Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - Indianapolis Colts Honors: Where Anthony Richardson, Quenton Nelson Land in Team MVP Convo

Episode Date: February 7, 2025

In recognition of the NFL Honors, we dole out some postseason awards for the Indianapolis Colts today. Who takes home the likes of team MVP, Rookies of the Year, and Coach of the Year? Also, in "honor..." of Reggie Wayne and Adam Vinatieri being snubbed from the 2025 Pro Football Hall of Fame class, are there any current Colts on a Hall-of-Fame trajectory? Become a Locked On Colts insider! Ask your burning questions and get prompt answers from someone who's around the team every day! Get special access from the locker room, practice field, and press box! JOIN HERE! Find and follow Locked On Colts on your favorite podcast platforms:🎧 https://lockedonpodcasts.com/podcasts/locked-on-colts/📺YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLdpxJspi1hMh5HL7ExpWOQLocked On NFL League-Wide: Every Team, Fantasy, Draft & More🎧 https://lockedonpodcasts.com/podcasts/locked-on-nfl/ Follow Jake and Zach's written work on HorseshoeHuddle.com, and give them a follow on Twitter @JakeArthurNFL, @ZachHicks2, @LockedOnColts, and @ColtsOn_SI, as well on TikTok and Instagram! Today's episode is brought to you by FanDuel. New customers can bet just FIVE DOLLARS, and if you win, you’ll score TWO HUNDRED BUCKS in Bonus Bets. Download the app or head to FANDUEL.COM to get started. Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!BetterhelpDiscover your relationship “green flags” with BetterHelp. Visit betterhelp.com/lockedon today to get 10% off your first month.LinkedInLinkedIn Jobs helps you find the qualified candidates you want to talk to, faster. Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/LOCKEDONNFL. Terms and conditions apply.PrizePicksDownload the app and use code lockedonnfl to win $50 instantly when you play $5. You don't even need to win to receive your $50 bonus, it's guaranteed! Prizepicks. Run Your Game.Click Here: https://prizepicks.onelink.me/LME0/LOCKEDONNFLGametimeDownload the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONNFL for $20 off your first purchase. Terms Apply. Download Gametime today. What time is it? Gametime.FanDuelSuper Bowl 59 is here, And there’s no better way to make every play more exciting than with FanDuel Sportsbook. New customers can bet just FIVE DOLLARS, and if you win, you’ll score TWO HUNDRED BUCKS in Bonus Bets. Download the app or head to FANDUEL.COM to get started. Bet with FanDuel—Official Partner of Super Bowl Fifty-Nine.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)

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Starting point is 00:00:00 In recognition of the NFL honors, we're handing out our own counterpart awards for the Indianapolis Colts today. Let's get to it. You are Locked On Colts, your daily Indianapolis Colts podcast. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. All right. Thanks for tuning in and making us your first listen of the day. This is your daily podcast covering your Indianapolis Colts. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day.
Starting point is 00:00:40 And today's episode is brought to you by FanDuel. New customers can bet just $5. And if you win, you'll score $200 in bonus bets. Download the app or head to Fandle.com to get started. What's up, y'all? This is Jake Arthur of HorseshoeHuddle.com. And today, in honor of the NFL Honors on Thursday night, which handed out all the big awards for the season, MVP, Offensive Player of the Year, Rookies of the Year, all that, we are doing so for the Colts because, of course, the Colts, whether it was Hall of Fame, whether it was anything, didn't get much love when it came to awards season.
Starting point is 00:01:17 So we'll recognize the season we all just watched. I mean, we watched 17 games of the Colts. It's the team we all know the most about. So we'll hand out some awards. I mean, it's one of those things where I think some people still have a sour taste in their mouth, but it's the offseason. It's time for new beginnings. So we'll put a nice little bow on things today, so to speak. So we're going to focus on, we'll talk about the Hall of Fame.
