Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - COLTS SQUAD SHOW: Grading RUNNING BACK | Reviewing Indy's RBs and Super Bowl Indictment on the Colts

Episode Date: January 30, 2026

We wrap up our Year In Review look back on each Colts' position group with the running backs. Highlighting Jonathan Taylor's terrific season, the guys analyze how that group performed in 2025 while lo...oking ahead to what could be a franchise record-breaking season for JT in 2026. Also, why the Seahawks/Patriots matchup is an indictment on the Colts and how to fix the woebegone Pro Bowl weekend.Find and follow Locked On Colts on your favorite podcast platforms: 🎧 https://lockedonpodcasts.com/podcasts/locked-on-colts/ 📺YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLdpxJspi1hMh5HL7ExpWOQ Give the squad a follow on X/Twitter @Schultz975, @JakeArthurNFL, @ZachHicks2, @allenpinkett, @LockedOnColts, and @ColtsOn_SI, as well on TikTok and Instagram! Locked On NFL League-Wide: Every Team, Fantasy, Draft & More 🎧 https://lockedonpodcasts.com/podcasts/lockedoncolts Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!TurboTaxFor a limited time, you can have your taxes done by a local TurboTax expert for just $150 — all in, if a TurboTax expert didn’t file for you last year. Just file by February 28. Visit http://TurboTax.com/local to book your appointment today. DripDropRight now, DripDrop is offering podcast listeners 20% off your first order. Go to http://dripdrop.com and use promo code lockedonnfl.Ultimate QBUltimate QB is totally free to play, has no ads, and works 100% offline — perfect for when you want to sneak in a quick game or two on the go. Just head over to http://ULTIMATE-QB.COM.FanDuelToday's episode is brought to you by FanDuel. FanDuel is officially in Playoff Mode. Every game day during the NFL playoffs, FanDuel is giving customers even more ways to get in on the action. Visit Fanduel.com to get started.PrizePicksDownload the PrizePicks app today and use codeLOCKEDONNFL to get $50 in lineups after you play your first $5 lineup.Click Here: https://prizepicks.onelink.me/LME0/LOCKEDONNFLGametimeDownload the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONNFLfor $20 off your first purchase. Terms apply. Download Gametime today. What time is it? Gametime.RobinhoodTrade Every Play with Robinhood. Now available across the U.S. Download the Robinhood app now to begin.Futures and cleared swaps trading involves significant risk and is not appropriate for everyone. Event contracts are offered by Robinhood Derivatives, LLC., a registered futures commission merchant and swap firmIndeedListeners of this show get a $75 Sponsored Job Credit to help give your job the premium placement it deserves at http://Indeed.com/lockedonnfl.FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) #colts #coltsnews #coltsnation #indianapoliscolts #fortheshoe Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Transcript
Discussion (0)
Starting point is 00:00:00 Welcome into the Colts Squad Show. I'm your host Derek Schultz, and I regret to inform everyone that I just turned down an invitation to the Pro Bowl. And I'm Zach Hicks, and I did as well, but we will see a couple Colts players out there on Pro Bowl weekend. And I'm Alan Pink at former Oiler. I never got an invitation to the Pro Bowl. Colts Nation rise up. It's the Colts Squad, everything Indianapolis Colts every week. Covering all the big hits and game-changing plays from the Surveport.
Starting point is 00:00:30 City the way only the locked on podcast network can. It's time to squad up. The Colt Squado starts now. Welcome to the Colts Squad Show crossover Thursday presented by prize picks. Download the Price Picks app today and use code locked on NFL to get $50 in lineups after you play your first $5 lineup. I'm Derek Schultz, long time indie sports talker and columnist for the Indianapolis Business Journal.
Starting point is 00:00:55 I'm joined by a nerd name legend and he'll always be a pro bowler in our hearts. Alan Pink is long time NFL running back are locked on cults. film guru, Zach Hicks, is back on the mend and here. Jake Arthur is on assignment in Mobile for the Senior Bowl, so he'll return to a future locked on cold squad show. Our series of position group reviews continues on tonight's episode, where we take a look at the running backs. Obviously, Jonathan Taylor, the most prominent figure there,
Starting point is 00:01:21 but an interesting mix of depth behind him and we'll evaluate all of their seasons, including Taylor. Speaking of JT, appreciating the season that he put together, really just the career that he's put together as well. I understand that in the wave of disappointment that everybody had with this cult season, I think sometimes individual performances get lost. And man, that first half of the season for Jonathan Taylor is about as good as it gets for this franchise.
Starting point is 00:01:45 And this is a franchise that has had Edger and James and Eric Dickerson and Marshall Falk and some of the best to ever do it at the position in Taylor's season right up there with those guys. In segment three, we'll talk Super Bowl, is Patriots Seahawks. The fact that that's the matchup and that's how they built their job. teams an indictment on the Colts. We'll discuss that. And then I feel like this is an annual conversation, some ideas to spruce up what is kind of become made fun of.
Starting point is 00:02:13 I don't even want to say become made fun of. It's been made fun of for a long time. Just Pro Bowl weekend in general. And the fact that now you got Shadur Sanders is technically a pro bowler and what are we doing? We'll talk all about that to round out the show today. But boys, let's talk about the running back room. It was pretty much all Jonathan Taylor. He accounted for 1,585 yards of the team's 2007 rushing yards. In fact, their second leading rusher this year was Daniel Jones.
Starting point is 00:02:41 I went back and looked, Zach. It's actually the first time since 2015. The Colts have only had one running back to account for over 100 yards. Amman Bradshaw had 85 backing up Frank Gore in 2015, but that was back in the days where the Colts couldn't run the ball at all. You know, now they can run the ball. But, you know, part of that is the fact, you know, he had a doula and Giddens was sort of in and out and Tyler Goodson dealt with some injuries.
Starting point is 00:03:02 So I think there is some context there. But overall, I mean, clearly when we're evaluating position room, sometimes we can talk about like multiple contributors. For the most part, this was like 95% Jonathan Taylor, 5% everybody else. Yeah. And you don't want that to be the case every single season. Obviously, you want to have more of that running back committee or at least part of a committee, right? You don't want one running back getting, you know, almost 100% of the snaps. Like it's great to stay healthy all season.
Starting point is 00:03:27 season, but running back is position where you wear down a lot over time. And you need another guy that can come in and spell it. You know, you think obviously the one we all think of as David Montgomery and Jamir Gibbs in Detroit, like having that one-two punch is just better for a team and better for the longevity of your running backs to have that. But I think the one thing with Jonathan Taylor this year is when we saw that Giddens wasn't really up for the challenge in year one. And then they were kind of going to this like very small committee approach behind Taylor,
Starting point is 00:03:57 And then Taylor was picking up his, his past catching part of his game and his past blocking part of his game, especially in the early part of the year. There was just no reason to take Taylor off of the field, you know? So you don't want this to become an every single season thing. But I think with how he was playing early in the season, with how he was staying healthy for the first part of the year. And I mean, for the whole year, he stayed pretty healthy. And he was showing that he could do kind of every aspect that you would ask of a running back. There was just really no reason to get him off the field. So, yeah, it just kind of happened to be that way.
