The Death of Reason: Bill Polian hands reins over to Chris Polian

The day I have always dreaded has arrived.  Bill Polian has officially handed control of the Colts to Chris Polian.


As I detailed in the article "Should Peyton Manning re-sign with the Colts?", I feel that the Colts lack of production in recent drafts may be due to Chris Polian's increasing role in the decision making process.


Chris Polian was elevated to Assistant General Manager in 2004, and in the drafts from 2005 - 2010 I count only two solid players picked in the first three rounds (Kelvin Hayden 2005 & Jerraud Powers 2009).  These two are not stars - just solid players.  The first three rounds is where you draft your stars.


Thats three out of eighteen picks that the Colts have hit on in a five year period.


The breakdown:


2005
1 (29)             Marlin Jackson (CB)          -INJURY BUST
2 (60)             Kelvin Hayden (CB)          -SOLID PLAYER
3 (92)             Vincent Burns (DE)           -BUST
Marlin was solid before he blew up his knee - you could argue that this was an additional successful pick.


2006
1 (30)             Joseph Addai (RB)          -BUST
2 (62)             Tim Jennings (CB)          -BUST
3 (94)             Freddie Keiaho (OLB)    -BUST
Addai is a total bust.  Fans like to point out his blocking and such - but you don't need to burn a 1st rounder on a RB whose best quality is pass blocking.  Jennings was simply not a fit for a cover-two defense because of his size.


2007
1 (32)             Anthony Gonzalez (WR)     -BUST
2 (42)             Tony Ugoh (LT)                 -BUST
3 (95)             Daymeion Hughes (CB)      -BUST
3 (98)             Quinn Pitcock (DT)            -BUST
Gonzalez has not shown the ability to stay healthy, and he has also not shown a real connection to Manning.  They will cut him if he cannot produce this year.  The Ugoh trade was reportedly something that Chris Polian fought for - complete bust on lack of heart.


2008
2 (59)             Mike Pollak (C)                 -BUST
3 (93)             Phillip Wheeler (OLB)        
Pollak lacks the basic talent to compete at this level.  Simply not strong enough.  Wheeler showed something last year and may end up a solid player.


2009
1 (27)             Donald Brown (RB)          
2 (56)             Fili Moala (DT)
3 (92)             Jerraud Powers (CB)
To me, the jury is still out on Donald Brown.  He has been hurt a bit, but has shown some flashes when blocked for.  Moala started to show something last year and may yet end up as a solid player.  This could actually become a good draft - it is a little early to tell.


2010
1 (31)             Jerry Hughes (DE)
2 (63)             Pat Angerer (MLB)
3 (94)             Kevin Thomas (CB)
Angerer looked OK at times last year, the other two got very little playing time.


What about the prior years?  Here are our first picks of each draft from 1998-2004.  See if you notice a different trend:


1998              Peyton Manning
1999              Edgerrin James
2000              Rob Morris
2001              Reggie Wayne
2002              Dwight Freeney
2003              Dallas Clark
2004              Bob Sanders


I sense a trend - don't you?  With the exception of Rob Morris, every one of these players is a star and one of the top ten at their position in the NFL.


Since 2005 we have not drafted a single player who could be called a "star" with a straight face.  Even if you don't agree with me calling Addai or Gonzalez a bust - you would not say they were a star - right?


So where is all this headed?  The Colts will get weaker and weaker over the next few years.  Manning will cover up a lot of issues, but one year he will be either injured or just overcome with the lack of talent and we will fall hard.


The kind of trend I am seeing is Matt Millen-ish and it makes me very worried about the future.


Here is a follow-up article:  

Yes, Chris Polian is *that* Bad

Chris Rucker (CB) joins Colts in the 6th round

In Chris Rucker the Colts take their first gamble of the the draft.  Rucker carries character issues into the draft as well as uneven performances.  At one time he was projected to go in the first two rounds - an uneven senior season and suspension (2 separate arrests) hurt his draft stock.


Rucker is big for a Colts corner (6'1", 195) but he projects well in our cover two defense where our corners are not asked to match up man on man as much as other teams.


The Good:

• Good size
• Solid Tackler
• Plays CB or SS

The Bad:

• Poor ball skills
• Not a pure cover guy
• Lacks intangibles

There is not much to really like or dislike about this pick.  Polian does his homework on guys like this and he is probably worth the risk.  It's the sixth round, Rucker won't have to do much to justify the pick.

Delone Carter (RB) is the Colts pick in the 4th round

In an interesting move, the Colts picked up a running back in the 4th round in the person of Delone Carter out of Syracuse.  It's no surprise to me, but to the many Colts fans who think Joseph Addai is a good running back - it is a shock.


I saw where one blog said it meant the end for Donald Brown - but this makes no sense.  Carter is a 1st and 2nd down back.  Brown is a 3rd down / scatback type.  Clearly Carter is not being brought in to replace your 2009 1st round pick - right?


All that said - I don't like this pick at all.  Based on the tape I watched, he looks decidedly average.


When evaluating running backs, I do not look at their long runs and say wow.  I look at how well the running play was blocked and I see if the running back gains more yards than what was blocked for.


The Pros:

• Better than average balance
• Good vision
• Seems intelligent and thoughtful (based on interviews I watched)
• Nice, compact solid body
• Quick feet

The Bad:

• Despite his size, is most often brought down by first tackler.  Does not run with power
• Prone to breaking runs to the outside, whether it is a good idea or not.
• Not a receiver
• Not much of a blocker
• Does not possess a "4th gear"

I would not be surprised if he does not make the team; I certainly do not see much production from him.  I think they got him to push Addai and Carter's future depends on how Addai reacts.

Colts snag LSU DT Drake Nevis in 3rd round

Wow, I'm glad that Drake Nevis was there for the Colts in the 3rd round.  Nevis is a pure Tampa-Two defensive tackle with no natural position in the 3-4 - which only a few teams still use.


He is a stout body type with good burst and change of direction.  Lacks top end speed, but makes up for it with hustle and feistiness. 


The Good:

• Gets off the line very nicely and into the blocker
• Manages traffic well and will be very helpful on stunts
• Very strong for his size
• Always hustling

The Bad:

• Short for a DT at 6'1"
• A little light for a DT (played at 286 lbs)
• Lack of top end speed for chasing down plays
• Plays high and thus wastes his leverage advantage

This guy had COLTS stamped all over him - I'm glad he dropped to us.

