Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - Indianapolis Colts: What We Learned About Anthony Richardson, Shane Steichen in Training Camp

Episode Date: August 18, 2023

The Indianapolis Colts have concluded training camp. What did we learn about the likes of Anthony Richardson, Shane Steichen, and the rest of the team, including a preseason game against the Buffalo B...ills and two joint practices against the Chicago Bears?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!Catch the Locked On Colts pregame show at Nevermore at Union Station before every Colts home game! Info here: https://www.tailgateplanet.com/indianapolis-colts-tailgatesLinkedIn Jobs helps you find the qualified candidates you want to talk to, faster. Post your job for free at LinkedIn Dot Com slash LOCKEDONNFL. That’s LinkedIn Dot Com slash LOCKEDONNFL to post your job for free. Terms and conditions apply.Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!NutrafolTake the first step to visibly thicker, healthier hair. For a limited time, Nutrafol is offering our listeners ten dollars off your first month’s subscription and free shipping when you go to Nutrafol.com/men and enter the promo code LOCKEDONMLB.Underdog FantasyThis episode is sponsored by Underdog Fantasy! Sign up HERE with the promo code LOCKEDON to get your first deposit DOUBLED up to $100.Must be 18+ (19+ in Alabama and Nebraska, 21+ in Massachusetts and Arizona) and present in a state where Underdog Fantasy operates. Terms apply. Concerned with your play? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit www dot ncpgambling.org; In Arizona call 1-800-NEXT-STEP; in New York, Call 1-877-8-HOPENY; in Tennessee, call 1-800-889-9789eBay MotorsFor parts that fit, head to eBay Motors and look for the green check. Stay in the game with eBay Guaranteed Fit. eBay Motors dot com. Let’s ride. eBay Guaranteed Fit only available to US customers. Eligible items only. Exclusions apply.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.FanDuelMake Every Moment More. Right now, when you bet on a Super Bowl Winner, you can GET BONUS BETS EVERY TIME THEY WIN IN THE REGULAR SEASON! FanDuel.com/LOCKEDON.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 There were a ton of questions entering 2023 Colts training camp, and now we've got some answers. 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. What's up? Thanks for joining us this afternoon, everybody. This is your daily podcast covering your Indianapolis Colts, part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. And today's show is brought to you by LinkedIn Jobs, which helps you find the qualified candidates that you want to talk to faster. Post your job for free at linkedin.com slash locked on NFL.
Starting point is 00:00:56 That's linkedin.com slash locked on NFL to post your job for free. Terms and conditions apply. Welcome to the show again, everybody. I am Jake Arthur. He is Zach Hicks. You know us from horseshoehuddle.com. I've been bringing you all the latest scoopage from Colts training camp, which is now over. Zach has just been cleaning up with all the film reviews and doing all the stuff that we love to read. So again, welcome to today's show. We are on the eve of the Colts' second preseason game against the Chicago Bears. And we actually got a special little episode today because the folks over at Lumal Nautis, which is Chicago-style deep dish pizza,
Starting point is 00:01:38 they were nice to hook a couple brothers up with some of their pizza here. So you will see us eating some pizza throughout today's show. So friends who are listening to audio, I will try and clean this up as much as possible, but you will be listening to the ASMR. That is Zach and I chewing a little bit while, while we, while we talk.
Starting point is 00:02:00 So don't worry about that. Yeah, I will say I've never had deep dish pizza before. And in honor of, you know, obviously this is an indie've never had deep dish pizza before and in honor of you know obviously this is an indie based place with deep dish pizza chicago style deep deep deep dish pizza so they gave us uh some free slices it's actually pretty good like you know when i first heard of deep dish pizza i always thought it was you know put like someone just mistakenly made pizza the wrong way and they put sauce on top of
Starting point is 00:02:26 the cheese, but actually it's pretty good. I'm, I'm, I'm a big fan of this. So yeah, if you guys hear me chewing throughout, like I'm, I enjoy this pizza. I thank you for Luminati's for it's Luminati's right. That's what they're called. Luminati's not Illuminati. Sorry. Sorry. Luminati's obviously I'm not from India, so I don't know as well but lumal nadis sent this to me all the way in virginia really good pizza really good pizza i highly recommend i even put some some italian seasoning and some garlic on top very very good pizza yeah no this is really really good again i live in central indy they've got a bunch of different locations i got mine from the Avon location. That's the one closest to me. So thanks again to them. Cannot recommend that enough. So Indiana, we are for sale. If someone wants to hook us up with some tenderloins or something now, you're on the clock.
