Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - Indianapolis Colts' Josh Downs, Bernhard Raimann Among Midseason Standouts

Episode Date: November 16, 2023

Highlighted by the play of Josh Downs and Bernhard Raimann, the Indianapolis Colts have had several standouts at this point in the season. We also discuss a few players that need to step up in the fin...al half of the year, including a former All-Pro and a former first-round pick.Find and follow Locked On Colts on your favorite podcast platforms:🎧 https://link.chtbl.com/LOColts?sid=YouTube📺YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLdpxJspi1hMh5HL7ExpWOQLocked On NFL League-Wide: Every Team, Fantasy, Draft & More🎧 https://linktr.ee/LockedOnNFLFollow Jake and Zach's written work on HorseshoeHuddle.com, and give them a follow on Twitter @JakeArthurNFL, @ZachHicks2, @LockedOnColts, and @ColtsOnFN!This episode is brought to you by PrizePicks. The easiest and most exciting way to play Daily Fantasy Sports. Go to PrizePicks.com/lockedonnfl and use code all lowercase lockedononfl for a first deposit match up to $100Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!DoorDashGet 50% off up to $10 value when you spend $15 or more on your FIRST order, when you download the DoorDash app and enter code LOCKED23. Subject to change. Terms apply.Jase MedicalGet $20 off these lifesaving antibiotics with Jase Medical by using code LOCKEDON at checkout on jasemedical.com.PrizePicksGo to PrizePicks.com/lockedonnfl and use code lockedonnfl for a first deposit match up to $100!GametimeDownload the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONNFL for $20 off your first purchase. Last minute tickets. Lowest Price. Guaranteed.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.FanDuelScore early this NFL season with FanDuel, America’s Number One Sportsbook! Right now, NEW customers get ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY DOLLARS in BONUS BETS with any winning FIVE DOLLAR MONEYLINE BET! That’s A HUNDRED AND FIFTY BUCKS – if your team wins! Visit FanDuel.com/LOCKEDON to get started.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) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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Starting point is 00:00:00 Rookie wide receiver Josh Downs appears to be the Colts' brightest young star in 2023. Let's get to it. You are Locked On Colts, your daily Indianapolis Colts podcast. Part of the Locked On Colts podcast. It's your daily podcast covering your Indianapolis Colts, part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. Hello, everyone. I'm Zach Hicks, your guys' favorite co-host here over on Locked On Colts. You guys can also find my work over at HorseshoeHuddle.com,
Starting point is 00:00:46 where I bring you all the film and analysis that you could ever wish to see. Over there at HorseshoeHuddle.com again, and this is Locked on Colts podcast. We're here talking during the bye week, talking all about, you know, I think the bye week is perfect for reflection and projection. You know, that's really where you can go. So you can reflect on what's happened throughout the year and you can project for how the year is going to finish off. So we're going to kind of follow that same mold here on today's episode.
Starting point is 00:01:11 The first two segments, we're going to reflect on some of the biggest bright spots and winners of this Colts team so far. And then we're going to also look at the players who, you know, just need to step up during the second half of the season. The players that we need to see more from going forward the rest of the year. And then finally, we're going to close this show off by talking about the future outlook for the Colts this season. Do they have a chance at the playoffs?
Starting point is 00:01:32 Are they a 500 team or are they destined for another top 10 pick? We're going to talk about all that in the last segment. But first, let's kick it off with some of the bright spots on this team. We want to kick off this show with a positive note. And again, this is the bye week. It's the bye week. We're going to look back on a lot of things that happened this year, some things maybe in the preseason that we expected that just haven't really happened. And I think one of the biggest talking points throughout the entire preseason was,
Starting point is 00:01:56 you know, what are the Colts going to do at right guard? Are the Colts going to stay with that young guy that they are, you know, projecting to start all offseason like they did last year with Danny Pinter at right guard? Were they all offseason, like they did last year with Danny Pinter at right guard, where they all offseason, they're saying we're rolling with Danny Pinter, and all of us are like, oh, no, maybe we shouldn't roll with Danny Pinter, maybe get some veteran help in there. They didn't do that, and Pinter was a disaster for the Colts. This year, they seemingly did the same thing, but with Will Fries instead.
