http://www.profootballtalk.com/2008/10/15/mccargo-fails-physical/

Ugh.  This better be one of those Florio lies that we have become accustom to.  If it is true, I AM PISSED.  We just wasted a trade deadline when we could have gotten someone like Adam Carriker or another Cover 2 nose tackle.  I wish we could be given some commish's ruling that we can seek a trade for this week, but I know that wouldn't happen.  This is something that should have been figured out prior to the deadline.  I am so freaking mad if this is true.  Of course, this is the same guy who said Marvin hid his gun in a bucket and Dungy was retiring, so don't write it down in stone already.  When someone like NFL.com reports it, I will believe it.

Okay, let's just say that every player on the active roster is healthy going into Jacksonville (it's hard to imagine, I know).  Who do you think would be the 8 players who wouldn't be dressing for the game?  We know that this week Bob Sanders, Mike Pollak, Jacob Tamme, and all of the other injured players will be taking up spots, but if there were no injuries, who would not make the 45 player roster?  I can't find 8 players to not carry.  Can anyone even think of 8 players that would make sense?

I was going to do this last night, but Ike took down the power.  Trees were falling everywhere in Indiana.  This hurricane was huge.

The Colts looked terrible in the first half.  Our offensive line was down to the backups.  If this team was healthy, Jamey Richard, Charlie Johnson, Steve Justice, and Dan Federkeil would not be playing in such a big game.  We were shut out in the first half with a Peyton Manning-led offense.  That doesn’t seem possible.  This game looked ugly early.  However, some luck, a classic Peyton comeback, and the most clutch kicker in football history kept the Colts from being 0-2 going into the Jacksonville game.

Adam Vinatieri completely redeemed himself for not only the miss earlier in the game, but for the Chargers miss last year.  It was a similar situation on his first kick as the Chargers game.  We were on our way to a comeback, and Vinny missed a gimme.  However, instead of it being a game loser and live in infamy, Vinatieri made up for it with a clutch 47 yard field goal with 3 seconds left on the clock.  That kick kept us from an overtime game against a team whose kicker with 5 for 6 and could move the ball at ease on the ground.  We needed that kick, and Vinatieri came through for us.

Let’s state what everyone is thinking: Tavaris Jackson sucks.  I’ve always been a big Jackson supporter, but he was terrible yesterday.  He could not complete a pass on third down to save his life.  Adrian Peterson carried that offense yesterday, but Jackson couldn’t get them into the endzone.

Anthony Gonzalez was a great Polian pick.  He could have gone outside linebacker or defensive tackle.  Those were our needs going into the 2007 NFL Draft.  We took a wide receiver who was overshadowed by Santonio Holmes and Ted Ginn for his career at An Ohio State University.  He made that amazing catch in the third, and then he made one of the most successful boneheaded plays I’ve seen.  He should not have lateraled that ball.  It ended up getting us to the one where Addai punched it in (HE DID SCORE!).

Dwight Freeney is back.  He has 2 sacks and a forced fumble in his first two games.  He’s regained his speed and back to his usual self.

Eric Foster was a great surprise in the second half.  He made some clutch tackles to keep Adrian Peterson in the backfield.  Ed Johnson, an undrafted free agent from 2007, gets cut, and Foster, an undrafted free agent from 2008, steps up in a huge way.

I’m ready for this team to get healthy.  When Mike Pollak, Jeff Saturday, Ryan Lilja, Tony Ugoh, Jacob Tamme, Dallas Clark, and Tyjuan Hagler are back, I don’t see this team losing much.  Charlie Johnson is terrible at left tackled and got abused by Jared Allen.  The interior line let Pat and Kevin Williams to get in the backfield every play.  Ugoh, Lilja, and Saturday do not let that happen.