Starting point is 00:03:16 We'll go ahead and get to some Colts topics now. So again, training camp is a wrap. 13 practices, that included a preseason game against the Bills. Two joint practices against the Bears. So we want to start with going into the biggest storylines. There were a lot of big storylines going in. And we've got, if not resolution, we've got some clarity to a lot of those topics now. So, Zach, it was Shane Steichen's debut as, as a head coach. I think this offense is going to look vastly different now.
Starting point is 00:03:48 Uh, we know who the quarterback is now. Uh, I think we know some things they can do to maneuver around the issues of not having Jonathan Taylor. A lot of young guys are going to be getting a lot of playing time. Uh, so with really just one paragraph, I wrapped up all the different topics we want to tackle in this segment. But let's just start at the top with Shane Steichen. You were out here for a couple practices. What's the vibe you've been getting? Definitely a new coach. And that's not a bad thing or a good thing. It's just that he's obviously his first time being in that head
Starting point is 00:04:20 coaching role. Obviously, I'm a big fan of everything Shane Steichen will do once a regular season comes around. But I think my biggest takeaway was how secretive he wants to be about everything. You know, we can't dive into scheme with him. We can't dive into injuries with him. We can't dive into all these certain things. I'm not saying that's the wrong way to approach this whatsoever, but it's definitely a fun way to approach it there. So yeah, I think Shane Steichen, you know, I think it's going to be a bit of a learning experience for him as well as our new starting quarterback, which we'll talk about here in a second. But I'm excited for Shane. Like nothing has really changed throughout this entire process for me saying like, oh, I'm down on Shane
Starting point is 00:04:59 Steichen or I'm high on Shane Steichen. Like it's kind of just been exactly what I've been since the beginning. Shane Steichen's a young coach, a really good offensive mind, and I'm excited to see what he can do with Anthony Richardson. So, yeah, I don't think training camp's really changed too much of my thoughts on him, but it has been fun to see him out there and see that football nerd trying to tone it down and kind of cut all the scheme talks. I know he wants a talk scheme, but he just won't
Starting point is 00:05:25 obviously in front of, in front of everybody. Oh yeah. I feel like he's the guy you crack a couple of beers with him at the owner's meetings or something, and he'd be an open book. Like he could probably spill all the secrets, but just has to keep that buttoned up while he's coaching. So we obviously know the quarterback now after the first first couple weeks, it was Gardner Minshew and Anthony Richardson. It was only a matter of time until Anthony was going to be declared the guy, whether that was end of the season or what. But you had your safe option with Gardner Minshew, where there was a clear, clear ceiling.
Starting point is 00:05:58 And then you had Anthony Richardson, where some bumps there. He wasn't really being outperformed by Minshew, but is clearly not near his ceiling yet. But that ceiling is in the freaking stratosphere. You know what I mean? So what have you thought of him so far? Is he farther along than you thought as a passer? Yeah, you know, again, it would be hard to find someone
Starting point is 00:06:21 who is as high on Anthony Richardson in the pre-draft process as I was. I mean, I was saying since December that he was my QB1. And a lot of that really didn't have to do with who he currently is. It's more of who he can be. So when I was out there for training camp for that week, and you can attest to this too, because you've been out there for every training camp practice, Jake, I was surprised that he looked further ahead than what I thought. I thought his first training camp would be a bit of a shell shock.
Starting point is 00:06:47 You know, I thought there would be times where, you know, defenses are throwing things at him where he's not really able to diagnose it perfectly. And he, you know, eats more sacks than you would expect or throws more picks than what you would expect. And don't get me wrong, there have been examples of that throughout training camp. But for the most part, you know, he got the ball out pretty well. The velocity is great. He seems to be operating pretty well with these pass catchers. Like I like I came away from my week of training camp thinking this is an NFL starting quarterback. Maybe it's not the star that we're expecting or that we want sometime in the future. But like
Starting point is 00:07:20 this is an NFL starting quarterback. Like there are some issues in his games and some mechanics that you want to clean up. But for the most part, this is a guy who deserves a start. And I'm glad Shane Steichen, after that first preseason game, said, you know what? Let's roll with him. He's going to get all the reps from now on. He's a starting quarterback. Let's get him out there. I think that was the right decision by Shane Steichen.