Starting point is 00:02:20 They went with Will Fries the entire offseason. They didn't bring in any veteran depth to compete with him. I mean, Emile Keyore Jr. was really the only guy they brought in who was an undrafted rookie out of Alabama, and he didn't even make it out of camp. So Will Fries kind of had the job given to him in camp, and he's impressed a lot this year. I'm not going to sit here and say that Will Fries has been a top five guard in football by any means, but he's come in, he's taken over a spot that has been left vacant really since Mark Lewinsky left for the Giants. And Will Fries has been really solid this season. He's only allowed 17 pressures and nearly 400 pass blocking snaps this year. He's rated as a top 25 guard by Pro Football Focus this season, which again, doesn't sound amazing, but that's a starting caliber guard
Starting point is 00:03:04 when the Colts have really not had a starting caliber guard at right guard, you know, since Mark Lewinsky left two years ago. So having Will Fry step in and be a really adequate player there at that right guard position has just been fantastic for this team. So he earns number one on this bright spots list because again, a position that I think everyone was really concerned about going into the year, especially with a rookie quarterback or what we thought was going to be a rookie quarterback back there for the Colts. Will Fries has come in and really solidified that right guard spot.
Starting point is 00:03:31 And then talking about solidifying a spot on the Colts offensive line. We can't do this whole list without talking about Baron Hart Ryman. Just been fantastic at left tackle. He's the fifth highest graded tackle in the NFL by pro football focus. He's also allowed just 17 pressures this in the NFL by pro football focus. He's also allowed just 17 pressures this year in 337 pass blocking snaps. He's been fantastic in the pass blocking games, getting a lot better in the run game as well. You know, I don't think he's playing as well as maybe a top five tackle like that grade would suggest. But I think when you're looking at his
Starting point is 00:04:00 film, you're seeing a player who is just getting better every single week. And he doesn't look overwhelmed like he did last year. I mean, last year, Bernhardt Ryman, when he was on the field, he just looked really, really overwhelmed by the power that he was facing, by the speed he was facing, by the length he was facing off the edge. He just wasn't really ready to be a starting left tackle. Now, when you're looking on this year, he's playing really square, really solid. He's competing on every single snap. And yes, he's still getting beat every now and then. But it's usually against like the top tier pass rushers where every tackle gets beat
Starting point is 00:04:31 by, you know, someone like a Josh Allen. You know, Josh Allen's going to beat players. Miles Garrett beat him a couple of times. Like, sure, those are guys who are going to beat you. But what you're seeing is when he's playing against, you know, lesser pass rushers or pass rushers that he can win against. He's constantly winning all game long. I don't think he allowed a single pressure against New England Patriots this past week.
Starting point is 00:04:50 We've seen in other games, he had a really good matchup with Jonathan Bernard back against Houston in week two where he didn't allow pressure. So Bernhardt Ryman, really fantastic young left tackle, doing some really good things and the sky is the limit for his play. Let's go over to the defense side of the ball.
Starting point is 00:05:05 Now we're going to talk about Dio a dang bow. I know there's a few people listening who are big Dio dang bow fans, and we want to make sure we mentioned him early in this episode compared to some other episodes this week. But he leads the team right now with six sacks. If you guys actually look at pro football focus, they have him with eight sacks on the season because they count half sacks as full sacks.
