There seem to be a number of people in our community confused about the Indianapolis Colts and their current 2–5 record. Many season ticket holders, together with those who gather around their televisions every week, just don’t seem to understand why the losses have mounted in an ugly fashion. While very few have ever referred to yours truly as the voice of reason (pertaining to anything other than Italian food and how to fall asleep on a southern Florida beach without getting a sunburn), this one is simple, and I’m going to give it to you straight and for no charge at all.
It all started last season when the Colts headed into an offseason chock-full of uncertainties, which included whether to fire the head coach, how to strengthen the front office, the damage to their franchise quarterback’s shoulder, and major personnel issues on both sides of the football. Colts owner Jim Irsay decided to jettison general manager Ryan Grigson after five seasons, and when he retained head coach Chuck Pagano, the Colts appeared to be on the move. Enter new general manager Chris Ballard, who proclaimed before the combine and the draft that there would be changes occurring (ya think?), and the Colts appeared to be moving in at least a different direction, if not a better one.
As he dove headfirst into preparing for the combine and the draft, the elephant in Ballard’s new office was Andrew Luck’s orthopedic health, and the new sheriff in town pushed all of his chips to the middle of the table, betting Luck would be ready for the season opener. Scott Tolzien was again slated to be the backup signal caller, and it was on to determining who to draft and who to sign as a free agent — important steps for a team with so many holes in their roster and a glaring lack of talent. Colts fans rejoiced with the drafting of free safety Malik Hooker in the first round, and Ballard quickly scooped up what he could in the rest of the draft then looked to free agency for some additional manpower. The Colts approached training camp with their fingers crossed and an injured Luck.
Preseason football doesn’t often tell you much, but it will provide an opportunity to evaluate new players. The Colts proclaimed they indeed liked what they saw in camp and were ready to weather the storm with Tolzien for the “brief” period during which Luck would recover and return.
Week one of the regular season saw the Colts dismantled on the road by the Los Angeles Rams, and things continued to spiral downward. To date, they’ve registered wins against the hapless Cleveland Browns and the somewhat better San Francisco 49ers, and while they played competitively for a while against Arizona and Tennessee, last Sunday’s beat down administered courtesy of the Jacksonville Jaguars simplified the situation even more for those who, for some reason, haven’t been willing to consider the fact that this team is woefully short of NFL-level talent.
It doesn’t matter who the coach is if you are carrying a water pistol to a gunfight, and while Pagano has made some mistakes, he’s done a decent job considering the roster. Before you holler foul on my assessment, look at who is on the offensive line and how injuries have decimated a line that was pedestrian at best when healthy. Add a similar lack of talent on the defensive side (and more injuries), and you have a recipe for futility and a disaster declared, despite the division being so anemic and offering eternal playoff hopes.
All this aside, the Luck situation has been both unfortunate and unsettling for the fan base considering what some (including me) say has been an obvious lack of transparency from team leaders. For weeks they teased that Luck was indeed throwing the football and was on schedule to return to action. Irsay himself said Luck was close and would be back 100 percent soon. Really?
The Luck situation is one for which the Colts owe an explanation to their fans. I’m quite confident they knew the severity of the injury and their timetable was unrealistic. This situation is too similar to Peyton Manning and his neck injury, one that was hidden for months and was botched just as badly as Luck’s has been from a PR standpoint.
This team does not remain a mystery to me. How about you, Colts fans? I’m thinking by now most of you don’t need the weatherman to tell you which way the wind is blowing, but in case you do, just consider the fact that most of you probably didn’t want the obvious problems this team had last year to spoil your tailgating this year. You’ve earned that right with your wallets, but can we agree that this season was doomed back in training camp, and we just didn’t want to face the facts?
Danny Bridges, who thinks Chuck Pagano deserves a medal for running out on the field each Sunday with this roster, can be reached at (317) 370-8447 or at bridgeshd@aol.com.
