Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - Indianapolis Colts' Training Camp Battles: Does Ben Banogu Come Out On Top?

Episode Date: July 26, 2022

It's the eve of Indianapolis Colts training camp, and there are battles in the air. Who wins between Ben Banogu vs. Ifeadi Odenigbo? What about Jojo Domann vs. Sterling Weatherford? Who are you taking... in these 1-on-1 matchups during camp, such as Michael Pittman Jr. vs. Stephon Gilmore?Find and follow Locked On Colts on your favorite podcast platforms:📺YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLdpxJspi1hMh5HL7ExpWOQ🎧 Apple https://itunes.apple.com/podcast/id1151621306🎧 Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/6meP450baAtjX4rTENZ5ij🎧 Audacy https://www.audacy.com/podcasts/locked-on-colts-daily-podcast-on-the-indianapolis-colts-21701🎧 Google https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vUFBZODk1ODUyODkyNQ🎧 Megaphone https://cms.megaphone.fm/channel/lockedoncoltsFollow Jake and Zach's written work on HorseshoeHuddle.com, and give them a follow on Twitter @JakeArthurNFL, @ZachHicks2, and @LockedOnColts!Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!DaveDownload the Dave app from the App Store right now for an Extra Cash account and get up to 500 dollars instantly. For terms and conditions go to dave.com/legal. Instant transfer fees apply. Banking provided by Evolve. Member FDIC.Built BarBuilt Bar is a protein bar that tastes like a candy bar. Go to builtbar.com and use promo code “LOCKED15,” and you’ll get 15% off your next order.BetOnlineBetOnline.net has you covered this season with more props, odds and lines than ever before. BetOnline – Where The Game Starts! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript
Discussion (0)
Starting point is 00:00:00 It is time to talk about the camp battles that no one else is talking about. We've talked about the potential new starters in a few different spots, but what about the guys who need to win their battles in order to stick on the roster? We'll dive into that on today's show and much more. 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. Colts fans, thanks so much for tuning in and making us your number one listen of the day. This is your daily podcast covering your Indianapolis Colts,
Starting point is 00:00:51 part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. Today, Zach and I are going to decide whether we think it'll be Ben Banigou or Ifeate Odenigbo making the final cut, as well as a couple of undrafted rookies in Sterling Weatherford versus Jojo Doman we're also going to close with a surprise it's something that Zach has cooked up in his head that I really don't know about either so you guys will be just as surprised and entertained as I will be so let's go ahead and get started by discussing a couple of guys who we both like at defensive end.
Starting point is 00:01:25 That's Ben Banigou versus Ifeanyi Odenigbo. A couple of names that you can't say rapid fire, of course, obviously, if you couldn't tell. So we know Quidipe and Yannick Ngakwe. That's the starters. That's easy. But there are some depth guys in there as well. I think we both feel good about Taekwon Lewis if he gets back and healthy and Dayo Adangbo. But on the other side, you've got Banigou versus Adanigbo. So how are you feeling about this matchup here?
Starting point is 00:01:57 Yeah. Yeah. So this matchup was one I brought up to you because although I see a scenario where both these guys make it, you know, when you're doing the numbers game on that defensive line, like think about it, the Colts typically keep maybe 8 to 10 guys on that defensive line, which means, you know, you're probably looking at 4 to 6 defensive ends probably because you'll have 4 defensive tackles. So Quidipe, Yannick Ngakwe are locks. Dio D'Ambo is a lock.
Starting point is 00:02:24 Tyquan Lewis is probably making it. So if they do only keep five, it comes down to Ben Banigou or Ifyadi Odenikbo. And they're very different players. Very, very different players. Odenikbo is a guy who's been around the league for a bit. He's had some success. Who's been in different systems. He's been a run defender.
Starting point is 00:02:43 He's been a guy who can rush the passer a little bit, but he's not really flashy. You know, there's not much upside. He's kind of like the supercharged version of an Isaac Rochelle or of a Al-Qaeda Mohammed. You know, a guy who can step in, give you some good snaps, but you never really want him starting.