Starting point is 00:05:23 So pro football focus has him with eight sacks on the year through what 10 games. That's a fantastic pace for him. His past rush win rate has was really low on the season, but the last three weeks it's climbed to around 17%, 18%, which is really, really strong for a player who rushes off the edge and rushes on the interior as well. We're seeing a lot of really high level moments. I mean, there was two sacks these past two weeks. I know he's had four in the last two weeks, but there were two sacks where he just cleanly beat the right guard in front of him to get back in the backfield and get the quarterback within, you know, it was probably like sacks within two seconds, you know, from what we were able to see probably had to be like two of the fastest sacks the Colts have had this whole
Starting point is 00:06:00 season. And that's what Dio Dango has been bringing to the Colts defensive pass rush these past couple of weeks. So really, really promising the last couple of games for Dio. He appears to be the next best pass rusher on the team lately behind DeForest Buckner. So if he can keep this up, I mean, obviously an extension in the near future is coming up for him, but if he can just keep this up in general, he could, he has a real chance of hitting 10 sacks this year, which is fantastic for such a young player. I think he's only 23 years old still. So Hurricane Dayo Adangbo doing some fantastic things at the pass rusher lately. And hopefully he can keep that up the next couple of stretch as the season, you know, closes out this year. The last two players I want to mention with the bright spots list here are two rookies,
Starting point is 00:06:41 two very, very different rookies. One is obviously Josh Downs. I know all of you guys have been really high on him all year. And yeah, there's a good reason to, he's got 43 catches on the season for 523 yards and two touchdowns on pace for around a thousand yards this year. I think the most impressive aspect of his game is he has zero drops on the season, despite having such a high percentage of targets and getting a lot of looks in this offense zero drops on the year just a fantastic fantastic slot player to have your quick win player if you need positive yards on the first or second down he's your guy if you need that first down on third down he's your guy and we're starting to see him expand his role a little bit more and you know more downfield shots more vertical plays getting past the sticks and getting some
Starting point is 00:07:24 some big catches for the team. So Josh Downs has been the biggest bright spot, I think, on this entire team this year. Obviously, if Anthony Richardson were playing, we'd be talking about Richardson in this, but I think Josh Downs has been the biggest bright spot and most promising aspect for the future that we could see on this Colts roster this year. The other rookie, though, seventh round rookie Jalen Jones. He's allowed just 13 catches on 23 targets this year. The other rookie though, seventh round rookie Jalen Jones. He's allowed just 13 catches on 23 targets this year to be caught. His 16.4 snaps per reception is the highest on the team, doing some really, really good things out there as a starter. Again, seventh round pick should
Starting point is 00:07:57 really not be starting for your team, especially at cornerback, especially as your number one outside corner the last couple of weeks. But Jalen Jones has really held his own, and I've been really, really impressed with his play as of late. Really solid and strong corner, does a lot of good things. Really explosive coming downhill, really violent with his tackling in the last couple weeks. I want to see him be a little more sure with his tackling, but a very violent tackler that loves to explode downhill. He's doing some really, really good things in Gus Bradley's scheme. And I'm excited to see the future with him, especially once Juju Brents comes back. Because once him and Juju are back out there and you have your one-two punch at corner, I think it's going to be some good things out there for the Colts. But those are my five bright
Starting point is 00:08:35 spots. You guys let me know in the comment section what you think. And did I miss anybody? Should I add somebody to the bright spot list? You guys let me know there in the comments. But coming up, we're going to talk about five players that just need to step up a little bit going forward. You know, they're not really the disappointments of the season, but they're just guys that, you know, if the Colts are going to make this playoff push, we need to see a little bit more from them coming up here in just a second. Whenever the clock stops, that's time to order with DoorDash.