Here are my top 3 players from this game

3. Dwight Freeney (2 tackles, 1 sack, 1 forced fumble): It’s too bad the Colts couldn’t take advantage of the forced fumble.  Vinatieri missed the field goal

2. Peyton Manning (311 yards, 1 touchdown, 2 interceptions): Peyton led this team back from a certain 0-2 start to a great win over a good Minnesota team.  Peyton had one of his best games of his career yesterday.

1. Anthony Gonzalez (9 catches, 137 yards): Gonzalez made big catches and was Peyton’s favorite target.  He ended up getting Reggie Wayne open by drawing the defense to himself.  Gonzalez is only in his second year.  I think we have a budding star on our hands.

Looking ahead to next week, the Jags have looked terrible.  Like the Colts, they don’t have a running game.  Garrard has already thrown 3 interceptions, matching his total from last season.  They are 7 for 25 on third down.  They’ve given up 9 sacks.  If the Colts can stay focused, they will win this game.  The Jaguars have a lot of injuries on their offensive line.  We will have to take advantage of their misfortunes.  Freeney can get to Garrard, and if we get Garrard on the run, we will get takeaways.  Plain and simple.

The pass defense of the Jags has been terrible this year.  Trent Edwards picked them apart throwing to James Hardy, Fred Jackson, and Lee Evans.  Anthony Gonzalez, Marvin Harrison, and Reggie Wayne will pick apart this defense.

Right now, I’m predicting a 24-10 victory, and I’m not expecting Dallas Clark or Jeff Saturday to be back.  If they are, this game will be even better for the Colts.

http://naptownsfinest.com/2008/09/15/colts-18-vikings-15-redemption-for-vinny/

This is a terrible game to watch.  The Colts have no running game, and the Vikings passing game is weak.  There hasn’t been a touchdown.  Neither team has looked good.  This is a sloppy game.  The good thing is, the Colts are only down by 9.  They’ve played like a 4-12 team, but they could still win.

~Ugoh getting hurt is a killer.  Charlie Johnson has no chance of stopping Allen.  We need Saturday back next week so we can have some running game.

~Addai is getting no help at all.  There is no blocking, the playcalling isn’t too good, and he isn’t the type of back that can make his own plays.  I want to see Hart out there in the second half.

~The offense is pathetic.  I have no faith in them right now.  We need an offensive line.  If Ugoh is back, I can believe in the passing game.  Without him, we have no offense.

~The run defense is just as bad as it was in 2006.  Adrian Peterson is having no problem getting 10 yards a carry against them.  The good news is that Peterson is on my fantasy team.  You always have to look at the bright side.

~The pass defense, on the other hand, has been great.  The cornerbacks are hustling, making adjustments, and batting down the ball.  Tim Jennings and Kelvin Hayden have both looked really good this game.

~Hunter Smith still outkicks the coverage team, and Forsett has looked decent.  Special teams is not a concern of mine.

http://naptownsfinest.com/2008/09/14/colts-vikings-first-half-notes-thoughts/

Sure, the Colts looked bad in Week 1, but the good thing is that the Vikings didn’t look like a contender against Green Bay.  I know some of the Colts “fans” are ready to jump off of the bandwagon, and I say good riddance.  Make more room for us loyal fans who know that this team is a contender. If we want to look like the championship team we can be, these five things need to happen.

1. Stop The Run: Ed “Pineapple Express” Johnson toked his Colts career away, but that doesn’t mean that Adrian Peterson is going to run all over us.  However, the current defensive tackles will have to step up if we are to win this game.  Our defensive tackles are Raheem Brock, Keyunta Dawson, Eric Foster, Daniel Muir, Darrell Reid, and recent signee LaJuan Ramsey.  None of these guys are Pro Bowl contenders, but they can do enough to keep Adrian Peterson from getting big chunks of yards.