Starting point is 00:04:29 The Colts got lucky that, you know, nothing, there wasn't a bad step that Taylor took or, you know, twisted ankle because he has dealt with injuries in the last couple years. But overall, I mean, the Colts were one of the best running teams in the entire league, despite only really having one guy producing all those yards, which kind of speaks to how good Taylor was and how good this Colts running game was. The Colts running game was so dominant in the first half of the season that even with the second half of the season struggles, with a hampered quarterback in Daniel Jones,
Starting point is 00:04:57 with a limited quarterback in Phillip Rivers, with playing the Houston defense, the Seattle defense, I mean, the Kansas City defense was pretty good this year. Like a lot of good defenses down the stretch, they were still like a top, what, three rushing offense in football this season, like by EPA per play and a lot of the efficiency stats. They were on pace to be like a historically great rushing offense. It kind of came down a little bit in that second half,
Starting point is 00:05:21 but still a great year running the football. and a lot of it begins and ends with Jonathan Taylor and this offensive line. So, yeah, I would say it's a very successful year from the Colts running back room, even if you want a little bit more from those guys behind Taylor, which we're going to talk about for majority of this segment because we want to leave Taylor more so for segment too. But overall, I would say the running back room grade is very high for the Colts this season just because of the production that they had out there.
Starting point is 00:05:49 Well, you mentioned some great running backs in. Colts history. And I think one of them I admired a great deal, even though he went to University of Miami. I'm not too fond of anybody who went to Miami. But that's personal. I do respect their talent. But Edge is the first person who I ever heard called the position. He renamed it. He said he was an every downback, you know, and he damn sure proved it. And so when I look at Jonathan Taylor, yeah, he did become an every down back, you know, because of his ability to block when they blitzed, his ability to catch passes. And I think the thing that that helped him out the most was, I mean, he did carry it over 300 times,
Starting point is 00:06:47 but it just never felt like it because they spread it out so well, you know, One of the things I used to always get on my nerves was running backs who would rip off two or three good runs and then come out the game and rest a little bit. And, you know, it was a pet peeve to me is because you're not allowed to be tired until you get the ball in the end zone. You know, and I think Jonathan Taylor was like that where he wouldn't come out of the field, but he didn't come up to field because, you know, he'd rip off a good run. They might throw three passes the next three downs. and then he'd be well-rested and could go and run again. So I attribute a lot of his success to the fact that, yes, he carried the ball a bunch of times, but it was spread out so much that he was fresh every time he got to football.
Starting point is 00:07:41 And I could tell that, you know, the national media, he started to get attention to the national media, and they're like, oh, you've got to stop Jonathan Taylor. Oh, you got to stop Jonathan Taylor. but they weren't really watching them because they threw more on first down than they ran the football. And so it would just, it's almost like his runs would catch the defense off guard
Starting point is 00:08:04 because it's like, okay, we're coming in and we're prime to stop just JT. And Daniel Jones is throwing it all over the place. Next thing, you know, boom, he rips one out to side gate and gets a bunch of yards. So, you know, I do attribute a lot of his success to the show. chain stiking style of offense where the running back stayed fresh most of the time. And, you know, I do know that continual running of the football wears you down.
Starting point is 00:08:36 But in this offense, it just doesn't feel like you get worn down that much. So this was what, year number six for Jonathan Taylor. And usually, usually a full-time back is good for about six years. but I don't see any of his skills diminishing. I don't see a reason why he would start going downhill. And as long as they keep the system the way they keep it, I think he's got at least a good three, four more years. Yeah, they definitely need somebody else, though,
Starting point is 00:09:09 in that room to step up a little bit. Like, look, with what you're paying, Jonathan Taylor, I'm fine with him getting 80% of the snaps. You know, it just can't be like 95% of the snaps or their production, you know, in that backfield. just because, again, you want to keep him at least a little bit fresh. You are paying him to be the every down back, like you said, Alan. But they need more out of either DJ Giddens or a free agent running back, a draft running back.
Starting point is 00:09:32 Maybe Tyler Goodson can get back in there. But they just didn't get anything behind him. And I think that you do ideally want to get at least a little bit of something behind him. I will say that one of the biggest surprises on the whole year, though, was Amir Abdullah coming out of nowhere. To be a good kick returner, to be a good pass. down blocker and passing down like catcher receiver out of the backfield. I thought some of his rushing attempts were pretty good. And it's kind of where the Colts had a pivot to when DJ Giddens just wasn't up to snuff.
Starting point is 00:10:02 And we actually have a comment here saying that like it's clear the Colts don't like Giddens. The thing with Giddens is he was 21 years old this year, young player, you know, rookie season, fifth round pick and the past blocking just wasn't good enough. And Alan, as a running back that played in the NFL, what's the one thing that gets you benched besides fumbling, what's the number one thing that gets you benched quicker than anything else? It's past blocking. That's right. It's past blocking.
Starting point is 00:10:25 Unless you're running like Jonathan Taylor out there, running for 100 yards a game. If you can't pass block, you're not going to play. So the Colts had to pivot to Amir Abdullah, a journeyman running back who mainly played special teams. And he actually gave them pretty good production for, I mean, again, you're paying him vet minimum contract to come in here. And he gave them surplus value on that contract. So credit to the Colts for finding that value. you. But I don't think that like the book is written for for get-ins. You know, he's in his first year, the Colts have three more cheap seasons on his contract with him. It's on him to get better as a
Starting point is 00:10:59 pass blocker and earn more carries in the running game because again, if you can't pass block as a backup running back, you're not going to play in this league. Yeah, it's no, no block, no rock. Right. Exactly. It's how it goes. You know, the thing that in, I won't take long on this, but the thing that they do need to give somebody else some more carries. But to me, they have no diversity at the running back position. I mean, they're all pretty much the same guy, all pretty much same height, you know, weight might fluctuate a little bit, but they don't have the big bruising back. They don't have the one, you know, real slim down, super speedy back, you know, and, you know, when you look at it,
Starting point is 00:11:46 Jonathan Taylor has all the best superlatives of the backs that they have. So, hell, yeah, he's going to get the carries. But I will agree with you on Amir Abdullah, though. And yeah, he got the vet minimum. But that vet minimum is a lot better than going out there and finding another job. But, you know, that's, to me, you know, as you get older as a running back, you get smarter. So you learn how to be more patient in the backfield.