Starting point is 00:01:39 That was obviously the biggest thing announced last night. Reggie Wayne and Adam Vinatieri not making it. We're going to get into some things specifically on the offensive and defensive side for the Colts. But we're going to start with the biggies, some of the team-wide ones. MVP, Comeback Player of the Year, and Coach of the Year for the Colts. So MVP, this one was a little tough. I narrowed most of these down to three or four candidates. Some of them, there really weren't that many to choose from.
Starting point is 00:02:09 So I really only did two. So when I was thinking of MVP for the Colts, I put Quentin Nelson, DeForest Buckner, and Anthony Richardson as my candidates. There are obviously other guys who would have an argument for it, guys who'd be deserving or are good stories but when it came down to it i looked at these three guys and i was like when it came to winning and losing or success on their side of the ball these guys really stood out to me as as the most uh deserving so we'll go through the candidates real quick and then ultimately who i chose for each uh so with
Starting point is 00:02:43 quentin nelson you know, he earned the Pro Bowl. He was a second team All-Pro. According to Pro Football Focus, he got an 81.3 grade, which was the number 16 offensive lineman overall, the number seven interior offensive lineman, and the number five guard overall. He had had a few down years in the middle of his career. I think it was the first three years of his career, got off to a really hot start, then had had a few down years in the middle of his career. I think it was the first three years of his career got off to a really hot start. Then at a two or three year stretch where he was really affected by injuries. But this last year, 2024, he was back on top of his game, back getting those elite grades from pro football focus again, officially being Quentin Nelson again. So this was huge for them.
Starting point is 00:03:28 He led the offense in snaps overall, well over 1,000. Led a Colts offense that was number eight overall in rushing. And when you look at it, Jonathan Taylor had a bounce-back season. A lot of that was due to Quentin Nelson's dominance. Anthony Richardson was a really good runner, whether it was between the tackles or outside. Quentin Nelson paving the way, again, whether it was outside, pulling for Richardson or being the lead blocker, just kind of mauling his guy up front. So to me, Quentin made a lot of things happen for his guys up there. DeForest Buckner, this was one of those ones where a guy's absence really shows his value so he had that high ankle
Starting point is 00:04:06 sprain that he suffered in week two he missed five games but when you look at his stats by the end of the season again missing five games they really were not all that far off from what a normal season for him would be or even a good season and then I'll get to it later in another section. But when you kind of average out his per game stats, it wound up being one of his best seasons of his career. But yeah, when you look at Buckner's absence, the Colts definitely were hurt there. I think they gave up 20, 25 more yards per game when he was gone versus when he was in there. I think we all remember that the Colts could barely get to the quarterback to save their lives when Buckner was out. But when he returned, everything kind of turned back on.
Starting point is 00:04:54 And then Anthony Richardson, obviously an odd season for him. He got benched for a couple games, missed more games due to the back injury and the oblique. So obviously not what you want to see. Value right there is immediately hurt. But he was 6-5 as the starting quarterback compared to 2-4 for Joe Flacco. So the two quarterbacks who started, there was one of them who was able to win more than he lost, and that was Anthony. So ultimately between Nelson, Buckner, and Richardson, I went with Quentin Nelson. Again, just the steadiest part of the offense led them in snaps. Didn't really miss a beat. Got back to being an elite Hall of Fame caliber guard
Starting point is 00:05:38 again, and I think he made a ton of things happen for the offense. Moving on to comeback player of the year, you got Anthony Richardson once again. I think Grover Stewart was a good option as well. He was suspended for the six games last season. And then Alec Pierce. So Pierce, 32 catches, 65 targets, just 500 yards and two touchdowns with 24 first downs last year. People were ready to write him off, us included. We said, you know, with A.D. Mitchell coming in,
Starting point is 00:06:07 it just doesn't seem like there's a great fit with Pierce anymore if it doesn't click this year with Anthony Richardson. And luckily it did. Led to a career year, 824 yards. Led the entire NFL with 22.3 yards per catch. Seven touchdowns, led the Colts 32 first downs as well. So he had a huge bounce back year, really showed his worth and really showed that A.D. Mitchell was not going to be the threat to his playing time that many of us thought he might be.
