Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - LOCKED ON COLTS 3/17/20: Philip Rivers signs 1-year, $25 million deal with Colts as Chris Ballard goes all-in

Episode Date: March 17, 2020

On today's episode, Stampede Blue's Zach Hicks joins to go over the breaking news that Philip Rivers is signing with Indianapolis. Also, we dive into some film study on DeForest Buckner.Rivers signed a 1-year, $25 million deal with the Colts to be their new starting quarterback. What type of upgrade is Rivers over Brissett? Also, where will Jacoby Brissett land now as he's presumably on the way out?DeForest Buckner will have a huge impact on the Colts' defense. Zach helps dive into the reasons why Buckner changed the ceiling of their defense completely long-term. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hello, everybody. Welcome back into your latest episode of Locked on Colts, probably Locked on Podcast Network. Today's guest is Evan Sider. I'm joined by a very special guest on today's show, Zach Hicks of Stampede Blue. Zach, let's start off. Actually, we were just actually talking about doing DeForest Buckner first. Since now we have the contract details now in place, in rep, we're just tweeting them out. One year, around $25 million, probably assume $24.5 million, somewhere around there. We'll say $25 just for fun. One-year, $25 million deal for Phillip Rivers. A one-year deal, I believe, is even better than I thought it would be

if it's a two-year deal. This just means that I think it's a win-win. I mean, you're getting an immediate upgrade of quarterback over Jacoby Bursette. So you're going to be shopping Jacoby Bursette now. One year, $25 million, you've got the cash base to spend. You have Rivers only under contract for one year. So if you draft a quarterback, that guy can still start at the beginning of the 2021 season.

I think that's a huge win for this team. What do you think? Yeah, no, I agree with you. I mean, look, Brissett got his chance last year, and he also got his chance in, you know, 2017. And, quite frankly, he didn't really do much with the opportunity there. I mean, we kind of know what Jacoby Brissett is,

and going into this offseason, I think, you know, 90%, 95% of this fan base and anyone who watched this team play last year could agree that the Colts need to upgrade. And, you know, Phillip Rivers isn't what he used to be. He's not a great quarterback anymore, but he's definitely an upgrade. You know, he's more of great quarterback anymore but he's definitely an upgrade you know he's he's more of uh your kind of league average type quarterback where brissette was kind of towards the bottom of the league in terms of starting quarterback so i think you know at the end of the day you're

upgrading the quarterback and uh it's going to make the team a lot better especially you know with with the big addition they made the other day as well so so i overall i really like this uh you know this just deal yeah definitely agree through their one year 25 million dollars and let's talk for a second zach about why he'd be such a big upgrade so i know maybe some fans are like why are we signing philipers we hate this guy for 15 years he's been a thorn on his sides for so long why do you have to root for this guy but i think we talk to the fans a little bit zach about really how big of an upgrade this is for Jacoby Brissett.

Phillip Rivers is an average quarterback, top 15 quarterback, but Jacoby Brissett the last two and a half months of the season was a bottom five, top 30, top 35 quarterback. Going from that, like the bottom five, to at least average the Mendoza line, Zach, is a huge, huge separate team that's in contention. Yeah, you know, I think the biggest thing, too, is, you know, Phillip Rivers has experience in this type of offense with, you know, with Coach Reich, and he had a lot of success a couple years ago

with him as well. So you're getting a guy who not only has been around for so long and kind of knows what he's doing, he's an upgrade in terms of reading defenses and getting the ball out with anticipation, but he also has familiarity with the offense, and he has the trust of, you know, Frank Reich and Nick Sirianni. So, yeah, I mean, I just think overall, you know, he's not going to be as physically gifted as a guy like Kugler said

or maybe some other guy he can get in his class. But he's going to come in, and you're going to get a guy who can throw with anticipation, who can read a defense, who can get the ball out quickly to his correct reads. And I think that's all you really need with Frank Reich. You know, I'm not saying this guy's the answer. I'm not saying Phillip Rivers is the answer for the next couple of years. But you can kind of buy time before the Colts need to really address that quarterback position