Starting point is 00:07:40 And everything I saw when I was at training camp said, like, yeah, let's get this guy on the field. Absolutely. There there's just been, you watch those two guys play and you just see Gardner and you're like, yeah, you know, this can get them by for a couple of weeks. Like it's just going to be, it is what it is. But with Anthony, there's just so many more things you can do. Sure. He hasn't seen near as much as, as Gardner, but the athleticism, the arm strength, all of it,
Starting point is 00:08:07 the playbook just seems more open there. There was a couple big veteran news and notes. Jonathan Taylor has been there in Westfield for half of training camp, but has been excused away from the team for this last half, really. Contract dispute, physically unable to perform less with an ankle. Basically, that is what it is. We've talked about that ad nauseum. But linebacker Shaquille Leonard, very positive note.
Starting point is 00:08:34 He's been practicing throughout camp. The only day I can really recall missing was this last practice. He's only been getting steadily more and more involved. Moving around really well, was able to play in the preseason game, which means they're letting him get in full contact. I mean, he could have been just as involved in the physicality as Grant Stewart was while he was out there. You know what I mean? So it looks like the chains are off. Really positive development. Yeah. I would say if you told me going into training camp
Starting point is 00:09:07 that Shaquille Leonard would practice almost every single day and he would be doing full contact, and then Jonathan Taylor would be holding out with contract – I'm not saying holding out, but you know what I mean. This constant back and forth at the beginning. If you told me that back in June, I would be like, what are you talking about? I never would have June, I would be like, what are you talking about? I never would have expected, I think, either of these outcomes. I never would
Starting point is 00:09:29 have expected Jonathan Taylor to be doing or to be having all this kind of drama that we've seen this offseason. And then obviously Shaquille Leonard, we voiced our concerns about that quite a few times here on the podcast. So on one hand, it's great to see Shaquille Leonard out there. It's great to see him playing and doing all the physical stuff that we want to see and being on track to start week one. And then on the other hand, it's unfortunate that the Jonathan Taylor situation has gotten to where it is. So a little bit bittersweet with those two news and notes there. But at the end of the day, I am happy to see Shaquille leonard back out there because we we were very concerned obviously uh earlier in the offseason uh but it seems like all things are pointing in the right direction with that very
Starting point is 00:10:14 good for the linebacker group in general because ej speed we we like to see him out there and everything but the depth is still eh maybe maybe leaves a little to be desired. You definitely want to see Shaq and Franklin and Speed out there versus Doman or Stewart being that third guy, for example. So definitely a boost. Yeah, yeah, for sure. And coming up, guys, we're going to talk about some of the biggest winners or stock-up guys throughout Colts training camp and the players that really impressed us in what we saw out there with Colts camp.
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Starting point is 00:11:46 Monday through Friday, to talk about the Colts. Obviously, Jake's not going to be there in person to give the scoop that he's been giving, but we will still be talking Colts training camp, talking about just kind of the overview of this Colts roster. So every day is make sure you're tuning into Locked on Colts next week for Colts joint practices with the Philadelphia Eagles. All right, Jake, so diving into our stock up or just kind of our, you know, our biggest winners of training camp so far, the one guy I kind of wanted to lead this segment off
Starting point is 00:12:13 with was a player that you put in our notes here, where I know a lot of fans have been kind of talking to me being like, hey, I haven't heard much of this player. I haven't heard much of him. Like, how is he doing in camp? But you have him as one of the biggest winners winners and that is defensive end Quiddy Pay. Quiddy Pay might be flying under the radar so far this off season, but you've seen some pretty good things out of him, right? Yeah, absolutely. Especially in the last week or so. You know, we've talked about when every year when these joint practices get going, it seems like there's always a couple of guys that
Starting point is 00:12:43 kind of come alive at that point. And that's been Quidipe. He basically lived in Chicago's backfield harassing Justin Fields and the running backs. So he's looked really good. He's had, you know, would be sacks or, you know, consistent pressures throughout most of the practices, it seems like. So that's a guy. The Colts don't have a proven clear cut top pass rusher. So you're hoping someone steps up in that in that capacity this year. And it's certainly Quidipe's turn to do it. You know what I mean? He looked like he could he looked like he could get there last year at times when he was able to play.
