Colts Cover-2 Podcast | Post-draft breakdown of the roster

IndyStar insiders Joel A. Erickson and Nate Atkins break down the Colts’ roster after the draft, handicapping the strengths and weaknesses of each position, then offering a grade on how concerned they are about each spot.

Hello and welcome to the Colts Cover 2 podcast. I am Joel A. Ericson. I am joined as always by Nate Atkins. Uh we have had some time to kind of decompress after the draft. We did the first impressions pod. Uh what we’re going to do here today is we’re going to kind of try to look at the whole roster. Um if we can, we’re going to look at it depth chartwise. Uh, I did this, you know, quickly in print. We’re going to kind of talk through it and get a little bit more into it than I was able to do it in print um the other day. But, uh, just kind of go through the depth chart and see. And what we’re going to do is we’re going to tell you, you know, how concerned we are about this particular position, each particular position group. So, [Music] um I I mean the obvious place to start is quarterback. We’ll start with quarterback. Right now, the room is uh Anthony Richardson, Daniel Jones, Riley Leonard, and I would be remiss if I did not mention Jason Bean uh as as part of the quarterback room. I mean, this this is kind of where the whole this it feels like this is kind of where the whole season hinges is or maybe not the season so much as the future like even beyond this season. Uh it just comes down to to where whether or not Anthony Richardson can take a big step forward. Um there’s there’s obviously I think you know maybe a a at this point less likely because of how much he’s played chance that Daniel Jones is something different in Indianapolis than he was in New York. Um if he is the guy I think that there’s there’s a a path for this team to be like to be decent but not great. Um but but uh Daniel Jones suddenly becoming a different player seven years into his career is is different I think than than the possibility that Anthony Richardson figures it out. So it’s I I don’t know if it’s less likely because both both things are in at least historically speaking are kind of in the not very likely category right now. But I think it’s easier to see how somebody who’s young and in his third season and doesn’t and has basically one full season’s worth of starts uh could suddenly take a giant step forward versus somebody who’s been in the league for six years. Yeah, I just think it’s a difference in terms of the tools that they have to tap into. So they were both top 10 picks at different points time for very different reasons. Daniel Jones went to the Giants because they were looking for a very specific heir to Eli Manning who walked and talked and sounded like Eli and uh could be, you know, safe and all that kind of stuff. And that was Daniel Jones. And he happened to have some tools in his legs. That was kind of his uh that would be his best the best part of his game. But, you know, armwise in aggressiveness throwing down the field, it’s never been there for him and it’s never developed for him either. So, he’s started 69 games in this league. And that’s where it’s most different is that 69 starts for Daniel Jones. You compare that to Anthony has 15. So, that’s a massive difference age- wise. Uh, very different with one of these players who is uh 22. The other player is 27. So, it’s not to say that Daniel Jones can’t be better than he’s been, but to really chase the type of ceiling that matters in the AFC. You have to have certain tools or you have to be of a certain caliber kind of in the moment. So, everybody they’re chasing the AFC is either monster tools like Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson, or Josh Allen, or they came as like a readymade star already like Joe Burrow coming off of the greatest college season we’ve ever seen. So Daniel Jones is trying to fit in as a guy trying to remake his career. And I don’t like ultimately this is not the place where that’s going to work out for a whole lot. I don’t think this is a place where they need Anthony to get going right now. And if Daniel Jones wins the job for week one, it’ll be because Anthony Richson lost it. It will not be because Daniel Jones suddenly reached and found tools that Anthony doesn’t have. Or it could be because of injury, which I think is the I think most realistically encouraging reason to have Daniel Jones here is that you expect to miss Anthony even if he gets a lot more durable because he’s a running quarterback. He’s missed in games to four different injuries in two years. And Daniel Jones can step in and run a similar offense. And as a backup, you could argue he’s one of the best uh backups in all of the game. He’s the second highest paid backup right now behind Kirk Cousins who and we will see if that lasts. So that’s what I think Daniel Jones’s route is. And that kind of makes it so that the the debate or the uh position to figure out hierarchy to figure out in this position is just does Anthony Richen win the job or does he lose it out of camp to Daniel Jones? And that keeps Riley Leonard is the third quarterback and Jason being on the practice squad. I think those parts are very straightforward and honestly it’s all like everything else we will talk about this season comes down to Anthony Richardson and how much he’s able to correct, seize upon, improve upon and if he doesn’t, Daniel Jones is there to step in in a very dire situation. Uh so if we’re rating this on and I believe the the rating system we came up with or was uh how concerned are you about this position zero being completely unconcerned it should be fine versus 10 being oh no something is horribly wrong here. Where do you fall? Um seven or eight. Um it’s it’s a pretty concerning spot. I mean, you one quarterback is coming off a season with where he was the least accurate we’ve seen any quarterback perform in almost 15 years in the NFL. The other quarterback the league has written off as a starter essentially who is, you know, a very good backup, but um he’s started 69 games and won 24 of them and has never thrown for more than uh 6.8 yards per attempt in any of those seasons. And so in the AFC where that position really defines what you are, especially the tools and traits of that position, uh the there’s upside here. It’s it’s an interesting conversation when you talk about concern level because they have more upside than a lot of the quarterback rooms in the AFC, probably half of them, but the concern level is higher. The floor is a lot lower for what uh this room can bring. That’s why Daniel Jones came here to minimize that risk a little bit. So he probably moves it from like an eight to a seven for me. Uh just because it does feel like if Anthony Richton does completely completely bomb or just is hurt all the time, they have a guy who can step in and be something like what Gardenner Mchu was a couple years ago. Um to me when the goal is to move the