Posts tagged Adam Vinatieri
Colts’ Strategies During CBA Uncertainty, Part 3
Mar 3rd
In January, Bill Polian indicated that the Colts had developed strategies to address each of four possible outcomes pending the CBA negotiations. The previous two posts explored what the Colts’ team-building strategy might look like should a CBA agreement be reached before or shortly (2-4 months) after the deadline. This post looks at the next possibility – that the NFL and NFLPA take several (5+) months to reach agreement. In this scenario, the draft will still take place April 28-30 as planned, but would-be free agents would not be allowed to test the market and sign with other teams.
Were foresight 20/20, this would be about as easy or difficult a scenario for the Colts as if the CBA were signed on time. The “easy” part is that the team wouldn’t have to predict the market value of their own free agents – it would be set at some percent increase over their 2010 salaries (I believe I remember seeing 20%, but not sure). Still, the team would need to evaluate whether they would be willing to pay that amount, adjust their draft board accordingly, then release those in whom they aren’t interested once business started up again. The “hard” part is the uncertainty of when this scenario would be declared in play. More >
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Colts Off-Season: A Time for Change and Hope
Feb 9th
Will the Colts make a move for free agent running back DeAngelo Williams? (Chris Keane | Reuters)
The Indianapolis Colts are known for their ability to put together teams that are young and competitive on the field with a chance to win the Super Bowl every year. The team has accomplished this by finding jewels in the draft that other teams simply overlook. As a Colts fan I have nothing but respect and admiration for the front office of the Colts and thank them for the product they consistently put on the field for Colts fans to cheer. It’s time for the next step, and at this point in Peyton Manning’s career it’s now or never for the Indy. Unlike many of the experts out there, I do not believe that Peyton is anywhere close to the end of his career. I do believe that he is at the point where the team can’t just wait for young talent to develop around him.
Starting with the offensive line, Ryan Diem has been rode hard this year for the false starts and his mental mistakes, but I’m one who believes that a lot of his issues were because of having to play through injuries all year long with a lack of depth behind him. The same could be said for left tackle Charlie Johnson. The hope in the franchise should be that Ryan Diem will work with the front office on restructuring his $5.4 million deal that would allow the team to pay him on incentives as opposed to cutting him as cap casualty.
Regardless what happens with Diem, the best answer for the Colts is to not miss out on a chance to get an anchor left tackle early in the draft such as Anthony Castonzo, Boston College, Nate Solder, Colorado, Gabe Carimi, Wisconsin, or Derek Sherrod, Mississippi State. There is also the option of landing a couple solid free agents with both Tyson Clabo of Atlanta and Matt Light being available, Clabo being ideal because of his youth. At guard the best answer without question is to find a way to sign Logan Mankins out of New England. Adding an all pro will allow you to let Jamey Richard and Mike Pollak fight for the starting spot next to Mankins with the loser backing up both the center and guard spots.
Ideal line: LT-Tyson Clabo, LG- Logan Mankins, C- Jeff Saturday, RG- Mike Pollak, and RT- Gabe Carimi. More >
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Indianapolis Colts 2011 First String Currently Features Painter, Swenson
Jan 11th
Indianapolis Colts quarterback Curtis Painter talks with a coach during the second quarter of an NFL preseason football game against the Cincinnati Bengals in Indianapolis, Thursday, Sept. 2, 2010. (AP Photo/Tom Strickland)
UPDATE: I misread the Rotoworld entry on Robert Mathis, and inadvertently marked him as a free agent beginning this year. Thankfully, he is under contract for one more year. Post updated to reflect this. Apologies for any confusion!
For all intents and purposes, the 2011 season has begun for the Indianapolis Colts. And if the team were preparing for their first game of the 2011 season, Curtis Painter would be lining up under center and Brett Swenson would be practicing tee shots.
OK, OK, it’s sensationalist and nobody expects that to actually happen. Owner Jim Irsay has gone on record as saying that the Colts will make Peyton Manning the highest-paid player in the NFL. And after Adam Vinatieri’s season, in which he went 29 of 31 (including the playoffs), and was perfect on 52 XPs, it is hard to imagine the Colts wouldn’t do what is necessary to re-sign him. Vinatieri has also expressed an interest in completing his career in Indy. But what does the roster currently look like to start 2011?
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Jets v. Colts: After Review (Wild Card Weekend)
Jan 10th
Colts kicker Adam Vinatieri celebrates after he hits a would-be game winning 50-yard field goal. (Andy Lyons | Getty Images)
After a painful sixteen game regular season — rife with injuries, frustrating slumps, and a lack of identity — the Colts 2010 effort officially ended Saturday night after a last minute drive that was capped by a Jets field goal. What makes the loss difficult to take — even though most fans realized the team’s playoff berth was an admirable accomplishment in its own right — is that the Colts should have won.
The initial fan reaction to the game has been all over the board, with fingers pointing in different directions. Some argue that the defense is responsible for the loss because they allowed the Jets to keep the ball for a vast majority of the second half, and yielded over 150 yards on the ground.
Others blame the Indianapolis special teams units for making costly mistakes and allowing long returns, specifically Antonio Cromartie’s long return on the final drive of the game that allowed the Jets to have a short field for a field goal try.