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Starting point is 00:09:48 Again, subject to change, terms apply. Don't forget to use code LOCKED23 for 50% off, up to $10 your value. When you download the DoorDash app and spend $15 or more, subject to change, terms apply. Welcome back to this bi-week episode of Locked on Colts. I want to remind you guys that Locked On has launched the first ever national sports 24-7 streaming channel on YouTube. Locked On Sports Today is here for you 24-7, covering the top sports stories of the day
Starting point is 00:10:15 with the local experts of Locked On, plus our national shows covering every single league. Go to Locked On Sports Today on YouTube and subscribe to the first ever national sports 24-7 streaming channel. All right, guys, before we get into this next segment talking about five players that need to step up, I do want to stipulate that pretty much every player on this list here, you know, there's a good reason why their play has been down or why they struggled this year or why, you know, we need to see more from them. So I don't want to make it seem like I'm out here just bashing all these players and saying
Starting point is 00:10:46 like, oh, they suck or they stink because there's real reasons why they are underperforming this year or why they still need to perform at a higher level. It's just I did want to stipulate that, that I don't want to come out that I'm just bashing these players baselessly and that I don't understand the context for it. And I think that segues perfectly into our first player here, which is linebacker Shaquille Leonard. I know that there are reasons why he's not Shaquille Leonard of old. He doesn't move the same way that he did. He's a much stiffer player than what he was before the nerve injuries, before the back surgeries, before actual reasons why he is struggling and why he's not Shaquille Leonard still. But at the end of the day, he's still a player who is paid to perform, who's getting put on the field, who's getting a
Starting point is 00:11:29 ton of snaps, and who's talking to the media every single week about how he wants more snaps. He's still doing all those things. So we have to still grade him for what he's putting on the field. And what he's putting on the field right now is just not good enough. It's not horrendous. It's not the worst linebacker play you'll see, but it's still not good enough for what the Colts need from their linebacker group. And there's a reason why he's not playing on third down right now is because he's not suited for those third down roles.
Starting point is 00:11:57 You know, he's not as great in this match coverage is he's not as good a mover as EJ speeders, I are Franklin. He doesn't explode downhill like those two. He's been slow getting out to the flats. He's not good at getting those tackles in space, which we saw the last two weeks,
Starting point is 00:12:12 especially against Zeke Elliott the last game or whatever. There's two missed tackles in open space against him. So yeah, we just need to see more from Shaquille Leonard. I don't know if we will because, again, there are reasons why he's struggling because of that back injury, because of the nerve injury, because it's a defense he's never really played in before. And he's still trying to figure out his own role and his own style in this defense. And his confidence is low right now, but at the end of the day, we still need to see more from him.
Starting point is 00:12:35 If he's going to be on this team going forward after the season. So it's a big final stretch for Shaquille Leonard here. Hopefully he can turn it around because such a dynamic and great player when he plays, but we'll see. We'll see what Shaquille Leonard can do. I know we've talked about this topic a lot, but it's a very important one to keep talking on. Another one here is Quiddy Pay, former first round pick, pass rusher. Started off the year red high, had a lot of sacks, a lot of pass rush win rates, was pretty high. These last couple of weeks since he came back from his concussion. It's just not been the same. We kind of saw this last year with Quidipe where he got off to just this
Starting point is 00:13:08 crazy hot start where he was a fantastic pass rusher, and then the injury came to his ankle, I believe, and it just slowed him up for the entire season. Now we're looking at Quidipe this year, though, the lowest pass rush win rate among defensive ends on the team with only 8%. He's still doing some great things in the run game, just a fantastic run defender. So it's not like he's not giving any value to this team. But when you have Dio Dangbo performing as well as he is, you have Samson Nabucam still creating a lot of great things off the edge, DeForest Buckner being that superstar that he is.
Starting point is 00:13:39 You want to see Quidipe starting to match that production that you're seeing from the other guys as a pass rusher. And he just hasn't done it yet so far. So hopefully Quidipe can turn it around again. I know the concussion is a real thing here, and there's a reason why he's probably struggled a little bit there. But again, former first round pick hasn't really had a huge career so far as a pass rusher. You want to see that next step from Quidipe on these final, what, seven, eight games here for the Colts. So a big, big, big opportunity for Quidipe going forward. Another player, again, stipulate that this one, I understand why it's kind of a slow start for him, but we still have to talk about it. But Jonathan Taylor, the new highly paid running back here for the Indianapolis Colts, since coming back from the Pup List, he has 85 carries for 323 yards,
Starting point is 00:14:24 which is only 3.8 yards per carry. I know the Colts have been easing from the Pup List, he has 85 carries for 323 yards, which is only 3.8 yards per carry. I know the Colts have been easing him in because he is still recovering from that injury that he suffered last season, and he missed all of the offseason camp with it, and obviously ended up on the Pup List coming into the year. It's a new offense. The offensive line is struggling as of late to control in the run game because defenses are stacking the box right now. But so I think you guys can all agree with me when we're watching Jonathan Taylor's last couple weeks. It doesn't look like Jonathan Taylor yet still. Like he still looks like he's dancing around a little bit.