Colts take Ben Ijalana - T in 2nd round - Mike Pollak sells home in Indy

The Colts made a minor splash moving up four picks in the 2nd round via a trade with Washington to pick Ben (Bob Lamey's going to hate calling his name) Ijalana.


This is a difficult player for me to evaluate as all of the film and reports on him are as a left tackle - but it is expected that the Colts will move him inside to guard.


On all accounts he is a good athlete with some qualities that we currently lack - namely power and explosiveness.  The major knocks on him is his lack of height - but at 6'3" he is fine for playing guard.


I really like this pick and I can't wait until preseason so I can see him in his pro position of guard.

Colts draft Anthony Costanzo from BC

Well the Colts did what was expected of them and got offensive line help with their 1st round pick in the person of Anthony Costanzo.  Presumably he is slated for the LT spot at some point with Charlie Johnson sliding to guard to replace a previous failed draft pick.


Ordinarily I would say that you could expect him to start from day one at LT; but with the current labor situation I don't see him getting the coaching that he would need to step right in.  I'm sure that Manning will do a great job organizing the offense for the duration of the lockout/foolishness, but I doubt Manning is going to be teaching Costanzo how to slide and punch.


As for the talent of Costanzo, I'm not really excited about him.  Based on the film I have seen of him:


Pluses:

• Very Smart
• Good size (6'7", 308 lbs) with some room to put on more weight
• Good character guy
• Motivated
• Better than average movement skills
• Pretty good blocking downfield for the run (good for the stretch and screens for sure)

Negatives:

• Does not play with power
• Plays high in the run game and frequently loses contact with his assignment
• A bit slow out of his stance at times
• Prone to being bull-rushed
• His height and lack of natural knee bend make him vulnerable to Robert Mathis-style small rush ends.

You really see his lack of power in pass blocking against a strong DE, he struggles against rushers with good rip moves.  Looks light up top with somewhat narrow shoulders.


This may seem critical, but he does not measure up to the top LTs in the league in the areas that matter most.


He looks like a mid 2nd round pick in most drafts.




All that said I do expect him to be a upgrade for the Colts and to be a long-time starter.  This is based on what we have already and the style of offense the Colts play.


We have had some bad timing in the draft the last few years: 


When we were desperate for a running back to replace Edgerrin James, we were stuck with a thin draft for running backs and ended up with the shockingly average Joseph Addai.


When we were desperate to replace a departing Tarik Glenn, we were stuck with a thin draft for Offensive Tackles and ended up with the mechanical and passionless Tony Ugoh.


And now with us desperate to replace the busted out Tony Ugoh, again we have a weak draft for Offensive Tackles and we end up with the bright but flawed Anthony Costanzo.


Lets hope this works out.  Just the fact that he actually cares about football puts him miles ahead of Ugoh.

The Top Ten Indianapolis Colts (Pre-1998) - #9: Jeff Herrod, Inside Linebacker (1988-1996, 1998)

Drafted in the 9th round of the 1988 draft, not much was expected out of Jeff Herrod.  What the Colts and their fans got was nine solid years of middle linebacking excellence.  He was a Team Captain for almost his entire time here and lasted through FOUR head coaches (Ron Meyer, Ted Marchibroda, Jim Mora, and Lindy Infante).

He was a bit undersized and was considered a bit slow, but just about every time you looked at the stats at the end of the season you would find him at the top of the tackling statistics.  Jeff was a fan favorite and all around good guy.














The Top Ten Indianapolis Colts (Pre-1998) - #10: Barry Krauss, Inside Linebacker (1979-1988)

The Top Ten Indianapolis Colts (Pre-1998) - #10: Barry Krauss, Inside Linebacker (1979-1988)

Barry Krauss went from being the star of the 1979 Sugar Bowl for Alabama to a very poor Colts team.  He was a big and mobile inside linebacker who played very well for the Colts for nine years.  He was a good leader and was popular with the community.  I think that in a larger market Barry would have been considered one of the better linebackers in the league.  He manned the middle alongside Cliff Odom to form a solid inside linebacker tandem for a few years.

Barry Krause - looking for someone to collide with!

He tore his knee up early in the 1986 season and was lost for the season.  To add to his troubles he contracted a staff infection from his surgery that caused him to lose 50 lbs of his muscle mass.


Barry was back for the 1987 season about twenty pounds lighter than opening day the previous year.






I will always remember Barry as the best linebacker on a strong unit that the Colts had during those years.

New feature: The Top Ten Indianapolis Colts (Pre-1998)

I was thinking about doing a article on the top ten Colts of the Indianapolis era, but I decided that it would be dominated by players from the time Bill Polian joined the team in 1998.


There were a lot of great and beloved players who played for our Colts before then - even if as a team we did not have a lot of success.


In terms of my criteria, first off I am NOT a stats guy.  I don't care about stats - stats are for people who don't understand football.


My major considerations are how long they were here and what kind of impact on the team *and* the fanbase they had while they were here.  Bonus points for a player who brought national recognition to the team.


I do plan to do another list for the players from 1998 to present at some time in the future.


Hopefully you will enjoy it!  Feel free to share who you think should be on the list - I promise that it will have no effect on me whatsoever, but I'd like to see what others think.


I'll put direct links to each position as they are posted:


#10: Barry Krauss, Inside Linebacker (1979-1988)
#9: Jeff Herrod, Inside Linebacker (1988-1996, 1998)

It is unfair to Jeff George to compare him to Jay Cutler

Now that Jay Cutler has again put himself in a position to be criticized, all of the comparisons of him to Jeff George are again coming to the surface.


This is patently unfair.  To Jeff George.


What I saw yesterday in the NFC Championship game was sickening.  Jay Cutler tapped out with a minor knee injury like he was playing in the Pre-Season or the Pro Bowl, instead of the biggest game of his career.  


He let Todd Collins take over HIS team because he got a boo boo.  


I'm not a doctor, but if his knee was stable enough to wander the sideline without ice or treatment - then he could have played.  Talent-wise, Jay Cutler on one leg is significantly better than a 85 year old Todd Collins.


After all, Jay has been playing on half a heart for years...  what's a little knee injury?


I wonder if in some future marriage he will tap out during a bedroom encounter and call up his neighbor to finish the job for him.


Say what you want about Jeff George, the man was tough.  The punishment he took behind the terrible Colts offensive line was just ridiculous.  It would only be fair to point out that they were not all that fired up to be blocking for him, but George still stayed in there and took it.


