What Colts fans are saying before and after the game

[Psycho_X]

....interesting.... I was thinking the same thing about the 49ers last year.

Yeah I don't take anything for granted as a fan of this team lol. I really have no idea what to expect this week since half of our starters basically didn't play at all in the preseason. And the Rams have burned me way too much in the past when we go into a game with a star player injured assuming we would roll over the other team only to have said backup make a career game out of us. But I'm cautiously optimistic about our chances. I'm worried the starters haven't played together enough and it's going to be very sloppy. Making it one of those "whoever turns the ball over less" wins the game scenarios.

Fingers are crossed.

 

[bluecoconuts]

Man, even in our darkest days you saw more optimism week to week than you see from most of those Colts fans...

 

[Snaz]

Are the Rams Playing to Win or Playing not to Lose?

I'm still Shell Shocked from Fisher that we always lose winnable games and win a few we weren't supposed to be in. It's hard to shake that off.

We need to remember this is not the same culture or attitude we saw before.

So let's be optimistic and realistic... the Rams should win this game, and they will for once!!!

 

[FaulkSF]

Colts fans are pretty awesome. Very realistic about their team. My best friend is a Colts fan and is confident the Rams will win by double digits. He's even watched the Rams at times the past few years..

I want to be that confident...but I have yet to see anyone realistically pick the Colts to win, and under Fisher that was usually the kiss of death. Obviously Fisher is gone, but I have trauma from losing all the games we should have won over the years.

We went to the epic 38-8 game in 2013. Sitting behind us was the most annoying opposing fan I have ever seen at a football game (Rams fans like us, but very loud and obnoxious). Colts fans took it as good fun and, because of the crazy comebacks the Colts had under Luck, stayed pretty involved in the game into the 4th quarter.

I was at that game too. We had seats in the endzone 22 rows up opposite the open air window side getting some glare (only thing I disliked about Lucas).

We had an annoying fan talking shit in the first quarter and got a pic of him and his buddies leaving at the end of the 3rd.

Where were your seats?

 

[dieterbrock]

I WANT those 24 ppg. We NEED those 24 ppg.
View attachment 21345

Hold on a second here, did you order the code red??

 

[A55VA6]

Colts - 3

Rams - More than 3

That made me laugh.

 

[bnw]

Are the Rams Playing to Win or Playing not to Lose?

I'm still Shell Shocked from Fisher that we always lose winnable games and win a few we weren't supposed to be in. It's hard to shake that off.

We need to remember this is not the same culture or attitude we saw before.

So let's be optimistic and realistic... the Rams should win this game, and they will for once!!!

Good point about the recent Rams "culture". Are you posting from the Snaz Bunker? Stay safe!

 

[Prime Time]

https://www.stampedeblue.com/2017/9...ense-reach-the-next-level-under-wade-phillips

2017 Colts Opponent Scouting Report: Will the Rams Defense Reach the Next Level Under Wade Phillips?
by Chris Shepherd

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Defense
Relative to the offense, one thing remains consistent on the defensive side of the football: turnover was vast in LA this off-season. In 2017, the Rams will welcome Wade Phillips as their defensive coordinator. If you want a good schooling on Wade’s scheme all you need to do is Google “Wade Phillips scheme” and you’re instantly hit with about 350K returns for what is referred to as the “Phillips 3-4”.

I know this, because I’ve done it. In my research I read a lot of articles (not all 350k) that breakdown the defense and how it separates itself from others that look like it on the surface. Of everything I read the most thorough comes from our friends over at Turf Show Times. You should do yourself a favor and read all of this piece by Eric Nagel.

[Speaking of a typical 3-4] In a 3-4, the single defensive tackle lines up directly over the center (0 technique, otherwise referred to as a nose tackle) and the ends are a 5 technique (give or take). All three lineman are responsible for two gaps (as opposed to one in a 4-3)...

...both inside linebackers typically have a two-gap responsibility (they defend the bubbles in between the defensive end and nose tackle). The outside linebackers only have one gap - the C-gap - on the outside of the offensive tackle.

The Wade Phillips 3-4 1 Gap

What? I thought you said everyone (except the OLBs) have a two-gap responsibility in a 3-4? Not so fast. Phillips isn’t so cut and dry, because not all players can handle that level of responsibility.