Starting point is 00:12:19 You understand how they're going to block. You understand how you're going to react when they slant or stunt, you know, because you've already seen it in your mind. Okay, if they do this, I'm going to do this. Because I've seen it before. I don't have to panic. So it didn't surprise me at all about Amir Abdullah. But I would like to see just a little more diversity at the running back
Starting point is 00:12:43 in terms of size and speed. But I mean, JT can do it all. Yeah, and Warren's mentioning guys, Abdul will be a free agent. Tyro Goodson will be a free agent as well. So the only two running backs that they have under contract, besides like, you know, Ulysses Bentley the 4th, and some of the guys, if you go to the deep reserves are Taylor and Giddens.
Starting point is 00:13:04 So Giddins better be ready, I guess, for it. But I would assume, Zach, you're going to bring, you know, the Colts have had a lot of luck bringing in veteran guys, even into camp to sort of push some of the, young players. And I wouldn't be surprised to see them do that again. Yeah. And, you know, I'm not saying this guy's name because go get him because he's had some injuries in recent years. But I remember when, when Taylor and Zach Moss were working off each other a couple years ago, how well that dynamic worked, like what Alan was just saying, like Moss was this bruising running
Starting point is 00:13:31 back who had this really wicked spin moved in this game, which was really weird for like this 220-pound running back. But it was a really nice, like, difference because you would have Moss get a couple carries here and there and just grind down the. the defense. And then Taylor would come in with this four three speed at 230 pounds. And it's like, oh my gosh, they have a big guy who can also run. You know, where like Moss, it's just like, if he has open space in front of him, but a defender to his right, he's going to turn and run over that defender. Instead, Taylor's going to take that open grass. And it's really nice having that dynamic. So I agree, I think getting just a player like that in here to pair with Jonathan Taylor,
Starting point is 00:14:05 especially if you want Taylor to be more of your all around back, then when you, when you want to go to these like really bruising situations, just grind down a defense. like maybe even early in the game, you can have kind of that bigger back in there. But I just think having more diversity there, I will say with Tyler Goodson, though, I think he's a restricted free agent. So usually those guys do end up coming back. But Goodson, I don't think factors much into the running back room. He's more of a gunner at this point.
Starting point is 00:14:29 And he was a great gunner last year. But, you know, I think that more. And dealt with a bunch of injuries this year, kind of a bad luck season for Tyler Goodson more than anything else. Right. Yeah. And I will reference there was a backfield in college that was very. dynamic and that was Judarian Price and Jeremiah Love.
Starting point is 00:14:47 But one of the reasons that they were so good is because Jeremiah Love ran a certain way. And when linebackers got used to, you know, the speed it took to try and chase him down to the tackle spot, Judarian Price was so much faster. So he would just outrun these guys. So, you know, when you had that kind of diversity, then they couldn't be stopped. And I don't know how many teams in the NFL have that because, you know, it's just it's hard to find, you know, two good ones. I think Seattle had two good ones. And unfortunately, your boy got hurt.
Starting point is 00:15:26 I think the Texans had a couple good ones. But J.T. was just a one-man gang. Yeah, I mean, it was a lot like Alan Pinkin in the days at Nerd Aim. I guess you had, what, Chris Smith and Frank Stams and some of those guys, but for the most part, was you, right? You were certainly the bell cow. And the ball wasn't heavy. We come back on the squad show. Jonathan Taylor's once MVP level season did peter out down the stretch, but he's reached some rarefied air in Colts history. We'll discuss next when the Colt Squad Show returns. This portion of the Colt Squad Show brought you by Rocket Money. Let's be real. Managing your finances can feel overwhelming
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Starting point is 00:17:49 create an account, and use code locked on for $20 off your first purchase. That's code L-O-C-E-D, O-N for $20 off. Download the GameTime app today. And remember, it's GameTime.com. Not GameTime. Or sorry, GameTime, do com, not game time. And we're back on the Locked on Colts show alongside former NFLer Alan Pinkett and Zach Hicks of Locked on Colts. Your first listen every day. I'm Derek Schultz. thanks so much for joining us. Appreciating Jonathan Taylor because he was on this MVP pace. I mean, we even talked about it on this show could a running back actually shoehorn his way into the MVP conversation.
Starting point is 00:18:30 And the pinnacle of that was probably after Germany, right? He had three more touchdowns, including the walkoff against the Falcons. The Colts were eight and two and they were feeling pretty good about their playoff chances. As were we, as was everybody in Indianapolis. And of course, the season did not go from there the way that anybody wanted it to. Zach, he didn't quite get to his 2021 rushing numbers, but I think it's sort of what we talked about in segment one. Pound for pound, this might have been his best all-around season.
Starting point is 00:18:57 I don't think that he's ever going to be the all-around player that Alan Pinkin mentioned, Ezra and James was, but I do think that he's gotten a lot better in that area. And that's what you love to see for a guy that it's hard to believe, man, he's six years into his NFL career now. Yeah, you hardly see guys in the NFL as they gain carries, as they gain more wear and tear on their body. body get better. And I think seeing Jonathan Taylor healthy for the first time in years,
Starting point is 00:19:21 like healthy for an entire season, we got to see that he's still that guy from 2021, where he's capable of hitting that next step when he gets in the open space. And I will say this, before the season started, I was in that camp of, hey, Jonathan Taylor is still a really good running back. He's still worth what he's getting paid. But I don't think he has that gear in the open field anymore. I genuinely thought that coming into the year where it's like, you know, that 2021 Jonathan Taylor that we saw where when he gets that like a little inch of space, he can turn it into an 80 yard touchdown run. I thought that was long gone because he had dealt with ankle injuries, because he had
Starting point is 00:19:55 dealt with knee injuries in recent seasons. And it was like, ah, man, like he still has great vision. He still has that ability to find space. But I don't know if we're going to get that next level explosion. Well, the first half of this season, anytime he got a little bit of space, he was gone. I mean, the Titans, the, he had like an 80 yard touchdown against the Titans. He had the 50-something-yard touchdown against the Titans in the first game as well. He had the long run against the Broncos in week two that helped the Colts win that game.
Starting point is 00:20:22 Obviously, the huge one in Atlanta that was arguably the play of the year for the Colts where he comes out of that pile and runs for 80-plus yards down the sideline. And any question I had about his long speed and what he could still be was all out the window at that point. Like he still is that Jonathan Taylor that we saw in 2021. And as you said, Derek, he might be even. better than that version because we saw a little bit more in the passing game. We saw a little bit more as a past blocker, especially in that first half of the year.
Starting point is 00:20:52 And he was a catalyst, maybe not a catalyst for this offense, but he was such a prime part of what they wanted to do, which I'll get to more in a second. But like, even if he wasn't getting the ball, just the threat of Jonathan Taylor. And I always hear analytics people say, and don't get me wrong, I'm a huge analytics guy. I love analytics. I love the numbers behind everything. but I always hear analytics people say that it doesn't matter how good the running game is or how good the running back is. Just the threat of play action opens up windows.
