I come to praise Chris Ballard, not to bury him.

[Colts And Orioles]

Originally Posted by Racehorse

I considered that argument would come up. I am not sure how GB does some things they do, as they are a publicly owned team. It is a unique arrangement, so I am not sure how they do signing bonuses. Care to educate me on their structure? Google does not explain it well.

o


The Green Bay Packers are the only publicly-owned professional sports franchise in North America in which the team CANNOT move to another city and/or other part of the country, because the team is owned by stockholders. I actually met a woman at my gym here in Brewster, NY who owns 1 share of the Packers (she is originally from Wisconsin.) There are 539,000 stockholders overall.

Mark Murphy, who was the President and CEO of the Packers from 2007 through 2025, called the shots as to who gets hired and fired for the team's head coach and General Manager positions ...... Murphy just retired a little over a month ago, and the Packers share-holders voted for Ed Policy to be their new President and CEO.

o

[Oldcolt]

Originally Posted by Racehorse

I considered that argument would come up. I am not sure how GB does some things they do, as they are a publicly owned team. It is a unique arrangement, so I am not sure how they do signing bonuses. Care to educate me on their structure? Google does not explain it well.

I'm not sure, but obviously it can be done. I've heard that some believe that because they pay no dividends there is no real pressure to make money for the shareholders. Most owners feel like it is their own money that is being spent so paying someone $50 million of your money sits in some craws. All the Packers care about is winning, nobody who owns shares makes any money off of the team.

[Oldcolt]

The top 100 players as voted on by NFL players are finally out. Zero Colts. Again voted on by their peers.

[Racehorse]

Originally Posted by Oldcolt

The top 100 players as voted on by NFL players are finally out. Zero Colts. Again voted on by their peers.

I have not seen the list, but I am very curious which 100 players were considered better than Nelson, Taylor and Buckner.

[Oldcolt]

Originally Posted by Racehorse

I have not seen the list, but I am very curious which 100 players were considered better than Nelson, Taylor and Buckner.

Maybe true (I wouldn’t put Taylor there but I like well rounded backs that block and are part of passing game) but what does it say that after 9 years this is the argument we give back? Three bottom 100 players, one of which wasnt scouted or developed by us. Ballard hits on the occasional mid to late round where hitting means you get an average player with a 7th rounder. You need to hit on high draft choices which Ballard does not do

[ChaosTheory]

Originally Posted by Racehorse

I have not seen the list, but I am very curious which 100 players were considered better than Nelson, Taylor and Buckner.

Well, for one: Joe Mixon. The guy who is also notoriously bad in pass-pro and also played in 14 games like JT. And he didn't squeak in... he was 58th.

Mixon: 72.6 rush ypg, 4.1ypc, 94.6 scrimmage ypg, 12 tds

Taylor: 102.2 rush ypg, 4.7ypc, 111.9 scrimmage ypg, 12tds

----


To have him above JT at all, let alone a minimum of 42 guys between them, is silly. These aren't coaches or analysts.

[Colts And Orioles]

Originally Posted by Racehorse

I have not seen the list, but I am very curious which 100 players were considered better than Nelson, Taylor, and Buckner.

Originally Posted by Colts And Orioles

o


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NFL_To...layers_of_2025

o

o


ESPN l has their own Top-100 ......

Jonathan Taylor is at #69, up 21 spots from 2024 when he was at #90.

Quentin Nelson is at #61, down 1 spot from 2024 when he was at #60.


*********************************************


69) l Jonathan Taylor

RB | Colts

Age: 26

2024 rank: 90

When Taylor's healthy, he usually has a fantastic season. He is coming off a healthy offseason after a 2024 campaign in which he rushed for 1,431 yards in 14 games. He still possesses the sudden acceleration that makes him so dangerous in the open field, and he had an impressive training camp. ------ Stephen Holder

Signature Stat: l Taylor's 11 rushing TD's last season tied his 2nd-most in a season (18 in 2021, 11 in 2020), and matched his combined total from 2022-2023.

2025 Projection: l 342 carries, 1,578 yards, 11 TD's


*********************************************


61) l Quenton Nelson

G | Colts

Age: 29

2024 rank: 60


Nelson has been key to an offensive line that ranks seventh in rushing yards per game (126.2) since he entered the league in 2018. Notably, he hasn't missed a game since 2021 and has missed only four in his career. That durability figures to continue, given the feedback from his coaches, who say he is as well-prepared for 2025 as he has been for previous seasons. ------ Stephen Holder

Signature Stat: l Nelson has played and started in 51 games in the past three seasons, tied for the most among interior linemen in that span.


*********************************************


2025 NFL Rank: Predicting Top 100 Players for This Season

(ESPN NFL Staff)

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/...dictions-stats

o

[Indystu2]

Originally Posted by IndyNorm

If we think we can go get someone better then we should go get them.

If only Ballard operated with that same philosiphy. How ironic Ballard could die by that sword.

[HoosierinFL]

Originally Posted by ChaosTheory

Well, for one: Joe Mixon. The guy who is also notoriously bad in pass-pro and also played in 14 games like JT. And he didn't squeak in... he was 58th.

Mixon: 72.6 rush ypg, 4.1ypc, 94.6 scrimmage ypg, 12 tds

Taylor: 102.2 rush ypg, 4.7ypc, 111.9 scrimmage ypg, 12tds

----


To have him above JT at all, let alone a minimum of 42 guys between them, is silly. These aren't coaches or analysts.

Has Mixon ever dropped the ball at the 1/2 yard line?

[Dam8610]

Originally Posted by Oldcolt

Dam, it doesn't matter how you get players but that isn't what I was pointing out. Buckner required almost zero evaluation. He was an established player who was flirting with all pro. That isn't who Ballard gets paid to evaluate. My point was he has evaluated and drafted very few perennial top 100 type impact defensive players over the past 9 years. All pros are hard to find and to draft. Somehow you think that gives Ballard a pass. I just don't get that. It is damn hard to find that GM that can do that but it doesn't mean we should be satisfied with ok. I sure hope new ownership isn't.

Oh and I don't give a shit who you think or don't think should have been all pro.

Ballard absolutely gets paid to evaluate NFL players as well as college players. His job is to assemble the most talented roster possible. By definition, that will include some acquisitions that are not draft picks. Trading for Buckner was a big risk as well. He gave up the 13th pick, and that was a home run in terms of value. Of course in hindsight it seems obvious that it was the right move, but Buckner could've come in and been terrible, and everyone would've said he never should've traded away such a valuable asset for Buckner. That's what everyone said about the Trent Richardson trade, and rightfully so, because Trent Richardson was awful. Once again, this highlights the difference good talent evaluation makes.

I understand that sometimes change is a necessary catalyst, but change for its own sake is how you become the Cleveland Browns or the New York Jets.