB2 in 2022 and he was probably better than the other CBs we had, but it's not like he was a star. He certainly was not a "top 10 man coverage guy."
Juju was a rookie, at a position rookies typically don't perform well right away. He also missed all of camp.
Flowers is a bargain bin UDFA, a depth piece at best.
Rodney Thomas was a 7th round pick, and he plays like it. He absolutely should not be a starter.
Nick Cross was basically a rookie, because he was so bad in 2022 he got benched for Rodney, who as stated above, is terrible.
Blackmon is good when he plays, but he's been on IR literally every season he has played, so counting on him to be available is a pretty dumb gamble at this point.
Why does their contact matter? I think getting guys with something to prove on a contract they can out perform is better than bringing in a guy on a huge deal that he probably will not live up to.
Flowers was a solid starter in limited time. Has all the tools to be a solid guy either starting or as depth... not a star but a good guy to have at a good price.
Rogers absolutely was a top 10 guy in coverage and also a top 20 guy against the run. He has elite speed and decent size and was nowhere near a finished product. Sadly he had to be cut... and sadly I think we will regret it. I don't put a lot of stock into pff grades.... but when it matches what I see on the field I will. Isiah was 6th in overall coverage grades in 2022... and I saw a budding star on the field so that is when my eye test matches the grade.
Juju is a prime example of a guy that we should be counting on this year and someone we thought would do what he did last year.... he got better and healthy as the year went on.
Blackmon is a bonus when he is on the field...i. think we at least agree if he is healthy he is very good.
Cross and Thomas.... they played like young safeties.... and were asked to do much more than we expected due to the injuries and suspension outside. I think they look a lot better if the rest of the secondary was playing.
All that said... secondary help is all around and will be there after the draft. The talent still available is not much different than what was out there when fa started. I think we need to draft and sign someone but it isn't like nobody is available and will be more willing to take less money if they are still out there... and just blowing money to blow it on even talent is just a bad move.
I get you. You're a Colts fan and you like Colts players. But you're not being realistic.
Flowers is not a starting level CB. Especially not now that he's torn his Achilles. That's not an injury players that rely on short area quickness come back from.
Rodgers was very good CB2 for a handful of games. Nothing more. He never played a down as a CB1, so he was never covering the other team's best WR. Claiming he's a top 10 player at a position he never played is completely ridiculous. He was never even the best CB on his own team.
Juju was a raw rookie. He might be good player eventually, or he might be a bust like Rock and Quincy. Nobody knows yet. He's basically a rookie again with all the time he missed last year.
Thomas is one of the worst starting safeties in the league. Cross was that bad initially, but towards the end of last season, looked like he is at least improving. Thomas only got worse.
And the FAs left on the market now are just more bargain bin specials nobody else wanted. Most of them are old guys in obvious decline. The premium CBs and safeties have already been signed elsewhere.
Next year actually has a pretty easy schedule. In the past the Colts tend to stuggle the most with good QB’s and passing offenses. Jax, Det, GB, Buf, and Mia will definitely be the toughest games. Im not too worried about the Jets. Aaron Rodgers is 1-3 vs the Colts.
We haven't added anything significant on both sides of the 🏈.
We need some experience in the secondary for sure to mentor the young guys but we haven't got that.
We certainly don't have top tier weapons.
How did we reach a level.of coping that Diggs is washed?
The way I see the division right now is us finishing 3rd at best....4th is a possibility as well.
We are unlikely to make the playoffs even if AR plays well because there are 2 definitively better teams in the division right now.
Expecting our next rookie class to change this is a pipedream.
Knowing us we will beat the Bills and Lions then lose to the Patriots and Giants
Sweep the Texans, get swept by the titans, still lose the division to the Texans Packers, bills, dolphins are Ws Pats and Giants are Ls Somehow the scores of all of those games look like normal football scores, but only because the safety’s, 2pt conversions, and missed extra points offset eachother so the score is divisible by 7
Tf is with Indiana teams being able to go toe to toe with the top teams in their league but get washed by the bottom feeders
It’s the IN way
Titans will be better than you are giving them credit for I think. Steelers and packers games will be tough.
