Ballard and Steichen are coming back

[apballin]

Originally Posted by Dam8610

There was an article in the Athletic last year that talked about the relationship between Flores and Grigson that opined that he may get a shot at a GM role in the near future. That said, I completely agree with you that Ballard clearly has the superior eye for talent and roster building philosophies.

Which may be absolutely true and I’m not debating that.

All I’m saying is it was a different approach with Grigson, aggressive spending and win now.

[apballin]

Originally Posted by Colts And Orioles

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Jim Caldwell and Chuck Pagano are also still employed by an NFL team. Caldwell and Pagano were the worst Colts head coaches since the Peyton Manning era began, in 1998. Being employed by another NFL team does not vindicate awful performances of a GM and/or head coach in the past.


Caldwell doubled down on one of the worst decisions in Colts playoff history in a post-game press conference after his inexplicable time-out call against the Jets Colts coach Jim Caldwell said on Sunday that he doesn't regret calling a late timeout that actually might have helped the New York Jets' winning drive in the previous night's AFC wild-card playoff game ...... Colts coach Jim Caldwell said on Sunday that he doesn't regret calling a late timeout that actually might have helped the New York Jets' winning drive in the previous night's AFC wild-card playoff game.

This is the expression on Peyton Manning's face, followed by his helpless hand-gesture immediately after the timeout was called at the 1:55:12 mark of this video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0y48nV0UR1E


Chuck Pagano once called for a fake-punt in a nationally-televised game against the Patriots that was so laughingly absurd that it easily could have qualified for being an article in the satirical newspaper The Onion.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6i7VKQwDS2s

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Grigson was immediately gifted with a rare, all-world quarterback (Andrew Luck) and almost got him killed. Luck's career nearly ended with his lacerated kidney in 2015, and it did eventually come to a premature end after the 2018 season. Grigson spent very limited draft capital on the offensive line in his Colts tenure, which is easily the worst thing possible that a GM could do in that situation. Between 2012 and 2015, he drafted only three linemen before the seventh round, none of whom developed into quality starters. If he was "trying to win" with the great quarterback that fell into his lap, he had the worst strategy in doing so.

The Colts were a winning, competitive team in Grigson's tenure as the GM largely because of Andrew Luck's greatness, and in spite of Grigson's ineptitude, not because of it.

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He tried to go the free agent route as opposed to the draft, which is the right move when you have a star QB on a rookie contract surround him with veterans. Ballard was being blasted for not going all in on free agency while the Texans were signing every big name free agent because Stroud had early success… how’s that working out?

Luck lacerated Kidney came from refusing to slide

[Colts And Orioles]

Originally Posted by apballin

He tried to go the free agent route as opposed to the draft, which is the right move when you have a star QB on a rookie contract surround him with veterans. Ballard was being blasted for not going all in on free agency while the Texans were signing every big name free agent because Stroud had early success… how’s that working out?

o


You just stated a major reason why Ballard is a much better GM than Grigson was. The free-agent route didn't work out for Grigson's Colts, it's not working out for the current Texans, and Ballard's 2025 Colts are arguably the most complete team in the AFC.

Good post, even though you inadvertently further exhibited why Grigson was a bad GM for the Colts.

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[apballin]

Originally Posted by Colts And Orioles

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Thank you. The general consensus of the ColtFreaks board is dead-wrong at times, including their assessment of Chris Ballard and Shane Steichen prior to this 2025 season ...... I don't think that it is wrong in their overall assessment of Ryan Grigson's tenure as Colts GM. The overwhelming majority believe that Grigson was not a good GM, and I don't think that they are wrong for the reasons that they (and I) have asserted.

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Let the record show you will not find a post in here from me wanting Ballard or Steichen fired

I was not in that consensus

[Colts And Orioles]

Originally Posted by Dam8610

Just like failed head coaches make good OCs/DCs, failed GMs make good scouts and other lower front office roles.

Originally Posted by Chromeburn

Grigson couldn’t draft and that is the backbone of a team. He was gifted probably the best drafted QB ever and couldn’t build around him. I think his first draft was more Tom Telesco than him. He had outdated philosophies on how to build a team and then didn’t have the eye for talent to back it up. He had to go to FA because his draft picks were failing, so he overspent for veteran players and had about the same success rate as a regular GM has in the draft.