franchise forward, that’s still a very concerning thing to be left with, especially when it’s it depends if you want to talk about concern this season, concern going forward. Maybe those are two different conversations, but to me, everything about this position is also about going forward. And that’s that’s where the concern level gets really high is I almost think they’re in a weird spot where the more Daniel Jones realistically succeeds, the harder it’s going to be for them to answer that long-term question. And so, I think they’re caught a little bit between the floor Daniel Jones brings and just all the risk that’s going on in their room. So, I guess I’m at a I’ll say a seven. I’m at like an eight and a half. Full bone alarm, huh? I’m at like eight and a half. Well, just because the implications of the implications of if both guys are what they’ve been in the NFL so far is that this franchise at the end of next year is back at square one and don’t really have a quarterback. Now, if if if there’s a giant step forward from Anthony Richardson, if Daniel Jones suddenly becomes a player who can push the ball down the field even a little bit, either one of those things could change that. But right now, all I have to go off of is what we’ve seen so far. And if those guys are the same players again, regardless of how it plays out, you know, whether or not it’s Jones start, whether or not it’s Richardson starting first or Jones starting first or Richardson starting first and Jones getting in because Richardson got hurt, like any any real look at it, if they’re the same players, if they have if they’re if they’re the same players we’ve seen in the NFL so far, uh then next off season, this I mean probably a new uh probably a new set of people is making the decision-m but also you know you’re you’re back at square one and I know some people like the idea of square one but like I from a concern level the worst place you can be in the NFL is not having any solution to quarterback position like even if you have the first even if you have the number one pick in the draft and you don’t have a quarterback wreck, uh, you’re still in a bad spot. And all you have to do is go look at the last 10 or 12 years or whatever it is of number one picks of the position and see how they turned out for those franchises and you’ll understand what I’m saying. Like, if you don’t have one, you’re in a really bad spot. And just based on what we’ve seen of these two guys, if those if they’re the same guys again, this franchise is in a really bad spot. regardless of who’s in charge, regardless of who’s who’s making the decisions, all that stuff, you’re just in a bad spot. Yeah, I completely agree about getting caught in the middle. That’s my con that’s what I’m concerned of. So, I think some other people like the way you look at this type of scale normally, it’s a little different than these other positions where it doesn’t feel like it holds the future of the franchise in balance the same way. Uh, so you maybe want a higher floor, but that’s why I’m a little scared of going to Daniel Jones. I guess the thing I would differ on is if he’s on the field, which of course is a big question, but if DeAnthony Richson’s on the field, I don’t see any way he’s as bad as he was last season, that would be that that would tell me that he just did nothing all off season to improve whatsoever. Uh because I don’t see any way that like the settings are as bad as they were around him. I don’t see any way that the Colts, even though their track record’s not very good, that they screwed up as badly as they did last season when uh they benched him at mid-season and they didn’t have an offense suited to him until the final month of the season and they didn’t have a number two running back and they didn’t have a tight end who could catch anything. Uh like they have Tyler Warren now, they have DJ Giddens now. Uh it’s and I just think they’re going to move this to much more of a run-based offense. That’s what getting Daniel Jones and Riley Leonard was about. so we don’t have to get caught in between and we can fully run this fairly heavy quarterback run setting. And so if you’re if they’re getting Anthony Richson to, you know, run design runs a little bit more, if they’re in a run focused offense overall on the whole with DJ Gins taking some load, even Tyler Warren taking some load, and then when he goes back to throw, to have uh the mismatches that Tyler Warren will create, to have a tight end in the middle of the field who can do anything at all, I think Anthony Richen just needs to make if he’s I don’t know if he’s 5% better than he was last year and you add in their improvement ments around him. I think the output is going to be 25% better than he was last year. Now, is that good enough to keep going forward with? I mean, that’s probably not enough of a jump. He needs a big jump to really save jobs and make you feel like you have the future, but I just don’t think there’s any way the performance is what it was last year. I I think I’m just worn down by the by the by too many years covering NFL. I think I’m I think I think I’m worn down by a whole bunch of uh worn down by a whole bunch of hey, this could work out this way. Hey, this is finally the year that Justin Fields is going to take the big step forward. Hey, this is finally year the Browns are going to figure out Baker Mayfield and then it ends up not going the same way for what whatever the whatever the reason is. So, I’m kind of leaving that stuck in there. I I I will admit I will admit some of the uh some of the the the after effect of all this of all of covering all these Colt seasons where we’re promised something at quarterback and it never turns out has made me more skeptical than I was in the past. You know, um Matt Ryan was supposed to be here for four years. You know, Carson Wentz was supposed to be better under the only person who’d ever worked well with him in the in the NFL. uh Jacobe Brassette was supposed to be better than uh just a backup. like there’s been there’s been a lot of stuff and I think I think that’s the biggest thing is just honestly even last year even last year I was I was I was very encouraged by the first four games of Anthony Richardson’s career and then um for last year to look the way it did even I granted I know coming off the there’s there’s there’s definitely reasons there were reasons for some of the other stuff too and so I think I I think there’s a part of me that’s just kind of uh uh weary of weary weary not weary weary of of um getting hopes too far up. I’ve I’ve been bitten by that in the past. Anyway, let’s move on to running back. running back is a position now that I think um I generally feel pretty good about uh going forward with with Taylor obviously coming off a 1400 yard season. They add Khalil Herbert who I think like I know the Bears cut him last year but this is a guy who’s like you look at the difference between him and Trey Surman. Herbert