Starting point is 00:06:36 Again, Anthony Richardson came back and played more in his second season than he did as a rookie, missed all but four games as a rookie with that shoulder. Six games in year two, again, oblique and back injuries. So he came back and played more than he did last year. So this is almost a by default him being an option. But certainly would have been a better resume if he could have played the entire year. And then with Grover Stewart, again, he was suspended six games in 2023. Came back and posted new single season career highs and tackles with 74 and tackles for loss with 10.
Starting point is 00:07:11 I ultimately gave this to Pierce. It wasn't a bounce back from injury or anything, but again, he was all but going to be written off. It felt like a make-or-break season this year for him. He had the ultimate pressure, which was having someone drafted to be his direct replacement in A.D. Mitchell, and he answered by being the biggest playmaker in the offense, arguably. I mean, Jonathan Taylor did a lot of great things,
Starting point is 00:07:40 but you look at Pierce being essentially written off altogether. It's hard to argue against that one, I think. So coach of the year, I didn't want to go with any of the big ones. This was more for the assistants. I did Tony Sperano Jr. versus Reggie Wayne. When you're looking at position coaches and all that, I thought these were the two that really stood out. For Tony Sperano Jr., again, the Colts' offense was eighth and rushing at 137.1 yards per game, and they were tied for seventh in sacks, giving up with just 32. And that's with Joe Flacco starting six games. He is a lot, lot more sackable quarterback than Anthony Richardson was, and largely the Colts were able to keep their quarterbacks pretty clean.
Starting point is 00:08:26 And then with Reggie Wayne, the Colts had three receivers with 800 receiving yards for the first time since 2004. Michael Pittman Jr., Josh Downs, and Alec Pierce, first one since. Marvin Harrison, Reggie Wayne, and Brandon Stokely. So this was a tough one, but ultimately I gave it to Tony Sperano Jr. That offensive line really was impressive for most of the season. They had to rely on three rookies playing for a good chunk of the season with Matt Gonsalves, Tanner Bordellini, and Dalton Tucker. You could throw, you know, they wound up having to make a switch
Starting point is 00:09:02 at right guard late in the season. Mark Lewinsky taking over for Tucker. They lost lost will fries about midway through the season uh lots of guys having to play in different spots you know braden smith missed the latter part of the season with his personal issues uh so there was a lot of moving parts on that offensive line but spirana was always able to keep it together. And guys were able, when they were thrown in the fire, they were able to play right away. Over an extended period of time, issues were kind of unmasked, but overall, these guys were able to put it together as soon as they were thrown in.
Starting point is 00:09:37 So Quentin Nelson, MVP, Alec Pierce, Comeback Player of the Year, Tony Sperano, Jr., Coach of the Year. So coming up next, guys, we're going to look into Offensive Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, Offensive Rookie of the Year, and Defensive Rookie of the Year. This show is sponsored by BetterHelp. What are some of your relationship green flags? We often hear about the red flags, obviously, that we should avoid, but what if we focus more on identifying the positive signs in our relationships, those green flags, the things that keep you coming back? If you're not sure what they look like, therapy can help you identify them, actively practice them, and even embody that green flag
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Starting point is 00:10:52 So discover your relationship green flags with BetterHelp. Visit betterhelp.com slash locked on today to get 10% off of your first month. That's betterhelp, H-E-L-help.com slash locked on. All right, let's look at offensive player of the year. I thought this one, you know, you can consider, you kind of have a handful of guys. The offense was, it had more playmakers on it. Obviously, Anthony Richardson when he was in there, Josh Downs, Pittman for his gutty performances, Alec Pierce obviously being kind of the biggest playmaker, the biggest explosive element of the
Starting point is 00:11:32 offense. So you've got Jonathan Taylor, Anthony Richardson, and Josh Downs is who I feel it really boils down to. Taylor had kind of a career renaissance. You know, he had a couple down years. Came back a little bit last year, established himself again. He always finishes the season strong, but had some injuries basically throughout the season up until the latter portion of it. 321 touches this year for over 1,500 yards, 5 yards average per touch, 12 touchdowns, finished as fourth in the NFL in rushing and got himself back to the Pro Bowl. Anthony Richardson, the passing stats were what they were. They were bad.