Starting point is 00:14:56 He's not as explosive or as powerful as he looked, especially back in 2021. So you just want to see him get his legs back under him going forward. Maybe this bye week is a really good blessing in disguise for him. He can heal up a little bit more. He can rest a little bit more, maybe come out a little bit more explosive when he gets back on the field. But I still want to see him run with that same energy, that same decisiveness,
Starting point is 00:15:18 that same explosion that we saw early in his career. I don't think we've seen that quite yet this year, but hopefully after the bye week, he can really come back strong and really hit some good things there and hit his stride down the stretch. I'm not too concerned about Jonathan Taylor, but it is just something to note
Starting point is 00:15:33 because again, I think there are reasons why he's rushing for only 3.8 yards per carry right now. And a lot of it has to do with defensive stack in the box, but also I do think he can create a little bit more than what he currently is in this rushing game, if that makes sense. So yeah, Jonathan Taylor is a player to watch down the stretch. He really needs to step up his game and get back to being the Jonathan Taylor that the Colts are paying him to be. One more, well, two more here, but this one kind of engrosses a bunch of players. It's just something that really needed to be put in here
Starting point is 00:16:02 was any defensive tackle behind Grover Stewart at this point, because, oh man, I think we all knew it was going to be really bad behind Grover Stewart when Grover Stewart hit his suspension. But man, these last couple of weeks, it has been brutal from a run defensive point of view. Now, pass rushing, it's been fine. We've seen Eric Johnson come away with a sack. We've seen Taven Bryan get some pressures. We've seen Adetomi Adebore get some pressures in the sack as well. But in the run game, it has just been a train wreck. And we're seeing what teams are doing now. They're just double teaming DeForest Buckner.
Starting point is 00:16:33 And then they're just using a single team or maybe even a duo block as well on the other defensive tackle to drive that player eight yards off the snap. There is just no chance for these Colts linebackers in the run game right now because that defensive tackle is just getting manhandled so effortlessly up front in the trenches. So I don't know who it is. I don't know if it's McTelvin Aguilera needs to come up or Taven Bryan and Eric Johnson just need to be playing better at this point, but we got to see more in the run game. I don't care if you're making tackles, but like just hold your ground, you know, like don't, don't get driven 10 yards off the ball. And we're calling that a win at this point. Grover Stewart should
Starting point is 00:17:09 be back from a suspension in a couple of weeks. So it doesn't need to be for the rest of the season. Just really these next couple of weeks, these next two or three weeks when they're back out there again, just plant your feet in the ground. I don't have, I don't care. You have to super glue your feet to the ground just to stay in that spot, but please stop getting driven 10 yards off the ball and killing our linebackers in the run game. The Colts run defense has been predictably atrocious since Grover Stewart suspension,
Starting point is 00:17:31 and they just need one of these other defensive tackles to step up in some capacity in the run game. One more player to mention here. And it's only, again, I know there's real reasons why he's not playing super well because he's a backup caliber player, but Gardner Minshew just needs to step up his level of play if the Colts want to have a chance at making the playoffs.