has been a, you know, an actual piece of someone’s rotation in the past. You know, he’s got a 700 yard season. I I don’t think there’s a ton of upside there. I think he raises the floor and on top of that, instead of being your number two back, he’s your number three because of because of DJ Giddens and the pick they made in the draft. So, um, if if they hadn’t added somebody who had some pass catching to him, uh, concern level might have gone up, but Giddens is a guy who’s who’s been a pass catcher in the past. He and and also doesn’t fumble. Did you notice that in his uh bio? Yeah. Um, even with the hand and wrist injury, which he said basically was like a dislocated finger, I think is the way he described it. Um, he still has only fumbled once in his time at Kansas State, which is pretty impressive. So, uh, there’s a lot of there’s a lot of reasons to like what they have at running back. Yeah, I think it’s uh, you know, it’s getting Taylor back from last year, but having a number two and a number three. And last year, I don’t think they had either one of those. And so I look at DJ Giddens as the number two where he’s able to step right in pretty plugandplay type position at running back and uh also be able to handle some of those third down loads. We’ll see where he is as a pass protector. That’s the one area they’re projecting once he gets over that hand injury. Uh but even if you lose something as a pass protector from Trey Surman, you gain everything else that is in that arsenal. And the two things that the the the one trait that connects these two, Coyle Herbert and DJ Giddens, is that they are much better running with a mobile quarterback on some of those the inside zone type handoffs than the traditional. I saw some advanced numbers I think ESPN put out with DJ Giddon showing that that was a big thing for him as the Kansas State’s moved more and more to that type of system over the past couple years. And then that’s been Cle Herbert’s career so far where he uh you know he when he was with Justin Fields running that type of offense that’s when he had that 700 yard season he averaged 5.7 yards a carry that year. That’s been the wide majority of what he’s done in the NFL and he averaged 4.8 yards a carry uh across his four-year career so far. That’s kind of I don’t know that he offers a lot other than that. So it is it is a limited type of skill set, but that’s still more of a runner than they had not named Jonathan Taylor last year. And I think he’s going to be the number three. So you got DJ Gins at number two. You’ve got Clear Herbert at number three. And those are behind a top five running back who Jonathan Taylor has his deficiencies and and I it does it feels like DJ Giddens addresses a lot of those with you know ball control or ball security uh pass catching and then we will see on the pass pro. Uh but they they they feel good that he’s going to progress there. So, my concern level for this position, honestly, it’s probably like a two. And the two is just kind of natural to the injury rate that happens to big time running backs. And the fact that Jonathan Taylor is going to be on the field more than these other guys, and there’s still moments where he’s going to need to be better as a pass protector, receiving option, guy holding the ball, especially across the goal line. Like there are a few details in Jonathan Taylor’s game that he needs to iron out to be that more of that Saquon Barkley Derrick Henry effect with the mobile quarterback, but on the whole I think this is one of the very strongest positions that they have. Yeah, I two is a good number. I don’t have I I just think they they did a good job upgrading. Um, and you know, it’s also a position that if you have a top three, you can usually find some stuff behind that if you absolutely need to. Like Tyler Goodson’s still on the roster. He’s not great, but he’s also not like I don’t hate him as a fourth running back. Um, if he makes the roster because of his uh abilities on special teams and gives you like just an emergency backup, I don’t hate having a somebody with some experience in that spot. Um, wide receiver, this is another one that I I I think I think the the Colts wide receivers get downgraded a little bit because of the lack of a like Jamar Chase type player. Um, and granted, I mean, I think every team would want to have those, but it’s just it’s a position that’s pretty deep. And they’ve got they’ve got guys who can do a lot of things. Again, this is a team that that had three 800 yard receivers last year. And that’s with Michael Pitman having a down year by his standards. Um, and and kind of struggling through the injury, not playing well with it. Uh, Josh DS being in and out of the lineup with injuries. Um they still ended up with three receivers with 800 yards. There’s there’s maybe if one of them gets hurt, you want like I think obviously you want to see more from AD Mitchell. Um AD Mitchell was not great last year. Uh and and needs to get a lot better. But yeah, I I just this is a position group that they’re all they’re all fairly young. They all their skills all complement each other. I I feel pretty good about the wide receiver position even even absent the lack of, you know, sort of the Jamar Chase game-breaking type player. Yeah, I think my concern level is like a two. It’s similar to running back and a little bit different of a outlook because running back has the top five player and Jonathan Taylor, the superstar upside and the balls in his hands type of player. I don’t think they have that here. I don’t think they have a true number one, but they’ve got to have three players hit 800 yards last year with what this was at quarterback. It’s impressive. And granted, there were no there’s nobody taking any targets at running back or tight end. So, that played a little bit into it, but I think you look at certainly how Josh DS and Alec Pierce played last year and have to be really impressed with the efficiency and Michael Pitman Jr. to put up 800 yards and kind of the worst version of him that we should ever see in terms of physically on the field playing with that back injury where it felt like for at least a month in there uh before the by-week it just felt like he wasn’t uh you he was just kind of struggling to even be on the field but still produced 800 yards. So, uh, so I think the only thing missing is that high-end kind type of take it over guy on a physical level. That’s what they drafted AD Mitchell hoping that there was some possibility of that. again, he he’s that that’s like he he to me is like the bonus of this group because I think he has more to prove than maybe any player that that has been drafted with expectation, including Anthony Richardson or at least close to that in terms of like it’s it’s all theoretical with Amy Mitchell right now, but he’s the number four and even the number five Ashton Doulan. I’ll take that over a lot of other, you know, players in that spot. Then when you