George never wavered on the opinion that it was *he* that should be leading his team.  Sometimes that was not true - but there is merit in that attitude.


I wrote earlier in the season that Cutler and Mike Martz were a couple doomed to fail.  That Cutler would never be able to execute Martz's offense.  


With the Bears resurgence in the second half of the season, it looked to *some* that I would have to eat my words.  What no one talked about was something that was obvious to myself as well as players who had played under Martz in St. Louis: the Bears were no longer running the "Mike Martz" offense.


Martz gave up on Cutler ever being able to execute a offense based on precise timing throws and rigid decision-making.  They basically "de-tuned" the offense and just let Cutler do what he has always done: sit back in the pocket and throw it to whoever had already gotten open.  Sometimes if you can pass block well enough, this can work.  But it is anything but Martz's system.


Collins came into that game trying to run the offense correctly - that is why he looked so bad.  The receivers and the rest of the offense had in the previous weeks gotten out of running the system as designed and could not just snap it back.  Unlike Cutler, Collins is a "system QB" and could have had great success in a Martz attack in his younger days.


So where does this leave Cutler and Martz?  Cutler will be back next year and will be the starter.  Martz will be there too unless he gets another job offer.  Martz only took this job out of desperation.  He needed to get back "in play" and had no other offers on the table.  


Working with Cutler will make him wish he sat this season out - he may never get another chance to be a head coach because of Jay Cutler: Coach Killer.

Why Everyone is Full of Crap About the Gene Huey Firing

I've been reading all of the hysterical hand-wringing and conspiracy theories about the firing of Colts Running Back Coach Gene Huey on The Star website as well as several Colts Blogs and I must say they are all full of crap.  A real swing and miss for them.  I exclude in my criticism 18to88.com who had a good and balanced article about this.

The theories so far:

• Polian needed a "scapegoat" for the poor running game.  This is utter BS.  To even let something like this come out of your mouth is offensive and demeaning to Bill Polian and the entire Colts organization.  You *really* think that the classiest organization in sports works like this?  Really?  If you think this is what is was, then you have to believe that Bill Polian, Jim Caldwell, AND Jim Irsay are the types of people who would do something like that.  Anyone seriously advancing this version of events is no Colts fan.  
• Money (because of the lockout).  No!  If you believe something like that, what does it say about what you think of Jim Irsay?  This is the same guy who paid Ryan Lilja a 1.8 MILLION DOLLAR bonus after he was cut.  They were in no way required to do that.
• Upcoming strategy changes.  No.  Gene Huey has been around through multiple different regimes, I'm sure he would have had no problem coaching any style of running out there.

You want to know what happened?  Here goes:

Jim Caldwell was the "coach in waiting" for a couple of years under Tony Dungy and I am sure he had his own ideas about each of the other assistant coaches currently there.  Dungy was a VERY loyal guy and to my knowledge never once fired a coach during his time in Indianapolis.

Once Caldwell took over, he decided to fire both defensive coordinator Ron Meeks and Special Teams Coach Russ Purnell.  I'm guessing that he also wanted to fire Gene Huey at that time, but was talked out of it.  

Gene is a long time favorite of Jim Irsay and I believe that each incoming Head Coach was asked to keep Huey on his staff if he had no serious objections.  It may have been put to Caldwell that firing Huey would be too much turnover.  Whatever.

So Caldwell gave it a year, and it didn't work for him.

So why did it come out the way it did?  Because of how classy the Colts are.

You see, the Colts care so much about their people that they are in the habit of not announcing that assistant coaches are fired as a matter of course.  They tell them that they are not to be retained and so the coach in question is free to look for work elsewhere without the stigma of being fired.  If he finds a job then it is simply announced that he changed jobs.  This is what they tried to do with both Ron Meeks and Gene Huey.

I guess that there is so little class out there nowadays that people cannot recognize it when they see it.

So some reporter gets a "tip" and starts nosing into it - and messes up the whole process.  Nice.

The only thing unusual about Huey being fired is that it did not happen last year.  Period.

So was Huey a bad coach?  Certainly not.  Owner's favorite or not, he would not have survived through multiple coaching changes if he was not good at his job.  But it would take a pretty superior person to not become stale in a job that long, especially if he never felt the pressure to perform his best due to a seemingly lifetime guarantee of employment.

We will never know the full story, because this is the Indianapolis Colts.  The Classiest Organization in Sports.

Well, That Sucked: Colts lose to the Jets

The Jets got their running game going in the 2nd half and managed enough offense to force the Colts into what looked to be a game-winning drive.  That drive ended with a 50 yard field goal by Adam Vinatieri to give the Colts a two point lead.

What looked to be a hopeless situation for the Jets turned into great field position via a long kickoff return by Antonio Cromartie.

I thought Manning played really well overall, but our failure to *consistently* run on a defense that at times only had a single lineman on the field was our undoing.  Until the Colts can punish defenses that load up on the pass they will continue to be ineffective.

Freeney at Defensive Tackle: Frame by Frame Breakdown

Freeney at DT in a passing situation vs Tennessee in week 17

This is one of the plays that Freeney (circled) played at DT in the week 17 matchup against the Titans.  The player to his right is Kenyatta Dawson number 96 and he is at Freeney's right defensive end position.

At the snap of the ball those two players execute a "twist" play where the RDE crashes down into the offensive left guard, hoping to take the left tackle with him.  Freeney at RDT "twists" around to his right trying to loop around to the QB.

Now the defensive line twist is nothing special in the NFL, you see it every week.  The difference here is that you usually don't have a player with the explosive speed of Freeney coming from the inside to the outside looping around the offensive tackle - usually it is a slower defensive tackle.

That had to have put this in to screw with whoever their first round opponent was going to be.  Why else do it now?

Let see what happened the next play - we will go frame by frame here:

Here is Freeney at DT again - the ball has just been snapped

This time instead of the twist, Freeney rushes into the left guard and spins clockwise, the QB has just gotten the snap and has taken his first step back

The guard is thrown off balance by the violent spin to the inside and now is beaten, the QB is still not done dropping yet

At this point Freeney is through the line, just as the QB is taking his last step

Freeney has flushed the QB to right (offense's left side) throwing off the timing of the play (notice the QB in relation to the hash mark)

As we can see, Freeney was single blocked here by a guard with disastrous consequences for the offense.  The left guard was completely unprepared for someone as fast and skilled as Freeney coming at him.