Daniel Muir and LaJuan Ramsey are the only players that are as big as Ed Johnson, but we don’t need fatties to stop the run.  Eric Foster, Raheem Brock, and Keyunta Dawson all are extremely fast for defensive tackles.  If they can get a quick burst off of the line of scrimmage, their size won’t matter because they will already be passed the bigger offensive linemen.  Adrian Peterson is the best all-around back in the league.  I’ve seen him break sure tackles, get to the outside in a split second, and he can go through the middle and break it for a touchdown.  However, in some videos that I have seen, he has been run down by defenders.  He also seems to get most of his big carries off of outside runs.  Both of these are good news for a team with the fastest defense in the league.  Very rarely does a speed back have huge games against the Colts.  It is normally a bigger running back like LenDale White, Maurice Jones-Drew, Michael Turner and Travis Henry that tear apart the Colts on a consistent basis.  There are some exceptions like Darren Sproles, but the Colts have a nice history of shutting down speed backs.

The Colts will also have to watch out for passes to Peterson out of the backfield.  We have struggled with that for a long time.

2. Establish the offense early: We can’t keep this a low scoring game.  Sooner or later they will score.  The Colts need to get points on their first posession, preferrably a touchdown.  The Colts need to turn this game into a shootout.  Do you really think that Tavaris Jackson could keep up with Peyton Manning if this turns into an offensive game?  He can’t.

3. Pressure Jackson: That was something that we needed to do against the Bears, but the pressure didn’t come, and we couldn’t get our offense back on the field.  Jackson is an inexperienced QB who can make mistakes if we can get him out of the pocket.  Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis will have to step up in a huge way if we are to keep the Vikings offense from moving down the field.  The Vikings don’t have the best pass blocking offensive line, and left tackle Bryant McKinnie is suspended.  We have the potential to make this game a living hell for Tavaris Jackson.  Hopefully we can make him go back to Montgomery crying.

4. We Need A Running Game!: We won’t win if Addai does nothing.  Since the Patriots game last year, I have been losing confidence in Addai.  He has done nothing in 10 games now.  If for some reason he sucks again, then Rhodes will have to step up.  I would really like to see Mike Hart get some carries when the game matters.  We’ve seen what he can do in the preseason.  He could be the X-factor in this game.

5. Special Teams: This may be the first time in Colts history that we may have the advantage on special teams.  Last week, the Vikings had the second worst VOA for special teams.  They had no return game at all on either punts or kicks, and to top it off, they gave up a punt return for a touchdown.  Now that Courtney Roby has been cut and Pierre Garcon and Justin Forsett are the returners, we won’t fumble the kickoff returns and get no yardage.  If we can keep them from crossing the 30 on their kickoff returns and get past the 30 every time on our returns, we will win this game.  Field position is everything, and it very easily could decide this game.

http://naptownsfinest.com/2008/09/12/5-keys-to-winning-the-colts-vikings-game/

Since Ed Johnson was cut, we are in a dire need for defensive tackles.  There is no better time to start scouting than right now.  We have two needs: defensive tackle and outside linebacker.  We have to cover those in the 2009 NFL Draft.  Here are some games that you should watch to see players who could be playing at Lucas Oil Stadium next year.

Auburn @ Mississippi State (ESPN2, 7 PM ET)

Prospects To Look For

Auburn
Sen’Derrick Marks/DT/rJr
Tray Blackman/ILB/rJr
Antonio Coleman/OLB/rJr
Chris Evans/OLB/Sr

Miss. State
Derrick Pegues/S/Sr

Auburn is loaded with players that could be future Colts.  Sen’Derrick Marks is the most likely player to be taken by the Colts if they were to go defensive tackle in the first round.  He’s big (291 lb), and he can get to the QB along with stuffing the run.  The 3 Auburn linebackers are good run stoppers who also are strong pass defenders.  Derrick Pegues is a return specialist as well as a safety.  He scored a touchdown on a punt return last year and averaged 22.9 yards per kick return.