add in how these guys block and the way they’re going to play, that’s an important part of this offense and I think he’d feel good about all of them. I AD Mitchell needs to grow there. But like, you know, Doulan’s terrific, Pearson, Pitman are terrific. And I think as a slot receiver, slot only player, Josh DS gets after it pretty well. Um, so the only nitpicks that you could have on this is they they could use a better backup slot receiver, but again, when you can move Michael Pitman Jr. in there. Tyler Warren now helps with that. That’s not a big deal to me. And then so I’m just left with like the they they are like a lot of teams like you said could use a game breaker. They don’t have a game breaker yet. So but they have a really really good group and I think they’re like a two and a concern level. I think some of the I think some of the the the what happens is that people discount like they don’t have someone who can do everything but they discount how good some of their guys are at the thing they do best. Like no one no one in the NFL has had a season like Alec Pierce had last season in like 15 years as a deep threat. Like there’s a lot of guys who have a couple games the way he did, but not a full season where you’re still getting deep even when every defense has to be going into the game going, “Hey, the only way they can beat us in the passing game is we let Pierce get deep.” you know, and and when you have a when you have a healthy Michael Pitman as a possession receiver, you know, it was the year before the year before last year, it was eight catches, 10 catches, eight catches, 10 catches, you know, just these these super high volume games. So, they have guys who are really really good at what they do. They just don’t necessarily have uh somebody who can do all of it in one package. Um, so yeah, I I I’m at like a three or a four. Probably a three, three and a half. Um, I also think I also think that one of the things that that people dis don’t give enough credit to is just some of the inconsistency you see for these guys is related to the quarterback inconsistency. Just is. There’s no way around it. Uh, quarterback or receivers, receivers can only do with what they’re given. Um, and you know, Pierce in particular, but I think all three of those guys, I can see a way that their season looks a lot better last than last year if they just have some more consistency from the quarterback position. So, yeah, I I’m kind of there. Let’s go to tight end. Now, this this one changed maybe more than any other position in uh in one draft pick. Uh, I still think there’s some concern here, but getting Tyler Warren significantly upgrades a position that would have been like a level of concern at what 15 and a half on a 10point scale. Yeah, it would have broken the scale. I mean, it’s impossible to get more concerning than what they had before. And so if they hadn’t addressed it or addressed it in a real, you know, ready to go way, if they’d waited for a developmental guy, it would be so high because of how important that is to two things that have to happen this year, which is the growth of Anthony Richton as a passer in accuracy and making completions and moving the chains and hitting that high gear in the run game. And the tight ends failed them in both areas last year and I think they’re a lot better this year while like you said, not being perfect. So Tyler Warren’s going to step in and be the clear number one go-to guy. He’s going to lead them in receiving, which isn’t all that hard. He’s going to be the one tight end on the field and 11 personnel. Uh they’re going to love to live in that so they can keep Josh DS on the field. So it’s like where they’re not it’s it’s Tyler Warren’s one guy, so it’s not a deep group by any means, but they’re going to intentionally not play deep. They’re gonna play 11 personnel as often as they can except when they get into goal line and uh you know other short yardage situations and that’s when you’ll see Mo All Cox come in and for that specific very specific inline blocking role. I like what Mo brings. The addition Tyler Warren makes them not have to count on him very much at all as a receiver. That is if Tyler Warren plays all the games. And so that’s sort of where you know he is one guy uh and you’d like to see more behind him. I mean, I think Drew Ogalree is gonna block, you know, back up Mo Cox just fine if he ends up sticking around. It’s kind of same skill set. And then we will see if Will Mallerie does anything more this year. He would be more your backup, I guess, to Tyler Warren, but in a completely different way. He’s just a he’s a flex guy who’s gonna catch the ball some. So, I guess concern level I would put it uh I guess I’d put it maybe a five. Uh I think it like a a rookie I think moves him to an average place when he’s as good as he is. Uh if he goes down, Tyler Warren goes down, it’s obviously a very concerning situation. Uh, but I don’t think it’s a situation where like it’s not going to be very easy to just take schematically take Tyler Warren out of everything because a lot of what he’s going to do is through motion. He’s going to play in different alignments. He’s going to get some manufactured touches whether it’s shovel passes, screen passes, occasional wildcat handoffs, and then you’re really teams are going to be worried more about these wide receivers anyway. So, I put a four or five just the fact that they’re putting a lot on one rookie and if he goes down, then it’s a real concerning situation. But, I think for as long as he’s out there uh and the many different ways that he can contribute, I’d be surprised if we don’t see a massive jump and just how we feel about how useful these tight ends are this year compared to when they basically did nothing last year. Yeah. [Music] Um, five is a really good number. I don’t I don’t like the depth. If he gets hurt, if Tyler Warren gets hurt, you know, that’s that’s kind of a spot, but I think five is a good number. just just, you know, what he can be, what he can give you in terms of um in terms of just the versatility and being able to stay on the field. Like I said, most of my concern is what if he gets hurt, then what are they doing? uh offensively offensive line. Um I I think that this might be a position that the Colts are are potentially overrating right now. Um the left side of the line, I like the left side of the line a lot. Bernard Ryman and Quentyn Nelson, but there’s there’s question marks at every other spot. you know, center. We presume with center Bordellini. They’re going to have Danny Pinter compete with him. That either way, that’s still somebody who hasn’t started a full season yet. You know, uh, right guard right now looking like Matt Gonzalez is probably the front runner at that position. He’s he was drafted as a tackle. He’s been mostly a tackle um in his career. And then and then right tackle with Braden Smith when Braden is is healthy and on um he’s still very good. I