Chris Ballard…a quasi honest assessment.

[Kray007]

There is, today, a certain irrational segment of the fan base who want to fire Ballard, ditch Steichen, burn the castle to the ground and start over.

To them, I quote General McAuliffe at the Battle Of The Bulge and say: “Nuts.”

I am not suggesting that Ballard is perfect, that he hasn’t made mistakes. Every GM does.

He wasted his first draft on players that fit the scheme of a head coach who would soon be gone.

For far too long, he listened to the siren song of Frank Reich who whispered in his ear that he could work wonders with reclamation projects at the most important position in sports.

And, for whatever reason, perhaps due to a parsimonious owner, he hasn’t been aggressive in attacking free agency.

Despite all that, he has succeeded in building a roster that I believe is only a few pieces shy of competing in the upper echelons of the AFC. Injuries and the not unexpected growing pains of Anthony Richardson have obscured that reality.

From the back of the depth chart to the front, the Colts are well stocked.

Juju Brents, Jaylon Jones, and Kenny Moore can all play.

Blackmon and Cross are very good Safeties, but one of them seems to be playing out of position.

At Linebacker, Speed and Franklin would surely benefit from the presence of Darrius Leonard or, even, Bobby Okereke, who is excelling in New York. But let’s not overlook the fact that, in his time with the Colts, Ballard recognized and added one player who could have gone to the Hall of Fame and another who might become a pro bowl fixture

At DT, Buckner is elite and Stewart is more than stout.

Latu is beginning to look like the DE we expected. Paye, Lewis, and Odeyingbo have flashes; and we have a 10-12 sack guy sitting in the locker room, nursing a season ending injury.

When healthy, there isn’t a better Offensive Line in the league.

Pittman is one step short of elite; Downs might be; Pierce is a premiere deep threat; and Mitchell intrigues.

Tight End is a black hole that leaves us perpetually waiting for Woods.

But, Jonathan Taylor is one of the most dynamic runners in the game.

Anthony Richardson is Anthony Richardson, a giant ball of potential wrapped up in Christmas paper, sitting under our tree with a bow of inexperience stuck to him.

This year has been frustrating. I get it. We all want to get into the playoffs, crack heads, and flex our muscles. But, this was never going to be that year. This was a year when we nurtured and developed a young Quarterback, evaluated the Corners, gave an extremely talented draftee at DE a chance to get his toe wet, and did the same on the other side of the line with AD Mitchell.

This is a season where you find the holes, an offseason when you plug them.

If Richardson fails and the team falls apart around him in 2025, we will surely have a conversation about Ballard in 12 months.