Starting point is 00:13:19 But that ankle just kept him from being able to fully participate. So you hope you see that moving forward this year. And then I asked him about his health after practice yesterday, after the last practice, you know, he had the ankle that bothered him all year, similar to Jonathan Taylor. And I said, you know, you've been out here pretty much every practice. How's the ankle? Is that fully gone in the past? And he said, oh yeah, that's not even a thing anymore. So the guy's fully healed. Feels great.
Starting point is 00:13:43 Looks great. All thumbs up there. That's good. And then guy's fully healed, feels great, looks great. All thumbs up there. That's good. And then we have a couple of pass catchers as well. Two players that really popped when I was out there at training camp for my week. And that's Alec Pierce and Kylan Granson. Alec Pierce looks like completely different pass catcher. It looks like it's interesting, like he doesn't look like skinnier, but he just looks leaner and looks more muscular and looks faster and more fluid than he looked last year at any point last year, really. So seeing him throughout training camp, seeing him just stacking and beating guys deep constantly. And you can attest more to the Chicago Bears practices. Maybe he did a little bit more in those as well.
Starting point is 00:14:19 And then Kylan Granson, obviously his stock is going to be up because he's the only tight end that's actually healthy on the entire roster right now. But he's just a player built for the offseason with how he's able to get open and just easily separate against defenders. So both those players look like they're in line for a pretty big season this year. Yeah, just starting with Granson, again, like you mentioned, all the other top guys have been injured. Mo Alleycox has missed the last couple weeks. I think Jelani Woods practiced once or twice during camp. Granson was already tied in three, but has been tied in one the entire time. And then you get that opportunity, and he's answered.
Starting point is 00:14:57 He catches pretty much everything within his vicinity, which used to be a problem for him. He's run after the catch. He's made tough catches. So the guy's really answered the call very well. And I think it gives Shane Steichen a clearer opinion of what he can do with Granson moving forward because he hasn't had to split all those reps with Woods and Mo Alleycox.
Starting point is 00:15:19 And, I mean, even Drew Ogletree to an extent because Ogletree's missed time. So they've got to know exactly what they have in Granson. And then with Pierce, we already knew the guy could make big plays, track the ball deep, things like that. I've just really been impressed with everything he does before the catch. Like I watch him running his routes, making his breaks, all those things. It's a lot cleaner, a lot smoother and less rigid than it was as a rookie. And he even talked about yesterday, you know, now that he is comfortable in year two and, you know, he knows the playbook and he's not worrying about everything being a new experience for him.
Starting point is 00:15:56 Now he gets to focus on the nuances of his position. It's not about the playbook or just being in the NFL in general anymore. He actually gets to focus on some detail and that's really, really displayed itself on the practice field. Yeah. And that's a big thing with Alec Pierce too, is like last year we saw the big plays, we saw some pretty good moments from him, but he was, he was among the worst receivers in all of football in terms of separating, you know, on each route, you know, separation per route run. But when you're watching him in camp and maybe this is a testament against the Colts corners, but like you're watching him in camp, he's like wide open on every single route. He is getting open.
Starting point is 00:16:32 He looks so much quicker. He looks so much faster. So I'm really high on Alec Pierce's potential for this next season. But let's go over to the defensive backfield. You know, the Colts are going super, super young at both safety and corner. And two players that have caught your eye are Daryl Baker Jr. and Nick Cross Jake I know we've talked about these two guys quite a bit here on the podcast but what do you think about those two guys now as your time at training camp has ended oh I gushed about Nick Cross yesterday but um no I'm just really
Starting point is 00:17:01 impressed with him knowing that last year didn't go his way. And as a 20 year old kid, you know, maybe, maybe that was on display at times last year. Now everyone has really positive things to say about how he is approaching things as a professional studying, doing everything it takes, even, you know, equating practices to walk throughs like everything takes effort he's giving everything effort and he's making plays on the field you know last year on the field he was doing some nice things in camp and preseason but maybe wasn't where he needed to be as a as a professional and now he's kind of caught up to that so really good stuff there. And Darryl Baker Jr., I mean, has anyone on the Colts come out of left field more than him?