Starting point is 00:03:00 You never want him to be your number one guy by any means. Ben Banigou is a guy who has lit up training camp the last couple of years, high draft pick the Colts took in 2019, but he's just never seen the field in the last scheme that the Colts had, you know, a scheme that was so dependent on being run, run defense first, you know, run, run defense is everything. So Ben Banigou was kind of left in the dust, just like Kamoko Ture was. And now, you know, he's obviously in Atlanta. So we've seen that with a lot of those type of guys.
Starting point is 00:03:29 Or Sanfray, always my fault. He came down to Atlanta and Sanfray. He visited, he visited Atlanta. That's what it was. That's what it was. But when you're looking at a guy like Banigou, the upside is definitely much higher than Odenikbo. But if it goes the same way that it went with this last regime on defense, you know, they'll probably go with a guy like Odenikbo instead of Ben Banigou. So I think we're all optimistic that this will be Ben Banigou making it if it came down to these two players. But if you're looking at as a coach, would you want the player that gives you the higher floor and can do multiple things for you you or the player with higher upside who can probably only do like one thing for you? I think
Starting point is 00:04:08 that's a good debate that coaches are going to have. And honestly, I could see a coaching staff go either way, even though as fans, we're all going to say, oh, take the bendy guy, take the athletic guy, take the guy who, you know, who looks like he can contribute in the more important phase more. But as coaches, you've got to look at the whole game. And a guy like Odenikbo is very enticing for a coaching staff. Yeah, this does seem eerily similar to an Al-Kadim Mohamed type of situation because he's not spectacular at any one thing, but you could throw him out there and he could do what he's asked.
Starting point is 00:04:40 I think he's played inside a little bit. There's been periods of his career where he's kicked inside and had more snaps there, but overall kind of a more strong side defensive end type. Just a little background on these guys. Banigou, of course, he looked awesome last year in camp, sacks and tackles for loss just constantly, but he's only played in 34 career games in three seasons. I don't think he's got any starts. Only two and a half sacks on his career, which all came as a rookie in 2019. Adenik Bowe, like you said, he's bounced around a bit. Cardinals, Vikings, he was with the Browns last year. He has started 15 of 41 games. His best season was also 2019 in Minnesota.
Starting point is 00:05:26 He had seven sacks and seven tackles for loss on his career, 10 and a half sacks, 10 tackles for loss. So both of these guys are kind of chasing the production they once had a few, a couple of years ago. But yeah, it's on the surface, it seems like a why can't they both make it thing, but it seems very do or die for Ben Vanigoo at this point. It's, I mean, we're a clean show here,
Starting point is 00:05:50 but it's time to squatter it off the pot, basically. And his defense, he was great last year in camp. Just like I said, like what more could he have done? But it's all up to the coaches on this one, what they see for a full season projection. Do you want the safer guy in Odenigbo who could probably do a touch more? Or do you want the guy who could potentially pop off for, you know, I don't even know what to project for Banigou just because it's been so low.
