Posts tagged Blue
“Coltzilla Dead” Pronouncements Premature
May 30th
It has come to our attention that one of our colleagues in the Colts blogosphere has taken shots at Coltzilla regarding a lack of steady content recently. In fact, in the latest comment, it was suggested that Coltzilla is “dead.” As the site’s founder and editor I think it is worthwhile to address any of our readers’ concerns about the current and future health of Coltzilla.
Our readers should know that Coltzilla upholds a standard of reporting and analysis that we hope best serves Colts fans. We do not engage in long-winded or repetitive rants regarding rather mundane occurrences in the Colts front office, draft strategies, private practices, or minor surgeries to players. More >
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Colts are Interested: List of Players Entering 2011 NFL Draft
Apr 28th
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Each year leading up to the draft NFL teams have a spree of interviews, workouts, and visits with prospects. While most teams end up drafting players who they never have a reported interest or official contact with at any time, there are usually a handful of players that each team meets with who are either drafted or signed as priority free agents. In the 2010 NFL Draft, the Colts selected Jerry Hughes and Ray Fisher, both who visited with the team prior to the draft. Undrafted rookies Jeff Linkenbach, Vuna Tuihalamaka, and Mike Newton also were confirmed visitors.
With this in mind, after the jump you will find as many players at each position as Coltzilla could confirm having contact with the Colts prior to the start of the 2011 NFL Draft. Expect to see a few of these players at training camp this fall. More >
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Coltzilla’s Ultimate Colts Mock Draft
Apr 28th
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As NFL Draft crazed football fans already know, one of the biggest problems with mock drafts is that they are extremely unlikely to be accurate. Knowing how each team will pick, let alone the teams writers are most familiar with, is a shot in the dark scenario. Accordingly, Coltzilla has put together the “Ultimate Colts Mock Draft” which will list those players who may be available when the Colts make each of their six selections.
The Ultimate Colts Mock Draft will include prospects from nearly all positions in each round, and will attempt to rate the players in order in each round based upon our assessment of the raw best player available standard. Each of the players listed should be in contention for the most valuable player on the draft board specifically for the Colts, so this delineation hopes be useful following the draft to subjectively determine how team needs may affect Indy’s draft room. More >
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Assessing Positional Value for the Colts 2011 NFL Draft: Guard
Apr 10th
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Since Jake Scott and Ryan Lilja both departed Indianapolis, the Colts have been searching to find some consistency at the guard position. In 2008, Vice Chairman Bill Polian brought in three offensive linemen, all who played center in college, hoping to develop them into NFL caliber players who would become successor to five-time Pro Bowl center Jeff Saturday. To this point, Jamey Richard, Mike Pollak, and Steve Justice have disappointed in their own ways.
Justice failed to stay on the roster in 2009. Richard spent time at center when Saturday was injured in 2009, and moved to guard in 2010 only to be replaced. Former second round pick Pollak has won the starting job at right guard two seasons in a row only to lose it at some point during the season. Undrafted free agent acquisition, and former Arena II league center, Kyle DeVan was acquired in 2009 and has become one of the team’s most steady contributors at guard. Still, many believe that while DeVan is steady and not necessarily a liability, he is not dominant in any one phase of the game and is lighter than ideal. More >
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Assessing Positional Value for the Colts 2011 NFL Draft: Offensive Tackle
Apr 9th
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No position has been more heavily discussed, debated, and recruited by the Colts organization — or its fan base — during the 2011 off-season. The benefit of adding a legitimate, starting-caliber, left or right tackle early in the 2011 NFL Draft could drastically affect Indy’s offensive effectiveness and production, particularly running the football. To get an idea where the team stands, it is appropriate to look at the tackle depth already on the Colts roster.
First, assuming the new CBA does not make it impossible to keep key free agents, left tackle Charlie Johnson is the best offensive tackle on the current roster. The problem with this statement is that Johnson is much better suited to play guard in the NFL, or at most right tackle. This means that stalwart right tackle Ryan Diem’s value and production has dropped significantly in the last two or three seasons, increasing the need to replace him with younger talent. Diem had by far the worst year of any of the Colts offensive linemen in 2010 and is getting a salary that his play no longer justifies. More >
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The Top 10 Colts Pre-Manning
Apr 7th
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Our good friend Scott Bolander is putting together an informative feature story at Blue Sunday that will discuss the top 10 Colts prior to Peyton Manning’s selection in the 1998 NFL Draft. Fans who are starved for information and discussion about the Colts during the slow off-season should definitely check it out.
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Assessing Positional Value for the Colts 2011 NFL Draft: Running Back
Apr 5th
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This story will continue to break down the value of players at each position for the Colts in the upcoming draft by taking a look at the running backs. As mentioned in the quarterback assessment, the theory behind these stories is that while it is popular for draft analysts and Colts writers to refer to Bill Polian as a “best player available” drafter, a more appropriate way to analyze the likelihood of Indianapolis using one of their picks on a player is to consider where the line between team need and a player’s talent level cross in relation to all remaining prospects — Most Valuable Player Available.
While there may be some uncertainty about where the Colts will be heading into the 2011 season at running back, all of the injuries in 2010 allowed the team to get a good look at a lot of potential rushers. Joseph Addai is still the unquestioned number one option in the Colts offense and as long as everything works out in the CBA in a manner that does not nullify Indy’s prior actions with regard to its free agents, he will stay with the Colts for another year. Donald Brown was the team’s 2009 first round draft pick and has not yet lived up to his draft billing. Some place a great deal of the blame for his slow progression on an offensive line that does not operate in a way that benefits his running style. More >
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Assessing Positional Value for the Colts 2011 NFL Draft: Quarterback
Apr 4th
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Die hard football fans have spent much of the last two months scouring the internet for as much information on players entering the 2011 NFL Draft as they possibly can. While some enjoy this practice simply to get an idea where their team can legitimately hope to improve for the coming season, others enjoy being a part of the draft science that each team practices in April.
For Indianapolis Colts fans, Vice Chairman Bill Polian makes things somewhat interesting by taking the steadfast “best player available” approach to each of his draft selections. Ultimately, this means that even though fans, NFL experts, and amateur analysts may identify one position as the greatest team weakness, Polian may select a player who plays at a position of lesser need if he feels the players available at the other positions are not worth the pick. More >
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Looking Ahead: Colts Running Backs in 2011
Feb 14th
Donald Brown breaks downfield for a 49-yard gain against the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2010. (Michael Conroy | AP Photo)
2010 was about as rough on Colts running backs as it was on the team’s safeties.
The opening depth chart included fourth string rusher and kick returner Devin Moore, who went down for the year with a shoulder injury in the Week 4 match-up with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Second-string back, and 2009 First Round pick, Donald Brown missed weeks 4-6 with a hamstring injury. Third-string back, Mike Hart missed weeks 9-12 and 13-17 with an ankle injury. Starter, Joseph Addai missed eight weeks with a shoulder injury.
Fifth-string back, Javarris James played a significant role in four of the Colts 2010 games — which included six rushing touchdowns. Even Dominic Rhodes, former starter behind Edgerrin James, made his way back onto the roster following a full season with the Florida Tuskers of the UFL — he shattered the UFL records for rushing yards, rushing touchdowns, and all purpose yards. Rhodes played significantly in weeks 15-17.
In total, the Colts had six different rushers and tallied 32 missed games between the four who started the season on the depth chart. More >
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