Starting point is 00:17:50 Because go back a month. I mean, we had heard of him because he's on the roster. But like a lot of Colts fans, especially the people there watching at Grand Park, had probably no clue who that was. And rightfully so, because he had never done anything in the NFL before. especially the people there watching at Grand Park, had probably no clue who that was, and rightfully so, because he had never done anything in the NFL before. Ron Milas said he didn't know who he was, and that's his new defensive backs coach. We love how candid Ron Milas is, by the way. He's awesome. Yeah, no, it's great. So he went from being, I mean, excuse the bluntness here, an NFL nobody, to being a team's top outside corner, whose last top outside corner was Stephon Gilmore I mean that's big expectations and I'm not trying to say that's the performance level he's going to
Starting point is 00:18:32 have but I mean he's being entrusted with a pretty significant role in this defense yeah I'm excited for Daryl Baker Jr. I think that's the player I'm most excited for this season not because I'm thinking that he's going to come out and be Stephon Gilmore Jr. or Stephon Gilmore. I just, you know, like everything I've seen so far in camp and I've seen the preseason, like this is a player who knows how to play the cornerback position, who's really good under 20 yards, really good at getting physical, really explosive. And if he can be a little bit better on the deep ball, I think this can be a number one or number two corner for this Colts team going forward. So I'm really excited for him. And then obviously Nick Cross, we talked a ton about him last night, so I don't want to go too much into him, but just great development to see
Starting point is 00:19:13 from such a young player to turn it around, at least as of right now, after a really tough season a year ago. Some other players I wanted to shout out here before we get out of this segment. Grant Stewart, I thought was phenomenal in that Buffalo Bills game. Absolute star from defensive plays to forcing a turnover to having an amazing special teams play as well. Linebacker Grant Stewart looks to be linebacker four going into the season. McTelvin Aguim, defensive tackle, has had a really good camp so far and looks like he's solidifying himself.
Starting point is 00:19:44 A roster spot and then Arlington Hambright a guy who again going into this camp like kind of a NFL nobody but he's shown that he has the ability to play left tackle can play backup right guard he looks like he's gonna be like o-line player number eight or number nine this year for the Colts unless they make some waiver claims so I feel like those three guys came into camp kind of on the roster bubble, and all three of them have been very close to solidifying their spot on this Colts roster through really strong camp performances. Yeah, and I've been really impressed with those guys.
Starting point is 00:20:16 I definitely wanted to talk about Ham right before we hopped off. So, yeah, I'm glad you mentioned him. Now moving forward in segment three, we're going to kind of look at the flip side. Some guys that maybe weren't able to impress, you know, maybe they were banged up. We need to see more from them. But first, a word from Nevermore. At Nevermore, get lost in literality and experience, a place filled with intricate design and immersive experiences. From upscale food and spirits to music and entertainment.
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Starting point is 00:21:32 been there all the time. That place is awesome. I've also told you guys about the shows coming up, the pregame shows before every home game. That includes Saturday. The link for tickets is here in the show notes. So I would love to see you guys out there. Pack the house. Have a great time. It's going to be a great deal. You know, for the price, again, you get unlimited food, open bar, all these games. It is an awesome time. And then you can scoot over to Lucas Oil or just watch the game from the bar. Do whatever. Visit Nevermore under the historic Union Station on South Meridian Street in Indy. Follow Nevermore Union Station on Instagram or NevermoreUnionStation.com.
Starting point is 00:22:14 Escape and explore the extraordinary at Nevermore. Zach, so this summer, there was a lot of guys who we had circled in big red marker as guys who needed to do something or guys who we assumed would have big summers. And some of them just really haven't been able to do that. Looking at a pair of tight ends here first, Mo Alleycox and Jelani Woods. Now, the reason I don't include Drew Ogletree in this is because he just needed to prove that he was back from the knee and he is. He's got a shoulder right now that has cost him about a week or so but they didn't put him on ir or anything so i think he's gonna be fine uh but yeah mo alley cox has missed like two weeks with an ankle injury he's had to fend off all these younger guys to even stay relevant in the lineup even from a blocking perspective
Starting point is 00:23:02 or as a pass catcher which we know that's not that's not his jam like that's not his best role uh so he really hasn't been able to show much even when he was out there kylan granson was showing out you know drew ogletree was doing things will mallory came back eventually and did some nice things uh so mo alley cox and jelani woods woods he's been out again like i mentioned almost all of training camp with this hamstring which he also had the hamstring during the spring so he's missed the vast majority of the last several months and that's just a real bummer because that is like other than alec pierce you're looking at two big breakout stars on the offense, Alec Pierce and Jelani Woods. Now, Woods will be back at some point, but the whole tight end glow up thing where they're
Starting point is 00:23:51 going to have this dominant tight end group, it's kind of delayed a bit because most of the participants have been hurt all summer. Yeah, I know. It's like three or four guys have been hurt like every single day of practice. That's why they have rostered like 11 guys right now on the on the uh 90 man roster but yeah i i would agree that those are two guys that i like i wouldn't call them losers right now because one that's just a weird term to say for nfl football players but um needs to show out i think is is a good way to phrase it because for jelani woods like he's making this team and when he's healthy, he's tight end one on the roster, but he needs to be healthy.