The idea of the Phillips 3-4 isn’t that everyone always has a 1 gap responsibility, sometimes there will be players that are 2 gapping, but the fact that a 3-4 has its down linemen playing a fast 1 gap scheme at all is unusual, and Phillips has had a lot of success with it.

If you’re struggling with the idea of a 1 gap system and a 2 gap system this should help.

What’s the big deal? Well it allows the line to fire off the ball and not have to read or react to anything. They’re playing their gap and getting penetration. Remember when the Colts had Freeney and Mathis at their peak and a bunch of small quick DT’s, they were playing 1 gap. Today, they play 2 gap.

None of this matters if their players suck. And unfortunately for the Colts, despite only winning 4 games last season, the Rams defensive line is really strong.

Defensive line
Last year the Atlanta Falcons offense was really good — both in the air and on the ground. For the season they averaged 120.5 rushing yards per game and 4.5 yards per carry. Both ranked in the top 5 in the league.

So when the LA Rams (4-12 finish) played the eventual Super Bowl loser you would expect they would have run all over them. Instead, the Rams held them to 66 yards on 25 carries for an average of 2.64 yards per carry.

• Mostly because of things like this:

The line fills every gap and isn’t pushed back at all. As a result, Freeman had nowhere to go, tried to cut back, and got dropped for no gain.

• Same Story:

Last year, this group was really good, and it’s generally accepted that they have one of the most talented defensive lines in all of football. Here’s the catch; two of their three projected starters will miss our Week 1 match up.

On the first day of padded practice veteran Dominique Easley suffered a torn ACL, meanwhile Aaron Donald has yet to report to the team and is working out on his own. The dispute is over the fact that the two time all-pro DT is set to make $1.6 million this season while playing on his rookie contract, which is an insane bargain for the Rams.

Donald is asking for an extension for substantially more money and I can understand his holdout — I also understand why the Rams wouldn’t want to set that precedent.

Ultimately it means the Colts aren’t going to be competing against the best the Rams defense has to offer.

Linebackers
There’s a chance you’ve heard about the LA Rams starting linebackers. If you haven’t, they sport two converted Safeties as their ILB’s and are starting Robert Quinn at one OLB spot. ILB Alec Ogletree was named second team All-Pro last year and Marc Barron just moved full time to LB this year form an athletic duo. In case you forgot about Quinn he finished with 19 sacks in 2013 and has battled injury for the past two seasons.

• Reminder:

• Same guy:

Hopefully for the Colts, Robert Quinn doesn’t rediscover his old form until week 2.

Secondary

• Corner

The Rams CB1 is named Trumaine Johnson. By all accounts he’s good. How good? He’s good enough that the Rams made him the highest paid corner in the league this year by using the franchise tag on him for the second year in a row.

So they have one spot filled, but who lines up on the other side of their press man defense? All indications point to Kayvon Webster a 5th year pro who came to LA from Denver following Wade Phillips to his new home.

I haven’t been able to find a lot of information on Webster but I’ve seen a lot of “if’s” surrounding him — including “if he can”, “if they do” — which likely means he will be targeted early and often.

• Safety

What about those Rams safeties? For a team that sports two converted safeties to play linebacker, it’s more than a little ironic they have a converted linebacker playing strong safety. Maurice Alexander is what happens when you draft a “project player” and he develops as planned. PFF listed him as the most improved safety from 2015 to 2016.

It’s PFF I know, no one cares. For the record I don’t like using PFF rankings to empirically state one player is better than another, please note that’s not what I’m doing here. PFF noted a large increase in the quality of his play from one year to the next, which leads me to believe he has actually progressed as a player.

The free safety spot is filled by former nickel cornerback Lamarcus Joyner. He’s expected to drop down to play CB some in addition to his role as the starting FS. I get the feeling he’s the Rams version of Darius Butler, if Darius Butler were five years younger.

• Gamepass doesn’t provide All-22 during preseason, so I’m not sure what happened:

I just hope it happens several more times just like this in week 1.