Starting point is 00:21:20 And I do partially agree there. But I think there is a little bit more when the threat is Jonathan Taylor versus the threat is like Zach Hicks back there in the backfield. You know, like you're going to fit the run a little bit harder when Jonathan Taylor is in that backfield. And I think the Colts played off that really well in the first half of the season when they had a healthy Daniel Jones where it was, we're going to do these long stretch play action plays, and we're going to get that backside will linebacker, that backside safety crashing hard downhill, and we're going to pull it out and throw it to Tyler Warren in the flat
Starting point is 00:21:50 and get him, you know, the ball in space. But because you had that threat of Jonathan Taylor and made the offense so much better. So I think that when he had the ball, he was fantastic, obviously, especially early in the year, but just the threat of Jonathan Taylor opened up so much in the passing game. He was such a core piece to what they were doing. and he had a great year.
Starting point is 00:22:10 Yeah, it was a fantastic season. And I'm with you, Derek. I think it was better than his 2021 season. Maybe not by a ton because they're both great seasons. He should have been a second team all pro this year. I don't know how he wasn't, but a great season by Jonathan Taylor nonetheless. Well, I don't know where he stands in the Colts record books in terms of career yards, career touchdowns. But, you know, a lot of records are going to get broken because they've added one game to the
Starting point is 00:22:37 schedule. So with 17 games, you know, a lot of stats are going to get obliterated. But, you know, I think when I look at Jonathan Taylor and watch him perform, there's no doubt in my mind that he has a very rigid off-season workout program because you can't be a full-time back and not be in the weight room and not work on your running ability. And, you know, it's, I don't think I ever saw him on the injury report all season long. You tell me if he was on there. So he was able to avoid those little nagging injuries that sometimes you get that will slow you up.
Starting point is 00:23:25 I personally remember one year in college where I had an ankle that just wouldn't heal and I just needed that one game where I didn't re-injure it and the next thing, you know, boom, 160, 180, 162, and 100, you know, so fortunate for him, he didn't get one of those little nagging injuries that would hamper him. But another part of why he didn't get one of those nagging injuries, it's because he put the work in in the offseason to make sure that he could absorb a blow and take all the pounding. And, I mean, he's got the perfect body to be the every down back because really, you know, you lift all those weights, not necessarily to deliver a blow, but you lift all those weights to give yourself padding to, you know, be able to withstand all the
Starting point is 00:24:25 punishment, you know, because you get hit damn near every play. Yeah. And the other thing you do, and one of the things that happens as you get older as a running back is you learn how to take a hit. You learn how when you're in a situation where, okay, I can't gain any more yards. I'm going to get tackled. Sometimes it's just a matter of just turning your shoulders just a little bit so you don't receive the full brunt of the collision. Sometimes you can't help it. Sometimes you get knocked the hell out because you don't see anybody, you know. But I think over my career, I can think of maybe six times where I got just blasted because I didn't see the dude.
Starting point is 00:25:09 But you do learn how to fall and maneuver your body so that it ends up being a lot of glancing blows. What's amazing to me, too, about just kind of tailors. And you mentioned it, Zach, like he's had injury issues, right? And this was the first season that he was fully healthy. But I remember when he was a draft prospect, one of the red flags for me, like there usually is for Wisconsin guys is that Wisconsin choose their running backs up and spits him out. Like they give him like 400 carries a season or whatever it is.
Starting point is 00:25:41 And Taylor was a workhorse on the college level. And then now he's again been a workhorse on this level. I mean, you're talking about a guy that had 300, 300. He had almost a thousand carries in college, and then he's, you know, like I said, taking the brunt of it here. But Alan, you mentioned the all-time list. I'm glad you brought that up because I actually prepped that for today's show. 1,628 yards away from Edger and James for the all-time rushing title is a cold. Edge did it in seven seasons.
Starting point is 00:26:11 Next season will be JT's seventh. Taylor already the all-time rushing touchdowns leader with a nice 69. he's had 10, at least 10 in four of his six seasons, and he just passed Edge for the all-time touchdowns, because Edge had 11 receiving touchdowns as well, but 76 to 75. And again, you know, I understand that Eric Dickerson and especially Marshall Falk,
Starting point is 00:26:32 their window was much smaller, but anytime that you can say, hey, I was the all-time leader on a team that had those three names, I mean, you're talking about three of the 10 best running backs of all time probably, pound for pound. Yeah, and I fully expect him to be number one in rushing yards in franchise history
Starting point is 00:26:48 by the end of his, time with the culture, end of his NFL career, whatever comes first there. Yeah, he's just, he's an all-time great in Indianapolis time. And, you know, we can get on Chris Ballard for his drafting and stuff, and we'll talk about that more in segment three here. But getting guys like Jonathan Taylor and Quentin Nelson in this franchise, two guys are going to be in the ring of honor one day is a special thing, you know, and getting to see them in their prime and getting to see them put up these fantastic numbers
Starting point is 00:27:15 and fantastic seasons. Like, you wish there were more playoff success with it for sure. but I think they've been great. One thing I do want to add on, because I wanted to add it in the first segment when Alam was talking about it, but there is kind of this misconception with the season that Taylor had where I think a lot of people say the Colts for this run first offense and Taylor, and this is where I would struggle with Taylor being the MVP of the team too, right, is because I'm going to bring this like a baseball analogy.
Starting point is 00:27:40 So Derek, I know you're more the baseball guy here. I love my baseball analogy. Get everyone involved. Daniel Jones was like your starting pitcher, this show. year, right? Taylor was your closer and basically your reliever as well. He was your reliever and your closer. And when we saw Taylor's numbers dip in the second half of the season, it was just because they weren't winning in games in the second half. They weren't really close in games in the second half, right? So it was hard to get your closer. Like, we all know on a bad baseball team,
Starting point is 00:28:09 your closer doesn't get much action, you know, and that was kind of the case with Jonathan Taylor, where what we saw in the first half of the year when he was having this special production was they were using the fear of Jonathan Taylor to get yards in the passing game. And then once they got their yards in the passing game got points on the board, then they would just let Taylor go to work. And he was averaging almost 100 yards rushing
Starting point is 00:28:29 per second half in the first half of the season because he was that dominant as that closer for the team. So it was almost like the Colts were benefiting from the fear of him first. And then they would just let him close out the game. So of course, when you're losing games late in the season, your closer is not really going to get much action out there. but I don't think it takes away from how special he was this season.