Starting point is 00:24:28 You know, you need to get that hamstring figured out. It's been something that's been bugging him since spring. And now it's bugging him throughout all of August so far. So it's like, we need to get Jelani Woods on the football field. And then for Molly Cox, like you said, the Colts are kind of embracing this youth movement at like every position. And when you're looking at tight end, they have all these youthful tight ends they want to get on the field.
Starting point is 00:24:54 Where does Molly Cox fall into that if he's not even practicing in the off season? So, yeah, I think these are two guys that just need to get back on the football field. And then when they do, they need to show out to prove that they're worth playing over guys like Kylan Granson, who has been healthy this entire offseason and has been showing out so far throughout camp. So yeah, I think it's really big to get both these guys back on the field, especially for Molly Cox, who wants to
Starting point is 00:25:13 make the team, but for Jelani Woods just to be healthy and actually practice in the Shane Steichen offense. Yeah, without a doubt, because Kylan Granson right now tied in one to a certain extent because i think they trust him to block a little more than people think at the moment as well so yeah yeah no for sure i think i think no sorry i don't want to interrupt you there but yeah i think kyle and granson it has to be tied in one as of right now like we're both really high on jelani woods and we think when jelani was healthy he should be tied in one but yeah as of right now kyle and granson is your best separator in the group. He's a guy who can get open, especially in backsides, three by ones.
Starting point is 00:25:50 Or if you're going to go empty being like a two by three inside guy, like he's going to be a guy who can get open for you. And that's what you need for a young quarterback. So as of right now, yeah, Kylan Granson is tight end one. He's also H back one for like that fullback role. Kylan granson has really stood out compared to these other tight ends who have just been hurt throughout all of training camp yeah and someone over here uh adam jameson made a good point are the tight ends not
Starting point is 00:26:15 going to play as big a role in shane steichen's offense dallas goddard uh is pretty good and only had 55 balls so goddard was hurt for like half the year I think he was on pace for actually have a pretty big year um so as long as steichen there you go as long as steichen has a healthy crop of tight ends to go to I think they'll be very involved which is why I think if Kylan Granson remains the only healthy guy big ups to him I mean he's gonna have big numbers uh but moving along to another guy who is notable on the lineup uh julian blackman he spent a lot of time out as well with a hamstring like i think he missed the first couple weeks as well in his absence nick cross was awesome you know and then when rodney thomas went out for a few days it was blackman and cross out there but then during these joint practices with
Starting point is 00:27:06 the bears i haven't i don't really think julian blackman was out there very much during the 11 on 11 so again it was nick cross out there balling out with rodney thomas and if you're the colts do you not see that pair and say that's our future at safety because i mean i've always been a very very big julian blackman fan and i think he brings a value this year that rodney mcleod did last year similarly he's an older guy who's always been very cerebral always had a great football iq great communicator uh so he could certainly help in that way but he's a free agent after this year as well so how do the colts how do the colts see that you know what I mean like
Starting point is 00:27:46 do you just go with the youth movement at safety with two guys who are playing really well I will say it is funny though just to throw a little quip in here that Julian Blackman is an older guy and I think he's like the same age if not younger than Rodney Thomas like yeah that that's hilarious to me but no I'm with you I think like look if Nick Cross at 21 I think might be 22 when the season starts but like if Nick Cross is showing to be the the strong safety that you drafted him to be how do you put him on the bench how do you take him off the field like I know that we love Julian Blackman a very smart football player uh plays really physical and he can probably project really well to being a strong safety but if Blackman's been out this whole training camp and Nick Cross has been stepping in and playing
Starting point is 00:28:29 exceedingly well how do you go back to to Julian Blackman when Julian Blackman's coming up on being a free agent where you have Nick Cross under control for another two to three years you know like I think if Nick Cross continues to show out you have to roll with Nick Cross And then Julian Blackman kind of becomes your backup slot, your backup strong safety, your backup free safety, kind of that versatile backup, which is still valuable. But like if Julian Blackman wants to keep his strong safety spot, his starting strong safety spot, he needs to get out there and get, you know, with the pads on and actually play some, some football because Nick cross is coming for that job. And Nick cross is playing exceedingly well. He's getting the praise of all the coaches right now. Like Nick cross, if he shows that he's ready to play, the team is going to go with the 22 year old that runs a four, three,