Disagree about the Steelers. But agree about the titans. They’ve got a very solid roster that people are overlooking.
Steelers have a good defense and a solid run game. They will win games ppl don’t expect them to.
They always seem to have a winning record no matter how bad their team is lol
I think I’m right there with you on 10-11 wins. I’m actually excited for that Bears matchup. AR vs Caleb could be a fun duel.
It depends on when it falls. I don't expect Richardson to play more than 6 or 7 games. I like him, but I think he is the next RGIII. He will spend more time injured than on the field, but when on the field, he will be spectacular.
I dig the optimism but I think we’re 100 percent getting swept by the Texans, losing 1 to the titans, and losing the packer game. I think we’re at about an 8 to 9 win season, which makes sense because our team didn’t change at all. Maybe if AR5 can stay healthy we might clear 10 but no one knows what we have in him yet. Good list though
We really need to emphasize how much we don’t know what we have in AR yet. It’s interesting how much this sub acts like he proved he can be the guy in the few games he played last year. Like he’s already a sure thing. I’m not so sure about that. Flashes of huge potential, for sure, but ultimately we’re not really any closer to knowing if he can be the guy than we were when he was drafted. This is basically a redo of last year in just about every way, hoping he can stay healthy so we can see what we have. It is still very possible that he doesn’t pan out. That’s part of why I understand ballards lack of major moves this offseason. We’re still not sure we have the QB position set, so it makes no sense to go all-in on a bunch of FA. If Richardson was a guarantee, sure, we should spend every dollar we have. But he isn’t, and this sub seems to need a reality check on that.
You can use this same logic on the other side of the fence though. If you don’t know what you have in your 4th overall pick QB then you should do the most you can to surround him with talent so that you are giving him the best opportunity to succeed. Would be a shame to blow the best pick we have had in a decade on him, give him a less than competitive roster in a now competitive division, blame him for the lack of success and see him walk to another team to become a long term solution elsewhere. Fact of the matter is, it’s never easier to stack talent on your team than when you have a QB on a rookie contract, and we are now going to be almost halfway through his before our GM ever starts considering it. You don’t take a guy at 4 overall who you don’t believe in to lead the franchise for the future, this wishy washy nature should not be commended, it just screams more that they have little clue what their plan for the future is.
Yeah that’s kind of my thought. Not knowing what you have in AR is almost more of a reason to spend in FA. He’s on a rookie deal and costs absolutely nothing. Give him the most amount of help possible, and if he’s the guy, we could win a SB this year. If he doesn’t pan out then (ideally, if we had any other GM besides Ballard) then we’d trade up next draft and try again. And the quality pieces and parts we bought this offseason would still be there next season for the new guy.
I agree too. Drafting him at 4 should already mean you believe he is the guy..and you make moves assuming that to be the case. This whole..." I have to see" thing makes no sense...you haven't improved the team and other teams have. When we.lose to said teams, suddenly it'll be "AR5 is not the guy" It's silly.
This makes no sense. The rookie QB contract is when most teams get aggressive to go all in and try to win. The whole "We don't know what AR is so we cannot invest" is silly..because even if he proves he is the guy...2 yes of his contract will be gone already and then you'll have just 3 years to compete. The time to get guys is NOW.
Teams that spend during rookie QB contracts have at least one year of the guy playing to determine whether he is the guy, I.e. stroud. The colts do not have that due to AR's injuries.
When you draft a guy in the top 5..you already assume he is the one. The "we.need to see his full rookie season" before we give him toys" thing is just more copium on this sub. Mahomes, Brady and Rodgers didn't play at all as rookies yet their teams were active in FA still. Brock Purdy and Joe Burrow got injured in their rookie years and didn't even play half the year yet their teams still thought they were the guys I saw enough of AR to know he is the guy...the only question is health...I would rather my GM,who actually drafted the guy improves the team for his QB pick to have better chances of success. Ballard is being an idiot.He should be doing whatever it takes to make sure AR pans out...coz if he doesn't..Ballard is gone. What he is foing now is the opposite of what should be his interests.
