It's Done! Frank is gone!

[rm1369]

Originally Posted by Chaka

Using veteran QBs was working pretty well until about 11 games ago, when the Colts played the Raiders and the bottom fell out for still unknown reasons. And using veteran QBs, rather that untested rookies, made practical sense due to the fact that the Colts roster appeared at the time to have lots of quality players ready to compete.

I’m not against using vets, I’m against using 37 years old vets and then treating key areas like it’s a rebuild and saying we’ll get better next year. That’s what Ballard has repeatedly done. Get your QB then try to fucking win now. When you get Rivers and Ryan the window is NOW. Ballard made those moves then continued the slow we’ll eventually get there mentality. That is a losing mentality and the reason they are the shit show they currently are.

[Colts And Orioles]

o


From everything that I have read and heard, Frank was calling the plays on offense for his entire tenure as the Colts' head coach.

In terms of blame/deflecting, that's not a good strategy because you essentially have no first line of defense. If the OC is calling the plays and your offense is not playing well, the head coach can say that the primary problem is not of his making, but rather that of the OC. But when the head coach is already calling all of the plays himself and the offense is not playing well, firing the offensive coordinator leaves that head coach much more vulnerable because of the fact that since that head coach was already calling the plays in the first place, not much change can be expected when he fires the OC in the second place.

Much more significantly than all of that though is the fact that the Colts' offensive line went from being in the top-3 in the NFL last year to being dead last out of all 32 teams this season ...... when the offensive line is so bad that the defensive linemen and linebackers are in your backfield 1 or 2 seconds after the ball is hiked, it wouldn't matter if you had a clone of Vince Lombardi calling the plays and/or if your quarterback had the mobility of a Michael Vick or a Fran Tarkenton ...... changing offensive coordinators and/or changing your play calls at that point is tantamount to rearranging the chairs on the deck of the Titanic ...... a team simply cannot win games if their offensive line is 32nd out of 32 teams in the league.

An excellent defense can compensate for having an average-to-below-average offense. A very good team on both sides of the ball (offense and defense) can compensate for a lousy special teams unit. Having Dan Marino as your quarterback and putting up 35 to 45 points per game can overcome having a below-average defense. But nothing ...... and I mean nothing ...... can overcome an offensive line that is the worst in the league out of all 32 teams.

o

[Chromeburn]

Originally Posted by rm1369

This isn’t about a bad move, it’s about a bad philosophy. You mentioned in one of your other posts about teams winning in 3 year windows. I agree, although I think it’s slightly closer to 2 years. But show me where Ballard has ever tried to maximize a 2-3 year window. I was fine with the Rivers move but get him some damn help! Quit focusing on the salary cap 4 years from now. Will that cause a dip after the window? Absolutely. And that dip puts you in better position to get that franchise guy or at least other high end talent - like a LT or DE. The same should have applied with Wentz and Ryan. But Ballard has never done that. Not because he made a mistake, but because that’s his philosophy - try to be good for a long time. That’s a losing philosophy.

In general I agree that stability is important. I would have been fine keeping both Ballard and Reich next year IF there was a change in philosophy. Either draft a guy or fully support what you have.

What specifically is wrong with the building strategy? I hear this all the time from the local media guys and I don't think they know what they are talking about.

Ballard has specifically said we are not going all out till we get the QB in place. He also thinks teams that skirt and manipulate the cap like the Saints are crazy and it will come around to get them. Saints are about to face that. League may also start to close those loop holes bc they want parity. Ballard thinks the team was ready to win now, that is why they were going the vet route. He is right, the team can win now with solid QB play.

I have been criticizing Ballard for years on here for some of his flaws. But I do think the positives outweigh those flaws. He did botch the LT situation. Not saying he didn't. But he has also done a lot of good things as well. This defense is good. I think the oline will get better with a LT in place. The weapons are young and explosive. He continually knocks it out of the park in the draft. A GM's primary job is to find talent and he does that well. That is not easy to find. We have had two good GM's at it in 38 years.

It doesn't matter. Ballard looked pissed yesterday, he may resign, and he will get another job immediately. Meanwhile, we will have trouble finding a good candidate because of this shitshow.

[Hoopsdoc]

Originally Posted by Chromeburn

What specifically is wrong with the building strategy? I hear this all the time from the local media guys and I don't think they know what they are talking about.

Ballard has specifically said we are not going all out till we get the QB in place. He also thinks teams that skirt and manipulate the cap like the Saints are crazy and it will come around to get them. Saints are about to face that. League may also start to close those loop holes bc they want parity. Ballard thinks the team was ready to win now, that is why they were going the vet route. He is right, the team can win now with solid QB play.

