Originally Posted by Oldcolt (Post 94656)

Is anyone up for making a run at Le'veon Bell next off season? Good runner, great pass blocker and catcher. Had a rep for being good in locker room. Hard nose player that seems to fit in what we are trying to build around here. Would improve running and passing game. We keep our draft picks. Cost us a ton of money but then what are we saving it for if not an elite difference maker in his prime? For me, this is the kind of guy you throw money at.

Originally Posted by Colt Classic (Post 94639)

People keep throwing out the biggest of the big name free agents from last year. This team has lost 4 close games that came down to just a few plays. You don't need a $20 million free agent to swing 4 games that are that close, at least to the point where two of the four would become wins--and at that point, they would be fully in the driver's seat for the division. Forget Norwell, remember all the drops from the receivers over those close games? Sure, that's hopefully behind them now, but one more veteran receiver for 1 year, $6 million could've been useful when no one else could catch the ball. I've given the example of John Brown before, yet everyone is too busy citing Norwell as the only example since I guess he was linked to a bit of interest from the Colts. I don't care who wanted Norwell--that takes one Google search for "top free agents by position" to come to that brilliant idea that the Colts should have him on their want list.

I'll offer another option--trades. If you honestly looked at the depth and thought the WR position was good to go at the start of the year, great. It has turned into a strength, but again, those close games with the drops told a different story at the time. Kevin White on the Bears. Bears fans seem to think he's a bust, but who knows if it's just because he had a shaky Trubisky throwing to him last year. Maybe he does suck, but maybe he's better than Chester Rogers as your best option when another guy gets dinged.

Originally Posted by rm1369 (Post 94573)

Omaha, man it’s a lost cause. When the team is 1-5 it’s evidence of how far away the team is and proof a few vet free agents wouldn’t have helped. When the team is 6-5 and Ballard is surprised at where the team is it’s proof that his methods worked - even better than expected. You can’t win.

It’s amazing to me how well the mantra has stuck. I reread the off-season free agency thread a month or so ago and I couldn’t find one person saying the team should shun free agency because you had to build a core first, etc. Not one. But now it’s so ingrained that even suggesting that a few vet free agents would have amplified the good work Ballard has already done is basically blasphemy. It’s amazing that the team found 3 throw away free agents that have significantly helped when apparently no other vets could. Lucky I guess.

I’m amazed at some of the arguments. If Wilson turns in to a pro bowler would he have got there with a vet in front of him? That’s crazy to me considering Wilson fell on the depth chart because of his poor play after being basically gifted a spot. And that he attributes his recent better performance to things he’s learned from Mitchel! The exact type of vet that I believed the team needed more of. If Wilson had pro bowl corner potential and wasn’t unlocking it because a mediocre vet was in fromt of him then you have the wrong damn coaches or a player with a shitty mindset. Players learn a lot from being able to pick vets brains and see the work ethic, film study, and how they take care of their bodies. I find it amazing that that’s now seen as a negative. All because the mantra that’s been preached: build a culture thru the draft. I didn’t see one of you preaching it prior to free agency though.

Originally Posted by omahacolt (Post 94617)

I am not going to name guys I wanted at this point. I don’t remember. And it doesn’t matter. It’s not my job. I don’t have all the information Ballard does.

Originally Posted by FatDT (Post 94582)

Except Ballard DIDN'T "avoid" big name players in FA. He just wouldn't pay them what they wanted, so they went elsewhere. This was not a rigid plan. He pursued multiple FAs (as many here have said previously in their defense of Ballard), but wasn't willing to pay top dollar.

Originally Posted by Chaka (Post 94671)

Fair point, but not relevant to this particular discussion. Regardless of whether he did or did not pursue these players, the question is whether - knowing what we know now - was it better that he didn't?

Originally Posted by FatDT (Post 94675)

It’s absolutely a relevant response to those that pretend it was the team’s plan all along, in order to get the young players experience and establish a culture.

Originally Posted by Oldcolt (Post 94656)

Is anyone up for making a run at Le'veon Bell next off season? Good runner, great pass blocker and catcher. Had a rep for being good in locker room. Hard nose player that seems to fit in what we are trying to build around here. Would improve running and passing game. We keep our draft picks. Cost us a ton of money but then what are we saving it for if not an elite difference maker in his prime? For me, this is the kind of guy you throw money at.

Originally Posted by Pez (Post 94677)

Ballard said this in March:




I'm not sure anyone is pretending that this was his plan all along.

Originally Posted by Chaka (Post 94664)

So you're "pretty sure" that most people were expecting the colts to be above .500 at this point? Really? Because I distinctly recall a lot more dire predictions, particularly when the Colts didn't sign the big name free agents that they were rumored to be interested in. I also recall several people, yourself included, openly complaining about Ballard's draft picks and the terrible roster he had assembled. Now you want to rewrite history to suggest that you expected this all along. Not so.

And I don't accept your premise that the Manning-led Colts failed to win more than one Super Bowl because they weren't spending in free agency. Please back up that statement with some facts because, honestly, your posts are pretty light on them. Talent was never the problem with those Colts - we had plenty back then. We won the division nearly every year, and set plenty of offensive records. But we lost a lot of playoff games we should have won, whether due to coaching, player performance or just plain bad luck. And before your Patriots envy gets out of control, remember who you're speaking about - they're convicted cheaters, so please don't cite to them as an example of model organization.

The idea that you go "all in" on free agency every year is short-sighted and limiting. This isn't FanDuel - you can have a long term plan. For the umpteenth time, I'll repeat again that the unused cap space this year is NOT LOST - it will still be there next year, and the next. The idea is to get the most out of your resources. Ballard's plan, as he has expressed it himself, is to let the team create a culture organically before adding big personalities/paychecks - particularly on defense. This plan is working. Not only are we outperforming this year, but we will have a built-in competitive advantage going forward for then next several years by virtue of our increased cap space.

But yet you endlessly complain about their failure to spend THIS year, and the Colts failure to sign these theoretical "good" players who would have improved the Colts without disturbing the progress they have already made. It's an easy and cheap complaint, but has no substance.