Michigan @ Notre Dame (NBC, 3:30 ET)

Players To Look For

Michigan
Terrence Taylor/DT/Sr
Will Johnson/DT/rSr
Brandon Graham/DE/Jr

Notre Dame
David Bruton/S/Sr
Maurice Crum/LB/rSr

As a Notre Dame season ticket holder and a rabid Skunkbears hater, I know a lot about these players.  Terrence Taylor is a flat out star.  He plays well on special teams and stuffs the inside with his huge 317 pound frame.  Will Johnson is another run-stuffing defensive tackle, although he has an undertackle frame.  Brandon Graham, if he comes out, should be one of the top defensive ends in this draft.  He is a good pass rusher and got 8.5 sacks last year.  David Bruton is one of the top sleepers in this draft.  He has a motor that never stops.  He’s one of the best special teams players on the Irish roster.  He forced and recovered the fumble at the goal line against San Diego State that saved Notre Dame’s season.  Maurice Crum is an undersized linebacker who is great at covering the pass.  He’s been cursed with not playing in his type of system throughout his career at ND.  The Tampa 2 would be a great fit for him.

Georgia Tech @ Virginia Tech (ABC, 3:30 ET)

Players to Look for

Georgia Tech
Vance Walker/DT/Sr
Michael Johnson/DE/Sr
Darryl Richard/DT/rSr
Andrew Gardner/OT/rSr

Virginia Tech
Orion Martin/OLB/rSr

If there is one game to watch this week, it’s definitely this one.  The Georgia Tech defensive tackles are perfect for the Colts.  I will be bouncing off of the walls if both of them are playing for the Colts next year.  Walker and Johnson both had more than 10 tackles for losses last season.  Michael Johnson is likely a top 15 pick, but if he would slide, the Colts would not have any time run off of their clock.  He is one of the best pass rushers in the nation.  Andrew Gardner is a phenomenal run blocker as well.  Orion Martin comes from the same school that Xavier Adibi, one of my favorite prospects last year, came from, and he plays a very similar style of strong pass defense and sure tackling.

Wisconsin @ Fresno State (ESPN2, 10:30 ET)

Players to Look For

Wisconsin
Matt Shaughnessy/DE/Sr
Jonathan Casillas/OLB/rSr
DeAndre Levy/OLB/Sr

Fresno State
Tom Brandstater/QB/rSr

Casillas and Levy are the main reasons to watch.  Both of them are undersized but ridiculously fast linebackers who are born to play in the Tampa 2.  Shaguhnessy is a very good pass rusher who has a quick burst off of the line.  Brandstater is probably a surprise to you since he is a QB, but with Peyton’s knee injury, we have to get a qualified backup (preferrably one who’s name doesn’t rhyme with Morgi).

Here’s the big one…

Ohio State @ USC (ABC, 8:00 ET)

Players to Look For

USC
Rey Maualuga/ILB/Sr
Brian Cushing/OLB/Sr
Fili Moala/DT/rSr
Taylor Mays/S/Jr

Ohio State
James Laurinaitis/ILB/Sr
Malcolm Jenkins/CB/Sr
Marcus Freeman/OLB/Sr
Alex Boone/OT/Sr
Todd Boeckman/QB/rSr
Brian Robiskie/WR/Sr

This game has an unreal amount of of prospects.  The USC linebackers are amazing.  Maualuga and Cushing are two of the top players in the nation, and although I think Cushing is roiding (because he transformed from a tub of lard to a body builder in a short period of time), he is a great run stopper.  Taylor Mays is a lot like Antoine Bethea with his ball hawking skills.  Fili Moala is another great run stopping defensive tackle.

Ohio State’s prospects will all be stars in the pros.  Laurinaitis is one of the best all-around linebackers in the country.  I’ve seen him make amazing pass defense plays, intercepting balls that were destined to hit the ground or the receiver’s chests, and no running back can get by him.  Malcolm Jenkins and Brian Robiskie are good enough to be listed here even though they play a position with good depth.  Don’t get me started about Freeman.  If the football gods want to pay us back for taking away our defensive tackles for the craziest reasons, they would give us Freeman.  He could be the best run stopping linebacker in the nation.  Alex Boone is only a junior, and I don’t think he will come out, but I could see the Colts looking at him in 2010.