I have been criticizing Ballard for years on here for some of his flaws. But I do think the positives outweigh those flaws. He did botch the LT situation. Not saying he didn't. But he has also done a lot of good things as well. This defense is good. I think the oline will get better with a LT in place. The weapons are young and explosive. He continually knocks it out of the park in the draft. A GM's primary job is to find talent and he does that well. That is not easy to find. We have had two good GM's at it in 38 years.

It doesn't matter. Ballard looked pissed yesterday, he may resign, and he will get another job immediately. Meanwhile, we will have trouble finding a good candidate because of this shitshow.

Ballards a dead man walking. He’s gone after the season, if not before.

I’ve heard a theory that Saturday will slide over to GM after the season and hire the new coach.

Jim is calling every shot now.

[YDFL Commish]

Originally Posted by Hoopsdoc

Ballards a dead man walking. He’s gone after the season, if not before.

I’ve heard a theory that Saturday will slide over to GM after the season and hire the new coach.

Jim is calling every shot now.

There is no way that Ballard is gone unless he finds a way to piss off Irsay.

Ballard has this roster filled with talent and Irsay knows that. Irsay just needs to convince him that it's okay to over spend if it makes the team a contender for Super Bowls.

Ballard fucked up at LT and RG, there's no disputing that. Hell bringing Fischer back would've been a better alternative to what has been done so far.

[Chromeburn]

Originally Posted by Hoopsdoc

Ballards a dead man walking. He’s gone after the season, if not before.

I’ve heard a theory that Saturday will slide over to GM after the season and hire the new coach.

Jim is calling every shot now.

I’ve heard this from several of the beat reporters. We will see in a couple months. All I got to say is careful what you wish for bc yeah it can be worse. This fanbase was trying to figure out if Grigson was any good and I knew after year three. Hell Dakich still tries to sell Grigson as good.

[rm1369]

Originally Posted by Chromeburn

What specifically is wrong with the building strategy? I hear this all the time from the local media guys and I don't think they know what they are talking about.

Ballard has specifically said we are not going all out till we get the QB in place.

So why in the world do you even acquire Rivers or Ryan? Both had very short windows. Are you really suggesting you have no problem wasting one of those years making sure they were an acceptable answer? That makes absolutely no sense. Or is it that they won’t do it until they have a young QB in place? If that’s the case why get those guys anyway? At best, without full roster support, they make you playoff competitive and lower your draft position- making it harder to acquire the guy you do identify. It makes no fucking sense. It’s the same thing the Pacers did - they tried to ride the middle of the league, keep the fan based inline and strike gold somehow. They failed. Ballard is doing the same thing and I don’t know how in the world you can say it is anything but a failure. You are either pushing to win or rebuilding. He’s trying to ride a line between those two. It has and will fail.

Originally Posted by Chromeburn

He also thinks teams that skirt and manipulate the cap like the Saints are crazy and it will come around to get them. Saints are about to face that. League may also start to close those loop holes bc they want parity.

This is a big issue I have. He is always going to have a hard time winning titles without accepting the up and down process that even you have mentioned. Teams that manipulate the cap CAN have an advantage in a given year. Yes it’s dangerous, but always worrying about your cap situation 3-4 years from now also comes at a cost. And the down year helps you reload talent.

Originally Posted by Chromeburn

Ballard thinks the team was ready to win now, that is why they were going the vet route. He is right, the team can win now with solid QB play.

He didn’t think they were good enough to go all in. Or he’s never going all in. Either answer is damning IMO.

Originally Posted by Chromeburn

I have been criticizing Ballard for years on here for some of his flaws. But I do think the positives outweigh those flaws. He did botch the LT situation. Not saying he didn't. But he has also done a lot of good things as well. This defense is good. I think the oline will get better with a LT in place. The weapons are young and explosive. He continually knocks it out of the park in the draft. A GM's primary job is to find talent and he does that well. That is not easy to find. We have had two good GM's at it in 38 years.

It doesn't matter. Ballard looked pissed yesterday, he may resign, and he will get another job immediately. Meanwhile, we will have trouble finding a good candidate because of this shitshow.

I understand it can get worse. I want to like Ballard. He does acquire talent. Where I disagree with you is that I believe a GMs primary job is to construct a team, not acquire talent. Acquiring talent is certainly part of that, but the NFL is the ultimate league where you can be more or less than the sum of your parts. Ballard’s teams will always be less until he prioritizes certain positions and, most importantly, understands that huge weaknesses will be exploited and diminish the strengths he built. He has to understand that average isn’t a dirty word in this league.