Final thoughts
Wade Phillips is an excellent defensive coordinator. His scheme is good but more than that he knows how to use his players effectively. The Rams front 7 is chock-full of talented players and their secondary seems unsettled at best.

Despite their talent this is a defense that can be scored on. They have question marks at some positions and they’re playing in a new system, there will be opportunities to put up points if our Colts can execute.

 

[Ants]

I love this guy:
"Colts - 3
Rams - More than 3"

Yeah, that's the one I liked as well. :yess:

Then there was this: "I could write a book on Goff..total bust"
Hmmm...I guess hammer is now a Colt's fan! :rolllaugh:

 

[FrantikRam]

I was at that game too. We had seats in the endzone 22 rows up opposite the open air window side getting some glare (only thing I disliked about Lucas).

We had an annoying fan talking crap in the first quarter and got a pic of him and his buddies leaving at the end of the 3rd.

Where were your seats?

Right across from you. I don't remember how many rows up, but we may have been literally right across the stadium lol.

So I did not have to deal with the glare, which was nice.

 

[Soul Surfer]

At the least the Colts are consistent at talented QBs in their roster since 1998.

Thanks to them throwing games in the suck for Luck season.

I still have a problem with that.

 

[Loyal]

Hold on a second here, did you order the code red??

Yur goddamm right I did!
~Genralisimo Mojo Reisen

 

[CGI_Ram]

I'm not completely sure how good this Rams team is... but I feel confident saying the Colts are likely not a good team. Luck playing or not.

I mean, look at their roster. It's not exactly loaded.

http://www.colts.com/team/depth-chart.html

That said, I tend to like the Colts as an AFC team to root for. For the Colts fans sake I hope I am wrong about them... at least after this week.

 

[LesBaker]

with some quotes from QBKlass over at Turf Show Times.

QBKlass is horrible........unless he has totally changed from the last thing he wrote.

I don't usually throw this kind of talk out there during game week, but i gotta say...the Rams REALLY cannot afford to go out and lose to Indianapolis this week. The list of reasons why is a mile long. I'll spare you all that list.

I agree this feels like a "must win" game.

Thanks to them throwing games in the suck for Luck season.

I still have a problem with that.

It was the most blatant throwing of a season I have seen, even worse than the Cavs doing it to get a chance to draft LeBron.

And that action from the Cavs was bad, REALLY bad.

 

[snackdaddy]

Offensive Line
The most glaring wart on Los Angeles’s collective run blocking effort is their inability to generate push. Left tackle Greg Robinson, left guard Rodger Saffold and right tackle Rob Havenstein have random (read: rare) moments of nastiness where they clear a path, but nobody on the offensive line can be counted on to consistently win the physical battle. Even when the Rams try to assert themselves with clear double teams, the line can’t move anybody off the ball.

The writer's analysis of Goff is fair. He played poorly as a rookie and we won't know more until after this game. But he failed to mention the upgrades at LT and center. Robinson is gone and Saffold was actually the best lineman last year.

All in all I can't blame anyone for doubting Goff. For us, we see the improvement because we follow the practices and watched preseason games. For others, all they know is how he played in the few games he did play in. I believe Goff will quiet the critics. We just have to be patient and wait for it to happen.

 

[Prime Time]

5 Colts Players to Watch When the Indianapolis Colts Visit the LA Rams
Here’s a look at players to watch for week one against the Los Angeles Rams
by Chris Blystone

John Simon
If anyone has been living the Colts mantra of creating turnovers it is John Simon. He grabbed an opportunistic interception in week one of the preseason against the Lions. In week two against the Cowboys, he got a hand in and got the ball loose from Darren McFadden before Matthias Farley popped him and forced the fumble. In week three he had a sack fumble against Ben Roethlisberger.

This is exactly the kind of consistent turnover production the Colts will need in the absence of Andrew Luck. Given the talent on the offensive side of the ball, the Rams are not a team that should be difficult to beat, but if Scott Tolzien cannot run the offense it will be critical that the defense create some opportunities. Look no further than John Simon as the likely candidate to do that, since he has been in on at least one turnover in each game he has played.

