Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - LOCKED ON COLTS -3/3- NFL Combine News & Notes: Ballard Presser & More

Episode Date: March 3, 2017

Chris Ballard at his #NFLCombine presser hits on several important components of how the #Colts roster will be shaped - speaks about players with concerns and how he's approaching the relationship with the staff. Also some notes on interesting conversations up to this point. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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Welcome back to Locked On Colts, ladies and gentlemen. I'm your host, Matt Dainley. And thank you for joining me here on a Friday in Indianapolis at the NFL Combine. And, you know, it's been a good first couple days here. I didn't haven't necessarily reported from the Combine as of yet, but I'm getting this out just kind of give you guys some news and notes and whatnot of what I've seen, what we've all heard and seen as well. And what is the plan, at least for the show going forward for the rest of the week. So first and foremost, it's been very interesting. Needless to say, it always is down here. There's a lot of people, a lot of scouts, a lot of management, a lot of everybody, networks

and everything else. Very, very interesting meeting, you know, some of these, uh, guys that, uh, are any of those above that I just mentioned, you know, just to get, uh, pick their brain a little bit, talk to them, uh, about anything and everything. And, and I'll tell you, uh, first and foremost, uh, the Chris Ballard press conference, you know, the, one of the things that constantly I was hearing down there. And I think if you guys were on Twitter at all, you probably heard the same thing. Uh, I caught up on that quite a bit later is that almost everybody and anybody who spoke about Chris Ballard was talking about how impressive he was. Uh, he does command the room, you know, and he just kind of makes you feel as if he's just a very matter of fact type of guy.

I don't know that we, and you know what, and I'm not going to compare him to Grigson or anybody else that have used the mic, but it just, it's a different tone. It's a, it's a very professional approach to how he wants this Indianapolis Colts roster and team and general organization all the way around really to be. And it was really interesting to just hear some of the things that he'd said about certain aspects of the roster. You know, when he was talking about cutting DeQuell, how he wanted to look him in the eye, wanted to basically, he made that decision quick, he said, just wanted to talk to him and didn't want to call him a couple months later and say, you know,

hey, it's not going to work. He knew that that wasn't a guy that was going to be on the roster next year, so he wanted to bring him in and talk to him face-to-face like a man. I thought that was really cool. Another thing that you heard towards the end of the press conference was him talking about Art Jones and any other roster moves. Also talked about the David Perry issue and, you know, basically has kind of kept a lot of that under wraps. And that's good. I love the way he does that, to be honest with you. I've had the conversation with so-and-so and we're going to keep it between us. Even when he was talking about Andrew Luck, his shoulder and the surgery and so on, just any conversations didn't even matter if

it was of any importance at all. Anything that was mentioned about a conversation with a player and him, he basically said, I mean, and I'm going to keep that between us, but I'll say this about that situation or whatever situation. It was very matter of fact, very personable guy. I think, uh, very impressed. I think he's happy with a lot of the pieces that are in place. And I'll say that about not necessarily the roster, but he was very high and spoke very highly about the scouts. He spoke very highly about the coaching staff, about how the relationship between himself, Pagano, the coordinators, position coaches as well, have all been really good so far. And I think that's, you know, something that we need to accept going forward that this is a totally different dynamic between Chris Ballard and anybody in that organization than it probably was with the previous GM. And it will, I think,

inherently go smoother, whether we get any better results or not, you know, that's something that just is either going to happen or it's not. I'm excited to see how this all plays out. I still think that they're probably going to cut Arthur Jones just because of the price and what he's given the Colts so far, which is virtually nothing, very little to speak of. And that may be something that he just hasn't made the decision on yet and so uh we'll give him a pass for that but earlier in his press conference you know he kind of talked about certain guys who would be character risks you know we've talked about this in the past about marcus peters tyreek hill those kind of guys uh even you know some guys for the bears that he helped draft or had scouted or whatever. And they were basically getting to the Joe Mixon part of it. I think that this was also in some way correlated with

the David Perry issue. But basically, they wanted to know what went into getting a player on the roster like that. And basically, he spoke very father-like, I guess you should say. As analysts or as fans, we all very much cut the cord right away when certain things arise. And I'm guilty of that because that's what I believe, you know. And when I say father-like, I mean these are kids, he says, you know, they make mistakes and so on and so forth. And they're going to be growing up. And basically that's what he has been so good at in the past, deciding whether a certain guy is growing up or if he's going to fall into the same traps that put him in the position that he was in previously.