Starting point is 00:17:49 I think he's done some good things this year. I like that he keeps his eyes down the field when he's moving in the pocket. I like how, for the most part this year, the Colts offense has been operational with him in there. But turnovers have been an issue. 17 turnover-worthy throws this year, six interceptions, multiple fumbles. In these last two weeks, we've seen him play really skittish in the backfield. And again, it's cut the turnovers down,
Starting point is 00:18:11 but now we're seeing the offense not be operational under him. So he needs to find that sweet spot of not turning the ball over five times a game and still keeping the offense operational. Like as of right now, he's either not having an operational offense or he's turned the ball over five, six times a game. So there needs to be some middle ground
Starting point is 00:18:28 for the Colts to have a chance at making the playoffs this year. He's a veteran player. So I do think he can turn it around, but we'll have to see. I mean, again, there's a reason why he's a backup. There's a reason why he is having these struggles. So that's an important, that's probably the most important thing to watch down this next stretch here to see if the Colts are going to make the playoffs. If Gardner Minshew can find that middle ground between operational and turnover prone and just see what the Colts offense can do there. But coming up, guys, we're going to talk about the future outlook for this Colts team in 2023. Look at some of the potential opponents that they're playing or just the opponents they're playing down the stretch and see, you know, can this Colts team have a chance at making the 2023 playoffs? Guys, we spend a lot of time talking together, you and I.
Starting point is 00:19:10 We get fired up together on wins and losses, who starts and who sits. I'm thankful for that connection that we have. And today I want our chat to be a little more personal. I just learned that you can get a one-year supply on ED medications with Jace. You realize what that means? You are covered, my friend.
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Starting point is 00:20:26 All righty, my beautiful everydayers, we are back with this episode of Locked on Colts. Again, I'm your favorite co-host here, Zach Hicks from HorseshoeHull.com, and we're here to talk about the Colts' remaining schedule and talk about kind of what our prediction or what just our outlook is for this team for the rest of 2023. So
Starting point is 00:20:41 after the bye week, they play against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, which, you know, again, a winnable game, but not an easy win by any means. Then they have the Tennessee Titans after that, which divisional game on the road could be a tough for anyone there. Then they have a three game stretch that could be a little bit tricky. A couple road games in here against some good teams. They got at the Cincinnati Bengals. They got first at Pittsburgh Steelers, which the Colts have always been cursed against, at the Atlanta Falcons. And then they close it out with two home games against the Raiders and the Texans.
Starting point is 00:21:10 So I know that every metric says this is like one of the three easiest schedules left among the NFL. But this could be a tricky one where I think a lot of these teams that they're playing are around the same tier as the Indianapolis Colts. You know, I don't think that many of these teams outside of maybe the Bengals are clearly above the Colts. But I do think when you look at the remaining schedule, you're seeing a lot of teams that are probably in that similar, you know, tier just area of the Colts. It's not like the last two weeks where the Colts were clearly better
Starting point is 00:21:39 than the New England Patriots and very clearly better than the Carolina Panthers. You know, we're seeing more evenly matched teams down the stretch here. So it could be a tricky one. You could see the Colts winning five of these games. You could see them winning two of these games. It really could go either way with this remaining schedule. But I think the big ones obviously are the two divisional games, the Titans and the Texans.
Starting point is 00:22:00 You want to come out of those with some victories, obviously, for your AFC playoff race. Then you have some very winnable games with the Raiders, with Aiden O'Connell is going to be their quarterback, with their interim head coach. You don't know how that's going to be going with one week left in the season. And then obviously the Bucs with Baker Mayfield. Those are some winnable games in there as well. But I think the biggest thing for the Colts, again, going forward, is what are they going to get out of their own quarterback position with Gardner Minshew? Then you Gardner Minshew to find that middle ground.