Starting point is 00:28:49 He just, you know, it was kind of more of a game flow thing that took him away from a lot of these things. But he was awesome. I really loved how Shane Stuyken used him. And to what Alan was saying in the first segment is that kind of kept him fresh. You know, the whole first half, you're kind of like this intimidating force instead of like the main guy. And then when everyone else is tired out there in the second half, you have fresh legs and you're ready to go. And that's kind of what kept him fresh for most of the season. I think it was a great game play.
Starting point is 00:29:16 they just need to make sure that the passing game is on point next season because he is like this, it's like coincides with the passing game. Like Taylor is, we're not a run first offense, we're a past first offense. But once that pass gets going, the second half we become a run first offense with this superstar closer. But they needed to set up that superstar closer to get him the ball in the second half of games. But it doesn't take away from how special his year was. It's just, it's a different type of special.
Starting point is 00:29:44 You know, it wasn't like, like 2021, he's, he was the entire offense. He was every aspect of the offense. They couldn't do anything else. This year, he was just a massive, massive piece of an offense that was really good and cohesive for most of the season. It just sucks that it kind of went downhill in the second half. But he was a core element to it, but it was mostly as a closer than it was like the
Starting point is 00:30:05 entire, like, breathing aspect of the offense. I do like the analogy of being a closer. And I think that's exactly what he was. he was running when folks weren't expecting him to run. And when he did run in the second half, you got to understand. You got guys like Quentin Nelson and the rest of that offensive line beating on those guys the entire game. Now, they're at the advantage because usually they have the lead.
Starting point is 00:30:35 And there's nothing in offensive linemen wants to do more than move forward out of his stance as opposed to dropping back and having to catch somebody. So he was actually catching the office of linemen at their prime near the end of games too, which allowed him to be a hell of a closer. So just the entire system really benefited him. But I'm not going to say it's all system because you still got to have some talent to be able to run for that many yards and carry it that many times. By the way, shout out to our friends at Locked on MLB. If you are looking to get your baseball offseason and hot stove fix,
Starting point is 00:31:13 tune them in after you listen to Locked on Colts, check out Locked on MLB. We'll continue next with a Super Bowl matchup between the Patriots and Seahawks, and whether or not that's an indictment on the Colts. We'll debate that question when the Colts Squad Show returns. This portion of the Colt Squad Show brought you by our friends at Indeed, if you've ever hired somebody who looked good on paper but wasn't the right fit,
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Starting point is 00:32:49 Jake Arthur in Mobile, Alabama, and he will be back on the show. Sorry, I always say Alabama like I'm, I don't know, Forrest Gump or something. But that's the way that I like to say. With the Senior Bowl and everything else that's going on down there, as we are right into the NFL offseason for 30 of 32 teams. We know the Super Bowl matchup, which we still have to wait another full week for, is the Patriots against the Seahawks. And while I think you can look at several things to make it an indictment on the Colts,
Starting point is 00:33:19 I think you could look at the Jaguars and Texans who aren't playing the Super Bowl and turn that into an indictment on the Colts, right? I was just looking at this matchup and, you know, as much as we talk about the Chris Bowerd era and it's starting in 2017, like let's just go ahead and start it after the first two seasons, right? In 2018 was a very good season, especially considering that that was year two and they started one in five and they ran off that long winning streak. They won a playoff game, went to the divisional and ultimately lost at Arrowhead, but a really fun season. Ultimately, it ended up being Andrew Lux last season, which is not something that anybody. he wanted. But since Andrew Luck retired before the 2019 season, the Patriots still had one more season with Tom Brady in 2019, right? They made the playoffs that year. They lost to the Titans. His last throw, I think was a pick six, if I'm not mistaken, to Tennessee. They go to Mack Jones.
Starting point is 00:34:04 In 2021, they make the playoffs with Mac Jones. There was like that little brief window. Remember, people were like, oh, they got it all figured out. Mac Jones is the next time. And while Mac Jones has shown himself to be a decent NFL quarterback, I don't think he's shown himself to be a franchise player. So they go ahead and they replace Mac Jones. owns with Drake May, and here they are back in the Super Bowl again. The Seahawks kind of followed the Colts model for the most part. They went the retread route, right? Gino Smith, and they unlocked some success there, right?
Starting point is 00:34:30 Gino Smith had some decent seasons there. The Seahawks were around 9, 10 wins, but they weren't really getting anywhere. They had kind of a clearly defined ceiling, and then they took it to the next level by betting big on Sam Darnel, which is something that Zach had mentioned. If the Colts want to go that route, they should drop a bag on Sam Darnold. And look, Daniel Jones was good, right? And maybe give them a little bit of an incomplete. But if you could do it all over again,
Starting point is 00:34:54 knowing what Donald gave you for a second straight year, maybe you changed that out. It's just not these two teams, Zach, I'm just using them as an example. But I think the underlying factor here is that the Seahawks, the Patriots, several other NFL teams have made themselves over since the Colts have been in this drought. In fact, they've made themselves over in some cases multiple times.
Starting point is 00:35:15 And it found success. Now, not all of them have gotten to the Super Bowl, but they've gone to the playoffs. So they've won playoff games. They've won the division and here the Colts are with a big fat zero and all of those categories across the board. Yeah, and not to be super defensive of Chris Ballard here with this indictment here. Trust me, I'll be critical of him afterwards.
Starting point is 00:35:33 But I will say it really helps with these two teams where one, the Patriots tore everything down, you know, twice basically, right? Post-Tom Brady. And it helps when you get lucky on your quarterback pick, right? And I'm not saying it to take a certain degree of skill, land Drake made, but he was the third quarterback taken in that draft. You know, who knows where he ranked on their actual, if they had the first overall pick, do they take them?
Starting point is 00:35:56 Who knows? Sometimes it better be lucky than good, right? Like, by the time their pick came on the board, he was the only one left and it was like, okay, cool, we'll take him. And he ends up being what looks to be the best of the bunch. And then having that quarterback on a rookie contract makes life so much easier. And then you go to Seattle's situation. It really helped when you can trade off an aging franchise quarterback who wants
Starting point is 00:36:18 out for what, three first round picks or two first round picks, plus a healthy dose of contracts. They were able to turn those picks into some very, very good players on cheap deals going forward for them. So, you know, in some aspect, like they had a little bit easier mode than I guess Ballard, where Ballard had to recover from the loss of Andrew Luck without getting picks for Andrew Luck and also not really being in a place where you could tear it all down with Jermerese, but there's multiple ways to succeed in this league. And one thing that you can look at with Seattle is they never really tore it down.