This is a great college football weekend.  I won’t see too many games because I will be at the ND-scUM game, but I know that these players that I listed are all the real deal and will be stars if the Colts get them.

http://naptownsfinest.com/2008/09/10/college-scouting-5-games-to-watch-this-week/

From what I’ve heard today, the general sentiment of “fans” was that this season is done for and we should focus on 2009.  Bollocks I say.  The Colts did look terrible last night, but don’t expect that to last.  The Colts will bounce back next weekend against the Vikings.  Step off of the ledge, Colts bandwagoneers.  The Colts aren’t going to miss the playoffs, and they still are a favorite in the AFC.  Here are some of my observations and thoughts from last night’s game.

~The running game was just terrible.  53 yards on 15 carries, which ends up being a 3.5 yards per carry average.  That cannot continue.  The Bears defense was much better than I thought it was, but Addai should have had a much higher YPC than 3.7.  Mike Hart had the last run of the game, and it went for 7 yards.  I don’t understand why he didn’t get more looks.

~Peyton Manning actually had a really nice game.  49 attempts, 30 completions, 257 yards, and a touchdown pass.  81.8 QB rating.  Not bad for a quarterback who had no help from his receivers or running backs.

~The receivers had way too many drops.  Marvin, Anthony, and Reggie all had a few dropped passes that cost the team some drives.

~The offensive line needs Ryan Lilja, Jeff Saturday, and Mike Pollak back.  Badly.

~Dwight Freeney got a sack, so that’s a good sign.  Sanders also had 9 tackles.  Too bad the defense couldn’t get the Bears offense off of the field, who had 31:44 of possession.

~Tony Dungy did terrible.  His challenges were foolish.  The Matt Forte touchdown never should have happened.  It was a bad play call to not even consider a draw occuring.  I got a feeling during the game that Dungy was taking his last season off, but I quickly dismissed that ridiculous thought.

~The Colts gave up too many deep passes to the tight ends.  Desmond Clark and Greg Olsen both had receptions of 26 yards or more.

I mentioned earlier that I am not worried.  Here are five reasons why I’m not going to overreact.

1. Tom Brady is out for the year.  That takes the Patriots out of Super Bowl contention.  I think that they will finish 3rd in the division.  They struggled against the Chiefs, who could be the worst team in the league.  Matt Cassell, Tim Rattay, and Chris Simms cannot lead this team to the playoffs.

2. The Chargers and Jaguars struggled and lost as well.  We are not alone.  The other contenders have the same record as us and just as many problems.

3. This wasn’t too surprising.  The Colts were going to be rusty.  We just didn’t know how rusty.  The Colts will be back and clicking next week.

4. The Bears are good.  Matt Forte was amazing.  We Colts fans knew that since he was a prime target of ours during prior to the draft.  The defense is back to its old dominant ways.

5. It’s the NFL, not college.  A season can’t be over after Week 1.  By how bad the AFC teams looked last week.  10 or 11 wins would guarantee the playoffs.  We won’t lose that many games.

So Colts “fans”, stay loyal or get out.  Don’t sell your tickets to the opponent’s fans.  The Bears fans packing the place is explainable because of all of the Bears fans living here.  If I see a lot of purple next Sunday, I am going to be really mad at the season ticket holders who are just in it to make a profit.

http://naptownsfinest.com/2008/09/08/colts-13-bears-29-dont-worry/

Over the next few days leading up to the big game, I will look a little into the opposing team and see what the fans think about their players.  I’m starting with the Chicago Bears offense, which has hit a major rough patch recently.