You know, the mix and tape and everything that came with that happened a while ago. Everybody in Oklahoma says he was a great guy afterwards. The only thing that gives me pause about that is how long it took for Oklahoma to actually release that and bring it to the forefront. You know, I think they danced around it quite a bit when it actually happened. And then, you know, it took so long for it to come out that they really hurt him in the long run. If they had just put that out back in when it happened, this wouldn't have necessarily been forgotten. But it would have been a situation that had had time to smooth itself out a little bit more. People could have taken heed. And for me, I had heard about it in

the past, but I didn't know anything about it. I heard he punched a woman. I take that back. I didn't hear that. I heard that if you saw the tape, you'd be disgusted because other people in the media had seen the tape and they were talking about it. And then you don't hear about it until the tape comes out. When the tape gets released, boom, explosion. I was one of them too. I put my two cents in on Twitter, in articles, everything about it. And it didn't make a difference to me because that's the kind of person that I saw on that videotape. And if they would have gotten this released, if Oklahoma would have released it, or the police, or maybe that was the issue that the police had custody of it

one way or another if oklahoma would have gotten more out in front of it and described how bad it was then maybe this would have smoothed itself out just a little bit before he had an opportunity to go to the nfl you know and then people could have uh accepted the transition from where he was to where he is now. Maybe not, maybe so, I don't know. But I think that when you're not a Chiefs fan, I mean, you guys may have heard stories about Tyreek Hill last year pre-draft process. I don't know if I did. I can't say that I did or not. He didn't get drafted by the Colts, so I couldn't even tell you necessarily that he did or not. I'm sure there was some conversation after he was drafted, the way they talked about him on NFL Network or whatever during the draft process. That's possible. I can't say that I

recall, though. If they had gotten out in front of this, I think that this, and maybe even if he had gotten out in front of this and did some public appearances or something like that. Maybe this could have helped him out if he's actually changed his outlook on life. But this is a situation where you see what happened and it's hard to say that that kind of person changes that much. I mean, that's very up close, personal, and very in the public and very I I don't care about what anybody sees that I do, because I feel like I'm above that. And I think that's hard to change in a personality. I think that a lot of people, like I said before in podcasts weeks ago, I think that people like that are, uh, they have a hard time changing themselves and maybe, maybe, maybe he's good for

it. Maybe he's not,'s not but uh i'll move on uh spent too much time on that already but i think that's what they were getting to more or less is the mix and issue and he he like i said he explained that it was kids uh they're they're very young and they have you know issues sometimes and how they come out of those issues is basically how they're going to uh approach that player, whether to bring him in or at least look at him or not. And I'll just add a little bit to the way that Ballard thinks that the relationship between himself and the coaches are going a little bit further. He mentions that, you know, coaches will come to him and tell him, this is what I'm looking for. And this guy, or like he said, these are the parameters for this position in order to

play this or that. That appears to be a working relationship in the regard that he's willing to listen to what they want in a player and work to get this. And basically, you know, you can't watch enough tape. More tape, more tape, more tape. We all know this. This is why everybody you listen to on draft podcasts or you read their work is because they buckle their butts down into a ton of tape. That's how you learn.

I mean, it's very simple. It's not rocket science. You watch it several times, and you see what you learn. I mean, it's very simple. It's not rocket science. You watch it several times and you see what you get. And basically, he says, I'll take into account what any coach is talking to me about. They'll tell me what they see. And then we'll watch the tape together. And then we'll go back and forth, basically. And I'll tell them what I see. They'll tell them what they see, and then we'll talk about the position itself, and so on and so forth. So, I mean, it's not like that's some breaking news way to run an organization. However, there does seem to be, it does seem to bring a calmness, or at least a smoother process within how everything is going to work with Ballard. Now, Ballard may like, may dislike certain coaches, certain scouts as far as their abilities at some point, but right now he seems very happy with what's in place right now. He seems to be getting along with everybody and seems to enjoy the

working relationship that he has with each of his employees. So it's really good that you see that. And it's really interesting to understand what he sees as a guy who was brought in in the situation he was. He wasn't a guy who brought in his own coach and scouts and everything else. Remember this. He was a guy who was brought in as the GM with an existing coaching staff and existing scouting staff. So this is something that isn't totally unheard of necessarily, but it's something that you understand that these guys have to work together after not knowing each other. I mean, I'm sure there's some relationships somewhere in there, but these guys basically have to start from scratch into how they speak to each other and

how they address certain needs and specifics and aspects of games and players and so on and so forth. So it's really quite fascinating, actually, that he seems totally comfortable with the transition, which seems like it would be a little bit difficult if you ask me. I mean, if you come in, it's almost like coming into a brand new job as the foreman or something like that, not knowing the strengths or weaknesses of any of the guys that work for you, and then you have to tell everybody what to do. But then again, you're going to need a right hand or two to help you out with who does this well, who does that well,

