Hiring an Andy Reid OC is like hiring a Belicheat DC. See Matt Nagy.

Not to mention I’m positive people would be happy with Reich’s offense if he had Mahomes under center.

Chiefs fans dog Bieniemy all the time.

If the Colts were willing to dump Wentz and bench Ryan after 7 games, do you really think they won't fire Reich if he fails to make the playoffs?

Seeing a lot of <Reich and Ballard gotta go but if the O Line sux so much, who is holding the O line coach Chris Strausser accountable? His previous years with us have been good but this year everyone shits the bed with players, Reich and Ballard being dinged but not seeing Strausser´s name being called out. Wazzup wit dat?

yep. not thanks.

It's terrible on several levels. First, and there appears to be differing accounts of this in the media, I'm troubled if Irsay is going to step in and force his GM and head coach to make changes. I like him much better as a hands-off owner. But clearly this was not Frank's (at least) idea because he stated the day before that Ryan was the Colts' QB. I think stepping in and forcing changes, to the extent that actually happened, undermines the guys he hired and that doesn't bode well.

Second, it undermines the experienced guys who came here as free agents. Not only Ryan but also guys like Gilmore, who I'm sure were assuming there wouldn't be an abrupt non-injury related change at the game's most important position only seven games into the season. As to Ryan, I know its been rough, but to give this guy only seven games seems a bit ridiculous. He's been an effective QB for 15 years and he's joining a brand new team and offense, new personnel, and has been running for his life. I think 15 years of quality QB play is enough to earn more than seven weeks. How does this look to other free agents who might consider coming here in the future?

Third, unless they truly believe that Elhinger is truly special, this suggests the Colts will be in development mode for the near future. The colts are 3-3-1 and the season is far from lost. It is not time to give up on the season.
Also, the Colts have built a quality, mostly home grown defense, and have (or at least had) lots of offensive pieces in place. If they have to wait for several years before contending, the Colts will lose all of these guys as they'll become expensive, overpaid free agents.

I don't think anyone wants to deal with the headache his police record will create out of the gate.

o


That's not necessarily the same correlation.

Reich has been the Colts' head coach since 2018, and is in his 5th season with the team.

On the other hand, the starting quarterbacks in Reich's tenure have been Andrew Luck (2018). Jacoby Brissett (2019), Philip Rivers (2020), Carson Wentz (2021), Matt Ryan (2022), and now Sam Ehlinger (2022.)


I'm not necessarily saying that the Colts won't fire Reich at the end of this season, because they might ...... but the fact that they have gone threw a slew of starting quarterbacks in the last 5 seasons is not necessarily comparable to whether or not they will give the heave-ho to a head coach who has been here throughout those 5 seasons.

o

These are valid points but the thing to keep in mind is, as Bowen points out, Jim GENUINELY believes that this team will be BETTER with Ehlinger at quarterback. He thinks forcing this change will be the catalyst that sends this team to the playoffs.

He may be the only one who thinks that and he may actually be crazy, but his opinion is the only one that matters.

You really can't count Luck, Jacoby, or Rivers....Luck quit, Jacoby was never going to be the long term answer here, and Rivers was what we thought he was and his retiring was no surprise. That leaves Wentz, a guy we paid a big price for and even though we could have got stuck big time, Irsay still pulled the trigger on him after one season. We are 7 games in and it appears he is insisting we pull Ryan....just my opinion, but if I am Reich I am not joining a spring bowling league till we make the playoffs!:D

o


Irsay might fire Reich even if the Colts do make the playoffs.

I don't think that the jettisoning of Wentz in the off-season and/or Ryan during this current season will necessarily have much bearing on his decision.

o

Looks like Austin TX figured out that Ehlinger is starting this week

https://506sports.com/2022/08-FOX-L.png

No question the guy has the right as the owner to demand whatever he wants. Whether its a good idea or not is a different question. I feel like in recent years, Irsay has been gradually been conditioning himself to become more and more involved in personnel decisions. He gets largely positive press when he allegedly demanded that Carson Wentz be run out of town, which only encourages him further. He then posts comments like his infamous "all chips in" statement which sounds OK at the time, and again fuels his personal perception that he's a badass owner laying down the law.

But this also makes him more personally accountable when things don't go right...which then makes him inject himself further into personnel decisions. Less publicly-involved owners can let things play out and then make rational decisions from their desk without the unnecessary public pressure of having these kind of comments thrown back to them constantly. It's entirely self-created, and I think destructive unless you think that Irsay knows better than Ballard/Reich how to address the situation. I don't.

Perhaps I'm overstating all of this, I don't know. It just feels like a terrible decision, and unless Ehlinger lights it up it will make the Colts look like they are just as clueless as the rest of us.

I would feel like it's a terrible decision if I thought it could get much worse. I'm sure it can get worse, but man, this offense in all but one, maybe two games if we're being generous, has just flat out sucked. Like badly, and most of it is due to horrible pass protection and Ryan having the mobility of a sloth on quaaludes. At the very least I hope Ehlinger can figure out how to run for a first down or two.

