Ryan Grigson has been pinned against the fence.
After a successful 2012 draft in which he ensured the future of the Indianapolis Colts franchise with Andrew Luck and a cache of offensive weapons for his disposal, the Colts GM’s success was not to be duplicated to the same extent in 2013.
Adding insult to injury, the media has been on full attack mode ever since the first few weeks of the season, when he surrendered Indy’s first round draft pick for a running back who produced numbers simply not worthy of a first round draft pick.
The elephant in the room has never been larger, at least to some critics. Grigson simply must use the Draft to bring life to an otherwise capable Super Bowl contender. On the list? Let’s take a look.
--Weapons for Luck and Wayne’s eventual successor
--Defensive assistance
--A linebacker compliment to Mathis
--Practically the entire offensive line
--A way, any possible way, to get Trent Richardson going
Quite the shopping list.
Here’s the thing. Grigson doesn’t have his work cut out for him nearly as much as people say he does. That is, most people outside of this organization don’t realize how close this team is to being a complete contender. They certainly resembled one in the first half of last season, before they tapered off due to injuries, lack of morale, or whatever reason you choose. Losses can be deceiving.
A Super Bowl contender is an intricate and complex puzzle which must be put together. Some teams are able to find the most important piece (Exhibit A: Peyton Manning in a Broncos uniform), while others spend years trying to finish the jigsaw, changing the image every time they bring in a new GM who promises change and NFL prosperity to no avail (see: Browns, Raiders, Buccaneers).
Ryan Grigson is greatly aware of what the Colts should look like as a finished product. He has already gone a long way towards making that vision a reality. The coaching is exemplary, the offense is in good hands for a decade with Luck, and the defense will continue to grow and develop. It is the addition of two or three more head-turning playmakers on both sides of the ball, as well as having the ability to stay consistent for 16 games, that will push them over the hump and deep into the playoffs as soon as next year.
What Indianapolis already has
Robert Mathis, the Colts’ star linebacker and heart of the defense, recently made some rather polarizing comments in which he declared that Indianapolis is practically Super Bowl ready. He says that as long as they can come back healthy and remain healthy, they will be a force to be reckoned with. Some people would laugh at the comments, and rightfully so. However, there is some truth to his beliefs.
This is a relatively inexperienced and young group, particularly on the offensive side of the ball. With that youth, however, comes a particular energy and a drive.
Andrew Luck is on the cusp of being elite and TY Hilton practically christened himself Reggie Wayne’s eventual replacement with his breakout season. This tandem is not afraid to help usher in the new wave of NFL superstars.
The Colts have also got the right coaching. Chuck Pagano proved in 2013 that his COLTSSTRONG mantra didn’t have a one-season expiration date, but rather that he continues to infuse his team with passion, teaching them the vitality of playing a full sixty minutes of football. The Colts simply don’t quit, as evidenced by their historic comeback over the Chiefs in the first round of the postseason, as well as Luck’s billing as The Comeback Kid.
Whatever you think about Pep Hamilton and whether his style truly suits Luck and the Colts, he did give in and let young No. 12 air the ball out much more towards the end of the regular season and the playoffs. The recent addition of former Browns coach Rob Chudzinski doesn’t hurt either. The longtime friend of Pagano’s should have a ball in Indy where he has legitimate playmakers.
Sorry, Cleveland.
The Colts do have a defense, albeit a young one. That being said, youth craves growth in order to succeed, and that is exactly what Pagano will focus on when camps start up this summer. Since the futures of Vontae Davis and Antoine Bethea in Indy are in question, this defense – led by the veteran Mathis – will be the first thing people will analyze once the 2014 season starts up.
The most important thing that the Colts have, though, doesn’t have to do with the technicalities and mechanics of football.
Their most significant strength is the ability to be consistent.
They do have it; we know they do. They were the masters of it through the first eight weeks of the season.
They embarrassed the 49ers, triumphed in Peyton Manning’s return, and out-pummeled the Legion of Boom. Who would, as you know, go on to be crowned Super Bowl champs.