[Racehorse]

Originally Posted by rm1369

Ahh yes - if you criticize Ballard you aren’t a fan. Good one. That’s been the state of the Colts for 5 years. The man is Teflon.

Why didn’t you send that out to everyone crying about Frank? Maybe because you agreed? Funny how that works. And many of you were talking up Vrabel. I’ve said shit about Tennessee. You can go fuck yourself you sensitive little bitch. Have a nice day 🙂

Didn't mean to hurt your feelings.

[AlwaysSunnyinIndy]

Mike Chappell of FOX59 had a conversation with Reich - almost a quasi-exit interview.

Below are a few excerpts along with the link and full interview / story.


https://twitter.com/mchappell51/stat...87909293453312

Had nice conversation with Frank Reich.

He and Linda are headed to North Carolina to spend time with the kids and grandkids.

Immediate plans: take 2-3 weeks, decompress, relax.

Doesn't believe Indy will be his final job. Wants to be a HC somewhere else.

https://twitter.com/mchappell51/stat...88999485706240

Reich:

*There's disappointment and hurt. It hurts to have it happen in the middle of the season.

*I gave my heart and soul to the job.

*My goal was to be here 10-12 years and retire with a championship or two.

*Ultimately we didn't win a championship. We didn't even win the AFC South

https://fox59.com/sports/colts/frank...ul-to-the-job/

INDIANAPOLIS – This wasn’t how Frank Reich expected to be spending his Tuesday afternoon.

Not packing up with his wife, Linda, and driving to North Carolina to visit their children and grandchildren. Not taking forced time to decompress and wonder how everything went so wrong.

He expected to be preparing the next offensive game plan for the next opponent, which is the Las Vegas Raiders.

That changed – his immediate future was turned upside-down – with a Monday morning phone call from Jim Irsay.

“At about 10:45,’’ Reich said.

They talked – Reich mostly listened – and Irsay informed his head coach he was being fired after four-plus seasons. The news came less than 24 hours after Reich’s Colts were overwhelmed by the New England Patriots 26-3. Irsay wasn’t available for a face-to-face, so the two are expected to get together in the next few weeks.

Irsay insisted at a Monday evening press conference he had no choice but to part with Reich, especially after Jeff Saturday agreed to step in as interim coach. The owner believed his team was collapsing.

“I’ve seen things go from bad to worse and I thought it was time and it was necessary to make the change,’’ he said.

Reich wouldn’t address whether he saw it coming, even with the three-game losing streak, the 3-5-1 record and his offense’s continued inefficiency.

“I don’t know what to say about that,’’ Reich said. “I felt certain things, but I try to have blinders on and just go get prepared and go try to win the next game.’’

Now, there’s not a next game to worry about. That suddenness gnawed at Reich.

“There’s disappointment and hurt,’’ he said. “It hurts. It hurts to have it happen in the middle of the season.

“But I understand the business side of things. I have a tremendous amount of respect for Mr. Irsay and I’ve come to trust his instincts and his knowledge of the game. I just know he’s doing what he thinks is best for the team.

“I can live with that. I gave my heart and soul to the job, to the guys, to everything I did there. I didn’t take anything for granted.’’

Reich and the Colts entered this season with increased optimism even though 2021 ended with closing losses against the Raiders and at Jacksonville that snuffed out their playoff hopes and led to an offseason of change. Irsay was the catalyst as Carson Wentz was jettisoned after one season. That was followed by the addition of Matt Ryan, Stephon Gimore and Yannick Ngakoue.

“I don’t apologize for the high expectations because I really do believe the makings of a championship team are there,’’ Reich said. “Does that mean all of the pieces are there? No, it doesn’t mean that.

“But I’ve been on a team that’s won a championship and I just believe it’s there.’’

The current offensive deficiencies are impossible to ignore and were the flashpoints for Irsay: 32nd in points (14.7 per game), 27th in total yards (315.1), 30th in yards per play (4.8), 30th in rushing (86.7), and on and on. The 121 total yards in the loss to the Patriots were the fewest since 1997, while the 0-for-14 on third-down conversions was the worst in franchise history and second-worst in NFL history. If the 14.7 per-game scoring average stands, it will be the team’s worst since 1993 (10.5).