Starting point is 00:36:54 Like, yes, they got the picks, obviously, from Russell Wilson, but they never really tore it down to rebuild it back up. You know, they hit on a lot of draft picks. Like, that was kind of the big part was they hit on a lot of draft picks. They extended the right guys. And then when they had to take their chances, you know, getting Ernest Jones in there at linebacker, who's a really, really good linebacker for them, get it. standing Sam Darnold in there
Starting point is 00:37:16 and making that crucial move from Gino Smith to Sam Darnold, they were able to take those chances and succeed with them. Changing a head coach when they made the change at head coach from Pete Carroll, arguably a Hall of Fame coach and a very, very good one in that. You move on from him and you get McDonald
Starting point is 00:37:33 in there, you get Clint Kubiak in there. And they even had the misstep last year. Ryan Grub is their offensive coordinator. They get Clint Kubiak in there who looks like he's going to be a head coach after this because he was such a great person to bring in. And so, you know, if there's any indictment on Ballard, and I think there certainly is when it comes to these two teams, the two aspects I look at are you have to hit home runs in the draft, right? That's the biggest thing. Look at where the Patriots are.
Starting point is 00:37:57 Look at where the Seahawks are. And where would they be without these cheap contract guys producing at a high level? You look at the hold secondary for the Seahawks. They're all guys on rookie contracts who are just playing out of their mind. You look at the wide receiver room for the Patriots outside of Stefan Diggs. It's a lot of guys on rookie contracts. contracts playing very, very good football, offensive line for the Patriots, a lot of guys on rookie contracts. So you have to hit on your draft picks. And then the other aspect, too, is being
Starting point is 00:38:23 aggressive when the situation calls for it. You know these two teams in Super Bowl, Derek, and it doesn't feel like it, they're both top five in total contract value, right? So if you add up the total contracts on the roster, right, like the full length and the full money on the deals, they're both top five. I think the Patriots are like a good like 50 to 60 million. dollars more than the next highest team. Hatreds are by far in a way number one. And then Seahawks are fourth probably after they gave out that Sam Garnel contract, obviously. So in terms of total value left on contracts, these are two teams that when they had to spend, they spent in free agency, especially New England buying an entire defense in one off season.
Starting point is 00:39:03 So they're teams that draft very well, but when they have to fill gaps with free agency, they get very aggressive. And they were able to hit on a lot of their free agent pickups. It's like, again, you look at the Patriots with Stefan Diggs, with Milton Williams up in the middle, with a lot of the secondary pieces they brought in to fill out that secondary. Like, it's a big part of rebuilding teams. So, yeah, if there's any indictment here on the Colts, it's just they've had too many whiffs, you know. And if you want to be a suitable team, urgent for error is so slim.
Starting point is 00:39:33 You can't miss, like, especially when it comes to a quarterback, but when it comes to other roster stuff too. And you've got to get lucky with health as well when it comes to those big free agent signings. And it all has to come together. And one misstep here, one misstep there can turn into years and years of not having the same production. So credit to these two teams for drafting well and being aggressive and a lot of those risks they took panning out for them. But they're, you know, it just, it just shows how slim that bargain for error is. And sometimes you have to be willing to take a step back to go step forward. I don't know how to hell to follow all of that.
Starting point is 00:40:07 But, you know, what I'll say about the Patriots is that when it was apparent to me that when they knew they made a mistake, they didn't live with it. They corrected it right away. Yeah. And to me, and then when they got Mike Rable, you know, they let him be in charge. And it's amazing when you have the coach as the one. who's running things and that coach is supported by the organization. And the players know that the coach not only cares about them but has their back, what type of effort he's going to get out of those players.
Starting point is 00:40:54 So it's almost like a high school phenomenon type of, you know, right ideal for the coach. They all love the coach. But, you know, I always say it's a partnership in the NFL. It is indeed a partnership
Starting point is 00:41:16 because he does treat them like adults, but he is the boss. You know, it's, I'm going to make another Notre Dame reference. It's sort of like the effect Marcus Freeman has on his team. You know, culturally, he's right where they are. He can talk
Starting point is 00:41:32 about the different music artists they listen to and everything can speak their language. But when he has to be hard on them, you know, they respect him enough. It's like, okay, yeah, I better listen to this guy. In regards to Seattle, I think Seattle's been pretty clever hiding up there in, you know, the Pacific Northwest because Gino Smith got his chance because they didn't want to pay Russell Wilson anymore. And then Gino Smith was playing well. It's like, well, he's at that point. We don't want to pay him anymore.
Starting point is 00:42:09 They go get Sam Darnold. You know, and so they have gotten lucky, I think. But I don't want to call it luck. I want to just say they were clever because they hit on their quarterbacks, you know, when they decided to be behind the quarterback. But, you know, Seattle's an organization that's just solid. all the way around. And once again, got the right coach.
Starting point is 00:42:38 And I always believe that there's two places where you got to hit in football. You got to hit on your quarterback. You either have that guy or you don't have that guy. And you're going to struggle if you don't have that guy. And you got to hit on the coach. And I think both teams are examples. they play to the personality of their coach. Yeah, and when they've needed to upgrade,
Starting point is 00:43:07 they've been able to upgrade, whether it's luck or not. Like you said, you know, that's the business aspect of it, right? You get full credit for it. And they gave up on Russell Wilson at the perfect time. He still had a tremendous trade value, right? Because it still was viewed as this franchise level player. And clearly, as we've seen over the last couple of seasons, I mean, he's not been close to that level,
Starting point is 00:43:29 not only in Denver, but Pittsburgh or God, New York or, you know, wherever the hell else he's been, it's been that way. And then also to go from Carol the McDonald, you know, head coach-wise or what Seattle has done, you know, quarterback and coach, they've done it both ways. Now, you know, New England went from Belichick to what, Drad Mayo, and that didn't really work out. But like you said, Alan, you know, knowing when to cut bait, whereas the Colts path has kind of just been like this, you know, like they go from reset to rivers.
Starting point is 00:43:57 That was an upgrade. rivers to Wentz, that was a downgrade. Wentz to Ryan was again another downgrade, even though Wentz was even that good. You know what I mean? And then, you know, you've just been kind of riding that roller coaster, whereas some of these other teams, their path seemingly has been kind of more linear to getting themselves back up again.
Starting point is 00:44:15 But you're right, Zach, like, and some people listen to the show will be like, oh, yeah, of course the locked on Colts trio are just talking about how, well, the Colts have just been unlucky. But really, that is a big part of just sports in general. I mean, just look here in Indiana, you know, no offense to what just happened with IU in this story, but no one knew that the 63-year-old head coach at James Madison was going to become the greatest coach in college football.
Starting point is 00:44:39 And I'm sure, right? You just have to, but you get full credit for it. And you get the parade and you get the trophy. And just like the Seahawks and Patriots said, they get to play for a Super Bowl now coming up in 10 days. And look, you've suffered as a cult fan, but would you prefer to be a Bills fan? Yeah.