Quarterbacks

Roster
Kyle Orton
Rex Grossman
Caleb Hanie

My Take: This is one of the weakest positions out of any team in the league.  Kyle Orton has apparently been redeemed somehow for his pathetic rookie season.  Orton started 15 games in his first season, and he was terrible.  The team was great, but he was holding them back.  He had a 59.7 QB rating, 9 touchdowns, 13 interceptions, and a 51.6% completion percentage.  Even his starts last year weren’t impressive.  He only had a 73.9 QB rating.  However, I have heard positive things about him, which surprises me.  I would have thought Bears fans might not be so optimistic, but a lot of the talk has come from the ESPN “experts”, who would like nothing more than to see the Colts go down early.

Rex Grossman could have been the MVP of Super Bowl XLI, because he was clearly trying to lose the game.  There is no other explanation to why he played so poorly.  I would have liked to see him start.  I’m sure that he sees Kelvin Hayden and Bob Sanders in his nightmares.

I know nothing about Caleb Hanie.  I don’t even know where he went to school until I checked Wikipedia (it’s Colorado State).  However, the Bears bloggers have been drooling over them, but I think anyone would look good after having Rex Grossman, Brian Griese, and Kyle Orton be the starting QBs for the past couple of years.  Here is what Bear Goggle says about Hanie.

Hanie finishes the preseason completing 29 of 49 passes for 321 yards, 3 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions. Those may not be remarkable numbers but it doesn’t speak to his ability to evade the pass rush and work effectively in the pocket. He is the complete opposite of Rex Grossman in every way. He looks calm and cool on the pocket, slips away from defenders, and finds the short pass instead of throwing long bombs into coverage.

I have to remember that Hanie was starting against other third string defenders and it isn’t a true test of his ability. However, having good mechanics makes it irrelevant if it’s the third team or the first team offense. A quarterback that can actually function as a quarterback and control the pocket is a good person to have on this team.

It sounds like he is a good all-around QB.  I’m glad he isn’t starting.

Running Backs

Roster
Matt Forte
Adrian Peterson
Kevin Jones
Garrett Wolfe
Jason McKie (Fullback)

My take: This year, the Bears don’t have great running backs.  In a few years, they will be great.  Matt Forte was a player that the Colts were hoping to get in the NFL Draft.  We are content with Mike Hart, but Forte is a very good back.  However, he is too young to be the starter right now.  In a few years, he could be a Pro Bowler.  Right now, I’m not worried.

Adrian Peterson is the mediocre one, not the Pro Bowl one in Minnesota.  The Bears could use someone like the good Peterson.  This Peterson only averaged 3.4 yards per carry last season, and the Bears suffered with him in the game.

Kevin Jones had a great rookie year in Detroit, gaining over 1,000 rushing yards.  After that, he went on a downward spiral.  He had a career low 581 yards last season and only had a 3.8 ypc average.

Garrett Wolfe was amazing at Northern Illnois, but you can’t expect him to turn out to be great in the pros.  Some small running backs end up being successful like Maurice Jones-Drew, but Wolfe is 5-7, 186 pounds.

Wide Receivers

Roster
Marty Booker
Devin Hester
Brandon Lloyd
Mark Bradley
Earl Bennett
Rashied Davis

My Take: These wide receivers are terrible.  None of them are starting material.  A very optimistic Bears fan, MuleTrain, on Windy City Gridiron tried to make this a good thing by saying it will make a good rotation.  I disagree, as fresh legs do not equal good hands, which the Bears lack.

We have a wr by committee thing going on, and most of these guys can run.  Booker cannot obviously.  By rotating guys in and out, we won’t see tired legs so much.  Randy Moss dogs it, so don’t think other wr’s out there don’t dog it when their decoy fly pattern is called.  We have 5 #3 receivers, so any dogging will lead one to the bench I imagine.