Will we see this against the Jets?  Probably.  But at the very least the Jets will have to devote some of their preparation time to dealing with this eventuality - and getting the Jets to waste time on it is still a win for the Colts.

How the Jets Defense challenges the Colts Offense

The primary matchup that everyone else has been talking about is that between the Jets corners vs the Colts WRs.  It is expected that the Jets Darrelle Revis will again match up against Reggie Wayne and that Antonio Cromartie is going up against Garcon.

I think that the Colts outside WRs will be mostly taken out of the game.  This is based on recent games the Colts have played against strong man to man teams.  I expect that we will see Wayne catch a couple of the ten yard hitches that he is famous for and that they will hit Garcon on a few short slant routes, but I don't see the Colts getting any downfield passes to Wayne or Garcon since they are being defended by patently superior athletes.

Where the Colts will make their passing yards will be in man to man matchups against the Jet linebackers and safeties.

The Jets know that this is their weakness, so they will probably have to do some tricky things to keep from getting taken apart.

What we will see is a tough (but not bump and run) man to man on the outside and on the slot and running backs.  Where the tricky part is that the Jets will have a linebacker or lineman in a short zone defense about 5 yards behind the line of scrimmage who will be keying on Peyton Manning's eyes.  This will be primarily to protect against quick crossing routes by Jacob Tamme.  This also helps the Jets control the Colts draw play as they will have someone with eyes in the backfield at all times.

Will the Colts be able to defeat this scheme?  Yes, but it will hinge on the time that Manning has to throw the ball.  You will still be able to have success throwing over the middle against this defense, but it will take time for Tamme to clear the middle and get away from the zone defender.

In this example the Colts are running a crossing pattern with Jacob Tamme at TE.  The Jets are shown here in one of their typical blitzes.  The SS, LILB, and the ROLB are all blitzing.  The LOLB is covering Tamme and the RILB is covering the running back.  The FS is in a zone defense covering the deep middle of the field.  The cornerbacks are all matched up on a single receiver in man.

The important player to look at is the Right Defensive End (RDE) for the Jets (in red).  Instead of rushing the passer as usual, he spins around and takes a position in the short middle of the field - covering that area in a zone defense.  As a large lineman, he does not have much range.  The hope is that Manning will not see him and throw a ball right to him, or that at least Manning will have to delay his throw to Tamme until he clears this area.  

This also has the effect of delaying Manning's switching to his secondary receiver (which in this case would be Garcon).  This can throw the timing of the whole play off.  By the time Tamme clears the zone area, if he is not open it will probably be too late to hit Garcon on the short In Route he is running.  The Jets would hope that the rush will have gotten to Manning before he can hit the check down receiver (the RB).

This is just one example of how this works - just a small part of the chess match between Manning and Rex Ryan.

Why has the Colts Running Game Improved?

The Colts running game has approached adequate in the last three games.  This has been noted by many observers, but I have yet to see anyone really asking why?  What changed?

Clearly something has changed, but what?  This does not seem to be a personnel issue.  Five games ago Mike Pollak regained his starting right guard spot.  He had been replaced by Jeff Linkenbach (who is listed as a tackle) for a large part of the season.  This was reportedly to help improve the running game.  It certainly did not improve the running game and Linkenbach proved to be a clear and present danger to the heath and safety of Peyton Manning.

In re-watching the last three games, nothing really jumps out at you.  About the only thing that seems to be a trend is that the Colts have changed the kind of run plays they call.  Mostly you see two types of plays now:  "quick hitters" and draw plays.

On a quick hitter play, the quarterback will quickly pivot once he receives the snap and hand it to a running back who is already on his way to a predetermined hole that the offensive line is supposed to be creating.  The idea is that by quickly creating a hole in the defensive line and getting your back into it immediately, that it will be difficult for the linebackers to get to that hole in time to stop the run.

The advantage to this kind of play is that the offensive line only has to hold their blocks for a short time and it is less imperative that the offensive lineman away from the point of attack run block effectively since their defenders will not have time to get to the play.

When they run draw plays, they also have started to run quicker hitting ones.  Usually a draw play is a slow developing play where the quarterback takes a shotgun snap and appears to look downfield - then hands the ball to a running back who has lingered in the backfield.

Now what they are running as draw plays are more like a inside hand-off from the shotgun formation.

The pass blocking has also improved, but the reasons are also not obvious.  Generally it is easier to pass block if the defense has to be worried about the possibility of a successful running play, so that might be why.

Going into this Jets game, it will be more important than ever to run the ball.  Breaking a few long runs against the Jets blitz will slow them down and give us more time to throw.

Freeney at DT in passing situations: trouble for the Jets?

The Jets have one of the best offensive lines in football.  The one chink in the armour is young Matt Slauson at left guard, who replaces the departed Alan Faneca.

Coincidence or not - during the Titans game Dwight Freeney was lining up at right defensive tackle in passing situations.  If he does this vs the Jets, he would be matched up against the young Jets left guard Matt Slauson.

In those situations Freeney was spinning like mad and caused considerable problems for the Titans offensive line.

The short-area lateral movement of a offensive guard is generally not very good and this is a perfect situation for a player as quick and strong as Freeney to dominate.

I'll be watching this match-up on Saturday to be sure.

You also might want to check out this article: 

How the Jets Defense challenges the Colts Offense

Colts accept Christmas gifts from Titans and Jags - make playoffs

The Colts beat the Titans on Sunday in a game that ultimately only decided playoff seeding.  Now they are heading for a rematch of last years AFC Championship game against the NY Jets.  Had they not won, they would have been playing the Baltimore Ravens.

This was a typical Colts - Titans game where it seems not to matter what they respective records are, usually the outcome is decided as this one was, by a FG.

All indications are that this is the last time we will see Jeff Fisher on the sideline for the Titans.  I think he is one of the best coaches in the NFL and I will be glad to see him out of the division.  Hopefully he leaves the AFC altogether.

Some thoughts about this game:

• Dwight Freeney lined up at defensive tackle in some passing situations with Keyunta Dawson playing the RDE position.  This allowed Freeney to try his spin moves against the left guard - who typically has less lateral quickness.  It may be that they were trying this out for use in the playoffs, or just trying to get into the heads of their next opponent.
• The Titans primarily played man to man coverage all game and we had problems with it.  Expect to see lots of man coverage for the rest of this season.  The loss of Collie and Clark hurts us here the most.
• Garcon struggled all day to get free against the man coverage of the Titans.  Other than one long touchdown catch, he was not getting separation. 
• The offensive line continued their improved play.  Manning had time to throw for the most part and we had some nice runs from the shotgun formation.
• The defense has picked the right time to peak.  They allowed virtually no running room for the Titans.

