Yes, Sproles is a good returner, but I think there is consensus that Polian is actively looking for a returner in the draft (or at least that he should be). That young player (or FA) is going to be cheaper than Sproles. Even cutting Joe ($2.2M in ‘10) won’t clear enough cash to cover the $4-5M Sproles is probably going to want.

Slash196 raises a valid point: Brown is still a work in progress on blitz pickup. Addai, on the other hand, is a sure thing.

Last, Joe had a good year and great playoffs. Let’s not throw him under the bus. Sproles would not be a great fit, and certainly not as good as Addai.

Hope you’re better BBS.

Most people are so quick to dismiss how important Joseph is in the Colts’ offensive scheme.

we already have 3 solid running backs. Plus Hart is going to be better than Sproles in time.

Addai works with what he’s got and is great at blitz pick up.

Plus I don’t want to see that little neanderthal in a Colts uniform.

besides no one remembers this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VS-90×1op4s you silly kids blockings for addai ONLY

Suggesting Addai go in favor of a MIDGET?? Seriously??!?!!1

BigBlueShoe, I can no longer take you seriously.

but I don’t see the Colts cutting Joe for him. Addai always brings it in the playoffs and dude was lighting the Saints’ run D in the Super Bowl. Plus, you can’t forget about how great Joe’s Blitz pickups are. Addai is Peyton’s security blanket; you can’t take that away from the franchise player and expect Brown (who needs Addai’s mentoring on Blitzes) or Sporles to do what he does. Just give him and Brown an o-line the Colts run game would be deadly.

To think that Sproles is a better running back than Addai is moronic. Dropping Addai in favor of Sproles would be a HUGE drop off in almost every facet of the game – running the ball, converting 3rd downs, pass protecting. BBS proves he’s barely a knowledgeable fan by spouting this crap. Good thing it’s “Trust in Polian” and not “Trust in BBS.”

I still believe that even Simpson can make great kick returns if the blocking allowed him to do so. Blocking seems to have been our issue on returns and in the running game in general all year long. Adding another RB, albeit a dynamic one, probably doesn’t net us much gain.

If someone has to go, perhaps Simpson? Or Rushing?

Just draft Dexter McCluster. Guy is an exact replica of him and will make a great impact on special teams and third downs as a back. Just makes more sense than breaking the bank on Sproles.

The little 5’6" Darren isn’t a great player. It was wierd to read you talk about him like that. He may be decent, but not great. His 3.7 YPC this year was a drop off from his previous few years and his longest run was only 21 yards. He did pretty good receiving but not enough to make a huge impact. Addai was a more consistant and better rusher, better in receiving, and can block. Don’t forget that our line isn’t great at run blocking. If Polian wanted a return guy that bad he would have gone after Cribbs before the trade deadline (he would also be much cheaper than Darren, who will now be just a decent backup for the rest of his career). I would think Bill will find someone in the draft. We’ll see.

Horrible idea dude. Get well soon and then tell us your head cold kept you from thinking straight.

Donald Brown? A better back than Addai?

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I think you might be alone on this, BBS.

I think the idea of getting rid of Addai is way to extreme a scenario, but BBS is not wrong when he identifies the fact that Indy simply needs a better kick and punt returner. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I actually I love Simpson… as a running back. As a kick returner, he’s actually a liability. If you think about it, it’s actually surprising that Indy went to the Super Bowl with that sort of return game (as an aside, it shows you just how incredible Manning is).

Indy very badly needs a decent special teams returner. As another aside: I think this is an area where Polian is actually weaker at selecting than the offensive line; Charlie Johnson is at least servicible, nobody saw Ugoh falling off until Indy’s coaches tried to motivate him, and Pollack was rated well by damn near every predraft board I saw, so Polian wasn’t alone in that misfire. But name a guy either drafted or signed as an FA who’s got legit return ability.

Indy also needs good blocking on special teams, so a returner by itself won’t be a magical fix. But again, the decisions Simpson made on returns are questionable at best, and settling for starting Indy below the 20 is simply unacceptible. Getting a player who could be a legitimate threat even with weak blocking would be a terrific start to fixing special teams. I do not agree that Addai would be an acceptible price for an upgrade there, but I do see where the notion of Sproles handling return duties would be beneficial to Indy.

