BradyManny

Reiss in his football notes had a good article on the Colts...

http://www.boston.com/sports/footbal...an_inside_job/

Nothing too new, we've pretty much established this point repeatedly on the board, but a solid read anyway. As much as I hate the Colts, they have a pretty sound philosophy and stick to it, much like we do.

PatsWickedPissah

Yes they do. They've managed their cap well enough to be a serious contender every season and then win the whole thing.

Another well run outfit is Denver. Suffered a bit not having a QB but still a threat.

Let's see if SD really fixed their major problem at HC. Talent wise they've been under achievers.

__________________
Throughout history, poverty is the normal condition of man. Advances which permit this norm to be exceeded — here and there, now and then — are the work of an extremely small minority, frequently despised, often condemned, and almost always opposed by all right-thinking people. Whenever this tiny minority is kept from creating, or (as sometimes happens) is driven out of a society, the people then slip back into abject poverty.
This is known as "bad luck." RAH

BradyManny

Yeah, I'm actually much more afraid of SD than Indy over the next few years.

spacecrime

Not me. SD has too many talented players and not enough team.

Say what you want about Shottenheimer (I certainly do) but he got them to 14-2 and had a legitimate chance to win the other two games.

And he didn't choke in the playoffs. Had that moron safety batted down teh ball, or fallen to the ground, they would have won the game and hosted Indy in the AFCCG.

But they are still a bunch of guys not playing as a team.

The Colts did that for years, and never came close. Last year, when Peyton forgot about stats, and started taking what the defense was giving him (underneath short passes) only then did they win it all. Lesser talent than pervious years, but a better team.

I will be amazed if the Chargers do not fade this year. Shottenheimer had them working together fairly well, but his style of coaching lends to that. If Norv focusies on HIS strength, X's and O's, they will have a better game plan but will not execute it nearly as well.

My 2 cents. We'll see in a few months.

DaBruinz

I haven't read the entire article but there is one sentence, already, that makes me glad that that Polian is with the Colts and that we have Pioli.

Nothing like going out and signing a player to big buck and then trashing him because of an injury.

MoLewisrocks

Bill P is certainly different in that respect. He's got an emotional component in public that Belichick long ago learned to keep under wraps (and Pioli and Kraft have tended to adopt the same self restraint even when under fire). He's prone both to tossing guys under the bus in a fit of pique as well as making whiny assed excuses for them. I think he will suffer when Dungy moves on - Tony is the quiet fatherly motivator who gradually and gently convinced Peyton that his teamates might do more if he did a little less. Built a framework where players believed they were all needed and valued in spite of public perception of their relative talent and having Manning and a few elite aerial weapons consuming copious cap $$$ at the top of the roster.

It will be interesting to see if he alienates more players going forward. Irsay and Freeney are talking nice about an extension and Polian keeps throwing cold water on their very talk of extension talks. Guys have watched him turn his back on players like Simon and Reagor (to the extent of actually cutting off their salaries even though it had no cap effect) and should be mindful that there but for the grace of God go I. June went from the Pro Bowl to the toilet bowl relatively speaking from a financial standpoint (even though he led the team in tackles). If I were Booger I'd have my bags packed if the weight of my ring has in any way diminished my drive. And god help any Colt who slips on the soap in the shower this off season.

That was a great NFL notes column by Reiss with a little more Pat's relevant material than we are used to. I sure hope he keeps that assignment when the Wrong one gets out of detention.

Ice Cold Bruschi

San Diego also has a young QB who is already great but hasn't reached his full potential yet

jman924

So great that he completely loses it almost every game.

"HA, YOU THOUGHT IT WAS OVER!!!???" to bengals fans.
"HE'S THE SORRIEST CORNER IN THE LEAGUE!!!!!!"

to name a few that come to mind.

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Kevin Faulk supporter.
Woo-hoo! Second Team baby!

Rob0729

It is kinda funny how the Pats get pegged as this heartless organization when Polian has made moves against two different players which are some of the heartless things I have seen in sports.

First, they put Simon on the non-football injury reserve list for degenerative injuries that were obviously caused by wear and tear from football. Because of this, Simon didn't get his full salary for the season. Now Polian is trashing Simon publically in the press and he is still under contract with the Colts.

The second is Monty Reagor. The guy is injured in a car crash on the way to the stadium and the Colts cut him in the offseason. He can obviously play because the Eagles picked him up and gave him a three year deal.

Yet, it is the Patriots who are considered heartless for cutting Willie McGinest because he carried an over $8 million cap hit or not giving into Deion Branch's over inflated salary demands. I don't get it.

It seems that most of the media are either in awe or scared of Bill Polian. Rarely do you see anything negative written about him at the national level (other than ProFootballTalk.com) eventhough his tantrums and tirades are well known (again thanks to ProFootballTalk.com). Even when he assaulted a Jets staff memeber, it really didn't get a lot of play on ESPN, Sports Illustrated, etc.

PatsSteve1

Polian on why they aren't active FA players:

"Mainly because we've made some big mistakes in the past, Corey Simon being the most obvious one," he said. "We've had a modicum of success in it, but not a lot. We just feel the odds are very much against you. It's not a criticism of anyone who does it, but just the way we do things. We're not good at it, so we stay away from things we're not good at."

* I'm not sure if it's refreshing that he admits they aren't good at it or something he shouldn't say publicly - Many FA's aren't as good with thier new teams as they were with the old one. Draft picks really can be a crapshoot as well. The Colts have drafted well over the years, but there's always the chance you have a bad year and when that's what your team depends on, it can cause problems. Whether the young guys thier counting on to take the place of those that left works out will determine any chances they have at a repeat.