Starting point is 00:06:22 But, like, you've got a bendy athletic guy who could get you some sacks and do some nice things against tackles. But that's really tough. I don't know at this point. When we talk Banigou, I mean, like, again, he didn't play many snaps last year. But according to Pro Football Focus, and I think it was ESPN's pass rush win rate,
Starting point is 00:06:42 he was the highest pass rush win rate on the Colts last year. I think it was like around 14%. So when he did get on the field, you know, he was kind of a productive pass rusher. It's just he hasn't touched the field. And again, this isn't me advocating saying, oh, Ben Banigou is the missing link on this defense and, oh, they've been just benching a star player. But I do think in a normal, I don't want to say normal defense because Ibrafluse's defense isn't like abnormal, but in a defense like this one, if Ben Bandigou started his career in this type
Starting point is 00:07:12 of defense, you know, the wide nines, the pass rush heavy defense, he probably gets a lot more run throughout his first three years in the league than what he had under Matt Ibrafluse. You know, it's not to point blame at either party here. It's just how it was. You know, Ben Bandigo was not a fit for the way the Colts used, the way the Colts had their defense the last couple of years. But right now it seems like he's the perfect backup to Yannick Ngakwe. You know, it's like he just is going to do the same thing,
Starting point is 00:07:41 similar size, similar athleticism, you know, pass rush heavy, basically pass rush only with both of those guys. So I do think it's a much cleaner fit for him in this scheme. And I know we're talking like who, you know, debating these two players, but there is a very real scenario where both these guys make it, you know, they could obviously keep 10 guys that maybe go a little weaker on, on defensive tackle because you have a dang bowbo and you have uh taekwon lewis you can play three tech uh even though that would mean curtis brooks being cut which i i'm firmly against but uh you know we're talking scenarios here um there's so many ways they could play they go cheap they can go lighter
Starting point is 00:08:21 at other positions maybe they go lighter at receiver or maybe a corner uh corner corner. I feel like it's going to have only five guys this year. I don't know if they're going to go with six. So there are ways that they can make 10 defensive linemen fit. But if it were up for me, if it were up to me in this type of scheme, I would go with the more upside pass rusher because this, this type of scheme that the Colts are gonna be running, you know, very Jim Schwartzian, Robert Sela, you know, and obviously Gus Bradley back with the Seahawks
Starting point is 00:08:46 back in the Legion of Boom days. They like to have deep pass rushing. You know, they want to have a unit off the edge of, you know, it's not just Yannick and Quiddie Paye are the only defense rushing the passer. You know, they want to have rotations. They want to have guys out there. And you're going to want to have a guy like Ben Banigou
Starting point is 00:09:02 who has that ability to rush the passer at a higher level than maybe Odenikbo. And I like both players. If it goes either way, I'm cool. But I would probably lean more with the young athletic pass rusher. But, again, I could see a coaching staff go with the more consistent floor type of player. Yeah. To your point there, I think if you look at recent teams that have had success either gone to or been to the super bowl tampa san fran kansas city philadelphia
Starting point is 00:09:33 they had really strong pass rushes at least during the playoffs like deep pass rushes too yeah deep pass like i mean waves of them like right want to have right if you're looking at philly or you're looking at those Robert Saleh teams, the Niners that have gone deep in the playoffs, it has been deep, deep pass rushing groups. Defensive tackles rotating out. Defensive ends rotating out. You still have your DeForest Buckners and your Dick Bosa's
Starting point is 00:09:57 and all those guys, but it's the rotation that's what kills you. And I'm not saying Ben Banigou is like this elite rotational pass rusher, but you want to have athletic pass rushers just sitting there waiting for their 10 snaps a game where they get to get after the quarterback. So I just think with this type of scheme, Ben Banigou is going to fit very well, especially consider where he was coming from. But again, it could go either way. And I hope both guys make it. I'm a fan of both players, and I think they both fit really well. I think both could make it. Gun to my head, I'm going to give the nod to Ben Banigou if it has to be one or the other,
Starting point is 00:10:31 just because I think new coaching staff is just going to be a new leaf, and I think he fits better with them. Definitely, definitely. So we're talking about guys who have to worry about their roster spot, but you know which guy doesn't have to worry about their roster spot? Dave. That's who it is. Dave doesn't have to worry about it. spot, but you know which guy doesn't have to worry about their roster spot? Dave. That's who it is. Dave doesn't have to worry about it.
Starting point is 00:10:48 So level with me, guys. We've all been in a situation at some point in our lives when we were just a little tight on cash. Maybe you could only afford to put a few gallons of gas in your tank or you got another save the date and you're wondering how you're going to afford a gift. That's where Dave can help.
Starting point is 00:11:02 Dave is the banking app that can get you up to $500 instantly with extra cash. That's more money to fill your tank, buy a wedding gift, or catch up on bills. You can finally tackle those expenses that have been stressing you out without any hangups. There's no interest and no credit card check needed. Millions of people have already downloaded the Dave app to get the financial relief they need with extra cash. Personally, I know Dave could really come in handy for me right now. I've mentioned my very expensive dog before. Plus, I had to run out and buy a new battery for my car literally just this morning. With training camp going, the Colts are stationed
Starting point is 00:11:38 about 35 minutes from me. I have to have that battery working and it's been getting closer and closer to dying. Had to do it. Financially, was I ready to do it? No, but had to do it. So Dave would have really come in clutch for me, I'm sure. So if you're in a pinch and you need some extra help, download Dave and think of it as a helping hand for future you. Download the Dave app from the app store right now. That's D-A-V-E. Sign up for an extra cash account and get up to $500 instantly. For terms and conditions, go to dave.com slash legal. Instant transfer fees apply.