I think that the concern is you know with a with a lineman that’s getting close to or around what I can’t remember. I think he’s not quite 30 yet. Not quite 30 yet. Yeah. when he’s getting up there in age, you start wonder worrying about injuries, you know, coming up more often. And then, you know, I I think the other piece of it is just a lot of the depth is very young and unproven. Uh Jaylen Travis is a fourth round pick. Um you know, what happens if if Braden Smith goes down? Do you have to kick Gonzalez back out? Who’s who’s the guard then? Um there’s not necessarily a veteran backup that you’re like that guy’s going to take care of all this if it goes bad. I for me this is actually a fairly high concern level at this point like seven and a half just because there’s a there’s a lot of unknown in it right now. Yeah. It’s interesting with this we’re rating the concern level which is a little different than just the strength of the position. And so like there is a chance that this is a very good offensive line. Uh because you know two years ago it was last year up until injury struck it was uh pretty darn good. And so I do trust Tony Spirana Jr. if he has the pieces out there to to put together a pretty good group. Uh but it’s new players and it’s depth concerns. And I mean right now they who is who who’s the backup guard on this team? If they move Matt Gonzalez inside, they might still be Dalton Tucker. Yeah, that’s that’s very concerning when your right guard is a first time guy who has not played right guard at college or pro level in any has not started a game at right guard either college or pro and that’s M Gonzalez. if that’s how that ends up going. Um, right tackle, you know, Braden Smith, like you mentioned, he’s, you know, he’s missed games and last year some of that was, you know, an off the- field situation that he’s mostly taken care of or we hope so, but he’s missed games to injury, too. I mean, he’s played one season of more than 12 games since 2020. So, it does add up there. Uh, and you know, Jaylen Travis, a lot of talent. I think the way that he jumped from the Ivy League to the Big 12 and transition so well makes you feel a little bit better about how he’s going to do that to the NFL level at least to get to like can he be a swing tackle? Can he be a can he can he fill in for a couple games if he needs to? He certainly has the size and the movement profile, but it’s a rookie. It’s a fourth round rookie. Like we we don’t know. They once drafted a fourth round rookie a couple years ago, Blake Freeland, who could not answer that at all. So, we don’t know until we get out there. It’s a hard position to He’s going to be learning the left and the right sides now. So, that gets just to be a little harder to to do right away. Uh, and then, yeah, Tanner Borellini, it’s just such a small sample to judge off last year. I felt like there were parts that were good right when he stepped in early on when Wolf Rise was the right guard. He was really able to just kind of get going in the run game. when he didn’t have Will Fry and Moore was on his plate late in the year, I don’t think he was as solid. And so, you know, a lot of this it’s just like one one it’s a domino effect where one position being off can really hurt the others. So, there’s a world where they’re all playing well. There’s also a world where like all it takes is Mackenz cannot transition to guard. And then your young center’s affected by that. Your right tackle, if it’s a backup having to step in, is affected by that. if Braden Smith is playing through injuries, which he has, it’s affected by that. So, my concern level is I’m going to go as high as an eight on this because it’s a talented group and I think that they can also perform like an eight if we were to talk about overall strength of the group, but there’s just it it just isn’t going to take a lot for this group for it to unravel. It’s not a situation where like if they lose one if one of these spots is off that they’re just well four fifths are great. It just offensive lines don’t work that way. We’ve seen it not work that way here. It’s a zonebased scheme where they’ve got to work together. And just for whatever reason since I’ve gotten here, it just feels like their offensive line goes with the right guard. And when it’s been good, when it’s been Wolf Rise at his high levels, that’s been a lot of fun. Or that tandem in 2021 with Chris Reed, Mark Lewinsky was pretty good. when it hasn’t worked, when they forced Danny Pincher there, when they had Daltton Tucker in there, it feels like a completely different unit. And that’s just going to be obviously it’s it’s another group like tight end that’s so connected to what they’re going to do in the pass game and the run game. Like if there’s a way for this outside of quarterback, if there’s a way for this season to go offkilter on offense, I think this is the area. Yeah, I’m I’m with you on that. Moving to the defensive side of the ball. I’m going to break up the defensive line, defensive end, and defensive tackle. Defensive end is a position to me where they have a lot of guys and they need one of them to play at a much better level than they’ve played before. And I think we all know who that player probably is. Uh but he hasn’t done it yet in the NFL. He had four sacks as a rookie. Latu Latu is was the guy who was drafted to be, you know, the real difference maker at this position. Quiddyp Pay, I think at this point in his career, we know what he is. Uh he’s he’s a very solid starter. He’s not a force player in terms of he doesn’t force the offense to account for in the same way. He’s more of a run stopper, hustle guy. Uh Samson ECOM and Taekquban Lewis, frankly, both of them have injury concerns. Uh and then JT Tui Mulawa is a rookie. So like I like the depth here. I like the numbers. I like the fact that they’re covered in terms of um if this guy doesn’t work out, there’s still these other guys that can. I I just think the thing that this that the defensive line the the defensive ends need more than anything is they need someone to step up and be, you know, the game wrecker at that position. And maybe, you know, maybe Lu takes the step in his second year. If he does, my concern level goes down. I just think we’re not there yet. Yeah, it’s an interesting group in that way because I think it’s like it it’s number three and you could even maybe say number four spots. Um I’m going to put I’m going to give that to Taekquin Lewis as far as who I actually trust there. Their three and four spots are better than probably 80% of the teams if not more. Not many of them have, you know, first and second round picks that go, you know, that’s four guys they’ve drafted in the first or second round who are not old uh who can step in and do things. I don’t know that they have a dude though off the edge. We have to see that from Latulatu. He was he just flat out was not that last year. And some of it is the fact that uh a good chunk