Defensive Back

[Oldcolt]

We did much better by playin McCloud over Cross. Typical bullshit Ballard type move, wanting to play the great physical specimen rather than the football player (I love what Cross brings he is just young). Thomas looked great and could be a steal. They finally let Rogers back on the field and guess what, we played better. I am not sure what’s going on coaching wise but these moves were so obvious it kinda makes me sick it took us three games to make them

[JAFF]

Originally Posted by Oldcolt

We did much better by playin McCloud over Cross. Typical bullshit Ballard type move, wanting to play the great physical specimen rather than the football player (I love what Cross brings he is just young). Thomas looked great and could be a steal. They finally let Rogers back on the field and guess what, we played better. I am not sure what’s going on coaching wise but these moves were so obvious it kinda makes me sick it took us three games to make them

Are you suggesting that the coaches are playing favorites and not the best players? Not winning games is what gets coaches fired. That goes all the way down to high school.

No coach or staff will get every position decision correct. It took the Colts half a season to start Gary Bracket at MLB and then move Rob Morris to SAM. Morris was better suited in the Dungy D as the thumper on the strong side, and let a faster Brackett to cover that deep center drop.

[JAFF]

From indystar

INDIANAPOLIS — Rookie strong safety Nick Cross barely saw the field in the Colts’ impressive defensive performance against Kansas City on Sunday.

Cross, the third-round pick who beat out veteran Rodney McLeod for the starting job in training camp and played every snap in the season opener, ended up playing just one snap on defense against the Chiefs.

McLeod played all 63 snaps, made four tackles, broke up two passes and held on to cornerback Stephon Gilmore’s deflection of Patrick Mahomes’s final throw, making the first Indianapolis interception of the season to seal the team’s first win.

“We just felt like the situation we were going into, with the communication that needed to take place, that maybe Rodney’s experience might help us a little bit more,” defensive coordinator Gus Bradley said. “It really wasn’t based on Nick’s performance or anything like that.”


Facing off against one of the league’s most creative and high-powered offenses, the Colts ran a complex game plan, constantly shifting coverages in an effort to make Mahomes hold the ball longer, a plan that worked to perfection.

“We threw some change-ups in there,” McLeod said.

But the way the Colts defense played Sunday does not mean Indianapolis is benching Cross permanently.


Not according to Bradley. Three games into the season, the Colts have gone with three different divisions of playing time at the position — Cross playing the starter’s role in the opener, a time share in Jacksonville and then McLeod taking the lead against the Chiefs.

“It’s kind of game to game, we evaluate what’s best,” Bradley said. “Nick has got a really good skill set. He’s an elite athlete. It’s just about gaining that confidence to play in, play out with the unit.”


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What made the coaching staff’s decision so interesting was the ankle injury Julian Blackmon suffered in the first half. Instead of shifting McLeod to free safety and putting Cross in the lineup at his natural position — the team’s plan this preseason — the Colts went to another rookie, Rodney Thomas II.

Thomas II, a seventh-round pick out of Yale, has come on strong at free safety, and Indianapolis felt comfortable making the rangy rookie the team’s last line of defense.


The Colts were right.

Thomas II only made two tackles in his 51 snaps, but the Chiefs were never able to take the top off of the Indianapolis secondary. Kansas City’s five plays of 20 yards or more came mostly on throws to the tight end and yards after the catch on JuJu Smith-Schuster’s 53-yard catch-and-run.

“He plays with a lot of confidence,” Bradley said of Thomas. “He plays fast, he plays aggressively. When that situation happened, we really didn’t flinch to put him in. Felt a great deal of confidence with him.”




© 2022 www.indystar.com. All rights reserved.

[Hoopsdoc]

I thought Thomas had a really good game. And McLeod is just a baller.

[Racehorse]

Originally Posted by Oldcolt

We did much better by playin McCloud over Cross. Typical bullshit Ballard type move, wanting to play the great physical specimen rather than the football player (I love what Cross brings he is just young). Thomas looked great and could be a steal. They finally let Rogers back on the field and guess what, we played better. I am not sure what’s going on coaching wise but these moves were so obvious it kinda makes me sick it took us three games to make them

I am not sure Ballard decides who plays over whom. I think that is a coaching decision.

[Oldcolt]

Originally Posted by Racehorse

I am not sure Ballard decides who plays over whom. I think that is a coaching decision.

I know you are correct. I think the team as a whole gets excited about measurables, which I understand is important, but tend to undervalue people that just know how to play football at some positions. Not all. I think that this value comes from the top down. We are the opposite of a guy nobody buy old farts will remember, George Allen. I am not suggesting that our coaches are third graders playing favorites for christs sake. I am suggesting that they over value physical traits at times. Savvy veterans can help mold individuals into a team. You need both.

[AlwaysSunnyinIndy]

Originally Posted by Racehorse

I am not sure Ballard decides who plays over whom. I think that is a coaching decision.

Yeah, if Ballard decided playing time, I doubt Banogu would have racked up as many gameday inactives and DNP-CD over the past few years.