Starting point is 00:44:57 Yeah, it's just. Right now I would. Yeah, sure. But I took that as, you meant historically, right? Yeah, historical. All of it. Yeah. Yeah. It's tough, right? It's tough. It's a tough decision to make and a conversation to have for sure. One quick thing I'll say, though, is, again, with both of these, with both of these teams is knowing when, like, part of it is luck for sure, but you create your own luck by taking as many shots as possible. Right. And the problem with the colds has been like, yes, they have taken all these shots at course. quarterback for sure. But I mean, general manager's been the same guy the whole time. Right. And at least in Seattle's case, when they've had the same general manager, that guy won Super Bowls with them. Right. Like,
Starting point is 00:45:40 he's, he's shown that he could do it. This general manager in Indy has a losing record over 10 years. So, like, you create your own luck by taking shots. And then, you know, again, the next shot you take, maybe this shot is your Gerard Mayo, but the next shot you take could be your Mike Ravel. But you don't know that if you stick with the Gerard Mayo the entire. If the Patriots gave Drodmeo 10 years, they wouldn't be where they are right now. So sometimes you do have to keep taking those shots to create your own luck, you know, rather than just saying like, you know, when I'm trying to roll a 10, I rolled a two, I'm going to stick with my two here.
Starting point is 00:46:13 You know, like sometimes, like if you're playing what, Blackjack, whatever, sometimes you've got a hit. Sometimes you've got a hit to have a chance at winning. How do you fix the Pro Bowl? We're going to put on our thinking caps and we'll solve it when we wrap up the Colts Squad show next. This Porsche, the Cold Squad Show, brought you by TurboTax. Tax season doesn't have to take over your life. This year, TurboTax is making it easier than ever to just hand things off and move on with your day.
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Starting point is 00:47:33 If a TurboTex expert doesn't file for you last year, just file by February 28th and you'll be fine. Take taxes off your plate and get back to your life. Visit turbotax.com slash local to book your appointment today. Back for a final time on the Locked on Colts Squad Show. Thanks so much for making us a part of your Thursday night alongside nerd name legend and former NFL or Alan Pinkett and half of the Locked on Colts daily duo in Zach Hicks.
Starting point is 00:48:01 I'm Derek Schultz. Jake Arthur will return once he gets back from the Senior Bowl in Mobile doing a great job with his coverage. Check that out on the Locked on Colts platforms at Lockdown Colts and of course on our YouTube channel, which many of you are consuming this show on right now. The Pro Bowl guys, so they've done this flag football skills thing. They're trying, right? They're trying. They've done this a couple years ago and they paired it up with the Mannings and things like that. And they're trying to inject some life into it. I understand that you don't want to
Starting point is 00:48:32 get guys hurt and things like that. Alan's probably just rolling his eyes out of his skull right now. He's talking about, you know, these new age guys, they don't want to go out there and get hurt. I think really more than the game and things like that, Zach, it's starting to become problematic, the selection process because it's just, you know, I compared it to gold gloves in baseball, not to make another baseball analogy, but even like those have more merit than Shadur Sanders getting into the Pro Bowl. And I don't want to just make it about Shadur Sanders.
Starting point is 00:48:59 You brought up Tyler Huntley. a couple of years ago. I mean, they get to the point where it's like the sixth alternate, the seventh alternate, the eighth alternate, and you're just like, guys, why don't you just, there's no game, right? So just name a pro bowl team, and the people that want to show up can show up and you just take advantage of that. I think that would be my first fix right there. Yeah, no, I completely agree.
Starting point is 00:49:21 And that was my thing, like, at least when there was a game, sure, like, get alternates in there because you're playing an actual game. I still think that was kind of dumb. but like at least there was a game involved. Now you're playing touch football or whatever, flag football. Like, why do we need to have these alternates? And especially in the picture of the AFC this year, right,
Starting point is 00:49:39 where like it sucks at Shudor Sanders is getting the criticism for this, right? It's not his fault that he accepted the invite because there was nobody else. Right. If you go down the line of players, right, that they could, so they had their regular guys, right? And then of the other guys they could have picked, all of them were hurt, right? Bo Nix, Daniel Jones,
Starting point is 00:50:00 Cam Ward even from the rookie class, he was hurt. You know, like these guys couldn't play. And even in the flag football game, because they're already dealing with torn Achilles or busted shoulders or broken ankles. So these guys couldn't play in the meaningless flag game. Then you get to like the guys like Joe Burrow and Josh Allen and all them.
Starting point is 00:50:19 Like they just, you know, Burroughs been banged up all year. Lamar Jackson has been banged up all year. But like Josh Allen's just got off a long playoff run, right? He doesn't want to go to some flag game in Florida. So he declines it. So now you're down to Shadur Sanders versus. is bench Justin Fields versus benched, you know, so to so versus Aaron Rogers, who's,
Starting point is 00:50:36 you know, 400 years old. Like, he doesn't want to go play flag football down in Florida. So, like, I don't blame Shadur Sanders for this. He's getting a lot of the criticism for it. It's not his fault, but he accepted it. But it is kind of like a mockery of the Pro Bowl, especially when it's held to this like degree of accomplishment, right? Where like this is a reward for the season you had. And it's like, if we're just going to water it down like this is it really an accomplishment, you know? And I do agree there should be this like middle ground between the all pro and and regular football players to celebrate more football players. Like I love that. I think there needs to be like a distinction between the vet minimum guys and the all pros
Starting point is 00:51:19 who are the best of the best in the future Hall of Famers. So I like there being a Pro Bowl. But like you said, Derek, like if we're not even playing a game, why are we doing alternate? I feel like this could easily be saw by like, hey, Shadir Sanders, you're on a rookie contract, right? We need someone to play in this Florida game and have a fun vacation. We'll give you 10K to come down here, throw a couple passes in this flag football game, and, you know, be part of the event. Like, he's going to accept that. Well, maybe not him because he's already rich. But, you know, like a typical that low contract rookie is going to take that deal. So yeah, I think it's kind of goofy. I don't really know the solution though for fixing it because like you said Derek like these guys are so just like aware of their
Starting point is 00:52:04 bodies and health of their bodies these guys are going to nutritionists from the time they're like in elementary school they're in weight programs since they're in like middle school they are dealing with agents and trainers from such a young age now that they're so aware of like the condition of their body and like you know how to make themselves as healthy as possible for the longest career to maximize their earning potential. And unless the Pro Bowl was offering this, like, massive incentive to each player, right? Like monetary incentive, I'm not going to put my body on the line. I'm not going to kill my earning potential for a meaningless football game that's just
Starting point is 00:52:40 for entertainment, right? Like, it's one thing for me to do it on Sundays when I'm getting paid millions of dollars had the potential to make more money. I'm not earning anything in the Pro Bowl, you know? So I'm sure there are a handful of guys who are like Sean Taylor of the world who will go out there and just crush a punner in the Pro Bowl, right? Because that's just how they are wired as a player. But for the, you know, for the typical NFL player where, you know, there is a love of the game, but there's also a business aspect of this. It doesn't make any sense from the business aspect
Starting point is 00:53:11 to play in a Pro Bowl that has contact. Maybe you can go back to some of the old throwing competitions and like fun things that, you know, from the early 2000s and stuff. But aside from that, I don't think you can really have a game besides Flag Football because these guys are so protective of their money now. You know, I hope I don't sound like to get off my lawn guy, but I miss the actual game. You know, I do miss the fact that it was mostly offense, and there was sort of a code that you wouldn't get blasted. There might be a couple guys that would blast you, but for the most part, if you've made
Starting point is 00:53:53 the Pro Bowl, it's like, okay, look, you can come up. across the middle and I'll just I'll pull up so I won't have to destroy you coming across the middle. And the Pro Bowl was relevant. And the way I know the game was relevant is Vegas liked it. They still had odds in the Pro Bowl. So you really had to be desperate. The ratings were huge too. People were tuning into that thing, man.