Starting point is 00:12:16 They weren't productive. It didn't look good. So I'm not going to try and gussy up his resume by pointing to those. But he did have the most productive rushing season that a Colts quarterback has ever had. Had 86 carries for 499 yards and six touchdowns. Those are basically all single season career highs for the Colts. And then with Josh Downs, you know, just kind of tongue in cheek during training camp, some of us were wondering like, is Josh Downs going to lead this team in receiving or at least receptions? And lo and behold, 72 receptions for 803 yards and five touchdowns. He passed Marvin Harrison for the most receptions as a Colts player in their first two seasons in the NFL, which I think is significant. Also, 11.2 yards per reception, I think, is interesting as
Starting point is 00:13:02 well. Because as a slot receiver, he was fed the ball a lot short too. So a lot of these guys wind up averaging eight, nine, nine and a half yards per catch under 10 yards per catch. But he got to 11 as a slot receiver who was fed the ball in several games that they can't attend in the final game of the season. So to be able to average 11 yards per catch I thought was good. But ultimately, we give it to Taylor. He is the straw that stirs the drink on offense. He's the biggest part of it. He really had no adequate backup to be relied upon.
Starting point is 00:13:39 The running game was John and then Taylor or it was nothing. Anthony Richardson, it was hard to count on him being in there. Obviously, had the two benchings and then missed the games with injuries as well. So, Jonathan Taylor, really the most consistent skill position player for the Colts all season. Defensive player of the year, this comes down to me, for me, DeForest Buckner, Zyre Franklin, and Kenny Moore II. So, DeForest Buckner, Zyra Franklin, and Kenny Moore II. So DeForest Buckner, I mentioned earlier, if you take his per-game averages and just kind of extrapolate it over a whole season, 86 tackles, 11 tackles for loss, 9 sacks, 20 quarterback hits.
Starting point is 00:14:19 That's a really big season. That right there is one of the biggest statistically for him. Whatever way you look at it, it's either the second or third most productive season of his career. And he missed those five games with the high ankle sprain. But once he came back, he was hot and he looked great on the field. And I alluded to this earlier, the Colts defense allowed 375 yards per game without him in those five games, but just 356 per games with him on the field. So a whole 20 yards per game difference in him being out there, kind of reminiscent of Grover Stewart being gone the year before versus when he came back. So very clearly night and day for DeForest Buckner. Kenny Moore, not his strongest season overall, but I thought one of the most bright spots in the secondary. Jalen Jones and Samuel Womack were nice stories. They were up tied for the lead in interceptions with three.
Starting point is 00:15:27 He's a guy that can get to the quarterback. You know, he gets tackles for loss. He wipes guys away when he's lined up at slot, sniffs out those screen passes and everything. So this is a guy who I think makes big plays on third and fourth downs. Very strong player. Ultimately, though, or Zyra Franklin, I don't want to overlook Zyra Franklin, led the team again in the NFL with 173 tackles, 11 tackles for loss, three and a half sacks, four quarterback hits, five forced fumbles,
Starting point is 00:15:57 two picks, and six passes broken up. This was the best linebacker season we've really seen from a Colts linebacker since Shaquille Leonard was in his prime. I know Zyre gets a lot of flack for, you know, missed tackles and, you know, talking on the podcast and everything. But the guy really did start to fill out the stat sheet and wasn't just the tackle merchant that he's kind of known for being to a lot of people. So he earned a Pro Bowl nod and I think was second team All-Pro.
Starting point is 00:16:26 But ultimately, this is DeForest Buckner for me, the most outstanding player on the defense, the defensive MVP. Things are just drastically different when he's not out there versus when he is. And I think it can be felt really through every level of the defense. Moving on next to Offensive Rookie of the Year, you got Matt Gonsalves, Tanner Bordellini, Dalton Tucker, and then if you want to throw in A.D. Mitchell, you can. There is a tiny resume there.
