Quote:
Originally Posted by IndyNorm
Your comment on the lack of high investment is what I was getting at. He certainly prioritized OL early on, but after fixing the unit Ballard pretty much rested on his laurels w/ the group. For the most part I think that's understandable, but it's obvious he should have done more and sooner to replace AC at LT.
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I don’t think his priorities have changed, I think it is simply a symptom of his philosophy. It’s been said a million times on this board - you can’t fill every hole through the draft. He low balled Autry and lost him. Would they have drafted Darrisaw if they didn’t have such a hole at both DE spots going into that draft. I don’t know. He will not “overpay” mid level talent and in theory that sounds good, but it means you go into each season with major holes that the team sees and simply lies about. They simply are waiting until next year and can’t say it.
I’m getting tired of going into seasons knowing they aren’t really trying to win. That’s why the Pacers comparison. That shit erodes your fan base and you damn well know the players see it too. Do you think letting Autry walk for two rookies, one of which was coming off an achilles tear tells the team this is our year? Hell no it doesn’t. Neither does gifting LT to a journeyman guard or a raw 3rd rd rookie who has only played the position for two years. Those moves don’t say “NOW”, they say “EVENTUALLY”. And then when shit falls apart the fans turn on the coach instead of the architect of the “maybe next year culture”. And the team listens. Fuck that.
I understand the value of consistency. I also see the value in Ballard’s talent evaluation. However, unless he changes, Ballard’s “next year” philosophy will continue to drag down this franchise. It will continue to be less than its individual talent suggests. And the anger will quickly turn to apathy.