You all might remember this little write-up after Ryan Grigson met with the media following the Colts Day Two selections of Coby Fleener and Dwayne Allen. During that Day Two presser, he made this statement:
Colts G.M. Ryan Grigson: "It's nice to have two legit NFL tight ends on the roster now."
The interesting part of that is 2010 5th round pick Brody Eldridge, TE from Oklahoma, was on the roster. Grigson's statement implied that Eldridge was not a "legit" TE.
Whether intentional or not, that comment was a shot at Eldridge.
Grigson was immediately asked a follow-up question after, and that question was whether Eldridge still had a place on this Colts team. Grigson responded:
Definitely.
Nearly three weeks to the day that Grigson said this, the Colts announced that they have cut Brody Eldridge.
His place on the roster will be filled by QB David Legree. With the injury to rookie QB Chandler Harnish, and Andrew Luck not being able to to participate in OTAs because of graduation requirements at Stanford, the Colts simply needed another warm body at QB. Enter Legree.
Back to Eldridge, this move is yet player from the Polian regime sent packing. Ryan Grigson also cut Joseph Addai, Gary Brackett, Melvin Bullitt, and Dallas Clark this offseason. Eldridge was intended to be a blocking TE or fullback. With the team drafting Fleener and Allen, along with their commitment to FB Chris Gronkowski and their need for another QB, it seemed pointless to keep Eldridge.
It also suggests that Grigson was completely full of it when he said Eldridge "definitely" had a place on this team three weeks ago.
Yes, yes, yes. We all know that Andrew Luck cannot attend OTAs until he fully and completely graduates from Stanford. While some might dismiss his absence as just another useless story no one cares about, the reality is the time lost will hurt Luck's development. It might not be noticeable, but it will hurt. Luck knows this. Head coach Chuck Pagano knows it as well:
We're talking back and forth. [Luck] was able to take some stuff with him [to Stanford]. Besides school, he's spending time with Griff [Whalen] out there and a couple of his other teammates. He does football in the morning. Goes out, throws, works out. He's staying on top of everything. He's on point. I spoke to him, as a matter of fact, last night. He called me. It's killing him not to be here. He's just dying, dying to get out here.
The more I look at the way the offseason is shaking out, the more it seems as if the Colts signed Whalen just so he can work with Luck during this odd period when neither can attend team OTAs in Indianapolis. This way, Luck can continue to build chemistry with, at least, one Colts player who is likely to suit up in preseason.
Luck's other former-Stanford-but-now-current-Colts-teammate Coby Fleener is apparently in Los Angeles at a NFLPA event with follow TE Dwayne Allen. One Interesting (and encouraging) note is that Fleener and Allen have seemingly been inseparable during OTAs and minicamps.
At some point, Fleener will likely head back to Palo Alto to work with Luck. Luck reportedly has plans to meet up with Reggie Wayne and Austin Collie as well. In the end, no one seems to question Luck's willingness to do extra work to catch-up and be ready for training camp. The question is how much will that extra time limit his ability to build chemistry and timing with his receivers.
Yesterday evening (while I was out celebrating my wife's birthday) the Colts and Jim Irsay decided to announce that they had signed four of the ten players they selected in the 2012 NFL Draft.
Running back Vick Ballard of Mississippi State, wide receiver LaVon Brazill of Ohio University, outside linebacker Tim Fugger of Vanderbilt, and quarterback Chandler Harnish of Northern Illinois all agreed to terms with the Colts.
All four players were drafted in the third day.
The other news to come out of OTAs is that Harnish (who was the "Mr. Irrelevant" pick in the draft) is hurt. He was seen on the sidelines of practice yesterday nursing a sore knee, his leg wrapped. The timetable for his return is estimated at 2-3 weeks. Drew Stanton and Trevor Vittatoe handled all the QB duties.
It's likely the injury to Harnish happened during this most recent series of OTAs. He had no such visible knee problems at the rookie camp two weeks ago.
Now, while not catastrophic, it is worth noting that with Harnish hurt, this means both rookie QBs for the Colts were, essentially, MIA for the first install camp of the offseason. OTAs are when offensive coaches install their systems, and it is an absolutely critical time for young players to learn those systems. Andrew Luck, also known as "the other rookie QB," will miss all of Indy's OTAs this month. He is still finishing up his school requirements at Stanford. Griff Whalen is also there doing the same.
When the June OTAs roll around, it seems Whalen, Harnish, and Luck will have a lot of catching up to do.
Colts center Samson Satele reportedly tweeted this earlier today:
On my way to Hawaii....RIP Papa....ILY... #THEMAN
— Samson Satele (@satele66) May 16, 2012
Though this twitter account is not "official," it seems legit considering the owner has chatted with other Colts offensive linemen who do have official accounts on Twitter. These players include A.Q. Shipley and Anthony Castonzo.