Starting point is 00:29:17 and, and they drafted in the third round by trading up to get him, you know, like that, that's who they're going to roll with. So yeah, it's, it's huge for Julian Blackman to get out there and actually practice these next couple of weeks, because like, again, Nick Cross is showing out right now. Yeah. And Gus Bradley doesn't historically use three safeties very often. So, I mean, as, as long as Cross has Ron Miles's trust, I'm very curious how this is all going to kind of play out. Another guy I wanted to mention, which this whole topic is kind of good because there aren't very many guys who
Starting point is 00:29:49 you'd say stocked down or losers from training camp for the Colts. Cause it's been very youthful. But Jojo Doman is a guy who I thought might have more of an impact this camp. He seemed to me like he was going to be pretty clearly the fourth linebacker. And with, we thought Shaquille Leonard probably wasn't going to be as clearly the fourth linebacker. And with, we thought Shaquille Leonard probably wasn't going to be as involved as he was, which was going to mean more reps for more reps for Doman. Now the fourth linebacker has seen quite a few reps with, you know, EJ speed has missed a
Starting point is 00:30:16 little bit of time. Leonard hasn't been full go the entire time. But the guy who's really stood out is Grant Stewart. And also Saguna Luby did pretty well during practice before he got his head injury. So Doman's been fine. I don't want to make it seem like he hasn't done anything, but Grant Stewart has been very, very involved. And from everything I've seen is the fourth linebacker right now. So I think there's a golden opportunity for him in these final two preseason games to really show out and do some things. Yeah. And I want to throw out a couple more guys. I just want to see a little bit more of in these next couple of preseason games and obviously in the joint practices next week, but Juju Brents and Darius Rush, you just want to
Starting point is 00:30:56 see more of those rookies getting out there and playing and performing the way that we know they can. They missed a lot of time and they've kind of been slow getting back up to speed, but I'm not too worried about them. They'll probably both make the roster, but it's just like, you know, you want to see a little bit more from them. Going to the offensive line, Danny Pinter and Emil Ekior Jr. has not been a good off season for those two guys
Starting point is 00:31:16 on the second offensive line. So you really want to see a little bit more out of key backup players. And then going back to the tight end room, Farrell Brown, it has not been the offseason we expected for Farrell Brown. That veteran blocking tight end, getting thrown out of practice last night,
Starting point is 00:31:32 having that big holding penalty in the first preseason game against the Buffalo Bills. You just want to see a little bit more there from those guys. But that's all we have for today, guys. Again, I'm going to butt in for a second. I know you, you go on airplane mode during the show, but a few roster moves just got announced. So the Colts went ahead and placed Gennard Avery on IR. He's got the LCL and
Starting point is 00:31:56 meniscus. I believe he's done for the year. They also waved injured a wide receiver, Malik Turner. He's been banged up a couple of days, but the guy they added to the roster free agent wide receiver, James Washington, formerly of the Steelers and Cowboys. So I know you're going to have something to say about that one. Okay. Hey, a guy who knows how to block a guy can do the dirty work pretty good.
Starting point is 00:32:17 You know, he's not like a big time separator, but he can catch the ball when it's thrown in his vicinity. Very interesting move there. So that'll be something to watch for sure. So yeah. Yeah. Not bad to add to an already kind of deep group of wide receivers in terms
Starting point is 00:32:31 of name recognition, not necessarily performance, but yeah, yeah, for sure. For sure. So we'll have to keep an eye on that these next couple of days, but every day is again,
Starting point is 00:32:41 we'll be back here all week next week, talking Colts training camp, talking joint practices with the Philadelphia Eagles and then talking what we want to see out of these last couple preseason games and if you don't already make sure you're following at Locked on Colts at Jake Arthur NFL and at Zach Hicks to all on x subscribe to Locked on Colts podcast on YouTube or wherever you listen to your podcast we'd love your guys ratings and reviews and we'll see you guys back here tomorrow after the Colts game

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