of it is the fact that he had a bad secondary. And I think he started to press as a guy that had a lot of expectations as a first round pick. could he pay related to that when he was a rookie and they put too much on him to be that guy. So there’s ways that like the infrastructure will bring out more in Lu and then just natural growth. But we are talking about a guy in Lu who the the the case for him coming in the league was not that he had these outrageous uh dimensions and was going to grow into something. It was that he was the readymade guy. And so I don’t know that you can fully bank on all this growth from him. It just he’s got to play better, he’s got to fit better, he’s gota and I think he will, but going from four sacks last year, can he can he become a dude this year? If it’s not him, I don’t know that they’re going to get it because like you said, we we know what Quitty Pay is. He’s a good player. Uh I think he could be a very good number two. He’s really good against the run. He is not a dude in the pass rush. I mean, just he he get he had eight sacks last year, which is good, but he doesn’t consistently affect the quarterback. Uh last year, his hurry rate was what, 5% and the year before was 4%. So, it’s like slightly better, but it’s those are just kind of middle of the road. And then JTO, I really like that pick and I think he’s going to really raise the floor of this group and give them kind of a quitty pay in the future if they move on from quitty pay. He’s really good against the run and there might there might be some ceiling some more ceiling than he gets credit for just the fact that he just played his best in the college football playoff. Six and a half sacks in four games and two of those starts where he gets first round left tackles from this past draft. So if those are some of the guys he’s going to face the NFL and he can do something similar. Uh but he’s not on the same you know his infrastructure in Ohio State I think helped him out a lot. So concern level, I’m not concerned about this group. I wouldn’t say like I I’m concerned in terms of like this is going to be the group that holds them back or we’re talking about like, wow, this is the problem. I don’t know that it’s like a bulletproof. It’s it doesn’t feel like a bulletproof. They’re going to go out and just be great and don’t worry about it the way that I feel like at running back. So I guess with this one, I’d put maybe a maybe a three or a four. Uh maybe I I guess I’ll go with a four where it’s just it’s above average. It’s above average in terms of whether I’m concerned, but there’s there’s pressure on it because you need one of those guys to be a dude if you’re going to be a real defense. Yeah, I think I’ve got him at a five. Just kind of the same reason um doing that. Uh defensive tackle is interesting. It’s interesting in that I don’t have a whole lot of concerns about DeForest Buckner or Grover Stewart. I have some concerns if they don’t uh if they one of them gets hurt though. [Music] I neither of those guys have really shown that they’re they’re like dropping off con like cons considerably at this point. They’re a little bit older. Um they’ve both been remarkably durable throughout their careers. Even though even though uh Buck had the uh high ankle sprain last year that that forced him to go on IR for the first time, you know, there there’s a couple of spots like that where it’s, you know, um Grover Stewart’s biggest absence really is his uh his suspension, which I don’t think you necessarily project that happening again. It’s just if one of those guys gets hurt, um Neville Gallammore is a like they’re really hoping for a projection that they can get more out of him than they’ve gotten out of him than teams have gotten out of him in the past. Tim Smith, I don’t think gives you a ton of upside as as a pass rush type player. Um and we still haven’t seen it from Matt Tomare, so I think this is like a four for me. Um, and almost all of the concern is what happens if one of those two dudes gets hurt. Yeah, I’m gonna go with a three. It’s probably more like a three and a half. I just want to give it in terms of concern level a little less concern than the ends because I already feel like the high-end play the starters is there mostly from DeForest Buckner. The way that he can do it pass rush in, run stopping and just his consistency has been frankly unbelievable. uh you know he finally got hurt and had to go on injured reserve last year after three straight seasons of playing every single game. He takes all the double teams in the world. He gets six and a half sacks rolling him out of bed. Did that last year even though he was hurt and you know these two guys in the run game, it’s just such a strong tandem that’s done it together for so many years and they’ve been very durable within that. Now they’re both Grover’s 31 now and Buckner is Buckner just turned 31. So, you have to make it a little bit more concerned for that. Uh, and it is a position where unlike, you know, unlike some others that we’ve talked about, offensive line, wide receiver, there is a natural rotation to it. And so, that’s where those depth concerns become more is that that hurt them last year. And they rotated too much early in the year uh and realized that Rayquin Davis was not the signing that they thought he was going to be. And eventually they realize that Taven Bryan is not a backup nose tackle, but they don’t have options behind them that you exactly can say, “Oh, they fixed that.” Uh, you know, I think Tim Smith is a high floor type of pick that fits, you know, he’s a he’s a guy who just kind of naturally fits it better than obviously like a Tav Bryan to be a backup nose. I don’t really see it I just don’t really see it as the backup three technique right now. I just thought they could have done a better job with those backup spots. Uh but yeah, I don’t know. And until I see a drop off or or more injury concerns for Buckner or Stewart, I don’t want to get too concerned with it, but there’s at least a little bit because you’re right, if either one goes down, I mean, it’s it changes a lot for this team and it’s just going to be I mean, you could see a world where this if if they lose one of those guys and then they’ve got a position we’ll talk about here in a second, the issues at linebacker, teams might not have to deal with their secondary that much if they just run up the middle. Uh, so yeah, that’s a fair point. I’d probably go three and a half, but just to be different, I’ll I’ll stick with a three. Yeah, let’s get to linebacker because this is going to be a pretty high rating from both of us based on what we know now. The Colts don’t get a linebacker in the draft. I think when we talk through it, um, you know, we we kind of understand how that happened. Like I would say I know Bengals fans are not super happy about getting Demetrius Knight when they got him because he’s he’s old. Um he’s he’s like a 25y old or 26 year old