while making additions like DeForest Buckner and getting some more guys in here and trying to be a competitive team while you wait to get your quarterback next year. So, you know, obviously you would love to have that young quarterback in the future right now, but this is the next best option, you know, getting talented players along with bringing in a veteran who can win games for you. Yeah. And let's talk about that ceiling. I mean, Jacoby led him to a seven win team. I mean, I imagine the games that he missed Miami and they might have one. So let's just say eight wins I guess I think Rivers probably boosts his team up if he is what we saw in 2018 Zach the 2018 version of Phillip Rivers the one that threw less picks the one who was an MVP discuss for the first part of the

airport chargers lost in the first round of the playoffs I believe that our first round by their 13-3 in 2018 Rivers also had his best years his career Frank Reich let's see as a resurgent year how good could this Colts team be now? You throw in DeForest Buckner in the mix with this. They have a draft pick still, a lot of draft picks, I think two in the top 75 or three in the top 75, excuse me. So you still have draft Amy Noshy if you want to. I think this team could be a 10-11 win team if everything breaks for you,

even though it's going to be a very tough schedule. Yeah, yeah, certainly. You know, obviously there's a lot of factors in terms of scheduling, in terms of injuries, in terms of a lot of things. But, yeah, on paper, I mean, yeah, certainly. You know, obviously there's a lot of factors in terms of scheduling, in terms of injuries, in terms of a lot of things. But yeah, on paper, I mean, again, you have a veteran quarterback who's been there before, he knows what he's doing, and he's been in this offense, so he can, you know, operate to a better level than what we saw last year. And then you have a lot of talented pieces, you know, on defense, there's two all pros now instead of just one. And then you have talented players in the secondary again with Kenny Moore. So, yeah, I think this is a really good team.

You know, obviously it all comes down to, you know, in-game luck and all that stuff. It's hard to really say before the season what they could really be. But, yeah, I mean, 10-11 wins, especially after seven last year, yeah, I think that's definitely feasible. Now with Rivers, what are the concerns here? I know there's definitely going to be a split reaction from Colts fans here.

Obviously, it's a big upgrade for one year, but for a guy who threw a lot of interceptions last year, it's going to be the polar opposite of Jacoby Brissett. What are some worries? Is there anything you're really worried about, Zach, for a one-year deal with Phillip Rivers? Or do you think even if it's the worse version of Rivers, it's still an upgrade with Jacoby Brissett? Yeah, you know, if it's the worse version of Rivers, it's still not Gary Bursette?

Yeah, you know, like I said earlier, the physical traits are not going to be where Bursette's were. So he's not going to be able to throw the ball 60, 70 yards down the field with ease. But then again, we never really saw Bursette do that that much last year because he was so tentative. Really where the concerns are is his arm strength is just not what it used to be. It's not elite by any means it's not even probably like well above average but it's good enough right now which i think is is something to note and then also his mobility it's always been something in his career

that he's never really had is his mobility and you know even though jacob reset wasn't the fastest player last year he was able to make things happen in the pocket. So for Rivers, he's maybe not going to be as elusive in the pocket as what we saw from Brissette last year. But, you know, he can make up for that with so many other things, like getting the ball out quick and accurate and getting it to his correct reads. So I think, at least in my opinion, those couple flaws he does have, the things that make him worse than what the Colts just had last year,

he can mitigate that with other things that he just does to a much higher level than Brissette. Yep, and I think with Rivers too, just the way he's able to command the pocket, the way he's able to have the accuracy of Jacoby Brissette in the short and intermediate areas, we're going to see a lot of games if Phillip Rivers stays clean. Just how important is the offensive line aspect to this, Zach? Because Phillip Rivers has been under duress throughout his career.

He's never had an above-average offensive line. 90 steps into possibly the best offensive line in the NFL in the twilight of his career, maybe the final season of his career, as he makes one push for a Super Bowl run maybe. I feel like Rivers is going to be feeling really weird in that pocket now where he doesn't have to be touched every other snap. Yeah, yeah, absolutely. I don't think he's really had this much in his career, like you just mentioned.

I mean, throughout his career with the Chargers, they've always been good at getting playmakers around him, but they've never really gotten him that offensive line that can keep him in the pocket. And, you know, like I just mentioned, for a quarterback who's not the most mobile, who's not the most athletic, you kind of need to give him that time in the pocket, and the Chargers have just never been able to do that.