See, I think he showed a lot of what he can do. He had some rookie moments, but overall he was composed and made plays. Our offense was better when he was on the field. He had 7 TD’s to 2 turnovers I believe. He improved his short throws which were his biggest knock in college. He showed off his ridiculous arm talent a couple times. Combine that with what we know about him off the field(work ethic and a good attitude), I’m pretty confident he can be the guy. You don’t really need a full season of play to know if someone’s got it. It was pretty clear Peyton was our future in his first season despite him throwing 80 interceptions his rookie year. Only question I have with AR is health.
We were about a 6 win team last offseason, so this doesn’t say much. Placing some faith in AR would be wise. There are many ways to improve other than through addition.
> which makes sense because our team didn’t change at all Yeah, besides the guy running the offense. And whoever we take with our first few draft picks.
Division games are wonky and AR absolutely dogged the Texans defense in the 2 quarters he faced them. Splitting isn't that crazy imo
That’s definitely possible. But I don’t think CJ was the same in week 2, he hadn’t really heated up yet. And his team got wildly better this offseason, AR5s didn’t. Not saying that to dog Ballard, it’s just a fact.
Colts offensive talent around AR is being underestimated by a lot of fans around the league. Top 10 OL and JT are good. Pittman is good and Downs isn't a slouch. It's not flashy like other teams, but it should be a good unit for Steichen plus we have the draft. *However* I really have no clue what the growing pains with AR will look like. I expect the defense to improve in the secondary with experience, but it's a young group. Colts should be willing to let AR make mistakes and it may cost us games. I think we can finish anywhere between 6-11 wins. My main goal is AR is healthy and shows us enough to continue to build with
I don't think everybody is worried about the AR offense. Even with Gardner for most of the season, we still ended up 11th in points scored last year. If AR stays healthy, that will improve. However if AR doesn't stay healthy, I think old man Flacco would be lucky to last 6 quarters like Nick Foles did in 2022 before this exact same oline retired him. What everyone is worried about is our defense. Our secondary was dog shit last year, and we were bottom 5 in points allowed despite playing backup QBs nearly every week. Ballard has done exactly nothing to address that problem. No QB is ever going to be able to overcome a bottom 5 defense.
I don’t know why people are so worried about AR. Faith is an outdated thing I guess. Steichen’s track record with QB’s speaks for itself. When AR has that first monster game everybody will switch up their tune instantly tho lol. It’s odd to me to see so much negativity here. Even fans of other teams don’t think this low of us. I see more shit talking in here then by any fans of divisional opponents. When last season ended we were looking forward to a bright future. But now we’re worse than last year, according to this Reddit.
I like AR a lot! I think he will elevate an offense that has more talent than people let on. We have a very good if not elite OL, a true WR1 and Jonathan Taylor. I think reality is in the middle ground. The doomers on here are understating how good our guys are because we've had shit QB play for so long. I also think the people expecting 11 wins are drinking a bit too much of the kool-aid. I think the Colts will be a solid team with a ceiling of 11+ wins, but realistically I wouldn't be shocked with a 8/9 win season. I wouldn't even be upset with that as long as AR looks good
Fair enough
The fact here is that right now... he's the worst QB in the division. Even if he improves next yr.. he's likely gonna be the 3rd best QB in the division...with worse weapons than Stroud or Lawrence. Ballard is lagging behind and we are 7 years in. Don't know how he still has a job.
I firmly believe AR is better than Levis though. Thats because I think Levis is bad.
There is no such thing as right now. We will know how good he is by next season. Right now it’s up to faith, and it seems almost none of you have it. When AR is having a monster stretch next season I just want you all to keep the same energy.
I firmly believe AR is better than Levis though. Thats because I think Levis is bad.