I'll be posting short updates all week and hopefully will have a full blown preview of the Jets game up later in the week.

Colts run into trouble in Oakland - and like a good team they still win out

The Colts went into the house of a feisty Oakland team and came out with a win that was as close as the 31-26 final score indicates.

The star of this one was the Colts defense which stymied the Raider running game and forced the shaky Jason Campbell into lots of short passes.  The great speed that Oakland has at WR was never on display as Campbell never felt secure enough in the pocket to let something develop downfield.

The primary cause of Campbell's discomfort was Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis, who abused Oakland's inexperienced tackles.  Often there was pressure from the defensive tackles as well.

Oakland did not have a sustained drive all day until their final drive of the game.  Mostly they relied on the strong leg of Sebastian Janikowski, who made four field goals including one from 61 yards.

The Colts continued their recent success running the ball as both Joesph Addai and Dominic Rhodes had some nice runs.  Ever since Mike Pollock has been re-inserted at Right Guard, the Colts have shown improved ability to move people and execute more crisply in their run blocking.

The Colts had difficulty with the rough and tight Oakland bump and run coverage all day but still moved the ball in spurts.  Manning was intercepted twice on the day, both were on inaccurate throws - although one was tipped.  Reggie Wayne was unable to work free from Oakland's All-Pro cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha, only catching a few passes when Asomugha was covering someone else.

Manning's timing with Pierre Garcon was off most of the day as well.  Garcon seemed to have trouble getting off the bump.  The most important receiver in the first half was Jacob Tamme, who beat Oakland safeties for nice gains on several occasions, mostly on crossing routes.  He also beat a middle linebacker on a touchdown catch up the seam.

Next week they have the erratic Titans at home in Indianapolis.

I was going to wish everyone a Merry Christmas...

But we don't really do that here.  Sorry...   :)

Trouble ahead for Colts in Oakland

I hate to be the bearer of bad tidings, but the Colts do not match up well with the wildly inconsistent Oakland Raiders.

The main thing that concerns me is their defense and their bump and run man to man coverage schemes.  Generally Oakland plays very simple defenses that reflect the style that Al Davis coached back in the 1960's.  The cornerbacks are up in the receiver's faces and the strong safety is up closer to the line.  The free safety is back in a single high coverage.

It is critical against this sort of defense for your wide receivers to be able to beat the bump at the snap and to get separation.  Often the timing of the pass play can be severely disrupted if the receivers cannot get free quickly.

If a good quarterback has time to let the play develop, big plays can be there.  But we have not had a single game this season where we have been able to provide Manning a clean pocket throughout the game.

Expect our offensive line to have a lot of trouble against Oakland's big and talented front four.  I don't expect us to be able to run the ball at all - despite our improvement against Jacksonville.

The critical player this week is Pierre Garcon.  He has shown in the past that he is capable of winning one on one physical match ups and he is our most explosive receiver.  Reggie Wayne will have Nnamdi Asomugha in his face all day and may be taken out of the game.  Blair White will be at a disadvantage with his relatively small frame - look for him to be roughed up a bit in the slot.

The match-up for us on defense is not much better.  The Raiders feature a power running game with a play action passing game feeding off of that.  Our front seven will be tested all game by tackle to tackle runs.

I feel that the Colts only hope in this game is getting ahead early, forcing the Raiders to pass the ball.

This could be a ugly and depressing game.

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What Peyton Manning is doing (and how to beat him)

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Pro Football Talk: The latest Jets controversy is the strangest one yet

Matt Flynn and Joe Webb - Analyzing Young Quarterbacks

One of my favorite things to do is watch young quarterbacks and try to extrapolate what I see into the future.  As a Colts fan, I don't get the chance too much.  Most times when someone other than Manning is in there - everything just turns into grab-ass.

I have seen a lot of young quarterbacks come through the league and I don't think I have missed on one yet, but then again I was not on the record either.  So here we go:

Matt Flynn is Aaron Rodger's backup in Green Bay and had his coming out party vs the Patriots this last Sunday.  I did not see anything I didn't like with Flynn and it is easy to see why he beat out Brian Brohm for the backup job.

Flynn is a big, upright passer with a strong and quick arm.  He showed good command and timing in Green Bay's west coast scheme, but he looks to me to be a guy who would play well in any offense.  He showed excellent command and composure and the offense allowed itself to be run by him.

His accuracy at every route level was excellent, his timing was right on for the most part.

For a young quarterback, he showed excellent judgement.  On multiple occasions he threw the ball out of bounds when a play was not there in order to prevent the sack and loss of yardage.  He did this a couple of times when a sack might have taken them out of field goal range.  I'd say that at least in this one game, he showed better judgement than Aaron Rodgers generally does in this part of the game.

He did very well with his feet also.  He has quick feet and has escapability; but unlike most young quarterbacks - running was not his immediate reaction to his first pass option not being there.

His pocket awareness was very good also, he was able to feel pressure and shuffle away from it whilst still keeping his attention down field.  In this he also seems to exceed Aaron Rodgers.

Now, I'm not suggesting that he should start over the excellent Rodgers, but Matt Flynn just put himself on the short list of young quarterbacks that are worth trading for and he might generate the kind of interest that Matt Schaub drew in Atlanta before going to Houston for a 2nd round pick.

I always try to figure out who a young quarterback reminds me of.  I'd say Flynn most reminds me of Aaron Rodgers.  And that is a good thing.


Joe Webb is a rookie who came in for an injured Brett Farve last night for the Vikings.  He practiced with the first team all week, but Farve got the start ahead of him.

When he did come in, I did not see anything from him that tells me that he can be a viable quarterback in the NFL.  Honestly, he looked like a big strong wide receiver playing quarterback.

He clearly has a very strong arm, and he has size.  He showed absolutely no pocket presence at all and was sacked several times when all he had to do was shuffle a little bit to the side to avoid the rush.  This is a critical problem that I see with athletic quarterbacks and I am excited when I see one who has pocket presence.  Webb does not have it.

When Webb came in the Vikings immediately scrapped anything complicated in their offense - this is not a good sign when you consider that he was practicing with the first team all week and his team was behind on the scoreboard.