Starting point is 00:12:15 Banking provided by Evolve. Member FDIC. FutureU will thank you. All right. So everyone kind of knows the name Ben Vanigoo by now. Ifyati Odenigbo. I mean, he's new to the Colts. Do they know that name just by how smooth you are pronouncing it just about every time? That's how they know.
Starting point is 00:12:34 I mean, except when you started the show. You were a little off when you started the show. But outside of that, you've been so clean with that name. That's why people know it. And because when their spellcheck messes up Odenigbo, it to o'denigbo it really yeah i really think it might but these guys you've maybe not even really heard of other than on this show because zach and i like to mention them uh that's a couple of rookie underactive free agents sterling weatherford and jojo doman uh if we're assuming they're both kind of in the the will, in that rotation spot.
Starting point is 00:13:06 Really intriguing matchup. They both in college had experience playing safety and linebacker. They both looked the part. Athletically, they do as well. The thing of it is, if you're comparing the two, Weatherford is a good bit bigger. He's 6'4", 224 pounds, doming 6'1", 230. In the spring, they've both done well. I witnessed both of them have pretty big plays. I think it was Weatherford jumped in front of Niheem Hines at the goal line and picked off Nick Foles. Had plenty of green in front of him.
Starting point is 00:13:42 Would have been a big play in a game. So I was really impressed by that. The good news for both these guys with Darius Leonard starting on Pup, I'm sure EJ Speed is going to get the starting will snaps. But that opens the door for both of them to get those second and third team reps. And that's going to be a lot of reps, to be honest with you. And I'm sure that Darius may not play at all in the preseason, which will give them more live game reps. So, yeah, absolutely. You don't need to that Darius may not play at all in the preseason, which will give them more live game reps. So yeah, absolutely. You don't need to see Darius out there. We know what he can
Starting point is 00:14:10 do. And I know that's exactly what you're thinking as well. But you've studied both these guys pretty well leading up to the draft. What are you thinking their fit might be here in the summer? Yeah, no, it's actually a fascinating battle because I think if you asked anyone back in, say, March, where these guys would get drafted, Weatherford wasn't as big a name as Doman, but Doman was getting, you know, third, fourth, fifth round hype. Weatherford was getting fourth, fifth, sixth round hype, you know, I mean, Weatherford was coming off a really good senior bowl too. And both those guys ended up going undrafted, you know, for a litany of reasons, you know, age, position is tight, positionless type players. You know, there's reasons why in this type of class that both those guys end up going undrafted you know for a litany of reasons you know age position is type position list type players you know there's reasons why in this type of class that both those guys could go undrafted but you know i could be talked into either one of these guys i think if
Starting point is 00:14:53 you if you look at doman doman is a much stronger zone defender better instincts around the line of scrimmage uh he's a very consistent player, and he's a high-level special teamer. He was a really good special teamer in college. So I do think he has a lot of things going for him. But if you're going off of pure potential, along with kind of some of the things he can do on film, Sterling Weatherford is a gigantic player. I mean, you watch him on film, and he is huge.