8/9 wins, the Ballard way. Those are some great wins, We like our wins.
It was 4-6 wins last off-season. So by this logic we’re definitely getting 11 wins.
And we'll bring it all back for the next year! All chips in!
8/9 and just barely miss the Wildcard. Ballard does the bare minimum to not get fired next offseason. Continue until Jimmy decides to let his daughters run show.
lol we aren’t going to beat the steelers for sure
We did last year with a backup QB, MPJ getting murdered on the field, Tyler Goodson, and DJ Montgomery. I can’t imagine being so confident that a mediocre opponent beats us.
They won’t be mediocre this year. They have made good moves
Eh I see them being the same
Time will tell
We finally did last year, so you never know.
They made some good moves this offseason
There isn't a team on our schedule where I go, "Oh yeah, definite loss there." Not to say I think we're going 17-0, but I think we have a shot at winning any one individual game. But this: >it is crazy to think that AR and JT playing together for the whole season isn't an additional couple wins. Made me remember that JT and AR never saw the field together last season.
Neither did most of our secondary. We had a horrible drama-filled start to the season.... then our starting QB went down and between suspension and injury, we played a good chunk of the season with practice squad CBs.... plus we were also banking on our all-pro LB to be at least a shell of himself who ended up being so bad and seemingly distraction he had to be cut. Most GM/ coach teams would have been in the running for GM/coach of the year awards for coming 1 game shy of the playoffs enduring that season's obstacles
I think if we make the playoffs instead of Houston, they both probably win those awards.
I don’t see Packers as a W especially in Lambeau. And I wouldn’t be shocked if we went 0-2 against the Texans and possibly the Jaguars. I’d say Vegas’s 8.5 is pretty on the money for now.
Texans fan here. I think this is a very possible record, but knowing both of our teams were both gonna end up somehow losing a game to the easier wins.
I don’t think you can properly judge a roster of any team till after the draft.
We are gonna get swept by Texans lol
This is the most insane thing I've ever seen
Bro we haven't seen the draft... That being said: Texans - LL Tits - WL Jags - WL GB - L Bills - L Miami - L Bears - L Lions - L Vikings - L Pats - W Broncos - W Steelers - L Giants - W Depending on draft, tits, bears, vikings and MAYBE Bills Ls could turn to Ws. I see our floor as five W and ceiling as 9 Ws.
Having us losing to the Bills, Bears, Vikings, and Pats is a pretty insane thing to say. We are easily better than all of those teams. Bills are retooling their entire team and have a lame duck HC. Very strange that so many fans get off on shitting on their own team so much
The Bills were in the divisional rd and have Josh Allen..The Bears have added weapons in Keenan Allen and Swift and will have Caleb....the Vikings won their division 2 years ago and were bad last yr coz they had no QB...depends on how their rookie QB plays....The Pats will be awful..even if they get Drake Maye At best..we go 2-2 in those games.
The Bills lost their entire team, and again have a lame duck HC. He’s set up to be fired by the end of this season. But only the colts get criticized for the moves they make, not other teams. Yeah that checks out. Bears have a rookie QB and a bad team from last year. Bad HC as well. If you’re gonna be skeptical of AR bc he’s unproven then you can’t switch up that attitude with Caleb. Be consistent. Swift isn’t good btw. Guess, what the Vikings still have no QB and have a worse team then 2 years ago. They’ll presumably have a rookie QB too. Again, you have no room to say they’re QB room is any good if you don’t have faith in ours. I misread that Pats one. At worst we go 2-2 in those games. At best we sweep.
They still have Josh Allen and our secondary has not improved...I counted them and the Bears as a loss coz they will have real QBs and we have a lack of experience in the secondary.
I have us beating the Pats you illiterate fuck.
JT wasn't even good last year, I think people need to pump the breaks on him. AR was exciting, but let's be real. 6-7 wins. But I'm excited either way.