Starting point is 00:22:27 And then what's their injury front going to look like? And there's still quite a few injuries on this Colts team. And luckily, they have this bye week to get healthy. Getting Juju Brents back would be huge. Obviously, getting Juju Brents would be massive for this team. Grover Stewart getting back from his suspension, I think, against the Cincinnati Bengals would be great for that final four to five game push. So getting him back would be big. And then you've got some other players to drew Ogletree missed this past game with an injury. Jelani Woods still hasn't been activated this season. We still don't know if he's going to be activated this year. And then you got
Starting point is 00:22:56 Josh Downs and Zyra Franklin that were still dealing with their injuries. The offensive line has been banged up. Ryan Kelly's in the concussion protocol. So yeah, this Colts team is dealing with quite a few injuries and they could get a lot healthier out of the bye week, which can be huge for this final push here. But, you know, I think when we're looking at this final schedule, again, it's very winnable. Obviously, it's all very losable, too, when you have a backup quarterback as your starter. But I think it's interesting thing to ask you guys and to kind of look at realistically is, you know, you're sitting at this team with, with the Colts they're five and five. Obviously this year is probably not your Superbowl season because again,
Starting point is 00:23:30 you lost your quarterback early in the season. You're still a competitive team, which is great, but you're probably not that suitable caliber team. If as a fan, are you rooting for losses to get that higher draft pick to help your young quarterback when he gets back next year? Or are you rooting to get the playoffs and, some noise this year, even if you're not going to maybe win the Super Bowl? Me personally, and again, you guys can tell me in the comment
Starting point is 00:23:53 section. I think it's a really interesting conversation to have. But me personally, I think I would prefer this team to get some wins down the stretch here, try to get into the playoffs they can. Because I think starting off the new tenure of your head coach with a playoff appearance with positive wins and just a positive finish to the season is more influential for the future than you know the 10th pick versus the 17th pick or something or the 10th pick versus the 20th pick whatever whatever that's going to end up being I would like to see this Colts team make a push for the playoffs again and get into the game. Again, I don't care if they win that much in the playoffs. I mean, I prefer if they win the whole thing, obviously,
Starting point is 00:24:30 but I've got to be realistic about this. Obviously, I don't think that's going to happen this year. But I would like to see this team push for that playoff spot. This is a prime opportunity. They can win a lot of these games. They can compete with anybody, which we've seen. They beat the Ravens earlier this season. They're a good team.
Starting point is 00:24:46 You just want to see them obviously step up in these final stretch here and hopefully get into the playoffs. But you guys let me know in the comments section, are you rooting for that higher draft pick? I mean, obviously Marvin Harrison Jr. is out of the question at this point, so you can't come in the comments and say, no, no, lose for Marvin Harrison Jr. They're not going to fall to the third overall pick,
Starting point is 00:25:03 so they're not going to get them. But do you guys want them to get like a top 10 pick and just lose out? Or again, I feel like playoffs are just more, more impactful for this team at this point. It's good to just turn this whole thing around from where they were last year with their four win season to making the playoffs or again, getting close to the playoffs, you know, nine win season, I think it'd be very positive for Shane Steichen in year one with a backup quarterback starting pretty much the entire year. So, you know, I think the outlook is positive for the rest of the year.
Starting point is 00:25:30 I think they can win these games. I think they're capable of them. I think their defense is playing better as of late, obviously against two bad offenses, but it's still playing better. I think their offense has some things to work out, but once they get healthier on offense, I think they'll be fine. So yeah, I think I'm feeling pretty optimistic about this, which usually is the precursor to disaster on this show whenever I'm feeling optimistic. But you guys let me know in the comment section what you think. Do you think this team wins one to two games down the stretch and
Starting point is 00:26:00 gets a high draft pick? Do you think they win four, five, six and make the playoffs? What do you guys think? Let me know in the comment section. I'm excited to hear what you guys have with that. Every dares. I think that's all we have for today. Again, talking Colts and at the bye week, talking about players that have impressed players that need to step up and looking at the future and saying, you know, I think this team can make the playoffs and I want to see them in the playoffs. You know, I'd rather see them in the playoffs than missing it and getting that high draft pick. I just prefer seeing a playoff run or at least a close to playoff run in
Starting point is 00:26:31 Shane Steichen's first year. So every day is again, I want to let you guys know that locked on has launched a first ever national sports 24 seven streaming service, a streaming channel on YouTube. Locked on sports today is here with you 24 seven covering the top sports stories of the day with local experts of locked on plus our national shows covering every league,
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