Some fans are ready to pack it in but I'm not there yet. Could get there soon, but not yet. Like you said, this disaster on offense and somehow we're still 3-3-1 with 10 games left. All he has to do is not be a disaster. Anything extra would be a bonus. But we haven't seen anything from him, so all we can do is speculate.

His arm can't be weaker than Ryan's. His mobility is a plus IF he has poise (obviously the O-line has to do its part). Using mobility wisely like 2018 Andrew Luck is one thing. Becoming hero Carson Wentz after every first read would be ugly.

I'm really hoping his mobility will also help in the run game. Not by scrambling, but possibly by doing some wider runs + play-action/boot + misdirection. We were more creative in run concepts last year.

You underestimate the weakness of Sam Ehlinger's arm. I'm just hoping this disaster of a decision nets the Colts a high enough pick that they can draft a franchise QB and we can all look back on this and laugh.

Ehlinger is not particularly weak this season. He has improved in that area and I would definitely put him above Rivers, Brees and Ryan.

The important thing is that Ehlinger can make off schedule throws, not have to have his feet set and not have to put his whole body into certain throws.

Also, this is not a disaster of a decision. The best we were going to finish was 9-7-1 w/Ryan anyway.

Who the fuck wants that, who going to get excited about that? Not me. If we 9-7-1 with Ehlinger, then maybe there's something to build on. If we go 6-9-1 (which I expect we will), then Ballard has to find a way to parlay that into the future QB.

You may be right about Reich being fired, playoffs or not? I don't think his decisions on Wentz or Ryan have any impact on his decision to keep or fire Reich, but I think it shows that his patience is wearing thin, he wants to win now and he will not hesitate to make any move that he feels will hasten that outcome.

Maybe I am. But I'm only comparing him to 2022 Matt Ryan. Looking at some preseason throws (forget coverage, decisions, etc.), his motion looks a little different than last year and I don't see any throws that I feel would've had more zip if Ryan threw them.

If anything, a throw like vs. DET where he's drifting left, doesn't set, and throws it 51yds in the air is one that Ryan can't make anymore.

I'm really not trying to delude myself over this kid. I'm just trying to look for some elements they claim to see during practice. They promoted him 2-3 weeks ago. Could just all be bullshit and Ehlinger won't be worth a fuck.

We are going nowhere with Ryan, probably nowhere with Ehrlinger also but why not give it a try. Maybe he surprises everyone but at least you have a better idea of what you have going into next year. It at least makes me want to watch the games again, they have reached the point where they were becoming unwatchable.

you have to understand, in Dam's mind, players are incapable of improving. that and 40 times are all that matter.

I was going to take the week off and not go to a sports bar to watch this game. Now that Ehlinger is starting, I have a renewed interest in seeing this game. If there are others like me, this is a great move PR wise. Colts were going no where fast with Ryan at the helm. That may not change now, but I'm once again hopeful.

o


Going to a sports bar and watching the Colts game sounds like a good PR move. I might just do that down here in Putnam County, even though I don't drink.

o

No offense Ed, but I don’t understand how people do that. I have to be on my own couch in my own living room to watch a game. I get way to wound up to watch it in public. I’d get kicked out by the first timeout.

Not to compare him to a freak like Josh Allen... but he's the most notable example of a guy working with these new age throwing gurus. In his case it was accuracy, not strength, but that was still a quality that basically everybody was saying you couldn't fix.

But those coaches, like the guy Ehlinger worked with, use similar mechanics training to get guys to improve velocity as well. Doesn't mean shit until we see him. But worth considering if you want a tall glass of hope to sip on.

And Stanley Havili is a hall of famer.

Ha, I can watch sports in general at the bar and have a good time. But not my team.

Yep, don’t call or text me during a fuckin game. While the Colts are on I don’t watch other games hell sometimes the ticker at the bottom pisses me off

Going to the home games and screaming for the defense has become somewhat therapeutic

I tell me wife every year we can have a superbowl part unless the colts are in it. Then i dint want to be distracted by people.

Putnam County? Indiana or Tennessee?

Ask for an Arnold Palmer, lemon aid and ice tea

o



https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped...County.svg.png

o

A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away....

Actually for me, sitting in my own living room and watching the game gets a little boring. I enjoy the interaction with other Colts fans and often with fans from the other team. Especially if the Colts win. I remember watching the Colts great comeback win against KC when they were losing badly. A few KC fans were yukking it up and saying "stick a fork in them" then Luck opened up a can of whup ass and shut them up. If I was home alone watching that game it wouldn't have been near as much fun.

Exactly.

Ryan's arm = slightly weaker than NFL average QB
Ehlinger's arm = Phillip River's 2020

I will be stunned if Ehlinger is anything but disappointing. Judging by your post, your opinion isn't far off from that.

No, players can improve. For Ehlinger to improve his collegiate arm strength to NFL arm strength, it would take about double the work Drew Brees needed. It's possible for him to have achieved that in 2 years, just not likely.