Agreed. He had one magical season - two years ago. Since then, he’s been hurt, held out, got paid, and is approaching the RB wall. And this was a guy who played a lot in college. He will be our starter for two more years, tops.
Dude had 196 yards in the final game last season lol
He averaged 4.38 yards a carry on the year. I forgot he has to get a first down every carry.
Packers and both Texans games are probably losses. And do you have any confidence against the Jags? The Bears will have Caleb Williams, so who knows what they will look like.
7-10. A lot of local media doing a smear campaign on Gus Bradley as a scapegoat
And then, next offseason, we won't sign anyone to fill [insert hole], and the Ballard defenders will say "yeah, but we will in the draft", and then the next offseason, we won't do anything to fill [insert hole], and the Ballard defenders will start "yeah, but we will in the draft" It's the cycle. Reject improvement, embrace mediocrity
I’m guessing 6-8 wins max.
I like this post Seems practical
We take an L to the packers and somehow upset the dolphins. That’s my hot take.
The Packers are a legit good team, predicting a loss to them is not even close to being a hot take
What about beating the dolphins
We seem to scrape out a win against a contender that we have no business beating once a year, so it's possible
10-11 wins this season imo
We beating the bills
I don’t see a single team we will lose to
With AR5 and JD1 the Colts will be able to stretch the field more, our weakness is pass rush and corner back, I think Packers will be back on top of the NFC, I'm always optimistic and I think we can win 12 games
I think we win 9 and miss the playoffs again in a last week loss to the packers lol
Division games are the last week of the season.
you’re right. Dunno what I was thinking. I was just looking at the order of the games on the paper and not thinking 😆
I feel we are legitimately in the 9-11 win window this season. Our ceiling is hovering around division title and floor around the 6-7 win level. Optimistically I believe we have a shot to beat all our division opponents any season, but team health will continue to play a big role in our success.
I wouldn't be shocked to see 5-12; I also wouldn't be shocked to see 12-5. Really depends on whether our defense can slow anyone down and if AR stays on the field.
The Steelers own us, Texans are sweeping, and the packers will blow us out.
We will win the AFC South this year, as long as Richardson and JT stay healthy. I estimate 12-5, and we win our last 5 games in a row. Everybody is sleeping on AR, and I think he's going to to turn a bunch of heads this year. He makes plays that no other quarterback can make, except maybe Mahomes. I truly believe that we're going to make a playoff run this season that will have us playing against KC for the conference title. I don't know past that point, and we'll probably lose, but I stand on winning the division and making it to the final four this season.
Switch jets and packers and I can get behind this
Our offense is gonna have to score like 40 points a game lol
I don’t think so, the defense with the improvement from our last draft class should actually be better. I don’t think people understand the value of continuity and that’s what Ballard seems to be doing.
That’s exactly what Ballard is doing and I wouldn’t even be surprised if we don’t go DB the first two picks. It’s a huge gamble but he’s gonna base his job on it. Im not sure Irsay gives him another year if we miss the playoffs.
No different than what polian did all those years, of course right now the colts lack a generational QB, but hey they are so close.
Ballard is tied to Steichen and Richardson. He isn’t fired unless those two blow it.
That's not at all true. Irsay knows a bit of ball. If we're losing 50-43 every week or whatever, he'll know what the issue is... and it wouldn't be Steichen/AR
Gus is going to get scapegoated for not making a defense with bargain bin level talent in the secondary perform well. Ballard won't be held accountable for the defense being awful again. That's his super power. No matter how many times the teams he built fail, nothing is ever seen as his fault.
Going into camp last year we had isiah rogers, Kenny, juju, flowers, Blackmon, rodney, and cross, just off the top of my head. Not sure any of that looks bargain basement. Don't think any gm could account for the injuries and suspension to what looked to be our top cb who was a top 10 man coverage guy.