So, yeah, with the Colts, I mean, I think the Colts were like top five in the NFL last year and average time to throw. Obviously there was more sacks given up this year than the year before because of quarterback play. But you know, the Colts give a lot of time to the quarterback. They buy a lot of time in the pocket and I think Rivers is going to take advantage of that. So yeah, this offensive line is probably a big reason why he signed here to go along with obviously his familiarity with Frank Reich. Before we dive into your DeForest Buckner piece, which is really good. I'm glad you were able to get that done yesterday, Zach, because it was really awesome work you did. We're going to hit just really quickly on some QB dominoes just for

a sec, because I talked to you about this off the air before we started here. But with the way this is falling and the way this draft and this free-ante period is going, Tom Brady, it seems from all indications, what a weird 2020 this has been, Zach. He might be a Tampa Bay Buccaneer by the end of tomorrow, which is shocking. I would never have thought I'd say that. Cam Newton is now in the trade block, too. It seems like if the Chargers miss on Tom Brady,

I assume they'd probably be a heavy fear for Cam Newton, especially if the Raiders keep Derek Carr, which is something they're going to do. If he goes to L.A., Cam Newton does, and Tom Brady goes to Tampa, that crosses off quarterbacks for number six overall at Tampa Bay, and it crosses off as well number 14 as well at Tampa Bay. And then you go into that as well, maybe Oakland – or excuse me, Las Vegas doesn't have 12. So the earliest you can see a quarterback go is maybe 23 to New England, Zach.

Who would have thought that with Justin Herbert? But there could be a slide here for Justin Herbert and Jordan Love to the point where the best-case scenario could still be unfolding for this Colts team, surprisingly enough. Yeah, you know, there's obviously a lot of factors. As of right now, they have, you know, three – or four quarterbacks on the roster. So it's even tough to even talk about that right now.

They still have some moves to make. But yeah, I mean, those guys could slip in the draft for sure. I mean, crazy things have happened. I just think personally, you know, you got like teams like the Saints that have a quarterback at, you know, Breeze, who's over 40 or whatever. And then you got Tampa, who if they bring in Breeze they'll still have a quarterback that's kind of in the twilight of his career uh so I think all those type of teams really could be looking to trade up or they're looking to be moving up for a quarterback

as well uh so yeah there's a lot of things that could play but uh yeah I'm sure Ballard is probably thinking that as well like he could still get his quarterback in the future if there's a guy he likes uh but I do think the biggest testament to how he felt about his quarterback class is when he did trade out of that pick 13. I think that was kind of his way of saying, like, I'd rather just get a star player than take a chance on these quarterbacks. But we'll see. You know, if one falls to the right price, yeah,

he could definitely make a move up. Let's get in, Zach, now to DeForest Buckner, because these QB downers are going to continue to fall over the next week. And the Colts now officially signed Flippers about 15 minutes ago of this reporting is the domino that's now going to fall here. But Jacoby Bursette, one more time here on the quarterbacks because we haven't yet hit on him. What happens with Jacoby now? I imagine the Colts are going to be shopping him pretty aggressively. They can't be carrying a $25 million quarterback fully guaranteed per rap sheet that he's going to be,

the river is going to be the quarter over $25 million. So you can be having nearly $50 million on the cap with two quarterbacks. And especially if they keep a third one or draft one, you think Jacoby Brissett's on the way out, Zach? I definitely think they're going to be shopping him. There's, it just doesn't make sense to keep him in this situation. He's obviously not the guy, His contract expires after this year. So for him to have a contract that expires after this year

and then still go out and get another quarterback and pay that other quarterback more money, I think that's just a testament to their faith in Brissette. I think his time at Indy should pretty much be done here. Yeah, I don't know what he's going to fetch, though, because obviously there's a lot of misconceptions about Brissette, even within this fan base. Who knows how it is among league circles? So, yeah, I don't know what they could really get for him in a trade, but I would definitely assume that they'd be shopping him. He'd probably rework

his deal to be with another team, maybe like the team like the Bears, who are looking for competition, or even back to New England, who trade into the the colts in the first place yeah wouldn't that be something if chris bauer just goes full circle here trades into new england that'd be incredible yeah i mean we've seen it before i mean the other day uh the the redskins signed kendall fuller off free agency who they traded for alex smith uh so yeah we've definitely seen a lot of this stuff happen in the NFL past, but yeah, I mean, you know, that could be a good scenario because, you know, the Patriots obviously liked him enough to spend a draft pick on him and have him on the roster, even though they did trade him away. Bringing him back would make some sense, but I'm assuming the Colts have to eat a lot of

his salary in that case too, just because again, his value can't be very high right now. Let's dive in now, Zach. We've been teasing for the last few minutes. DeForest Buckner, your piece on that, and explain to the Colts fans after diving into the tape over the last 24 hours why DeForest Buckner is a game-changer, a superstar defensive line for this team. And the Colts are paying him that much. He's going to make $23.4 million next year.

