Stampede Blue
This cursed season is finally over. Perhaps the one that hurt the most because of how it started, and how certain I was at 7-1 that this was the season it was going to be different. We can keep talking about that first 8 weeks and how perfect everything was back then, but there is no point in that, now we can take a look at what the Colts did during the entirety of the year, and how the team looks for the future. This is supposed to be a hot analysis, taking advantage that the feelings of the season are still on Colts’ fans skins, and is also made before all the off-season moves, even though technically the first (and most important) move was retaining both general manager Chris Ballard and head-coach Shane Steichen for another year.
Let’s kick things off discussing that very move. Last year I was already on team “Fire CB & SS”, and once this season ended I thought it was going to be done, given how the Colts finished the season on an eight game losing streak. Instead, new owner Carlie Irsay-Gordon went the same route her father did and gave them another year. This is going to be Chris Ballard’s 10th offseason with the team. TEN. That is a double-digit number! For a general manager that has consistently missed on the two most important positions on the football field: quarterback and pass-rusher. This roster has not improved consistently year over year. He keeps repeating mistakes. He has not won a single division title! When was the last time a general manager got so much time and opportunities despite not winning a single thing? There is absolutely no accountability. One might argue that after trading away their first round picks for the next two years it just made sense to run it back one more season with this leadership, and I understand that point, it is just that when you set a standard that you can tolerate complete mediocrity for 10 years, it reflects on your entire organization. There is no need to push yourself to be great when everyone gets just so much slack. It shows on the football team that steps up on the field every Sunday. The only players that show some heart are the ones that still need to prove themselves for that second contract (Daniel Jones, Alec Pierce, Laiatu Latu), Grover Stewart, and Quenton Nelson. The 1-tech and the left guard. I mean, this team gave Zaire Franklin a captain patch. A terrible linebacker that could not cover a tight end even if the tight end had both his legs tied up together. A player that cannot help himself from talking, and talking, and never backing things up. A player that antagonized the franchise most recognizable current media voice.
As for Steichen, he had his ups. He was really close to making the playoffs with Gardner Minshew in his first year, he was really close to making an improbable...
