By My Count...
 

Between the Rams, Baltimore and now Titans.... that's 3 losses I would pin on the Reich regime... I don't think coaches should be directly responsible for that many losses without some serious consequences. Am I missing any?

Replace serious consequences with fired and I think you nailed it.

The team has regressed.

It's starting to show Ballard's weaknesses as well.

I don't think he'll lose his job this year but if they come out like this next year I don't see how Irsay can legitimize excusing their performance.

Ballard has found some studs for the team..... Reich has misused them badly.

It will take a lot more to have Ballard walk, but the questions will need to be asked.

What’s the plan for Wentz if Reich is no longer in the picture? Has “Ballard” actually taken care of the QB position? Where is the pass rush? Why has Pascall been the #2 receiver for years? I don’t trust your kicker. Etc.

Especially since Irsay says the Colts are going to win multiple Lombardi's !!! LOL

Irsay loves Reich. We are stuck with him for years. This has been a very difficult team to root for since the beginning. Getting even more difficult. This team has years being mediocre ahead of it. Gonna be like most of us and just watch from afar with as little emotional attachment as possible. Bummer can't even root for a loss to improve our draft. Maybe worst year to be Colt fan since before Manning.

Ballard has found some players, but he hasn’t built a team ready to win. Having the best LG and best off ball LB are great, but they don’t mean shit without a pass rush, LT, QB or CBs. When you have major questions at the most important positions you simply aren’t going to consistently win. Ballard is untouchable in most of Colts fandom though. So Reich is the sacrifice. He deserves some of it, but he’s also coaching a majorly flawed team.

Great points.

Reich also coaches into the weakness. Ala today. We have ass at WR besides Pittman. We are down to 3 total available. So what does Frank do, decides to go buck freakin' wild with the passing for the last 3rd of the game including OT.

He is an idiot. He needs to be sent packing tonight!

I would add as a side note that the 4th round TE that can't touch the field except in some gimmick play that gets blown up was pretty much Reich's pick.

Word is he has great character though.

I definitely will not give Ballard a pass on anything... He has made some bad draft picks too. Reich has straight up lost 3 games this year by being a stubborn idiot... AGAIN... You have an amazing running back but choose time and time again to go away from him when he is having success. This team is easily 6-2 under a Dungy or even a Caldwell. Hell I'd put money on even Pagano ia at least 4-4 at this point. Reich is just not a good coach. He will hang on to the job a few years while guys like Taylor are Leonard are wasted and gone by the time a new coach takes over.

Maybe just not z good play caller?

So I wasn't able too watch the game today, due to being stuck in O'Hare with multiple cancelled flights and re-bookings. Thanks American Airlines!

But, why were there so many incompletions? Was it dropped passes, inaccuracy, solid pass defense... all.of the above?

Was the 4th rounder from the year before Ballard’s pick? You know the one they cut because he apparently sucks and they wanted a vet. Of course this is immediately after he gets thrown in to a potential game winning situation because Ballard didn’t sign a vet backup. Or was that Reich as well? The shit OL play that got their often injured QB injured (again, with no backup), was that Reich too? How about Taylor and Pittman? I’m guessing those were all Ballard and guys like Campbell and Banogu were all Reich.

This is exactly the shit I’m talking about. You guys have your scapegoat and now everything is his fault.

All of the above. Dulin is just not an NFL WR. Wentz was high all game.

Yeah, Wentz was throwing high especially on the long passes. It seems he has some issues with the long throws.

Well said. I think Ballard gets a pass from a lot of people due to how god awful Grigs was. Ballard has shit the bed in at least 2 drafts ('17 and '19) and hasn't done shit in FA. Even in his good drafts he's completely thrown away high draft picks (2nd rounders on Turray and Lewis for example). Much better than Grigs obviously but still not great at all when looking at his track record independently.

Inaccuracy on many. Wentz wasn’t sharp today. But there were quite a few PI non calls. They were doing it so much I think the refs started to get gun shy.

we need pass rushers, qb and a left tackle

that doesn't even touch the secondary

this team needs a lot of talent added

Stop it!

Let's not get ridiculous here. I agree we'd be better off with Dungy and Caldwell, but I have no doubt he would have a worse record and been blown out by 20+ points today if Clappy, Chud, and Monchichi were still in charge. Then we'd have to hear the age old "We just have to go chop more wood." after the embarrassing performance.