Starting point is 00:15:22 I mean, 6'4", 224. He looks like – you know know he kind of looks like gosh people are gonna throw this on twitter or something but i remember when i was a kid watching like sean taylor out there at safety and i'm like why is there someone so big playing safety that's literally what it looked like in college watching sterling weatherford run around at safety it's like why is the guy he's like the biggest player on defense running around at safety um and then he comes out and he has a great combine uh he ran a 4-6 which is outstanding for a player that was going to
Starting point is 00:15:50 convert to linebacker uh 31 and a half inch arms or 31 yeah 31.375 arms uh only 23 years old too which is kind of young considering the way draft classes are going now like a lot of draft like jojo doman will be turning uh 25 i think in two days from when this podcast comes out uh so happy early birthday to jojo doman there uh and i also like weatherford a little bit more in man coverage i think he's just that bigger body with his athleticism he just tends to stick a little bit more in man coverage uh and all the issues he really had in coverage as like a zone defender came from him being a single high type guy in college, which I don't think he was ever really suited for with his size and his ability. So I think you go either way, you know, Doman, if you want the instincts, the special teams, the, you know, that kind of stuff with your line with your sixth linebacker.
Starting point is 00:16:39 Weatherford, if you want the upside, the speed, the size and a guy guy who could probably excel on special teams too. I mean, honestly, you could go either way with it. But like what you said, and like everything I've heard is both these guys are, you know, the Colts have these guys both in like high regard. They really like both these players and they both had really strong springs. I expect that to carry here into camp and it's going to be a really tough battle between these two to make the roster. Yeah. And I don't know all of the inner workings of this move or why it happened. I know he'd had camp and it's going to be a really tough battle between these two to make the roster yeah and i don't know all of the inner workings of this move or why it happened i know he'd had some injuries before but the colts let go of jordan glasgow right this offseason who was a really good special teamer for them i mean they had george odom make all pro and um what what And what? What? Who is I just?
Starting point is 00:17:27 Yeah. So George Odom made all pro and Glasgow actually had a better special teams grade than Odom that year was really nipping at his heels in terms of special team stops. And so they really liked him. They let him go. And I've got to think part of it was the comfort level with guys like Doman and Weatherford. I remember before the draft, I was studying Doman more so than Weatherford.
Starting point is 00:17:53 But the biggest takeaway I came away from it was he would fit really well on special teams with the Colts. Right. You probably wouldn't see either of these guys on defense unless something has gone very wrong anyways. So you kind of project both of them as special teamers and they really, they really fit the bill. High effort guys, of course, decent size and athletically they're similar, but you know, you give the edge to Weatherford since he's bigger, you know, if they're putting up comparable numbers, that's kind of give them the win there but man i i could just really see them both as special quality special teamers um i don't know what the likelihood is of them both making their roster you've got to
Starting point is 00:18:36 think it's one or the other when it comes to undrafted guys but man i mean i i think i would project ahead weatherford to be a little better if you had to put if you had to throw someone on defense you know he's probably at the higher upside as well Doman's more of a polished and ready special teamer but that's not necessarily why you're giving a last spot so you know you want a little upside there as well so gun to my head I head, I would say Weatherford on that one. Yeah. I mean, when you look at this battle here, I mean, the Colts traditionally have kept six linebackers almost every year. You know, they kind of dip to five every now and then. But of those six linebackers, they've always kept, you know, Glasgow's gone. Matthew Adams is gone. So they really only have four right now.
Starting point is 00:19:21 If you factor in Brandon King king making that making the roster for his special teams ability then you have these two both competing for one spot or say doman comes in from day one he's a better special teamer than than brandon king then you can have both these guys making it because i i think weatherford again has an inside edge because i think he's just going to be a better player for defense, like going forward and immediately. But, yeah, I could see this going either way if it comes down to the two guys, but I could also see a scenario where both of them make it, because there are only four locks right now,
Starting point is 00:19:54 and they're going to get a lot of reps with Darius Leonard out. So, yeah, I could see it either way. I like both these players a lot. And even though I'm kind of impartial when it comes to Weatherford, because I've talked to him a lot this offseason uh and i just love the guy to death but i could really see it going either way these are both really talented players that honestly should not have been undrafted yeah and what just keep in mind guys when both of these guys blow up training camp you heard it here first those guys curtis brooks you know kyle and branson what we're
Starting point is 00:20:24 going to do is say every single player's name. That's at the bottom of the roster. So then when you hear it first, you heard it here on the podcast. We are the gatekeepers of all Colts lower roster breakout guys. No one else is allowed to claim those guys. It's all of us. We're going to grab Tony Brown as well. We're just going to grab all those guys, all of them.
