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Player Review: Charlie Johnson

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It's probably a good thing we didn't do these reviews last season, or else we all would have said horrible, hurtful things that we could never take back about Charlie Johnson.

CJ wasn't just a solid guard he was competant at left tackle while Ugoh sat out 4 games (for whatever the reason was). Quite a turnaround from the most hated Colt since Mike Vanderjagt.

Images_5cnews_photos_5c74_johnson_5c2008_0907_chi_044_medium

"Words can hurt, you know"

via www.colts.com

CJ was one of just 4 players to start all 16 games for the offense (CJ, Diem, Peyton, Wayne).

The Colts line ranked 23rd in adjusted line yards, 21st in power success, 32nd in runs of 10+ yards and in the brightest spot were the 13th least stuffed running game (stat definitions here). So the Colts running game was consistently sub par. They were far from explosive and were stuffed less than the average team, it was just mediocre gain after mediocre gain.

While the run blocking was far from spectacular, the pass protection was excellent despite Peyton's limited mobility early on. They gave up the 4th least total sacks and ranked first in FO's adjusted sack rate. Obviously some of that is Peyton's ability to read a defense and get the ball out quickly, in fact Indy has been top 2 in adjusted sack rate 7 of the last 8 years. Can anyone guess the year they didn't finish in the top 2? Highlight the gap below for the answer.

2007, this year doesn't change the disaster CJ was in 07

Charlie Johnson is now in a contract year. He'll count 550K towards the cap next season. If 2010 is uncapped CJ will be a restricted free agent, if a new CBA is negotiated in time and 2010 is a capped season, CJ will be a unrestricted FA.

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I hope to god

that he never starts at LT again. I know he has improved a little, but there are still too many lapses when he starts at LT. Keep him at guard or start him at RT, but not LT.

by metal_militia on Feb 7, 2009 2:10 PM EST reply actions   0 recs

Future Starting RT?

This appears to be the line of the next few years:

LT-Ugoh
LG-Lilja (Richard if Lilja is done)
C-Saturday
RG-Pollak
RT-Johnson

With Justice waiting and learning under Saturday to someday replace him.

by Colts Homer on Feb 7, 2009 3:31 PM EST reply actions   0 recs

asuming the Colts sign Saturday.........

Nate Davis = beast, God I hope he doesn't go to Detriot.......

by colts9318rock on Feb 7, 2009 4:54 PM EST up reply actions   0 recs

pass pro strong?

Shake,
Nifty trick with the hidden text—you have a future in writing contracts for credit card companies someday….

I don’t know if I’d use sack rates or total sacks to measure the pass pro this year (perhaps any year). My eyes told Manning was under constant pressure, moreso than I remember, really, with the possible exception of the injury-decimated 2007. (Think of Brady’s “time to knit a sweater” in 2007. Except for the SB, that was excellent pass pro.)

I know FO did a report on QB hits and hurries from both an offensive and defensive perspective and Manning was a “leader” in being roughed up but near the bottom on sacks. This was around week 12 or so, IIRC. To me that says a lot about the protection (and maybe the refs—you’d think they’d go overboard to protect one of the public faces of the league. Could you imagine how much more he’d be smashed around if he was a nobody?) It also says a ton about Manning—in the split-second between getting slammed and getting taken down, he unloads. And did it well enough to get an MVP, though the results were below the standards we’ve come to expect.

Just because our QB has a good mental clock, fast release, and is knowledgable enough to find holes in the secondary or throw the ball away, don’t go calling the pass pro “excellent.” Clearly it was adequate, but I think if it was actually “good,” we’d have had a lot more passing success. Part of the problem was Manning was forced to throw a sliver of a second too early and missed, uncharacteristically, on many deep routes this season.

They did okay, but the highest praise I’d heap on the pass pro is “good.” far short of “excellent.” As someone pointed out yesterday, part of that could have been Mudd’s surgery—with the OL’s commander-in-chief out for a few weeks, and coaching from a chair for a few more, plus the injuries and Ugoh’s funk and many rookie starts, well, they may have done the best they were capable of. But still not excellent in my book. There is a lot of upside to be seen with better health and seasoning of the rookies. Let’s revisit this next year—I think they have nowhere to go but up, significantly for the run game and also a pretty good amount in the passing game. And we all know that for Manning to garner an unprecedented 4th MVP he’ll have to have an absolutely monster year, which starts with the OL improving both the run blocking and the pass pro.

Bobman

by Bobman on Feb 8, 2009 12:41 AM EST reply actions   0 recs

they aren't "as good" as their pass pro ranking

but they don’t have to be. The pass offense would be just as effective if the OL was better at pass blocking, but Peyton’s awareness was decreased by an equal amount.

I'm so fly,
I take this parachute off
I might fall and die
-Young Jeezy "Go Crazy"

by shake n bake on Feb 8, 2009 12:48 AM EST up reply actions   0 recs

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