T.Y. Hilton
We have said surprisingly little this offseason about the guy who led the NFL in receiving yards just last year. That will change come week one. T.Y. Hilton shows up when needed and he will be needed on Sunday. While the Rams have a very good defense, Hilton was nearly uncoverable for much of last season.

He and Scott Tolzien don’t have the same kind of chemistry that he and Luck do, but you can expect that the game plan will call for Hilton to stretch the field so that the running game can make an impact.

Frank Gore
Speaking of the running game, did anyone else notice that Frank Gore was looking pretty sprightly in his snaps against Pittsburgh? He may not be able to carry that kind of speed and burst deep into the season at his age, but he doesn’t have to in order to do some damage against this Rams team.

The battle on the ground will be critical to keeping the pressure off Scott Tolzien, and Gore has made a living running the ball down the Rams throat. If Aaron Donald is still holding out, look for the Colts to have much greater success on the ground. If Gore can get the ball moving on the ground it will open up the playbook for the play action and let guys like Hilton and Moncrief do their thing.

Additionally, it will be interesting in a game where the Colts will really depend on the run, to see just how much they use Gore. I am inclined to think on the year he sees a big drop in his carries, so this game could be revealing.

Quincy Wilson
Ballard said about Quincy Wilson and Malik Hooker that they would “get a little trial by fire” due to some of the injuries to the secondary. That means that whether or not they both start, they’ll likely see significant time in this game. Wilson will have big shoes to fill with Davis out, but he couldn’t draw a better matchup to start with.

Jared Goff has not looked like an NFL caliber player so far, but he was being coached by Jeff Fisher, so we can’t take that completely at face value. With Sean McVay, he might see improvement. Still, in the NFL a rookie corner can’t do much better than facing a young and unproven passer.

Wilson is an opportunistic guy and a risk taker. He likes playing tough press coverage but has struggled with locating the ball tracking guys on deep routes. In short, he will make some mistakes. But, he might make some really big plays too.

Against some of the better quarterbacks the Colts will face, Wilson may have some rough stretches. Jared Goff might be just the welcome to the NFL that Quincy Wilson needs.

Anthony Castonzo
Whether or not Aaron Donald is suited up for Sunday’s game, how the Colts offensive line plays will likely determine whether they leave with a win or loss. Anchoring that line is Castonzo, never praised, only reviled when he makes a mistake. That is a tough place to be, and the life of an offensive lineman.

He will be pitted up against the likes of Robert Quinn and expected to keep Scott Tolzien upright. If he does not win that battle the Colts will spend a lot of time punting and a lot of time on defense. This has been the killer for the Colts teams over the past two years.

When your defense spends a ton of time on the field it gives the opportunity for guys like Todd Gurley to break big runs against tired defenses. That makes the offensive line and Castonzo specifically, crucial parts of this game.
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i honestly have doubts
TY will catch a pass before Luck comes back.
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We’re starting a QB that barely throws downfield.
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More importantly....
Did I actually read the word "sprightly" in a football blog?
WTF? Is this a figure skating blog?
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Gore, Mack and Jones
Without Donald we can run on this team, and then play-action over the top for TY. Good and Mehort on the right should generate push if the Depth Chart is for real, and we could see a lot of cut back runs to space or simple off tackle yards for good gain.
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This is a huge scheduling break for the Colts
The Rams stink and it provides us with a great opportunity to win a game while letting our injured players have an extra week or two to recover. Having said that, if we lose this game panic will immediately set in.
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Most important player
Rigoberto Sanchez. If he can put all 14 of his punts Sunday inside the 5 yd line the Colts have a real chance.
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Goff
can he consistently throw the ball to our open DBs
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fun but dangerous game
drink every time a qb throws an incomplete pass. Not for the weak of liver.

 

[OldSchool]

Just when you were starting to feel a little kinship to Colts fans you go and read some truly ignorant comments and realize nah you're good.

 

[Farr Be It]

Most important player
Rigoberto Sanchez. If he can put all 14 of his punts Sunday inside the 5 yd line the Colts have a real chance.

OK bravo, for this one.

 

[Mikey Ram]

That made me laugh.

I got a big kick out of that...One of the best I've seen in a long time...

 

[LumberTubs]

Reading those comments has got me even more excited for Sunday. Cannot wait!