It looked like he only was asked to make one read on a given play and he would just take off running if that was not there.

I feel completely confident that Joe Webb's destiny is not being a NFL quarterback.  I think you will see the Vikings draft a young QB in next year's draft.  Hopefully they have gotten over their fetish for running quarterbacks with no instincts whatsoever.


You also might want to check out:

Mike Florio and PFT: The NFL's Check and Balance

Fascinating Magazine I Found The Other Day

Donald Brown to Colts Fans: How do you like me now?

Colts fans are being shown this season how much difference the offensive line makes to the running game - if they care to notice.  The Colts have rededicated themselves to running the ball, mostly to their left side using finesse runs behind Charlie Johnson and Kyle DeVan.  Donald Brown had three really nice game changing runs. Longtime fan favorite Dominic Rhodes had a couple of nice plays as well.

Austin Collie was having a great game after coming back from a concussion, but unfortunately he suffered another one and I don't expect to see him again during the regular season.  It might be in his best interest to be shut down for the year regardless.

This was an exciting game in the end, after looking like a Colts runaway early in the game.  But it always goes this way with Jacksonville.

I expect us to have a very difficult time with Oakland next week.  We do not match up with them very well and a loss would not surprise me.

Notes from the Titans game, or How Pollak got his groove back

Upon further review of the Titans game, Mike Pollak looks much improved since his four game benching.  In this last game, he actually approaches average!  Of course just being close to average gives him better grades than the rest of the offensive line generally earns.  He does not seem to have gotten any stronger, but his run blocking technique is better and he actually got some movement on the guy he was blocking on several key runs Thursday night, something he rarely has accomplished before.  When protecting Manning, he was less hazardous to life and limb than Jeff Linkenbach - but that is not saying much.

Of course it would be quite unfair of me not to describe Linkenbach's good performance in the 2nd half at left tackle, replacing the injured Charlie Johnson.  Linkenbach was always intended to be a tackle for the Colts and the experiment of playing him at right guard was a miserable failure.  But at tackle he has looked good.

Daniel Muir had another good night against the run.  He has had a good year penetrating the offensive line and generally being a hard to control pest.

Pierre Garçon drew a lot of criticism for his performance earlier in the year.  It is true that he was not playing well, but being called "lazy" and "timid" was uncalled for.  When you see a player on the field not coming close to performing as well as you remember, your first thought should ALWAYS be that he is playing injured.

If he is not on the injury report and continues to play below his previous level, your second thought should ALWAYS be that he is playing injured.

Now that Garçon's secretly strained hamstrings have healed, he is looking a lot like he did in last year's breakout season.  Learning how to play through pain is a challenge for young players, and it affects some more than others.

That brings us to Donald Brown.  I think he came back still injured due to Addai and Hart being unable to play.  For several weeks he looked slow, tentative, and generally unlike the player we saw flashes from last year.  He has looked better each of the last three games and is starting to show us why the Colts spent a 1st round draft pick on him.

The Colts never intended him to be a every down move the chains type of back.  He was brought in to be a change-up to Addai's fastball.  To run draws and screen plays, to flex out to WR on occasion.  Both him and Addai have been almost continually hurt, so we have never really been able to see this dynamic.

Even though he seems to be healed up, our truly terrible offensive line is preventing him from really showing us what he can do.  But the flashes are there.  I think he will be ok.

Colts avoid killer mistakes, get by pesky Titans

This was a closer game than it should have been, as the defense was inexplicably unable to control Tennessee's passing game.  They were able to keep Chris Johnson bottled up for the most part, excepting a couple of runs where we lost outside contain.

Jeff Linkenbach stepped in at LT for an injured Charlie Johnson and did a good job, especially in blocking for the run.

Donald Brown showed that he can run the ball inside just fine when he is not getting smashed in the backfield.

The Colts actually ran the ball effectively on occasion last night.

More later in the week, great win for the Colts!

Expecting a loss does not make it any less painful

No matter how a overtime defeat goes down, it is going to be painful.  To have it happen on another Manning interception is just adding insult to injury.  Manning was peppering the left side of the field with one short pass after another to bring the Colts back to tie the game, but threw one too many over there and got the last one picked.

A fine effort by the defense in the 2nd half was wasted by the offensive miscues.  A returning Gary Brackett had a fine game at MLB and the interior defensive line played well, lead by the steadily improving Fili Moala.

The running game was merely useless this week, much improved from the futile effort against the Chargers.  Both James and Hart had a few positive runs to break the trend of short losses on running plays.

I expect things to get better next week with the return of Austin Collie from the head injury caused by the dirty hit by Patriots SS Rodney Hariweather.

Coltzilla.com weekly Podcast

I was honored to be part of Coltzilla.com's weekly podcast; check it out:

Check it to Pancakes, Episode 17: Week 13 – Cowboys at Colts

Should Peyton Manning re-sign with the Colts?

It was announced last month that the contract negotiations with Peyton Manning were being pushed off until after the season was over.  Nothing surprising there for those who follow the Colts.

Everyone assumes that Manning will be a Colt until he retires and that the only question will be the money involved.  The Colts have already said that they want him here without any reservations, and Manning has said nothing to go against that.

The question that no one seems to be asking is:  Would Manning be better off somewhere else?

This would make Colts fans truly ill

With all of the success he has had in Indianapolis, it seems like a silly question.  He has a offensive system in place that he is comfortable with.  He has good relationships with the players, management, and the community - so no problem there.  No one out there is saying that the future doesn't look good for the franchise, right?

Well, almost no one.

When I look at the Colts franchise and project out where it seems to be heading, I see some real intrinsic problems on the horizon.  There are two primary things I have in mind:

• The offensive line is really bad from a talent perspective.  I wrote earlier in the week that I don't think that any starter on the Colts offensive line could displace a starter on the Patriots, Chargers, Steelers, Ravens, or Jets.  That is kind of a big deal.  Nothing about how the Colts have been drafting offensive linemen in recent years tells me that this will change.  All of their current starters were either undrafted free-agents or second day picks.  In the past six drafts they have picked an offensive lineman four times in the 4th round or higher.  Two are on the bench and two are no longer with the team.
• Front office transition.  Current Team President and future Hall of Famer Bill Polian will retire at some point; and I feel it will be sooner than later.  He has clearly been smoothing the way for his son, Chris Polian, to succeed him.  Now if Chris is as good as his Father there should be nothing to worry about.  But what are the chances of that?  He was promoted to Assistant General Manager in 2004, and if you look at the Colts drafts from 2005 to present - there is one player who has made a pro-bowl, Joesph Addai, and the jury is still out on him.  Of the first day picks in that time,  only two (in my opinion) are solid starters:  Kelvin Hayden / CB / 2005 / 2nd round & Jerraud Powers / CB 2009 / 3rd round.  Only two other first day picks from those drafts are even the primary starter at their position (Fili Moala & Addai).  Sometimes when a son takes over for his father - you get a chip off the ol' block - sometimes you get Mike Brown.