Starting point is 00:16:55 But Matt Gonsalves, his pro football focus grade is 65.9, was the sixth best among NFL rookie offensive linemen. Bordellini, he had a 98.2 pass blocking efficiency. That was third best among all rookie offensive linemen. Dalton Tucker had the seven starts filled in immediately for Will Fries. His play really started to taper off, but he looked good in his first few starts. And then A.D. Mitchell, just 23 catches. You could say he had 16 first downs, though.
Starting point is 00:17:30 23 of those catches did result in first downs. They were productive when he was making catches, largely. But for me, this one's pretty clearly Matt Gonsalves. Played a ton of snaps for the Colts. Left tackle, right tackle. Answered the bell wherever he was needed, and he performed well. He was one of the Colts' better offensive linemen overall this year. So, Gonzalez is a guy that perhaps has earned a starting spot moving forward,
Starting point is 00:17:57 but at minimum proved himself to be a really adequate swing tackle for the short term. So, Matt Gonzalez, offensive rookie of the year. Defensive rookie of the year, a really adequate swing tackle for the short term. So Matt Gonzalez, offensive rookie of the year. Defensive rookie of the year, this is really a two-horse race. Liatu Latu and Jalen Carlisle. So Latu, I know against the entire NFL landscape, being the first defensive player drafted, kind of underwhelmed a bit. I get that. You look at Jared Verse,
Starting point is 00:18:32 just one defensive rookie of the year for the NFL, was more productive, was an every-down player, and started, you know, start to finish for the Rams. But Latu, it was slowly but surely a big learning curve for him. He had 32 tackles, five tackles for loss, four sacks, 12 quarterback hits, three forced fumbles, a fumble recovered, and a pass breakup. And then you look at Jalen Carlisle. He had a stint on IR. He had the lower leg injury, and I think he had like a shoulder that cost him time as well. So he played in 10 games. He had 36 tackles, two for loss, one sack, one quarterback hit, one pass breakup.
Starting point is 00:19:06 His 70.0 grade in pro football focus was third amongst rookie linebackers in the NFL, and his grade of 83.1 in coverage was best among rookie linebackers in the NFL. So Carlisle established himself 10 games, but he established himself as one of the better rookie linebackers across the entire NFL in just a short period of time. So between Latsu and Carlisle, I think it's two guys you could definitely count on being key components to your defense moving forward. I mean, they still need competition. But if both of them enter next year as starters, I think you could count on them getting at least a little better and being productive in some manner. But ultimately, I give this to Latu. He just had bigger moments, was around more often. Obviously, he had the forced sacks, three forced fumbles, which is big.
Starting point is 00:20:03 This is a guy that knows where the ball is when he's getting those sacks. I think he had two of those forced fumbles were strip sacks. One of them was to end the game against the Bears. So this guy was valuable. He just didn't do it as much as you'd like to see. If he could turn some of those hits and pressures into more sacks, then I think people are going to be pretty pleased with what they see because he was getting into the backfield plenty. He does need to get stronger and he does have a couple things to work on. But if he turns a lot of those backfield visits into sacks, then I don't think people would be quite as low on what they saw from his production level. So little movements forward for Latu and Carlisle,
Starting point is 00:20:47 and I think the Colts defense will be better for it. So coming up next, the elephant in the room for Colts Awards right now is a lack of Hall of Fame appreciation for Reggie Wayne and Adam Vinatieri. But we're also going to talk about, like, are there any current Colts who are on any sort of Hall of Fame trajectory? If there are, what do they still need to do? Some of them definitely closer than others. Super Bowl 59 is here. One game, two teams, endless possibilities, and there's no better way to make every play more exciting than with FanDuel Sportsbook. Whether it's predicting the first touchdown, calling the MVP, or even betting on the coin toss, FanDuel makes it
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Starting point is 00:23:11 locked on nfl for 50 instantly after you play your first five dollar lineup price picks run your game all right let's talk Hall of Fame, guys. So the Hall of Fame has kind of adjusted the way they do things. It kind of makes it a little more difficult for guys to get in. But it also, if you finished top seven in the voting for the class, then you automatically get grandfathered in as a finalist the following year you have to have 80 of the votes from the selection committee uh to get elected ultimately uh so adam finn and terry finished top seven but he did not get 80 of the votes so he did not make it but he will be a finalist next year reggie wayne uh for the sixth year in a row, is a finalist, but did not make it. He apparently was not part of the top seven, which is pretty aggravating.