Based on the tweet, it seems Satele has had some sort of loss in the family. He is from Hawaii (Kailua, Honolulu County). Condolences if this story is as it appears.
Indianapolis is currently in Day Two of their first series of OTAs. Today's practice is open to the media.
Satele was signed by the Colts in March 21st, and he seems the most likely player to replace longtime veteran Jeff Saturday. Saturday left the Colts via free agency, and has since signed with the Packers. Satele spent three seasons with the Oakland Raiders before signing with the Colts as a free agent. Prior to that, he spent two years in Miami, the team that drafted him in the second round in 2007.
With the draft finished, the NFL offseason (frequently defined by teams releasing and acquiring players, coaches, front offices people, etc.) comes to an end. For the most part, the players the Colts hold the rights to now are the ones who will show up and play in the first preseason game in August. Thus, we take this time to evaluate and examine the moves made by Jim Irsay and his first year general manager, Ryan Grigson. This series will breakdown the player loses, the free agent signings, the draft, and the undrafted rookie signings.
We started out with who the Colts lost. We also talked free agents and the 2012 NFL Draft. Now, we grade rookie free agents... or, at least, we attempt to...
Grading or evaluating rookie free agents at this stage of the game is virtually impossible. In fact, it's just plain dumb to do it. Thus, for this recap-evaluation-summary-whatever, it's more about grading the front office and how they used the rookie free agent market to fill needs that they did not address during veteran free agency and the NFL Draft.
It's important to note that I'm not at these camps and OTAs. I'm not seeing these kids run, and even if I was there, it wouldn't be fair or accurate to evaluate their skills at this time. One evaluation that is fair is that these guys are rookie free agents because they weren't good enough to get drafted. So, already, they are inferior prospects to guys who were drafted, or the veteran free agents signed pre-draft. Anyone who tells you that drafted players and undrafted players are on even footing is lying to your face. If an undrafted player beats out a drafted guy for a roster spot, it makes the G.M. look moronic for burning a pick on the guy who lost out.
So, right off the bat, players like WR Griff Whalen, WR Jabin Sambrano, and RB Matt Merlettim are long shots to make the 53-man roster. However, guys like Buddy Jackson, Cameron Chism, and Antonio Fenelus are almost guaranteed to make the team for no reason other than the Colts did virtually nothing this offseason to address the team's near total lack of talent at the cornerback position.
Smith will help Bruce Arians run his new 5-TE offense this year. Team also waived CB Mike Holmes.
Jim Irsay. Evaluating his Colts team. On Twitter. This should be interesting.
Franchise is taking shape..3rd Receiver and 2nd Corner must emerge..much progress in Free Agency n Draft...Def Front 7 could impress new 3-4
— Jim Irsay (@JimIrsay) May 15, 2012
The Indianapolis Star's Mike Chappell has already opined on Mr. Irsay's latest non-insane Tweet, breaking down the owner's roster priorities, at (what I assume is) his blog over at IndyStar.com called The Dean.
My thoughts:
There is a common statement going around the league that teams like the Colts (who just drafted two high quality TEs) are copying the offensive success of the 2011 AFC Champion Patriots. Part of the reason it's common is because the Colts leadership has consistently cited the Patriots as a source of inspiration.
Colts head coach Chuck Pagano on 5/5/2012, answering a question about why the Colts are using a two-TE offense:
It's a match-up nightmare. Coming off the AFC Championship Game, nobody knew that better than the Ravens going into that game with the two guys [the Patriots] have. It's across the league. You can see it more and more every year.
Now, for someone like Pagano (who has spent the last four years in Baltimore before landing the Colts head coaching job), installing this new system is indeed copying the Patriots. Pagano was Baltimore's defensive coordinator last season, and it was his job to stop New England's two TEs (Rob Gronkowski and Aaron Hernandez) in that AFC Championship Game. To put it mildly, he didn't succeed. Gronkowski and Hernandez combined for 12 receptions for 153 yards. On the drive that would eventually give the Patriots the lead, Tom Brady hit Gronkowski for a 23-yard gain on first-and-ten from the Pats 37 yard line.
From my vantage, Pagano is frustrated by how those two TEs helped defeat his defense in the AFCCG, and that is one of the reasons why he hired Bruce Arians as his offensive coordinator in Indianapolis. Arians, a friend and disciple of Tom Moore, is a flexible coach who maximizes the talent available to him. Just as the Colts utilized two TEs back in 1998 (when Marcus Pollard and Ken Dilger were still in the league), so too will the 2012 Colts.