The stunning regression of the NFL’s highest-paid offensive line – roughly $42 million against the salary cap, with most funneled to Quenton Nelson, Braden Smith and Ryan Kelly – has proven too much to overcome, whether it’s in pass protection (a league-high 35 sacks allowed), run blocking or simple play-calling. Everyone anticipated the offseason departures of tight end Jack Doyle, guards Mark Glowinski and Chris Reed and tackle Eric Fisher would be felt, but to this degree?

However, this stretch of futility is in stark contrast to Reich’s first four seasons.

“Proud of what we did,’’ he said.

From 2018-21, Reich’s offense ranked 11th in points (26.1), 11th in total yards (359.5), 15th in passing with five different opening-day starting quarterbacks (230.5) and 5th in rushing (129.0). It was tied-1st in fewest sacks allowed (103) and 9th in fewest turnovers (79).

He exits with a 41-35-1 record – that includes 1-2 in two playoff appearances – but regrets his Colts failed to win the AFC South and never were in position to seriously challenge for a world championship.

“To fall short of those goals of winning championships, starting with a world championship, is very disappointing when you’re the head coach,’’ Reich said. “You have mixed emotions. You feel like, ‘OK, there were different circumstances and dynamics and challenges that you faced.’ But as a coach and as a player and as a competitor, you say, ‘That doesn’t matter. We’ve still gotta obtain our goals.’

“When Mr. Irsay and Chris (Ballard) hired me, I had no misrepresentations. Those were the expectations.’’

Another expectation: a much longer tenure with the Colts.

“The lifespan of a coach, sometimes you want it to be 10, 20 years. That doesn’t happen very often,’’ Reich said, who in 2021 was given an extension through 2026. “But that was my aim. My goal was to be here 10, 12 years and retire with a championship or two.

“But proud of what we did, probably as proud of the culture that Chris and I helped create. We knew the kind of players we wanted on the team, and that came to fruition that was very positive for the team and the community.’’

From a personal standpoint, Reich and his wife established the kNot Today Foundation, which is committed to preventing child abuse and the exploitation of children.

“We gave back to the community,’’ he said, “and we’ll try to continue to do that even though our time is over there.’’

So, now what? After spending quality time with the kids and grandkids, that is. Reich already has sought the counsel of a few long-time NFL colleagues.

“The two people I spoke with advised me to ‘Take two, three weeks, go see the kids and grandkids, just decompress with Linda and relax,’’’ he said. “I’ll take a couple of weeks and decompress and take notes about what I’d do differently. You know, ‘What did I learn? What can I do better.’’’

That’s because Reich, 60, loves the NFL too much for Indy to be his final job.

“I think you keep all your options open,’’ he said. “Obviously my desire is to be a head coach. I love the game. I love everything about the game, so you keep all of your options open.’’

Wherever that next step comes in Reich’s coaching career, he’ll always carry his Indy experience with him.

“It’s hard to get fired and walk away with a great attitude and being very thankful, and I can tell you all I feel is love and respect for the Irsays, for Chris Ballard, for the team,’’ he said. “Yeah, I hurt from the results of this year. But I at least have the maturity and perspective to look at the big picture.

“I put everything I had into it. Then when it’s over, you’re thankful for it – the experience, the relationships – but in this profession we all understand you’ve got to move on. The great thing is you don’t lose those relationships. I’ll never lose the relationship I have with Chris, with the players on that team, with the Irsays.

“It was a great experience.’’

[IndyNorm]

Originally Posted by Chromeburn

What specifically is wrong with the building strategy? I hear this all the time from the local media guys and I don't think they know what they are talking about.

Ballard has specifically said we are not going all out till we get the QB in place. He also thinks teams that skirt and manipulate the cap like the Saints are crazy and it will come around to get them. Saints are about to face that. League may also start to close those loop holes bc they want parity. Ballard thinks the team was ready to win now, that is why they were going the vet route. He is right, the team can win now with solid QB play.

I have been criticizing Ballard for years on here for some of his flaws. But I do think the positives outweigh those flaws. He did botch the LT situation. Not saying he didn't. But he has also done a lot of good things as well. This defense is good. I think the oline will get better with a LT in place. The weapons are young and explosive. He continually knocks it out of the park in the draft. A GM's primary job is to find talent and he does that well. That is not easy to find. We have had two good GM's at it in 38 years.

It doesn't matter. Ballard looked pissed yesterday, he may resign, and he will get another job immediately. Meanwhile, we will have trouble finding a good candidate because of this shitshow.

The problem with it is that he's splitting strategies which don't align across the team. His QB strategy since Luck retired has been short term, win now while his strategy at nearly every other position is long term win later.

He also seems to really undervalue positions that are extremely criticial to a teams success like LT and WR.