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Originally Posted by rm1369
Without trading up is the qualifier. That’s what Ballard is scared to do. He’s basically said it could cost him his job if he did it and missed. So serious question - where was the QB supposed to come from if you never trade up but have a decent roster otherwise. You don’t bottom out to get a top guy. You simply wait and hope to get lucky. That’s shitty team management considering it’s the single most important position in sports.
Ballard passed on Hurts and he’s better than the team has. And I advocated in 2020 to do whatever necessary to go get someone, and I said if you didn’t like one of them then they needed to trade one of their seconds for a future first to have ammunition in 2021 to go get their guy. The idea Ballard couldn’t do more than he’s done or that he’s even managed it reasonably well is BS.
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It's not "being afraid", it's literally that the franchise guy has not existed in an obtainable spot for the Colts. I think if you liked Mac Jones, as I did, it would be fair to criticize Ballard for not doing what it took to get to 14. Hell, if you liked Fields, it might even be fair to criticize him for not outbidding the Bears and getting to 11. The counterpoints to those arguments, of course, would be that Fields and Jones have not lived up to expectations to this point, and may not. Those are the best arguments against Ballard for not chasing a QB. Other than that, there wasn't really a chance for a franchise QB, and to illustrate how much draft capital it takes to trade for a franchise QB, had the Colts been willing to trade down in 2018, they could've gotten the 12th and 22nd picks from the Bills for the 6th pick.
Quote:
Originally Posted by rm1369
That’s most years - especially evaluated so early. I’ve never suggested it’s easy and it’s not my biggest complaint with Ballard. But the team has a brighter future with Tua, Herbert, Hurts, and Fields. All expensive, but all obtainable. I get the risk. If you aren’t going to swing for a franchise guy then you need stability and support - like an OL and WRs. You can’t rotate QBs while taking 3-4 years to solve LT and WR. Not if you expect to win. Chiefs had stability with Smith. No coach will win with what Ballard has done.
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This Jalen Hurts stuff has to stop. He's not a franchise QB. He looks good right now because he's surrounded by great talent. He would be a below average starter were he here. Same thing with Tua, who probably has 2 of the top 5 WRs in the NFL in Hill and Waddle. Before he had that, there was major bust talk about Tua.