something like that. Um and that was maybe third on everybody’s list. The thing though is and there there really wasn’t much in free agency either because a lot of those guys signed signed elsewhere. Here’s the thing, though. It being understandable that they didn’t get one doesn’t do anything to fix the hole. And so, they’re they’re entirely counting on Jaylen Carl and and maybe like 50% of Hunter Warder, 25% of Hunter Waller. Like if you’re if you’re betting on Shagu Lobi or Cam Mcgrron or somebody like that to take a huge step forward this season, I don’t understand that. So like there’s just there’s a huge hole here in terms of just proven talent. They can be high on Carl all they want. They can play dime as much as they want. You’re really betting that Jaylen Carile is going to become a starting weak side linebacker in his second year. And as you’ve pointed out several times, he’s got injury issues. So there’s there’s a lot of reason to be concerned here. I I think for me, linebacker is like an eight, eight and a half, maybe nine. Like it’s it’s it’s a it’s a it’s a position right now that you look at and it feels like the one that everyone said all offseason, this is the one we need to do something. This is one you need to do something about. Balor generally agreed with us in interviews and then they didn’t have a chance to do anything and now it’s kind of like well we like our guys. I think they need a signing here. I think they’ve got to find something if it’s a late round pick for Germaine Pratt. Whatever it is, they they’ve got to find something that raises the floor on this and gives them a little bit more proven depth um or or proven starting starting caliber spot. And then, you know, if there’s a floor at the starting spot and Carl beats it out and then makes that player a backup, then I feel better, you know. But I I think they’ve got to make an addition here because it just it just feels so um especially with Zer Franklin’s coverage limitations in the middle. Yeah, I’m going to go with a nine here. I think this is a really concerning position for them. Uh yeah, I think I I it is a position where I don’t think it’s been like past years where Chris B was trying to be stubborn with it the way he’s been with offensive line or wide receiver or secondary last year. I do think he agreed that they need to be better there and that was I mean big area where he knew that they struggled last year. It just the way it worked out was although it seemed like a good idea at the time to leave that position for the draft because there were some very good coverage options for as much as they were going to lock in on a tight end in the first round and didn’t want to trade back. They just got caught in the middle where two of the best two of the hubs high-end linebackers went between their two picks, Jad Campbell and uh and Carson Schwesinger. And then like you said, the Bengals right after they took the pulls took JTumo out, they they saw that position thinning out and they reached on uh Demetrius Knight and it just didn’t didn’t come together. But it’s it is a big problem for them because uh it was huge problem last year and although you can say hey I mean it was bad with EJ speed like you know how much are they going to miss him well it’s still a thousand snaps that he played someone’s got to play that and so while yesumo does not use the three linebackers as much there’s not going to really be the same role that’s not what we were talking about with EJ speed there’s still going to be two linebackers on the field a lot so there will be some times where they’re in dime and they have one linebacker. There’s going to be sometimes when they do the barefront and do it that way, you still need that one linebacker and he’s still in dime. He’s going to have to be a coverage guy. And I I would assume if it’s if it’s truly like a third and 15, that’s where it’d be like Jaylen Carile. But they don’t have like one three down linebacker who can just be that one guy and put one around him. Zia Franklin could be very good in the thumping game. He is not a third down player right now. not as a blitzer, not and certainly not as a cover guy. And I just don’t I just think they’re gonna stretch these other two way too far with Jaylen Carly and Hunter Waller to get them to be that when again there’s like you brought up there’s questions about if they can hold up. That’s a hard thing for young players, especially guys transitioning from secondary to linebacker for a thousand snaps is a lot of snaps to play. And again, if you don’t, not only is that position not, you know, a weakness in its own, but the fact that it’s not a strength is going to make make Zer Franklin’s worst parts of his game come out even more. And so, the hope overall is that the linebackers are insulated enough on this defense between, you know, Cam at safety, really good quarterbacks, and you hope defensive line that’s one of the, you know, five to 10 best in football. But, uh, I I wouldn’t I wouldn’t just assume that like the, uh, the scheme and the fact that they don’t play as many linebackers is going to save this weak side spot because last year uh, you look at the league leaders in missed tackles. The top four in the league were Germaine Pratt, EJ Speed, Patrick Queen, and Zire Franklin. So, one of those was the weak side linebacker they just let walk from here. Another one is the strong side linebacker who’s going to play every snap here. And the other one is Luaruma’s weak side linebacker that he wasn’t able to insulate and he led the league in missed tackles last night. Who really who really is their best option if you go look at the free agent market because the Packers just signed Isaiah Simmons. Yeah, that’s the thing is like Jermaine Pratt, they should go after him because he’s probably going to cost nothing. He knows the scheme and he can do enough as a coverage blitz guy, but that’s the hole in his game. He doesn’t tackle well. Zire Franklin did not have a good year tackling either. And so that’s the problem is you’ve got questions in the tackling run defense area and then major major questions in third down. I don’t know who’s going to blitz off this team either. I mean Jaylen Carl is growing as a coverage guy. We don’t haven’t seen any of them offer blitz potential. So they they have to get another player in here just to just to absorb that workload and give you a chance to not throw a guy like Hunter Waller out there for significant workload as a seventh round hybrid player trying to learn two positions. It’s every team has a weakness. This is theirs. It could happen at worse spots than this, but relative to this position, it’s it’s about as concerning as it gets for me. Yeah. Um, let’s move into the secondary cornerback. Uh, for the first time in a long time, this number is pretty low for me. Yeah. Um, they they have a lot of options and a lot of numbers and um now some of those options and numbers are problematic for one reason