I don’t agree with MuleTrain on Randy Moss.  Moss played tough with the Patriots, even in the fourth quarter when they were up by 30.  Earl Bennett should be a good receiver, but Hester drops too many big passes, and Lloyd, Booker, and Bradley all have been mediocre the past few years.

Tight Ends

Roster
Desmond Clark
Zach Martin
Kellen Davis

My Take: I might want to call this MuleTrain’s take because he said it the best.  He’s definitely an optimist, but I can agree with him here.

"Our strength on offense is obviously our tight ends.  We have 3 capable of making plays.  Tight ends need some room in the middle of the field to be really effective.  In order to achieve this, I’m thinking we are going to see a steady stream of wr’s going deep. 

Also, the cover 2 scheme is quite popular throughout the league.  When a receiver goes deep a safety will be vacated from covering the deep middle, thus creating some space for the TE.  Most teams don’t have an Urlacher that can effectively and consistently cover the deep middle.   For other defensive schemes, teams are still loathe to give up big plays.   Any wr going deep will probably encounter safety help, thus creating room as well."

He is right about the Cover 2 when the opposing team has a weak middle linebacker.  The 3-4 is especially weak against tight ends. The only problem is, we have a Brian Urlacher in pass coverage.  His name is Gary Brackett.  Even though he is short and resembles a fire-hydrant, he is one of the best middle linebackers, if not THE best linebacker, in pass coverage.  Zach Martin, Desmond Clark, and Kellen Davis all will be big contributors for the Bears, but it should be more effective against teams like Dallas and not Indianapolis.

Offensive Line

Roster

OT Chris Williams
OT John Tait
OT Kirk Barton
OT John St. Clair
OG Roberto Garza
OG Dan Buenning
OG Josh Beekman
OG Terrence Metcalf
C Olin Kreutz

The Bears have a troubled offensive tackle position.  Chris Williams has had surgery and will miss the game.  John Tait is getting older every minute, and he will have trouble stopping someone like Dwight Freeney, Robert Mathis, or Marcus Howard, who are much younger and quicker.  John St. Clair and Kirk Barton aren’t anything special either.  The Colts have the definite advantage in the pass rush for this game.

The interior line is a completely different story.  Center Olin Kreutz and right guard Roberto Garza are both Pro Bowl caliber linemen.  As long as the Spanish Madden Curse doesn’t affect Garza, the defensive tackles should have a tough time this game.  Left guard is less secure.  Terrence Metcalf has been the starter, but he is easily the weakest link on the interior line.

So far, the Colts defense clearly has the advantage on the Bears offense.  The QBs are awful.  The running backs are too young.  The wide receivers are all #3s, the tight ends will struggle against Gary Brackett, and the tackles will get burned by Freeney, Mathis, and Howard all game long.

I’m predicting that Kyle Orton will throw 2 interceptions.  Antoine Bethea and Gary Brackett will both pick off Orton.  Marcus Howard will get 1.5 sacks, Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis will get one sack, and Curtis Johnson will get the half sack.  The backups will be in during the fourth quarter, and the Bears should score 10 points in it.  The Colts will be up by three or four scores, so it won’t affect the game.

http://naptownsfinest.com/2008/09/03/a-look-at-the-opponent-bears-offense/

I am very mad that they cut Colin Ferrell and Brannon Condren.  That makes no sense to me at all.  When the Colts say they don’t take the preseason seriously, they mean it.  These two were some of the best players in the preseason, and that can’t even save their job.  Melvin Bullitt and Keiwan Ratliff should not have made the roster.  Period.

Devin Aromashodu was also cut, but even though I thought he would make the roster, it isn’t too disappointing.  Courtney Roby took his place, and we don’t need 7 WRs.  6 is a good number.  The other players cut were Quinn Gray, Jared Lorenzen, Kenton Keith, Chad Simpson, Sam Giguere, Onrea Jones, Tala Esera, Darren Marquez, Michael Toudouze, Tyrice Thompson, Ben Ishola, Jeff Charleston, Dan Davis, Joe Bradley, Kyle Shotwell, Victor Worsley, and Brandon Foster.