I guess you missed where Reich has already blown more 11 point leads as a coach in less than half the games of Pagano lol

He’s had some hits in FA for the most part. Good signings that played above their contract. Should have kept Autry though. He just won’t sign big name FAs. His worst signing was that receiver that guy hurt right away.

I agree they do but how long are we ok with Reich not using the few weapons he does have? Is he trying to prove something with his supposed chemistry with Wentz?

That's b/c we rarely if ever had a big lead with Clappy at the helm unless it was against a horrible team like Jax. Most often we'd fall way behind and then let Luck play hero ball in the second half. Sometimes that worked out, but it also led to plenty of blowout losses as well (along with a once in a generation talent quitting on his team).

reich has his issues. i am not arguing otherwise

This.

This is not a complete team.

What successful team has no premiere pass rusher? No shutdown corner? No LT (although I do think Fisher is still hurt and we aren’t getting the full player) and only one serviceable WR.

Our QB can play well but I think we just saw his flaws big and up close.

This team needs work and we are in year five of Ballard. This is why teams dig into FA. Because it takes forever to build a team only through the draft.

Hasn't done shit is probably harsh b/c he has brought in a couple of guys who were productive. The point I was trying to make is that he hasn't brought in real difference makers, and the few guys he has brought in who were productive (Autry, Houston) he let go when their contracts were up. This would be fine if Ballard was a better drafter than what he is, but he's proven to be average to slightly above average.

I’ve heard that Autry wasn’t interested in resigning here because he felt slighted when they didn’t extend him last year. But I agree, he should have been resigned if possible.

I’m not so sure on Houston. He has a whopping 2 sacks this year on a team that has fewer sacks than the Colts do. I think he’s finished and we wouldn’t be any better with him.

look at his qb

Exactly. The idea that you are only going to draft and develop guys long term is about 20-30 years antiquated. Yes that needs to be your primary source of talent, but even the best drafting GMs miss as many (or more) as they hit. Ballard is always playing for flexibility and next year. He leaves glaring holes in the roster. He prioritizes young guys over proven vets. He’s used free agency a little but pretty much only when he has an extremely low risk option with maximum team flexibility. Sounds great - until Zach Pascal is your number one receiver or you have a team talking super bowl with no pass rusher with double digit sacks CUMULATIVE FOR THEIR CAREER! He preached paying “our own” but let Autry walk to a division rival because he refused to pay him. Instead he went into the season with all of his unproven “athletes” at DE. You guys can spare me the story of how he tried to match the Titans offer. You don’t preach what he’s preached and then be surprised a guy doesn’t want to let you match. Ballard pinched his pennies and got burned. Playing for next year has a cost. The Colts have paid that cost pretty much every year Ballard has been GM and I still don’t see the promised dynasty on the horizon. Hell, I’d settle for beating a playoff level team.

We can’t stop the pass. It would be nice if every team ran the ball. But we have no pass rush nor dominant corners in a passing league.

Also we are about to have no cap room because we will have the most expensive oline in the league.

I don’t necessarily knock Ballard for not signing “difference makers”. I knock him for not making sufficient attempts at shoring up glaring weaknesses year after year. If he does anything he goes cheap (and flexible) with the idea he’ll fix it next year. You don’t have to turn a major weakness into a major strength for it to help the team. Competence and experience can make a world of difference, but they come at a price that Ballard is not willing to pay.

I do think Ballard has made sufficient attempts to find a pass rusher. We have spent a fortune in draft capital on defensive ends. The issue is all he has done, so far anyway, is swing and miss. To early to say on some (Paye, Dayo) but it isn't encouraging so far. Takes time to develop but you would expect to see some development in some of these guys by now.

They entered the season with no pass rusher on the roster having double digit sacks for their career. They banked on a depth guy (Muhammad), a guy who flashed for like two games two seasons ago but can’t stay healthy (Turay), a guy in danger of being cut (Banogu), a disappointment (Lewis), a rookie that had 11.5 sacks in 4 years of college (Paye), and a guy who tore his Achilles before the draft (Dayo). Oh yeah, and Isaac Rochelle. That is what Ballard banked this season on. That isn’t sufficient attempts at creating a pass rush. That’s just a hope and a prayer.