and so on and so forth. That's how he's working his coaching staff and his scouting staff right now. It's a work in progress that he's got to find the strengths and weaknesses of the people that currently work for him. And that is something that will happen going forward. And also, he talked about how they scout their talent and guys that they'll bring in and how there's always going to be competition for each position on that field. I think that's all. I mean, again, this isn't a brand new way to run a team, but it's it maybe he just conveys it a little bit better or a little more interestingly or

something like that. I don't really know. But you could see and hear and read everybody talk about how fascinating he was. He just has a presence behind that microphone and in person that just seems just above reproach. I don't know if that's accurate or not, if others feel the same way or not, but he is a guy that just people are swooning over right now, and everybody ultimately feels that the Colts are extremely lucky to have him in the building. But the way that battling for

position depth chart to be on the 53-man roster, the 63, you know, with the practice squad and everything, basically always talking about wanting to upgrade talent. And that is something that the Colts are going to have to do. And it will be a process. This is a fantastic draft. I think that Colts fans are going to be extremely happy with how the draft comes out. I think that we all need to sit back in our easy chairs and relax regardless. I mean even if a situation arises where we see a draft in the first round that we don't understand. We have to understand that this is a guy that has been given basically the plaque already saying he's already better than Grigson or he's already a guy who can come in and rework an organization and a roster and has that kind of clout in the league. So we have to sit back and chill. I mean, we gave Grigson how many chances?

We thought 2012 was the best thing since sliced bread, right? With that kind of a draft. And then after that, it went all downhill from there. I mean, with guys being retained on the roster, it was not good, you know, the way that he would. But in, and I had actually heard maybe a few weeks ago that one of the things that was the biggest issue when Pep Hamilton was in the building was Grigson would come in and basically say, hey, look, we need to run the ball this many times on like a Monday or Tuesday, you know, and they haven't even drawn up their game plan yet for the week ahead. And that was one of the things that basically just rubbed everybody the wrong way that he thought he could of the things that basically just rubbed everybody the

wrong way, that he thought he could come in and talk game plan with everybody as the GM. And I had that on pretty good authority there that that was the way it was. And more or less, that wasn't spoken about until Pep left. But Ballard presents no strings in that regard that he says that I am flat I'm not a coach I'm not gonna coach I'm a GM and I don't expect anybody else to try to GM either however he does say in the draft process and so on he's going to take all the coaches and scouts thoughts into regard and everything else so I think that that's just he understands his role, that he is the man, but he also understands that he's not a coach. And that's something that is going to be different from all accounts to the previous GM to the way that that was run. So that's a good thing.

Everybody needs to know that they, you know, that's why everybody delegates the way they do. GM delegates a coaching position to coaches. Pagano probably needs to get a little better at that as far as we've grown to understand as well. Let the defensive coordinator, defensive coordinate. Let everybody do their job. And you know you are the coach. I understand that. But you also hired these guys for a reason. If they can't do the job, get in somebody in there who can and delegate it still. There's nothing that says he can't fire anybody on the spot and hire a new coordinator or position coach or ball boy for that matter. That's just the way it works.

So as long as that trickles downhill, I think that'll make the organization much smoother, will make everybody feel that they have their own piece and their own spot on the team, whether they're a player or a coach or a scout or otherwise. And that will make the organization stronger. Believe that. Because when people know that they know their job and they're expected to do their job and they do their job, you know, there's repercussions for doing it badly and there's the cheer and everything when you do it correctly. So they all know that there's good and bad that comes with all of it and they'll have to expect it and accept it. Now I'll kind

of just talk about kind of how this week's gone so far the past couple days. Yesterday I was there outside in and out of the convention center, kind of just talking to as many people as I could that I felt had some football knowledge, some team guys, some scouts. And there was a lot of differing opinions on everything. I mean, I would ask them simple questions of, you know, who's the most intriguing guy that, you know, isn't one of the bigger name guys that's getting a ton of pub right now. And, you know, there was a lot of guys that just kind of, you know, shrugged it off and kind of thought this and that. But there was a couple things that I noticed, both about what they wanted to talk about, scouts in particular, and what they didn't want to talk about. Some of them wanted to talk about offense. They wanted to talk about, I think it's

because the defense side of this draft has been so highly talked about and touted throughout that a lot of guys don't want to tip their hand as to who they're looking at. And a couple guys that I've heard of that have been getting some negative feedback or reviews necessarily from the draft community, You can tell that, and they basically, a couple of them said as much, and a couple guys would just smirk or something when you would bring up a negativity on a player. They didn't want to talk about it because you could tell that they didn't feel that way about that player. I would say defensive guys, mostly edge rushers, I think that a lot of people don't want to tip their hand as to what kind of