Starting point is 00:54:20 It's crazy. Yeah, you know, it did receive, it received better ratings than anything. else they were showing at the time. Any basketball game, any golf that was going on. So I do miss the game, and I'll just tell you, I haven't seen any skills competition. I am not interested, but I understand why they put it on because these guys are so dynamic that people will, you know, are so wanting to see them do something that, that, watch flag football, but I also understand why guys don't do it. Because I think back when I was playing, if you went to the pro ball and you were on the winning team, you got $10,000.
Starting point is 00:55:10 If you're on the losing team, you got $5,000. Now, I don't think anybody would, they wouldn't bad, they wouldn't shun $10,000. But to do it now, to risk your body and your future earnings over $10,000, and I don't think anybody's going to do it. And they are worried about getting hurt. And I've noticed a noticeable change. Ever since you remember Jonathan Stevens, who was a rookie of the year, offensive rookie of the year, went to the Pro Bowl, got hurt in the Pro Bowl,
Starting point is 00:55:50 was really never the same. And I want to say that was probably 1989 or 1990 when he went. There was a running back for the Patriots name Robert Edwards that tore his ACL in a beach game. That's what I'm thinking of. Yeah, that's what I'm thinking of, that's what I'm thinking of. I'm saying Jonathan Stevens, because I saw him in 93,
Starting point is 00:56:18 he was traded to the Packers. when I came in as a free agent. And I know he was a rookie to year, but yeah, it was, thank you for the correction. But I thought it was Jonathan Stevens got hurt. But Robert Edwards, yeah. Yeah, and I get it for the game. Like, I get it that guys don't want to put their body on the line.
Starting point is 00:56:39 I just think that, you know, we need something, like Zach said, it can't just be all pro because it's really hard to be an all pro. And there are all these people that are deserving of some sort of, of recognition, but we can't like water it down any more than we're already watering it down. And then, you know, what ends up happening too is that I think I'm not mistaken here. Joe Flacco has never been a pro baller now. Not that Joe Flacco has got invited to the pro baller bunch, but I think he's turned down two separate invitations to the Pro Bowl.
Starting point is 00:57:09 So technically, Joe Flacco is a zero time pro bower when in reality he would be a two-time pro baller. It's just that he's declined both times. Yeah. Yeah. And guys like Tyler Huntley and Shudder's. Yeah. Of course, yeah, which is, we're never going to decline, right?
Starting point is 00:57:22 Why, how could you? We can even go further. I think Teddy Bridgewater, Tarad Taylor is a pro bowler, which is awesome. I do love me some Tarad Taylor. But yeah, I don't really, I just, again, I don't really. You mentioned a couple shows ago, Gardner Minchin. Colts legend, Gardner Mintu is a pro bowler. But yeah, I don't know what the solution is because it's not like a video game.
Starting point is 00:57:42 You can't just turn injuries off, you know. And if you could guarantee no injuries, put them in bubble wrap or something, then maybe we could have a game. But it's just, again, like, we're in this era where guys are getting paid as early as now freshman year in college, you know? Yeah. You know, that they're getting agents going into college. Yeah.
Starting point is 00:58:00 Like, it is a business for these guys from the time they hit, honestly late middle school. It's a business. Their bodies are their business. And I don't think you can change that. Like, even if you were to change it to being a basketball game between these guys, there's still too much injury risk for that, you know? Like, they'll put it on the way. line on Sundays because that's where they make their money.
Starting point is 00:58:23 Right? But in this flag football game or even in this touch football game, whatever it's going to be, it's only a negative. You can't get, unless, like Alan said, you know, guys back then would do it for $10,000. If you made it where, and this would cost more than what it would be worth to run the game, which is kind of counterintuitive, if you made the, you know, every player got a certain amount of millions of dollars for their playing it for winning the game, then guys would maybe play it, but then the game would cost hundreds of millions of dollars.
Starting point is 00:58:51 You probably wouldn't make that back. So there's really no solution. I think the Pro Bowl is just broken at this point. I just think that there needs to be like a list and then no alternates. Like take the alternates out or at least have like, have like an all honorable mentions team or something and just have those guys go down in the history books as Pro Bowl honorable mentions that season. You know, just so there's a distinction that like.
Starting point is 00:59:14 And something tangible. wasn't the real pro bowler, right? That was these X amount of players. And then just leave it at that and just get rid of whatever the flag game is. Just don't even have an event with it at this point. And I also miss that as not in Hawaii anymore because that was part of the allure of going to the Pro Bowl is going to Hawaii. Now they have it in someplace in Florida. I mean, guys aren't going to go out of the way to go to Hawaii unless, you know, there's.
Starting point is 00:59:44 Well, yeah. I think it's starting to follow wherever the Super Bowl is, right? So it'll be like Santa Clara area this year. Am I right, Zach? You know, okay, I'm putting you on the spot. I haven't watched the football since I was like 10. I don't know. I watched Chontea to kill a punter and that was all I watched.
Starting point is 01:00:01 So Alan's right. It was Hawaii and then it was like Orlando or something. And then I think it started following wherever the Super Bowl site is. But I might, they've changed things up. So I might be wrong on that. So don't quote me on that. But yeah, Pro Bowl week this weekend. And then finally we can get into the Super Bowl week next week.
Starting point is 01:00:20 And that'll be the next time that we'll see you right here on the Lockdown Colts Squad Show. Thanks so much for joining us. We'll be back Tuesday night of Super Bowl week at 9 p.m. As our offseason schedule continues. And as always, the Colts news cycle never really goes quiet. So keep it locked on Jake and Zach every day on Locked on Colts. And be sure to follow at Lockdown Colts on socials and check out our other great content on YouTube and TikTok. And we'll see you next time right here on the squad show.

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