We were ready to crown the Colts champions by the end of October. All they had to do was keep this up for another eight weeks of football, and it’d be a breeze through the playoffs to the Super Bowl.
C’mon, you know you were thinking it.
And then, for whatever reason, momentum turned into conundrum. Inconsistency became Indy’s calling card. Their defense was allowing leads too big for Luck to come back from, and they “settled” for a consecutive 11-5 season.
But make no mistake. Had young Indy kept its focus, had they remained consistent, and, to a certain extent had they remained healthy, they were looking at a 14-2 season. Which would have been tops in the league.
Realizing that each game is as vital as the one before and after it is something that players learn through experience, and also something that Pagano – and most definitely Jim Irsay on twitter – will preach in the offseason. They will emphasize with no mercy how critical it is to be the number one seed and gain a bye week before the first game in the playoffs.
More importantly, they will remind their players that, in a season where you are the only team to defeat the football behemoths that are Denver, San Francisco, and Seattle, losses to mediocre teams such as the Rams, Dolphins, and pre-streaking Chargers simply can’t happen.
Once the young core of the Colts understands how important it is to keep both feet on the pedal for a full NFL season – where loss of focus is unforgiving – they will indeed be the feared team that Mathis believes they are.
What Indianapolis doesn’t have…yet
This is where we bring back that offseason shopping list for Ryan Grigson.
The task that lies ahead for him isn’t so much to overhaul certain parts of the Colts roster. The organization already did that a couple years back.
The key to a successful offseason for the Colts GM is being able to supplement key players, to provide Pagano with two playmakers instead of one on both sides of the ball.
Once Reggie Wayne went down, TY Hilton stepped up in a huge way. He was easily Luck’s biggest weapon. Unfortunately, that also made it easy for opposing defenses to figure out who they have to pick on. Hilton was practically a non-factor in the Colts final game of the season at New England, because his lopsided production for the team against Kansas City a week before simply made it easy for Belichick to decide who to design defensive plays around.
To make opposing defenses feel uneasy and keep them guessing, Grigson must be able to supply someone who can put up numbers similar to Hilton. Coby Fleener, Da’Rick Rogers, and LaVon Brazill were capable in the homestretch, but simply not as reliable or as energetic as Hilton.
Grigson’s best bet to equip Luck with another solid receiver would be to check out the free agent market, particulary Hakeem Nicks, who wasn’t exactly on fantastic terms with the Giants in 2013. Checking out Wes Welker and Eric Decker wouldn’t hurt either, depending on how big of a blank check Irsay is willing to grant.
[caption id="attachment_525" align="aligncenter" width="300" caption="Hakeem Nicks is one free agent wide receiver whom Ryan Grigson should and will consider bringing to Indy. "]
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The same formula of supplementing already-established stars also should be applied to the defense. Robert Mathis – depending on who you ask, the real Defensive Player of the Year – lives on forcing plays which normally result in the exchanging of momentum between the Colts and their opponent. He is the immovable object. That is his forte.
The Colts already have a linebacker who (they hope) is up and coming in Bjorn Werner. Injuries have kept Werner from reaching his full potential in the pros thus far, but if he brings with him a healthy physique as well as the mindset that he can truly make an impact, opposing quarterbacks will feel that much more pressured. Pressure leads to bad plays, which lead to turnovers or quick 3-and-outs. Simple football.
The offensive line...well.
[embed]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=22uJb0gq_vE[/embed]
Suffice to say, Andrew Luck has been one of the most abused quarterbacks of the past two seasons, and the offensive line takes time to build to full strength. The center position in particular has left something to be desired since Jeff Saturday’s departure. Grigson must rely on health and a different kind of “luck” in the draft, but hey, Luck’s been doing alright the past two seasons despite being pressured most of the time, hasn’t he?
Grigson got started on this iteration of the Colts franchise puzzle back in 2012. He already knows the final image is a Lombardi Trophy because of the success he has had thus far. With some careful analysis of available players, as well as making the right choices in April, he can put Indianapolis on the fast track to Arizona in February of 2015.
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