Starting point is 00:20:43 Yep. If we've ever mentioned anyone on this show, they're ours. Yes. All right, Jake, you ready to have some fun? Let's have some fun, man. I'm excited. I don't know what you're about to do to me, but let's check it out. All right, guys.
Starting point is 00:20:57 So what we're doing with this last segment here today, before we get into training camps, training camp starts, I mean, if you guys are hearing this right now on Tuesday, training camp's starting today, right? They report Tuesday, today. They start practicing Wednesday, tomorrow. Yep, yep. So going into camp, you know, there's always fun storylines, you know, players that are going to be battling against each other. You know, I remember a couple years ago when the Colts first traded for DeForest Buckner, it was, oh, we're so excited to see Buckner versus Quinton Nelson in practice.
Starting point is 00:21:24 You know, this is going to be the biggest thing ever. Forrest Buckner. It was, oh, we're so excited to see Buckner versus Quinton Nelson in practice. This is going to be the biggest thing ever. So what I've prepared is five little slide things here that Jake is going to read off because I want Jake to be our cold or just read these cold here. He hasn't even seen them. Five huge matchups or just showdowns that we want to see in camp. And we're going to talk about them here once we bring them up. For you guys watching on YouTube, yes, graphic designing is my passion. I put a lot of effort into it. That makes me more excited to see what this is going to be. They're going to be the most bland stuff ever.
Starting point is 00:21:59 But if you guys are watching on YouTube, please be nice to me in the comments. I threw these together in a few minutes. But we're going to kick it off with the first one here, Jake. So what's our first little graphic say? Curtis Brooks versus anyone that dares to cross him. See, I think this is the most important one. Yeah, Curtis Brooks versus the field, you take Curtis Brooks. If he's versus the field, you're going to consider him the plow.
Starting point is 00:22:24 It's Curtis Brooks. Yes, but no joke though. Curtis Brooks, I know we've said this a lot, and this is obviously the Curtis Brooks podcast, which I got my shirt in the other day. You guys are be ready for the next show. I'm going to have my Curtis Brooks shirt, but Curtis Brooks, I just think looking at his film, I keep watching it because I'm like, what did I miss? Why am I so high on this guy? And I just watch his film and I'm like, I don't know how these third stringers are going to block them in training camp. I just, I don't see it. Maybe, maybe, maybe I'm surprised when he comes out and he's just not like his strength's not there, but I don't know, man, he's an animal on film and he's so athletic. I just, I don't see him getting blocked very easily
Starting point is 00:23:03 here in training camp. Well, okay. So once they throw on pads and they start doing the one-on-ones and everything, let's say it's him versus like Wesley French and Josh Seltzner. Right. I'll give him the wins. Once he starts getting into Will Fries and Danny Pinter, and he probably won't go against Quentin Nelson if I had to guess. No, but that'll be interesting to see against like Fries and Pinter, you know, two guys who have NFL experience. But I'm excited.
Starting point is 00:23:29 I think he's going to have a really good camp. And I know we've said that a lot here. All right. Our next one here, Jake, this is going to be iron sharpens iron with this next one. Stephon Gilmore versus Michael Pittman Jr. That's good. That's going to be a good one. That is going to be a good one. Michael Pittman Jr. That's good. That's going to be a good one.
Starting point is 00:23:45 That is going to be a good one. Michael Pittman Jr. was great last year. Great. But he, the one letdown I had, the only letdown I had, was the one game I saw him against like a top tier corner was J.C. Jackson. And even though Wentz missed him on that deep shot, which would have made his stat line look a lot better, he was kind of handled for a lot of that game.