Starting point is 00:24:11 A guy like this still has to wait. Now, he wasn't Marvin Harrison. He's not like the most prolific receiver of the day, but I think he no doubt belongs in Canton. And it's just every couple years, you get a bad year where there's going to be like a Calvin Johnson, or you look at next year, Larry Fitzgerald, by all means, deserves to be a first ballot Hall of Famer. So it's going to be even tougher for Reggie to get in next year. But did there only need to be just four inductees this year? Like, eric allen jared allen uh sterling sharp and antonio gates which all those guys are deserving that's fine but why could reggie not get in as well that that's
Starting point is 00:24:55 what's what what's the selection committee not seeing i know mike chapel who represents the colts and reggie wayne in room, always does a great job. And it's just, I think the biggest argument the committee has is that he played with Peyton, which is just such a stupid argument in my mind. Most great receivers have played with a great quarterback at some point. Jerry Rice is inarguably the best receiver of all time played with Steve Young played with Joe Montana Randy Moss had yeah Dante Culpepper was one of the better quarterbacks of his time had Tom Brady that really elevated his stats later in his career like these guys just play with productive quarterbacks and I mean Reggie Wadene i i put out a tweet last night
Starting point is 00:25:47 after it came out uh so pro football reference has like an index for how like basically players trajectory into the hall of fame and the average score of hall of famers about 100 reggie's is 111.14. It's the 11th best resume for a receiver ever to get into the Hall of Fame, and he's still not there. So very frustrating for Reggie to not get in. Vinatieri, he's going to get in eventually, maybe even next year. It's annoying. I'm sure guys just didn't want a kicker to get in on the first ballot. Uh, he would be the third just strictly place kicker to get in ever. Uh, he has the, I forget it was Morton Anderson maybe, um, is the only other one to have a higher hall of fame resume, which there, to me, there really should be no kicker with a better resume to get in the hall of fame than Vinatieri.
Starting point is 00:26:45 Pro Football Reference has his score at 93.7. At the time he retired, he was widely regarded as the best kicker in NFL history. One of the most clutch players, not just kickers in NFL history. So he'll get in maybe next year. Reggie's got again in some time. I don't know if it's going to be next year. Again, because how they do things and Reggie or Larry Fitzgerald's coming up so aggravanting a very a very deserving guy
Starting point is 00:27:13 is going to have to wait even longer but he should get in there eventually so shifting the focus to guys on the Colts currently who might have a hall of Fame argument. No one's got like a super tight grip on it yet. But like if you look at going by the pro football reference scores, Quentin Nelson's score is a 50.1. DeForest Buckner is a 41.2. Ryan Kelly's is actually a 33.15, which is ahead of Jonathan Taylor's at 25.3. So you can kind of wipe Kelly and Taylor out of this argument altogether. Quentin Nelson, I think if he retired now, he would be one of
Starting point is 00:27:54 those guys that's got like a super compelling argument for it. He's been in the league, what, like seven, eight years now at this point. So he's had enough longevity, I think, but he's had like very little post-season success, but he's got seven Pro Bowls. He's been the Pro Bowl every year he's been in the NFL, has five All-Pros, including three first team. And over his career, he's played in 98% of his team snaps. I think he's only missed games in like one season. So he's a guy who is always around, plays through injuries, has kind of had a few phases of his career. Like his first few years were insane. Like he's having highlight tapes made of him. He was unbelievable, was an all pro each time, struggled with some injuries for a few years and then got back on track
Starting point is 00:28:46 and now looks like himself again. So this is a guy who, again, I think if he retired now, he would have an argument for it. But to me, all he's got to do is string a couple more really productive seasons together, earn a couple more all-pros or pro-bills, and he'll probably be in. DeForest Buckner, I think he's going to need a Super Bowl, and I think he's going to need at least three or four more really productive seasons. So he's got three Pro Bowls and two All-Pros. His 67.5 sacks right now are third among active
Starting point is 00:29:17 defensive tackles in the NFL, just Cameron Hayward and Chris Jones. So that's pretty impressive. He's second when it comes to tackles for loss at 88. I think Cam Hayward's the only one above him. So right now, he is really the second or third most productive active defensive tackle in the NFL. Of course, Aaron Donald has retired. That is a whole other thing. That's a guy that's going to be coming up,
Starting point is 00:29:42 and he'll be a first ballot Hall of Famer. But Buckner, I think he's going to be coming up and he'll be a first, first ballot hall of famer. But Buckner, I think he he's got to play longer, probably like four or five more years at a pretty high level. And I think he's going to have to have some post-season success, perhaps even a super bowl. Cause I don't, I don't think he's going to get to a hundred sacks for his career.