It's going to dive down to $17 million and $16 million in 2021 and 2022 to keep them flexible for guys like Darius Leonard and Quentin Nelson, their contract. But a very highly paid defensive lineman. This is the first forage the Colts have done in who knows how long, Zach, since it seems like even bigger than the Griggs moves, to be honest here. What are the Colts getting into Forrest Buckner? Yeah, I mean, they're just getting – I don't know if this puts it the right way

to where people can understand, but they're getting just an elite defensive talent. I mean, this guy is outstanding. You know, everything that you can really imagine that makes an elite defensive tackle, he has. He has athleticism. He has the power. He has the quickness off the ball. He has great hands when rushing the passer. He's a really good run defender. And he also has like a motor that is unlike anything else I've seen from a player of

his pedigree. So I just think the Colts, you know, obviously 13 is a lot and giving that kind of money to a defensive tackle is quite a bit. But what you were kind of getting out of this is such a good player that I don't really, you know, I don't really see the problem with giving up that much. You know, I mean, just look at that film. I put 18 clips there in the film room that I did. And honestly, I probably could have put about, you know, 18 to 20 more. I mean, his film is just that good. Definitely go read that over on Stampede Blue because it really breaks down just how good a player he is. But the way that I really put it in my mind is anybody who was sold on taking Javon Kinlaw or Derek Brown at pick 13,

which I know a lot of the fan base was really high on, you should be over the moon about this trade and signing here because those two players could only dream to be as good as what Buckner is. So getting a player Buckner's caliber for that pick, you know, a known superstar rather than taking a chance on maybe a guy turning into a pro bowler, I think, I think overall it's a good trade. I really like the kind of player they added to the team. Chris Byard even said, Zach, the three technique drives this thing. How's DeForest Buckner going to change everything for this defense, Zach?

Because he's certainly going to drive that three technique really for the next four or five years. Well, actually, I don't even think he's going to be a three technique for the Colts. I don't think that's really, I mean, he can, he can honestly shoot over and play some three tech just because he has athleticism, but I think he's mostly going to be filling where Marcus Hunt and Grover Stewart were with that one tech, maybe in past rush situations, jump over to the three every now and then. But, you know, honestly, just what he can do, it's just going to change so much of this defense. Because when you watch the 49ers last year, obviously Nick Bosa, D. Ford,

Eric Armstead, they make a lot of plays. But when Buckner's driving guys in the pocket and those quarterbacks have to bail, a lot of those edge sacks and edge pressures that they got were because he was getting those guys out of the pocket, those quarterbacks kind of stepping back in the pocket and stepping in the sack. So, yeah, he's going to impact a lot on this defense, not only in the pass game but also in the run game.

And, yeah, I think even if he plays one tech, three tech, wherever he plays, I just think he's going to be a really good player for this team. With DeForest Buckner, Zach, where would you rank him on the Colts defense right now as far as best players in their defense does he step in day one is he is he the best player in the Colts defense are you still giving that crown to Darius Leonard like I feels like DeForest Buckner he's entering the prime of his career he's gonna have a huge impact on his defense I mean I think it's easy

to say he's number one number two on that list no I think he's number one uh you know Darius Leonard's great and he makes a lot of plays, but there are some inconsistencies in this game, and I'd probably even say Kenny Moore is a better defensive player for this team, and that might be a hot take that people may not love. But, yeah, I just think DeForest Buckner, you're getting – obviously, Darius Leonard's an all-pro talent as well, but Buckner just impacts so much of the game just from a defensive line standpoint,