player they're looking for. Some guys need a Sam. Some guys need that pure edge rusher, like the Colts actually do. But the Colts could also benefit from a Sam type player, like a Walden guy, if they don't re-sign him. But offensive line, I could not believe how many scouts in particular were talking about the offensive line class in this. It has been one of the classes, and you guys have heard through several of the draft conversations that I've had with the guests on this show. Several of them talk about top four, everything else falls off a cliff. In fact, John Ledyard, this past show that we just had, that was almost his exact words.

I had heard about a couple different guys that they were really looking at a couple of big guys, another guy who was really athletic. And it was just really interesting. I mean, a couple of the teams that brought that up don't really need offensive line help, I wouldn't say. And so that kind of threw me for a loop a little bit that they would even bring that up when they clearly need to have other needs. And I kind of took notes as to which teams told me what or which team scouts told me what, because it just didn't jive with what their projected team needs are, I guess, when they enter this draft and free agency period.

And so it was really interesting. It's a lot of fun conversations. A lot of guys just like I said, a lot of guys just want to talk shop and talk football. You know, when you go and you can sit down and have lunch with a couple of these guys and just talk just anything about football, they'd rather do that than talk about specifics. Obviously, they're not going to tell you who they're looking at or anything specifically, but they will give you some subtle hints, probably not intentionally. And that was a good time. I enjoy doing that, and that's what I'll be doing the rest of the week in Indianapolis.

I'll be down there tomorrow and probably try to get a podcast up while I'm down there. I will be down there Friday and Saturday. I'll watch as much as I can of the combine itself. But honestly, the real conversations, the real enjoyment of being down at the combine is, you know, watching the combine on TV in a bar or a restaurant or a hotel and getting into football conversations with the guys that are around there as well. That is where the fun is and where the interesting conversations come from. So I will be down there the rest of the weekend. I will not be down there Sunday. I will be home for that. But I look forward to trying to give you guys any little tidbits of information.

It's not a news-breaking type thing, but it is interesting to talk about and see and hear the way that conversations are filtering down there. And there is a lot of talk, whether it's just a couple guys from different websites or network guys, kind of who they see. I did get an opportunity to talk to Daniel Jeremiah for a few minutes while I was down there and just kind of pick his brain for a little bit. He's a very nice guy, very interesting as well. So that kind of stuff is where the fun is at. That kind of stuff is where it gets interesting. And you can spend all day down there. I think I probably spent about six and a half hours walking around throughout the majority of the time and talking to different people from around the league. It was very interesting, a lot of fun.

And I'd much rather be doing that than tweeting out people's heights and weights. Those are for the Draft Nick community specifically. Those guys do a great job, and that's what they do. And also at FanRag Sports, you guys can check that stuff out with Kyle and Joe Marino, Kyle Krabs and Joe Marino. And those guys are keeping a spreadsheet there of everything, height, weight, shuttle times, 40-yard dash, bench reps, everything that's going on at the combine. You guys can check Kyle Krabs and Joe Marino's articles there that they are keeping an updated

spreadsheet on that the entire length of the combine. So make sure you guys are going to that. And other than that, I will do my best to get back in with you guys. I'll try to get some recorded conversations while I'm down and around. A lot of these guys don't want to be recorded, but if I can get a few of them to give me about five minutes of their time or something like that for a setup for a recorded interview or something like that, then I certainly will. Otherwise, I'll try to get some other guys from around the league that cover the teams or cover just the NFL in general and try to get those guys to sit down for a little bit. I I know there's plenty of them down there and I'm sure that there will be plenty that are willing. So it'd be interesting to talk to you guys next couple of days. I should

have a podcast up tomorrow at some point in time, possibly on Sunday. It just kind of depends on the total amount of content and that I can give to you guys other than just casual conversation. Other than that, I will talk to you guys later. Thank you for joining me. Make sure that you guys are subscribing to the show. Thank you for the reviews and the ratings on iTunes. You guys have been fantastic. Please share the show. And also, anybody out there, if you want to advertise on the show, this is a great opportunity to do it. Thousands of listeners every week. And we've also had great responses for those who have advertised on the show. So thank you guys again, every day, all day. I appreciate you.

I'll talk to you all later, right here on Locked on Colts. You are Locked on Colts, your daily podcast on the Indianapolis Colts, part of the Locked on Podcast Network, Your team, every day.