Starting point is 00:24:07 You know, J.C. Jackson was kind of all over him. I want to see how he looks against a guy like Stephon Gilmore, even if Gilmore's not out there all of offseason, this whole offseason, because, you know, Gilmore, 30-something-year-old corner, like, he's not going to be out there for all training camp. But the couple battles we see between those two guys are going to be very telling for the Colts' future cornerback one in Gilmore and future wide receiver one in in uh Pittman Jr. so I'm really intrigued by that battle yeah I am too I think
Starting point is 00:24:35 so I I think a lot of the like over the middle stuff could go to Gilmore anything that Matt Ryan puts up high or just any 50 50 situation I'm going to give it to Pittman I I think Gil I'm going to kind of I'm going to take a coward's way out here uh but no I just see a lot of the stuff where they're closely engaged and everything I think Gilmore's really crafty and although you you know you made a piece on all the different ways that Pittman like gets open and everything right it's good right Gilmore knows how crafty. And although you made a piece on all the different ways that Pittman gets open and everything, which is good. Gilmore knows how to defend that. I'm sure he's seen it before. But when it comes down to size and athleticism, man versus man, that's got to be Pittman all day.
Starting point is 00:25:19 Yeah. But, again, Gilmore is one of the most perfect technicians when it comes to corner. He's going to be so good just punching that ball out and attacking. So it's going to be one heck of a battle. I'm super pumped for that one. This next one I got here is rookie versus rookie, uber athlete versus uber athlete. And here we go.
Starting point is 00:25:38 Nick Cross versus Jelani Woods. Okay. I'm going to give that to Woods. As much as I like Cross, you know, and he's got decent size for the position, Jelani Woods is just, he's built different. You know what I mean? Literally, literally. Yeah, he is enormous. He's athletic as all get out. I mean, he's got stuff to work on too, just like anyone else does. It's not like he's coming out here and he's Tony Gonzalez, Antonio Gates, whatever. But this is two teams against each other, not seasoned vets.
Starting point is 00:26:14 They're both kind of younger players, too, at least to football in their positions. So, yeah, I think a lot of it is just going to be raw athletic wow athleticism and size you know one-on-one again which i've got to always give that to jelani woods right right no i'm with you and you know obviously again with this matchup they're not going to be going against each other every single day in camp and you know there's going to be days where cross is going to be in the slot maybe covering some receivers and stuff but I'm just so excited to see these two freight trains against each other for the couple reps that we get. I mean, these are both guys.
Starting point is 00:26:50 They're going to be violent. Yeah, they move at a million miles per hour. I mean, Woods is, what, 260, right? At 6'7". Something like that, yeah. And then Cross is like 215, 220, running 4'3". I mean, these guys are freaks. And that's why the Colts drafted them as high as they did.
Starting point is 00:27:06 They're going to be super fun to watch. I'll add a quick layer to, I think when Ellinger is the quarterback, it's going to go to Nick cross. And I think when it's, it's going to go to woods. I'm glad you said that. You know what? I'm going to skip this next one just so I can go to, because you brought up Sam Ellinger. So here's, here's our next one. Sam Ellinger versus Strongest of Wind Sam Allinger. So here's our next one. Sam Allinger versus Strongest of Wind.
Starting point is 00:27:27 All right. Now that's not nice, Zach. I had to throw into one. I had to do it to him, right? You had to do it to him. No, so yeah, that's a lot of people get confused about the whole arm strength thing. There's a difference between the velocity you can do on fitting the ball into tight windows
Starting point is 00:27:48 and just being able to throw the ball far and putting air under it. Ellinger can throw the ball far and put air under it. Right. But when you need a precise, instant rifle it through there thing, he's probably not your guy. He's not Chad Pennington, but he's not got the rifle arm. Dude, if he were to be Chad Pennington, that'd be a great career arc for him. But in all honesty, I love- Chad Pennington's arm was like throwing a balloon animal, though.
Starting point is 00:28:17 Right, right. Did not always look good. In all honesty, before I move past Sam Ellinger, because it's going to be tough for him to make the roster this year. Obviously, you want to keep a young quarterback, but signing Nick Foles was kind of saying, look, we need to upgrade this backup quarterback spot and you only have so many roster spots. But Sam Ellinger is a quarterback who does everything right mechanically, mentally, it's just physically
Starting point is 00:28:39 I don't think it's there. Again, throw it with good air under it down the field, but you're not going to get him rifling the passes that you need to, to have at the intermediate level. But I hope he makes it to the practice squad if he doesn't make the roster. Cause I do love having him around the team and I think he's a great dude. So I did just want to throw that joke out there because it might be the last time we ever get to make a joke about it. Right. My jokes are corny. Yours are just mean.