Still others insist that Coach Caldwell is primarily responsible for calling an ill-advised timeout with less than 30 seconds to go, which allowed the Jets offense to get their heads together for a back-breaking first down play that made shaky place kicker Nick Folk’s job much easier.
The reality is, all of these fans are right to a degree, but none of them — even taken together — completely explain how the Colts managed to let this game slip away. More >
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Indy Sports Coverage – Wildcard Weekend
Jan 8th
Each week, Coltzilla brings you highlights from local sports coverage of the Colts with an emphasis on player interviews. Pre-game interviews go up throughout the week. Post-game interviews are posted shortly after the game. Hope you enjoy!
It’s Wildcard weekend of the 2010 season, and the 10-6 Indianapolis Colts welcome the 11-5 New York Jets to Lucas Oil Stadium. The winner moves on, the loser goes home.
UPDATED – Inside The Huddle, More Local Coverage – Tuesday morning
UPDATED – Sports Jam, SportsLocker – Monday afternoon
UPDATED – Local Post-Game Coverage – Sunday evening
UPDATED – Colts Pre-Game Show – Saturday evening
UPDATED – Peyton Manning Interview – Saturday evening
UPDATED – Bill Polian Show – Saturday evening
UPDATED – Local Pre-Game Coverage – Saturday afternoon
UPDATED – Replacement Huddle Up Indy – Saturday morning
Inside The Huddle:
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Navigating the Colts 2011 Off-Season
Jan 7th
Quarterback Peyton Manning watches as running back Joseph Addai carries the football in Denver. (Doug Pensinger | Getty Images)
Although the Colts are heading into the playoffs and will not have to worry about new contracts, free agency, and draft planning until after their playoff run ends, once it does things will start happening fast. With all of the players who have contracts ending this season, it will be important to make good choices in order to keep a very talented football team intact.
One thing about any off-season is the chance that difficult decisions will have to be made about players for whom fans have a great deal of loyalty. That is the unfortunate nature of the business of football and those kinds of decisions and observations will be included in what this writer believes is the best direction for the Colts leading up to the 2011 season.
The most important thing to do to start this process is to identify which players require new contracts in order to play football in 2011, and which players currently have contracts that are not reflective of their value to the team.
The players who will need new contracts in order to return to the Colts in 2011 are listed below, by position. More >
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Succeeding in Face of Injuries is Par for Colts Course
Oct 26th
(Brent Smith | Reuters)
Nothing is guaranteed in the NFL. It is often said that “NFL” stands for “Not For Long,” and this idea flies in the face of teams who have had sustained success, particularly in the salary cap era. Somehow, someway, the Indianapolis Colts are a team that have found a way to be nearly immune to the forces at play in professional football that exist to make it next to impossible for teams to dominate.
If the Colts are going to continue their success in 2010, it has become clear that they will have to overcome a rash of injuries to key players. In some ways, the task seems insurmountable. The likelihood that the Colts can maintain their record of consecutive 12-win seasons shrinks by the week and by the day. How or why should fans expect the streak to continue, foresee a playoff berth, or have even a shroud of hope that the Colts could actually compete for another chance to play for a world championship?
The reason is pretty easy to locate. Over the last five years the Colts have had to overcome adversity, perform in the face of obvious team weaknesses, and have regularly been considered one of the best teams in the league — and one of the top contenders to represent the AFC in the Super Bowl. In all but one of those years they have dealt with the loss of key players for dozens of games. Take a look. More >
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Colts Punter Pat McAfee Arrested for Drunk and Disorderly Conduct UPDATE
Oct 20th
1 comment
WISHTV is reporting that Colts Punter Pat McAfee was arrested this morning at approximately 5am. Police were called to the scene after a suspicious person was found swimming in the canal. Once police arrived they determined that McAfee was shirtless and drunk.
No additional information is available at this time, but we will continue to update you as new reports are released.
UPDATE:
The Colts have released a statement on the situation:
“We are aware that Pat McAfee was arrested this morning and charged with public intoxication,” team president Bill Polian said in a news release. “We are in the process of gathering the relevant facts. When that task is complete, we will deal immediately with the issue of club discipline. Until we complete that process, we will have no further comment.”
UPDATE:
Gregg Rosenthal of Pro Football Talk reports that the Colts have suspended McAfee for one game. Losing McAfee for a division game with the Texans in two weeks is less than ideal. Look for the Colts to either add a temporary punter to the roster, or for Adam Vinatieri to attempt punts and kickoffs again Houston.
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In the Training Room: Colts Safety Bob Sanders
Oct 20th
Bobzilla's not worried - are you?
With Colts safety Bob Sanders currently sitting out with a torn biceps (his second in two years), most fans assume that the team is just prolonging the inevitable. But instead of shipping Bobzilla to injured reserve, they are holding out hope that he can rehab his way back to the field as early as the San Diego game (November 28). At the very least, they hope he will be available for the final two or three regular season games and a playoff run, should the Colts get in. Even if Sanders is available only for those final three games, that could prove significant, as two of those games are against division rival Tennessee – imagine Sanders laying wood on Chris Johnson, denying him a second consecutive 2000-yard season, while propelling the Colts into the playoffs! More >
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