If these current trends continue (and I have no reason to think they will not) Manning could be trapped in a situation that will:

• Tarnish his legacy.  No position (except maybe RB) is more dependent on the players around him to perform well.  Every time the Colts fall short the national media rushes to tell us how it is Manning's fault.  Any downtrend in his career caused by degradation of his supporting cast WILL be blamed on him.
• Shorten his career.  Manning is getting hit more this year than any previous season.  In terms of actual sacks, everything looks fine.  But everyone knows that Manning rarely gets sacked - due to his own awareness and his willingness to throw the ball away.  Something in his body is going to break eventually.

The last few years for the Colts are eerily similar to the last five years of Dan Marino's career in Miami.  Every season the running game got worse.  Every year there was a renewed commitment to run the ball.  Each year they continued to draft offensive linemen that were pass blockers.  The problem never got solved.

As a Colts fan, the idea of Manning playing in another uniform is both nauseating and frighting.  But just like LeBron James, he might be better off somewhere else.

Imagine Manning with the NY Jets.  What could he do if he did not have to throw the ball 40 times a game because he had a dominant running game?  Would the Jets trade Sanchez and four or five first day draft picks for Manning?  If I was a Jets fan, I'd be for it.

The chances of Manning not retiring as a Colt are remote.  Even if Manning wished to leave, the Colts will probably have the ability to use something like a franchise tag to keep him around.

I'd just argue that it is not in his best interest.

Note: Brett Mock over at Coltzilla.com details some barriers to Manning ever moving on.  He makes some good points, check it out.

PFTers may also be interested in:

Mike Florio and PFT: The NFL's Check and Balance

Coltzilla.com: Chargers 36 Colts 14 – Quick Reaction

Coltzilla.com as always has a quick write-up of the game.  Good work guys!

Chargers 36 Colts 14 – Quick Reaction

Colts offense beaten down by selves; the Chargers were also there.

There may be some who feel that after this ugly defeat suffered by the Colts, that the team didn't show up.  The problem is that they DID show up and this is what they look like.

Future Hall of Famer Peyton Manning was hit and harassed all night behind a offensive line that features not a single player who would start for the Patriots, Chargers, Steelers, Ravens, or Jets.  I'll go further and say that if they all got cut tomorrow, not one of them would be claimed off of wavers.

The Colts gameplan in this one was obviously to throw short precise passes to keep Manning upright, and it seemed to be working early on.  But starting in the 2nd quarter the Chargers starting jamming the receivers and daring Manning to try to take advantage by throwing deep.  But who to throw deep to?  Wayne was doubled short and long all night, every deep pass to him was at some point tipped by a Chargers defender.  Garcon and Manning are not on the same page and several opportunities were lost by timing issues on long passes.

Running the ball could have really taken the pressure off of the challenged passing game, but the current crop of offensive linemen are incapable of moving a large defensive lineman.

For most of the game the Colts defense really stepped up and slowed down the high scoring Chargers offense.  They forced Phillip Rivers to throw the ball short all night, taking away their deep passes.

I'll have more on them later in the week.

My Interview with Ken Dilger, former Colt Tight End

I was honored to be able to interview one of my favorite players from the past, Ken Dilger.  Ken was an crucial part of the Colts offense from 1995 through 2001.  Then he joined the Tampa Bay Bucs and helped them win their one and only Super Bowl.

Here is a video of Ken Dilger in action (at 0:58): Youtube

I was able to get former Colt great Jim Harbaugh to give the introduction.

This is a wide-ranging interview touching on players, coaches, and events he was a part of.

Ken was VERY productive as a complete tight end in three different offensive schemes.

Mainly I focused on getting an insiders view of how the Colts blocking schemes worked when he was there and why there were problems with certain 3-4 defenses.  And also we discussed the differences in how Tom Moore's offense worked in comparison to the West Coast Offense and the offense of Lindy Infante.

Peppered all through the interview are his thoughts and recollections of many former Colts as well as many former Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Please give it a listen and leave any thoughts in the comments.

Thanks

Click here for the Dilger Interview

Just a hint as to an upcoming feature

Giants come up with novel defense to Vick - lose anyways

The Giants lost to the Eagles 27-17 in a sloppy game marred with dueling turnovers.  What I found interesting was the brilliant defensive plan that the Giants employed to control the seemingly uncontrollable Michael Vick.

Many times during the game the Giants blitzed several players into the gaps between the gaurds.  This in of itself is not an unusual strategy against a normal QB.  But conventional wisdom says that for a QB like Vick, you keep him in the pocket and rush the outside.  Rushing guys up the middle normally would just allow him to run to either side and hilarity would then ensue.

Where the Giants differed in this was that they were rushing six guys on most plays, but having the ends rush directly upfield with no attempt to loop around.  This had the effect of creating a"picket line" that the 6'0 Vick had to throw over.  Vick was slowed down by this but continued to play well; showing a considerable amount of maturity in what could be a season in which he earns a Comeback Player of the Year award as well as the MVP.  Apparently prison makes a man patient.

The Giants turned the ball over multiple times, some forced by good Eagles defense - some entirely unforced and frankly a bit buffoonish.

As this game fades into history, what may remain is the blueprint that may allow other teams to slow Vick down.

We will see what adjustments Andy Reid and his staff come up with.

Poor tackling and Manning miscues allow Patriot escape - dirty hit sidelines Collie again

You could hear the murmur of the New England crowd when the Colts defense held the Patriots to a field goal midway through the 4th quarter, giving them a 31-14 lead with 10:23 to go in the game.  Why were they concerned?  Because they were very uneasy about having only a 17 point lead with that much time left.  That is how much Peyton Manning has gotten into the psyche of the New England fans.

Their concerns were justified as Manning lead the Colts to two consecutive scoring drives to close the lead to three points.  The defense was solid all of the 2nd half, correctly some of the horrific tackling that allowed the Patriots to get a few additional yards on virtually ever play in the first half.