Of course, as others have pointed out, this will be an impossible signing without losing a free agent, and I don’t think Brackett or Bethea is a good price to pay either. So this is indeed nothing more than daydreaming. But still… if the return game on both kicks and punts could simply net just a few more yards – 5, maybe – then imagine what that does to Indianapolis’s scoring ability. This is already a team where a former multiple Super Bowl winner (the Patriots) didn’t want to risk giving Manning the ball by punting from the 28 and concievably sending him back to the opposite 30 with just 2+ minutes left. Any other QB, that’s a no brainer; against Manning, it’s a high-probability-of-failure risk. Imagine a return game that would actually give the offense good field position. Even when they’d misfire, they could stick the opponents deep with McAfee’s leg. An improvement in the return game with nothing else changing would make a real difference, I believe.

But anyway… yeah, this is all just fantasy. If Indy ends up somehow getting Sproles, my first reaction will be “What went wrong?”, because it means that the Colts lost someone else. And I don’t think I want that to happen. If it were possible to pick up Sproles with no other losses, then I’d think it’d be a good idea. But outside that scenario, forget it.

Just cut Simpson and Rushing and sign Sproles (somehow) to do kick returning and random offensive plays.

Money isn’t as big a deal with no salary cap.

Cutting him for a kick returner would be the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.

I would right whoever made that decision a thank you note! LOL

So we cut Addai, who may have had the best year of any running back last year in the category of stuff you don’t see on paper. Our run game sucked, mainly due to our atrocious run blocking. Brown, although showed brilliant flashes of potential, was slightly injury prone and made hardly an impact. Addai, on the other hand somehow had an incredible final 3/4 of the season while maybe seeing 1 hole open up for him per game. He started averaging 4 ypc against great Ds while having no holes to run through. He also did something we are not used to seeing from him, which is stop the twinkle toes running style of the ‘08 season, and running hard down the field, and taking two, three guys out in the redzone to score TDs VERY few other NFL RBs would have made. Oh, and let’s not forget he is still a dynamic receiving threat and a very good blocker.

Yet you suggest management says, “Listen, Joe, although we appreciate the unbelievable effort and heart you showed last season while being the one bright spot in an otherwise abominable run game, it’s just not working out. I know we haven’t made it ideal for you, seeing as we have had no success in improving the run blocking for two straight seasons and how instead of drafting/signing better o-linemen, we decided it was probably more your fault and it was better to draft a dynamic young RB to take your spot, er, i mean push you to your true potential. We appreciate you acting with class and not complain, and even help mentor the guy we’re replacing you with, er, DANG!, I mean partnering you with. Even though he did not show he was close to ready to be a feature back yet this past season, we are going to take a shot in the dark and give him the keys to the run game, and sign Darren Sproles, who is going to be our return specialist and get 8 carries a game for a lot of money. We could draft someone to return kicks for much cheaper, but…no. So we’re releasing you. We would trade you to a team for an established playmaker or a high first round pick, but why risk the guy end up being a bust? So……bye. You know you’re way out right?”

And despite my heavy sarcasm, I am a big DB supporter and think he will be a playmaker next year, and Addai will once again be great, this time with a hopefully improved line to block for them. Sproles is a return man and younger, smaller, quicker version of Kevin Faulk. If we sign him as a free agent, great, I think a dynamic return man is a big time gamechanging position, and it would only give Peyton and the O a shorter distance to travel. Cutting your primary back who gave his heart and soul to the team despite what he had to deal with (didn’t even mention fan criticism), and was so key to us winning many games (Houston, for instance), is not only an incredibly ignorant decision, but a spit in the face do a player who only helped us win. And you thought NE trading Seymour (who was 29) for a top ten pick in ‘11, but it’s okay to let one of your best players, who is 26 and is a great player still getting better?

Although cutting Addai would not be the way to go… If anything cut Simpson and Rushing (Mainly Kick Returners) and add Sproles then. We’d be an even better backfield at that point with Sproles, Addai, Brown and Hart. If we’re going to do better next season on offense, then we are going to need to improve our backf ield.