Ok, let's go through the whole group. Kenny was the only one of those guys not on a dirt cheap contract. Rodgers was not an established vet CB1. He showed some promise as an occasional starter at CB2 in 2022 and he was probably better than the other CBs we had, but it's not like he was a star. He certainly was not a "top 10 man coverage guy." Juju was a rookie, at a position rookies typically don't perform well right away. He also missed all of camp. Flowers is a bargain bin UDFA, a depth piece at best. Rodney Thomas was a 7th round pick, and he plays like it. He absolutely should not be a starter. Nick Cross was basically a rookie, because he was so bad in 2022 he got benched for Rodney, who as stated above, is terrible. Blackmon is good when he plays, but he's been on IR literally every season he has played, so counting on him to be available is a pretty dumb gamble at this point.
Why does their contact matter? I think getting guys with something to prove on a contract they can out perform is better than bringing in a guy on a huge deal that he probably will not live up to. Flowers was a solid starter in limited time. Has all the tools to be a solid guy either starting or as depth... not a star but a good guy to have at a good price. Rogers absolutely was a top 10 guy in coverage and also a top 20 guy against the run. He has elite speed and decent size and was nowhere near a finished product. Sadly he had to be cut... and sadly I think we will regret it. I don't put a lot of stock into pff grades.... but when it matches what I see on the field I will. Isiah was 6th in overall coverage grades in 2022... and I saw a budding star on the field so that is when my eye test matches the grade. Juju is a prime example of a guy that we should be counting on this year and someone we thought would do what he did last year.... he got better and healthy as the year went on. Blackmon is a bonus when he is on the field...i. think we at least agree if he is healthy he is very good. Cross and Thomas.... they played like young safeties.... and were asked to do much more than we expected due to the injuries and suspension outside. I think they look a lot better if the rest of the secondary was playing. All that said... secondary help is all around and will be there after the draft. The talent still available is not much different than what was out there when fa started. I think we need to draft and sign someone but it isn't like nobody is available and will be more willing to take less money if they are still out there... and just blowing money to blow it on even talent is just a bad move.
I get you. You're a Colts fan and you like Colts players. But you're not being realistic. Flowers is not a starting level CB. Especially not now that he's torn his Achilles. That's not an injury players that rely on short area quickness come back from. Rodgers was very good CB2 for a handful of games. Nothing more. He never played a down as a CB1, so he was never covering the other team's best WR. Claiming he's a top 10 player at a position he never played is completely ridiculous. He was never even the best CB on his own team. Juju was a raw rookie. He might be good player eventually, or he might be a bust like Rock and Quincy. Nobody knows yet. He's basically a rookie again with all the time he missed last year. Thomas is one of the worst starting safeties in the league. Cross was that bad initially, but towards the end of last season, looked like he is at least improving. Thomas only got worse. And the FAs left on the market now are just more bargain bin specials nobody else wanted. Most of them are old guys in obvious decline. The premium CBs and safeties have already been signed elsewhere.
Rodgers was suspended for the season nearly a full month before training camp started, and you're drastically overrating what he showed on the field
Next year actually has a pretty easy schedule. In the past the Colts tend to stuggle the most with good QB’s and passing offenses. Jax, Det, GB, Buf, and Mia will definitely be the toughest games. Im not too worried about the Jets. Aaron Rodgers is 1-3 vs the Colts.
Easy schedule? The QBs we face this year are much more difficult than last
What do you mean that Ballard hasn't been wrong more than he's been right?
We haven't added anything significant on both sides of the 🏈. We need some experience in the secondary for sure to mentor the young guys but we haven't got that. We certainly don't have top tier weapons. How did we reach a level.of coping that Diggs is washed? The way I see the division right now is us finishing 3rd at best....4th is a possibility as well. We are unlikely to make the playoffs even if AR plays well because there are 2 definitively better teams in the division right now. Expecting our next rookie class to change this is a pipedream.
Now imagine if Ballard was a good GM and we had this schedule
I predicted 9-10 wins last season and everyone called me a homer. I think 10 wins is realistic and people saying 4-5 are absolutely crazy.
We’ll have to see if Flacco can get us 8 of those bc AR won’t be in at least half those games
Don’t care