Starting point is 00:29:04 You have a body count on your jokes. Gen Z versus, what are you, millennial? I'm a millennial, yeah. There we go. Last one here, and this one we're going to do real quick, but this is going to be the one that gauges the readiness
Starting point is 00:29:20 of one player. And here you go, Jake. Yannick and Gawkway versus Matt prior okay uh so prior's no slouch athletically but in gawkway just has he has the physical and athletic tools i don't think he's gonna whoop him rep in and rep out like constantly i think prior will have his wins but i've got to give that to in gawk, right. I think this one is more important for us to watch because is Matt Pryor our left tackle this year? Or maybe going forward.
Starting point is 00:29:51 You know, if he gets his butt kicked every single day in practice, like we were seeing with the left tackles last year in camp. Yeah. I mean, every single day. Last year was bad, regardless who it was. Ben Manigault was getting 30 sacks of practice. Yeah, it started out as Sam Tevey, then Julian Davenport, and Will Holden had a little bit of run.
Starting point is 00:30:09 Right. We could clearly see that. I mean, the Colts by no stretch had a great group of edge rushers. Like, they had, what, 33 sacks? The tackles were just revolving doors last summer. It was not good. And you can tell right away that it's not going well. So we'll be able to see with prior.
Starting point is 00:30:31 I mean, Yannick Ngakwe is not always going to be the litmus test. I mean, he's a, he's an above average pass rusher, but if he's getting whooped, that's not going to be good. Right.
Starting point is 00:30:41 That's what I'm saying here. I want to see prior hold his own against Ngakwe, against Quidipe, against Do. Whoever he's up against, you want to see your future at left tackle, your current future at left tackle, holding his own in these matchups. So I think whoever he's against, specifically against Yannick Ngakwe, I think they're all going to be really big matchups for him. So those are the ones I'm watching. Obviously, three of those are very important. Curtis Brooks is one in my heart. And Sam Ellinger, I hope he has a good camp, despite what I said.
Starting point is 00:31:14 Well, that was a good game. I like that. You'll have to throw more of that at us. Like I said, graphic design is my passion. You guys could see. I mean, those designs were, I mean, it took me weeks to do each one of those. Well, it was beautiful. And you could tell you put a lot of time and work into that. Well, anyways, we'll be back with you guys tomorrow. Again, we mentioned players report on Tuesday. We'll be obviously speaking with several of the players there at media availability.
Starting point is 00:31:41 We should also be speaking with Chris Ballard and Colts GM. The team's first practice is on Wednesday. We'll see, you know, there's going to be a bunch to report on there. You know, there's going to be players in and out. We'll have it all for you. Yeah. And guys, make sure you're following us on social media at Zach Hicks 2, at Jake Arthur NFL, at Locked On Colts. That's where we all are on Twitter. Make sure you get those follows up. And then also here on YouTube, you know, hit that subscribe button. You could see my wonderful graphics I just put up for this last segment. And then if you want to find all of our written work, I mean, it's going to be a busy, busy
Starting point is 00:32:14 week for written work at Horseshoe Huddle. So horseshoehuddle.com, see everything that we're putting out there for training camp. And again, rate, review, subscribe, wherever you guys listen to your podcasts, Spotify, Apple, wherever. We appreciate all the podcasts, Spotify, Apple, wherever. We appreciate all the reviews so far, but keep it up guys. We're trying to get into that top 100 for sports podcasts. Yeah, absolutely. We really need to get there though. I know that would be really cool for us. But thanks again.
Starting point is 00:32:36 Anyways, just for listening and making us your first listen of the day. Now make your second listen of the day, the Locked On NFL podcast. Our national NFL experts and insiders keep you guys dialed in with the biggest stories and the latest news from around the league because an off season doesn't equal a break in the action. We'll see you guys tomorrow.

There aren't comments yet for this episode. Click on any sentence in the transcript to leave a comment.