Well, that was embarrassing.
The Washington Freaking Commanders came into town and handed a big fat L to the Indianapolis Colts.
In front of a packed late window crowd on a Sunday afternoon in Indianapolis, on Tarik Glenn Night, with Peyton Manning in the building, in Sam Ehlinger’s first NFL start, against the team that you traded your scapegoat quarterback to in the off-season, versus the wide receiver (Terry McLaurin) that you passed on and should have drafted, and after Jim Irsay’s comments on Dan Snyder, the Colts once again came up short.
The wins this season over the likes of the Kansas City Chiefs and Denver Broncos should not be discounted. Absolutely not. But right now, this instant, this team is a train wreck.
Just about everything about this year feels terrible. Matt Ryan was not good enough. Ehlinger at least gave the Colts a chance to win yesterday.
Once again, the Colts are the best team in the NFL at not being able to get out of their own way.
Nobody loves shotgun inside the 10-yard-line more than Frank Reich. You’re telling me that when you need a literal inch, instead of going I-Form at the goal line, with arguably the best young running back in the league, you go shotgun? And you hand it off to Jonathan Taylor up the middle from that formation? That’s brutal. Absolutely brutal.
Here’s the thing. I don’t want Frank to be fired from a human being perspective. But in any other market, none of this BS from the last year would have flown. Not in New York, not in Chicago, not in Los Angeles, not in Miami. Name me just about any other big market in the country, and if the mistakes that were made in the last calendar year by Chris Ballard and Frank Reich were made there, they would not have a job.
And again, Indianapolis should not be the same as New York. We’re nice people who care about each other.
But figure it out. Because this is getting a hell of a lot worse, and I can’t even imagine the thoughts that Peyton Manning, Marvin Harrison, Bill Polian, and the rest of the Colts Ring of Honor brass had in their minds after watching that monstrosity.
At the very least, you have to make a minor change, Mr. Irsay. Offensive line coach, offensive coordinator, athletic trainer, ball boy, I don’t care. Something about the state of the 2022 Indianapolis Colts must change right now. This team doesn’t have a heartbeat.