So with the cuts finally made, here is my practice squad prediction:

QB Adam Tafralis
RB Chad Simpson
WR Sam Giguere (confirmed by Giguere in Candian newspaper)
OL Tala Esera
DL Ben Ishola
DL Colin Ferrell
LB Kyle Shotwell
DB Brannon Condren

This team is destined to make a run for the Super Bowl, and who knows?  Maybe Ferrell and Condren could improve by being on the practice squad.

http://naptownsfinest.com/2008/08/30/the-colts-53-man-roster-plus-pups-is-announced/

I decided to simulate a Madden season to see what the Colts would turn out to be.  This isn’t a true prediction since Peyton could tear his ACL in Week 1 in this game and not have it happen in real life, but it is interesting to see what a computer simulation thinks the Colts will do.

Since the roster is out of date, I updated it myself.  Gijon Robinson, Courtney Roby, Dan Federkeil, Eric Foster, Curtis Johnson, Kyle Shotwell, Jordan Senn, and Keiwan Ratliff were added.  Kenton Keith, TJ Rushing, Corey Hilliard, Josh Thomas, Jeff Charleston, Victor Worsley, Ramon Guzman, and Michael Coe were dropped.  I didn’t edit any other stats besides ones that needed corrected (like I turned Rushing into Roby, so his stats had to be changed).  Here are some notes.

~The only injury in the preseason was Melvin Bullitt breaking his tailbone.

~Going into the Patriots game, both New England and the Colts were 5-2.  We lost to Minnesota and Tennessee.

~We beat the Patriots 24-10, but Tom Brady was hurt so Matt Cassell was QB.

~After Week 9, the Steelers were the only undefeated team, Peyton was leading the MVP, Off. POY, and Top QB award races, Marvin was leading the Top WR award race, and Robert Mathis was the best defensive lineman and Dwight Freeney was 4th.

~Reggie Wayne broke his wrist and missed the entire year.

~Going into the final week of the year, the Colts were 10-5, and Peyton Manning was hurt against Jacksonville.  He had to miss the final week of the year, so I signed our good friend Quinn Gray.

~Quinn Gray won the game for us and we went 11-5, making the playoffs as the division winner, winning the tiebreaker over Jacksonville.

~All the Colts players choked and lost their awards, but we had 8 Pro Bowlers (Peyton Manning, Marvin Harrison, Dallas Clark, Dwight Freeney, Robert Mathis, Matt Giordano, Bob Sanders, and Courtney Roby as a returner).

~Peyton finished the year with 3380 yards, 27 TDs, and 10 INTs. 

~Joseph Addai had 986 yards and nine touchdowns while Dominic Rhodes ran for 334 yards.

~Marvin had 1137 yards and 9 TDs, Clark had 752 yards, Gonzalez had 675 yards, and Aromashodu had 338.

~Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis both had 10 sacks.

~Gary Brackett led the team with 100 tackles.

~Matt Giordano had 5 picks while Bob Sanders had 4.

~Roby returned 2 kicks to the house and Pierre Garcon returned one.

~We played Jacksonville in the playoffs in the Wild Card round (the Chargers and Steelers had the first round byes).  We won 31-17.  Joseph Addai had 170 rushing yards and Tim Jennings had a pick.  Courtney Roby returned a punt all the way.  Peyton threw two TDs.  One to Marvin and one to Aromashodu.

~Next we played the Steelers and lost 28-14.

~The Steelers won Super Bowl XLIII 21-13 over the Bucs.

So according to Madden, the Colts will have a decent year and get bounced out of the playoffs early.  Even a video game listens to what the so-called “experts” have to say about this team.

http://naptownsfinest.com/2008/08/29/the-colts-season-according-to-madden/