Starting point is 00:30:04 He might, I mean, he's what get to 100 sacks for his career he might i mean he's what is that 32 and a half away i'm not great at math but i mean he's gonna have to play at a high level for several more years he's only about 30 31 though so i mean he could do it but some defensive tackles do start to fall apart um you know father time is undeated, so we'll just have to keep an eye on him. I do think it's in the realm of possibility, but we need to check back in a couple years to see how he's going. Ryan Kelly, I don't know how much longer he's going to play. I know he wants to. It looks like he's probably not going to be with the Colts anymore after this. I think it's probably a long shot that he comes back as a free agent. But he's got four Pro Bowls to his name and All-Pro, which was a second team nod. And he's
Starting point is 00:30:50 been in the league for nine years. Now, he's struggled with injuries. I think their argument for him is like when he's on the field, he's among the best centers in the league. And he's got the four Pro Bowls and the one All-Pro. I think those are the biggest feathers in his cap. Ultimately, I think Ryan Kelly falls into the Hall of Very Good, but probably not quite Hall of Fame material. Jonathan Taylor is interesting because it's going to be all about longevity for him. He's like top 12, top 15 among active running backs, but like that actually ranks pretty low because you've got, you know, the Derek Henry's of the world, Alvin Kamara, Christian McCaffrey, all these guys who've been in the league for a while longer than him,
Starting point is 00:31:37 who have, you know, the bigger bodies of work. But again, I think it all comes down to longevity with him. He does have two Pro Bowls and an All-Pro. He was the 2021 rushing champion, was just fourth in rushing this year. But I think the biggest thing for him is he is actually number one among active NFL running backs in rushing yards per game. More than Derrick Henry, more than Christian McCaffrey, more than Nick Chubb. 89.7 rushing yards per game for his career is number one in the NFL right now. So if Taylor can, again, string that together for like five, six more years, he's going to have to hit at least 10,000 career rushing yards. That's like a baseline um if he can get to like 10 000 rushing yards 100 rushing touch or 100 overall touchdowns i think it really strengthens his argument he's gonna have some postseason success as well uh because he had one superhuman season and they
Starting point is 00:32:38 didn't even get to the playoffs so he's gonna have to get into the postseason and have some success there. But that one's tough. Again, I think he's had a really good career. He's unfortunately been plagued by injuries. But if he can string together several more productive years, I mean, some of these guys are lasting longer. I mean, Derrick Henry's a freak of nature. He certainly will be in the Hall of Fame one day. But it's iffy for Taylor.
Starting point is 00:33:04 I think his chances are definitely better than Ryan Kelly's. If you can string together more time, but probably not as strong of a case as DeForest Buckner. I think there's just been a lot of really productive running backs in the last 15, 20 years, and that might be kind of a tough road. So we'll see. Maybe if he gets another rushing title or two out of this, he can have a good argument. So thanks for listening to me app guys. I would love to hear your thoughts as well.
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