In the end all of the work of the Colts came to naught as Manning was fooled into throwing an easy pick to end their chances.

Multiple times Sunday night Manning was fooled by a clever defensive scheme that made a cover three defense look like a cover two.  On four Occasions manning threw deep to the right side into the teeth of the secondary; getting two picked off.  At least one of these was on play action, so perhaps having his eyes away from the secondary was a factor.

It should be noted that the Colts would not have been in this game were it not for the great job Manning did in bringing them back.  This after the defense put the Colts in a hole, allowing three touchdown drives in the first half and one in the third quarter.

Austin Collie (who I thought was the key to the game) seemingly suffered another concussion on a long catch and run in the first quarter on what looked to be an unpenalized cheap shot by Brandon Meriweather.  Meriweather drove his shoulder directly into Collie's helmet while he was being held up by another defensive back.  Going after the head of a player who had suffered a severe concussion a couple of weeks before was either a happy accident for the Patriots or a planned strategy by the same team that let Rodney Harrison cheap shot players week after week.

Tom Brady played his normal game against the Colts - strong first half, timid and shaky in the 2nd half.  The Colts went from their usual zone defense in the first half to a tight man to man in the 2nd half - daring the Patriots receivers to beat them.  This strategy worked and the Patriots will probably see that again over the next few weeks unless they show that they can defeat it.

All in all, the game went better than I thought it would.  After losing Collie early, the Colts were able to scramble to more points than I thought was possible.

Mike Florio and PFT: The NFL's Check and Balance

I realized that as a certified blogger that I am obligated to act as if I am only aware of Mike Florio's Profootballtalk.com through some sort of forth hand reports of the irresponsible rumors reportedly originating from there.  Most of the time we bloggers (and those in the "real" media) act as if he does not exist.


Oh, we may mention him when he links to one of our stories.  We may even let slip a little of our secret joy at having PFT's powerful lens briefly focused on us, if just for a moment.  But the first rule is:  You do not talk about PFT.  And you know what the second rule is...


I have come here today to break ranks with my fellow bloggers (which if truth be told, I have rarely been in lock-step with them).  I bare my soul to you today and reveal my sin:


I read PFT daily.  I read PFT multiple times a day.  I have it bookmarked even now.




Now that the burden is lifted, I ask:  Where is the shame?  By what right is Mr. Florio shunned in the daylight, only to be secretly invited in after the sun is down?  What is the secret of his notoriety?


As far as I can tell, once PFT was noticed by the "real media", it was decided by common consent to give no notice of him.  "He is not like us", they said.  "He is a blogger, whatever that is", they muttered.  "Speak not of him and his works, he is but a tiny noise and he will not be heard except through our whim and for our purpose".


Thus it was decided that Mr. Florio would not be heard.  Yet they could not ignore him.  Nay, they read him daily.  Each day they would with trepidation and uncertain fingers type in that dreaded address.  They never bookmarked it of course, that would infer significance.  So with their computers they viewed the words of Mr. Florio, and sometimes his words became their words.  Oh, the words would be changed a little here and a little there to obscure their true source.  Sometimes Mr. Florio would get a backhanded credit as a "Internet rumor" or "Internet source"; with "Internet" being the dirty word in the sentence and intoned as such.


You see, they viewed Mr. Florio with the same trepidation that the Dodo should have felt when first they saw a ship approach their island.  They feared him and despised him - and they were right to.  They had control over the sports agenda.  It was theirs to decide what was "news" and what was not.  They exercised their right with the arrogance of those born into leadership.  Heavy is the burden of protecting the masses against themselves - this they moaned to each other with an air of entitlement.


So mention him they did not, even amongst themselves.  Many times before they had smothered a dissenting voice this way.  It had always worked before.


But something was different this time.  There was this thing - the "Internet", which they found they could neither understand nor control.  People choosing for themselves where they get their news!  "Don't they understand that these sources are dangerous and ungoverned?", they cried?


The people heard their pleadings and were unmoved by their words.  It seems that individuals can be trusted to consistently act in their own interest, choosing what works for them when they can.


This shocked and dismayed the "real media".  They decided to ignore Mr. Florio harder.  Like Boxer in Animal Farm they just muttered "I will work harder"; this was their way of ignoring events around them that they could not understand.


Then like Boxer, they were betrayed.  Betrayed by their patrons; their bosses.  "We need to get in on this Internet thing, they say it is where everything is going", said their bosses.  "We are going to give away your words for free".


So, horrified by this change in fortune, they dipped their toes into the murky waters of the Internet.  "At least", they thought. "Now that we are here, there will be no more need for him".


What they could not know or understand was that now, they were on his turf.  They were shocked to find that even with their offerings free for the taking, Mr. Florio still gained subjects.  "The people are still choosing him", they moaned.


One day the awoke to find that Mr. Florio's influence had outstripped theirs.  The people no longer considered the "real media" to be the arbiter of what was "news".


Their roles switched that day.  It was unspoken and unacknowledged, but anyone watching knew.


Bit by bit Mr. Florio was invited into their homes and sheepishly introduced to their guests.  They did not expect Mr. Florio to thrive in such an environment.  "Our guests do not want his kind in their midst", they thought to themselves.  But Mr. Florio won them over too.  It turned out that even those who were late to the party still wanted the same thing: Choice.


So where are we today?  Mr. Florio commands a worldwide following undreamed of in the pre-internet days.  But is Mr. Florio a perfect leader?  A beacon of enlightenment?


Sadly no; he is but a man.  But he is a common man, educated yes - but not different in spirit than the masses he speaks to.  True, he has a tongue cultured by the worlds second oldest profession - but the heart and mind that controls that tongue is of good, common stock.  He possesses none of the self congratulatory inbreeding of those he vanquished.


Because of his roots; when he is right - the people listen, and argue.


Because of his roots; when he is wrong - the people listen, and argue.


Wrong or right, he is always relevant.


Where those before him sometimes stumbled into a story, he had a flashlight looking far ahead.  Micheal Vick?  He saw that first.  Reggie Bush?  He shouted it out.  Spygate?  He smell trouble a mile away.  The eagerly anticipated demise of Terry Bradshaw?  Well, he was wrong about everything from the neck down.   Apparently no one is perfect.


So I come here to pay tribute to our acknowledged master, Mr. Florio.  May his reign be long and righteous, warts and all.


I will be hearing his words, and I know you will be too.  Even if you cannot bear to admit it.