I have my critics me of Ballard, like not fixing obvious holes right away or leaning on draft picks to succeed and fill the gap. Sometimes it works like Nick Cross and Bortolini, sometimes it doesn’t like Juju. I would a lack of urgency was his biggest issue till this year. Although sometimes I wonder how much of it was Jim.

But one traded for Buckner and one traded for Richardson. To me they aren’t even close in strategy, eye for talent and how they run their workplace. Grigson is filling smaller roles around the league but I doubt he ever gets another shot at GM. Ballard would be hired as a GM if we let him go.

Originally Posted by Dam8610

There was an article in the Athletic last year that talked about the relationship between Flores and Grigson that opined that he may get a shot at a GM role in the near future. That said, I completely agree with you that Ballard clearly has the superior eye for talent and roster building philosophies.

o


Thank you. The general consensus of the ColtFreaks board is dead-wrong at times, including their assessment of Chris Ballard and Shane Steichen prior to this 2025 season ...... I don't think that it is wrong in their overall assessment of Ryan Grigson's tenure as Colts GM. The overwhelming majority believe that Grigson was not a good GM, and I don't think that they are wrong for the reasons that they (and I) have asserted.

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[Colts And Orioles]

Originally Posted by apballin

Let the record show you will not find a post in here from me wanting Ballard or Steichen fired.

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That's not what we are debating. We're debating your defense of Grigson' Colts tenure, and your assertion that he was not a bad GM.

My post pointed out why the board-at-large is sometimes right and is sometimes dead-wrong, not whether or not you were a poster that was calling for the heads of Ballard and Steichen.

The board is sometimes correct, and sometimes wrong. You are wrong in your defense of Grigson. You're not wrong in your praise of Ballard, and your (correct) refusal to condemn him prior to the 2025 season.

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[Chromeburn]

Originally Posted by apballin

He tried to go the free agent route as opposed to the draft, which is the right move when you have a star QB on a rookie contract surround him with veterans. Ballard was being blasted for not going all in on free agency while the Texans were signing every big name free agent because Stroud had early success… how’s that working out?

Luck lacerated Kidney came from refusing to slide

It is a common strategy when you are on a rookie contract. But it doesn’t work very often and has about the same success rate as the draft but is infinitely more expensive. Grigson had to use FA though bc his drafts sucked.

Luck was the 3rd most hit QB in the league in 2016 and Brisset was first in 2017. He had arguably the worst oline in the league for years, and that’s with a franchise LT already in place. His kidney wasn’t the only injury he had.

[apballin]

Originally Posted by Colts And Orioles

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That's not what we are debating. We're debating your defense of Grigson' Colts tenure, and your assertion that he was not a bad GM.

My post pointed out why the board-at-large is sometimes right and is sometimes dead-wrong, not whether or not you were a poster that was calling for the heads of Ballard and Steichen.

The board is sometimes correct, and sometimes wrong. You are wrong in your defense of Grigson. You're not wrong in your praise of Ballard, and your (correct) refusal to condemn him prior to the 2025 season.

o

My point is how do you measure a good GM?

How their drafted players pan out?

Win loss record?

Grigson won the division and went to the playoffs nearly every year. Year 3 AFC Championship is still impressive

Hard to draft great players when you’re in the back half of the draft every year.

[apballin]

Originally Posted by Chromeburn

It is a common strategy when you are on a rookie contract. But it doesn’t work very often and has about the same success rate as the draft but is infinitely more expensive. Grigson had to use FA though bc his drafts sucked.

Luck was the 3rd most hit QB in the league in 2016 and Brisset was first in 2017. He had arguably the worst oline in the league for years, and that’s with a franchise LT already in place. His kidney wasn’t the only injury he had.

He signed Gosder cherilus and Donald Thomas both suffered injuries, and right now Bengals fans are saying the exact same thing meanwhile the team has tried and tried to secure the Oline.

[Colts And Orioles]

Originally Posted by Chromeburn

It is a common strategy when you are on a rookie contract. But it doesn’t work very often and has about the same success rate as the draft but is infinitely more expensive. Grigson had to use FA though because his drafts sucked.

Luck was the 3rd-most hit QB in the league in 2016 and Brisset was first in 2017. He had arguably the worst o-line in the league for years, and that’s with a franchise LT already in place. His kidney wasn’t the only injury he had.

o


Thanks again, but he is locked-in ...... he's not wrong, no matter how much evidence you exhibit to the contrary.

Let him have the last word, as ridiculous as his defense of Grigson is.

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