and he's just so well-rounded all around doesn't make many mistakes along with having great hustle and and great athleticism great ability uh yeah I think he's by far and away the the best player on this defense it might be the best overall player on the team uh obviously that's a competition with with Quentin Nelson but uh yeah when you turn on that film uh he's you know the second best or maybe probably the best uh when you turn on that film uh he's you know the second best or maybe probably the best uh defender on that on that uh 49ers team last year that was one of the best defenses in the league so yeah he's just a really good player and I'm glad the Colts got him and then finally Zach just you look at Buckner were you surprised by the compensation

though that the Colts gave up or you didn't get it was a fair trade you're getting an all pro right away on 26 year old Buckner and then it doesn't the Colts gave up or you didn't get it was a fair trade. You're getting an all-pro right away on 26-0 on Buckner. And if the Colts just get a ready-made product, they were maybe trying to look for a 13th. They're going Kinlaw or Brown. They don't have to wait for development anymore. You get right away for the 13th pick a guy in DeForest Buckner. I mean, they were paying a pretty hefty price.

Yeah, you know, I do think it's a hefty price. Obviously, the 13th pick, when you don't have a quarterback, you know, as of right now, they still don't really have their quarterback of the future. Giving up that 13th pick is pretty valuable, and it is kind of tough to give up. But again, I think when you're getting a bona fide superstar and one of the better players in the league at their position, I don't really think that's too much of a price to give up. And again, to go with the contract as well, obviously you don't want to pay that much to an interior defensive lineman or really any player outside of quarterback. But you kind of do break those norms and break, you know, typical trends for

elite players. And that's what he is. So, you know, obviously, it's tough to get 13. It's tough to pay that much. But, you know, when you're getting an elite player who's going to make such an impact that he is, I think it's well worth it. What's the upside of this defense next year, Zach, when you toss in Buckner into the mix? You have now a front four. Let's start with the front four first off. Justin Houston, assuming they're done on the defensive line. I know they're probably out of piece or two in the draft here, but your front four, assuming starting, is Justin Houston, Danico Autry, DeForest Buckner, and Kamoko Ture. How good is that

defensive line? How big of an upgrade has that been from years past? I think it's big. You know, I think that this is going to be one of the better pass rushing units the Colts have had in a long time. And, you know, I just think the, you know, the sky's kind of the limit with this defensive line. Also with this defense, you know, I think they can definitely be a top 10 unit because a guy like Buckner just opens up so much. Obviously obviously I think they need to get a little bit more healthy and consistent the secondary first but I think this can be a really good unit with the addition of Buckner on that defensive line and then overall the defense what's Buckner going to do to open up for guys like Darius Leonard and Kenny Moore and other guys and especially the secondary too

I think we haven't talked about enough here here personally on the show, where if Buckner can get home more early in offense, it's going to take less pressure off guys like Pierre Desir and Rakia Sin, especially, too. Yeah, yeah, for sure. I mean, starting with just the linebackers, I mean, he eats double teams really well because of his size and his length. I mean, I think he's 6'7", super long arms, 300 pounds as well, so he can withstand at the point of attack.

But he does something better that, like, say Grover Stewart last year, right, he can withstand at the point of attack. But he does something better that, like, say Grover Stewart last year, right, was really good at eating against the run, but he didn't really shed blocks super well. You know, he kind of just ate space, and then he made a couple plays here and there. Well, Buckner is great at also eating those double teams and also beating them and also shedding them to make plays themselves. So, I mean, he just kind of creates so much havoc on that defensive line. And then when he's rushing the passer, I mean, he forces so much pressure by just driving guards into the pocket and into the lap of quarterbacks to where they're going to make mistakes.

You know, they're going to step back and step into sacks, you know, from Houston or Toure, or they're going to throw up errant passes and they're going to get picked down the field. So I think it just overall just helps so much the defense. Zach, appreciate your time as always, man. You can follow Zach on Twitter at ZachHicks2, and you can read his work on Stampede Blue. Zach, appreciate the time as always, man,

as the Colts are making moves and Chris Bauer is finally going on here. Yeah, absolutely. It's great to see. I mean, again, Phillip Rivers isn't the answer, but upgrading that quarterback and also getting a playmaker on that defensive line, I think that's a big step in the right direction for this team. All righty, guys. That's it for today's episode of Locked on Colts.

Appreciate everybody listening. And as always, we'll be back with you guys tomorrow to recap day three of the Colts' free NC Forensic.