or the other. Um, but like that, you know, you talk about having a bunch of different guys. This team has a bunch of different guys uh who can who can play corner and do things. You know, you your starters I I really like Jaylen Jones as a number two who’s not going up against number one wide receivers. Uh, I like Kenny Moore when he’s mostly playing nickel and he’s being used as a like the other thing I really I like Kenny Moore better when he’s playing in a defense like this where they’re going to use all of his skill set instead of dabbling in it the way Gus Bradley did. Chvarius Ward they think of as a number one. I think that’s the kind of signing they needed for a while. And then you look at the depth pieces like Sam WAC started eight games for this team last year. He’s probably I think the odd man out right now but he’s on the roster still. And then you’ve got Justin Wall-E who the more I more I’ve learned about that pick, the more I like it. Uh you’ve got Ju Guu Brent, you’ve got Cory Valentine. Like are any of those guys, you know, do you feel great about any of those guys as starters? No. And Brent obviously has significant uh durability issues to answer, but the fact that they’re all backups and they’re not counting on any of them to start and there’s four of them means to me you’ve got a lot of options to find that fourth corner, fifth corner um behind the starters. It’s it’s this is this is like a a three or so for me just because of the sheer amount of players that they have at that position who you can see as a starter who’ve been starters um or were drafted in a position where they could be starters. Yeah, I’m going to go two here because I think not only do they have numbers, they also have some high-end players here. So, more so than I’d say they have at defensive ends. We’ve got Travarius Ward uh has I believe it’s the second most pass breakups in the NFL over the past two years. He was a second team all pro just two years ago. Super Bowl champion. Uh played multiple Super Bowls for multiple teams. All that kind of stuff as your number one corner. Kenny Moore, Pro Bowler in the nickel. I think those two just give you a high-end element to a team that to a group that also has investments. a second round pick and a third round pick at outside corner are right now not going to be starters behind Jaylen Jones who like you said does fit a lot lot lot lot better as that number two and it’s a super durable player too uh has has been so far so I like all of that. I think the only concern for me in in a concern level would be that, you know, Trevarious Ward last year did not have nearly as good of a year as the year before for very understandable reasons with uh, you know, the tragedy with his daughter, a little bit of injuries, but you are banking a little bit on him bouncing back. I mean, from what went on off the field to staying healthy to moving to a new team, he has done that once before. So, that part’s good. Uh, he is still only 28, just about to turn 29 here in a couple weeks. So, there’s just a tiny bit of concern just that maybe he’s not a fully, you know, what they what they dream on, that all pro from a couple years ago. But, I think even if he’s more of a fringe Pro Bowl type player, that’s such an upgrade on what they had and it’s so critical at that premium position. Uh, the only thing I’d and I think the depth across the board is really good because Justin Wallally I think is going to give them a backup nickel at a spot that’s so critical to how Luo plays because he lives in nickel in the red zone and he blitzes that position. I honestly I will only take the opposite approach of you uh for for fun. I I don’t like the Wally pick uh the more that I hear about it because that’s where I think they needed to trade up or back for a linebacker. So all my concern with the linebacker spot is about that’s less to do with him and just that I think where they got caught surprised by the linebacker run and took a guy I don’t know that’ll play a lot but he helps this position out. He lowers the concern here because whether it’s an injury at the outside spot injury at the inside spot I I don’t know what really is going to make this group go haywire on its own. So I I’m probably putting my concern level like a two for this. Yeah. I mean, they could suffer like four injuries and then they’re in a bad spot, but that’s you can’t plan for four injuries. It’s not possible. You can’t have nine corners on the league in on a team who’ve all started. I I don’t think anybody does. I don’t think they have there aren’t any injury concerns among the guys they’re playing. Like, it would be different if Juju Brent if they were counting on him, but he might not even be the third corner at this point. He’s probably not. So, yeah, it’s a good spot to be in. was amazing because a year ago we would have had a very different rating for this group. Yeah. It would have been like 12. Yes. Um safety Cam Binham Nick Cross uh Rodney Thomas and the other 75 to 60% of Hunter Wallard. Does that sound right? Yeah. Uh, I still think the fact you got Bayum and you have a a real honest to goodness uh you really have a real honest to goodness uh free safety there with Nick Cross who’s going to allow Nick Cross to do what he does best and play near the line of scrimmage and be a force player in the run game and and kind of rotate down and do all that stuff. This is still like a a a like a four for me in terms of in terms of concern. if someone gets hurt, you know, can Rodney Thomas be a a suitable backup is is a question because one of the things that’s been true of Thomas in his time in the NFL before so far is that despite the fact that he came from Yale, despite the fact he’s a very smart guy, he’s had some lapses in the past in terms of what he’s supposed to do, where he’s supposed to be. And now the C scheme is getting more complex. Uh I don’t know what to think of Waller. Um it’s fun. It’s fun to think about them using him all over the field. Um I think if he had to play strong safety and he’s playing the way they kind of want to play Nick Cross near the line of scrimmage, I think that’s probably what suits him best anyway. Um, but yeah, there’s my if I put a four on it, it has it it’s entirely to do with where they are in terms of depth and not in terms of the starters. Yeah, I think four is really fair. So, it’s like slightly above average uh security the way that we’re scaling this. Uh, it is interesting balance because I think Cam Bayham solves a lot here because he’s a really good player, but also he hasn’t missed a single game since 2021. Uh he’s just so he’s just so bankable and solid. Uh you know, just everything about kind of his makeup as a teammate, as a leader, and as a player, the the amount of places he can play. I just think he’s going to really raise the whole the whole ship with how he’s able to rotate and play elements of strong safety, free safety, even some spots that look kind of like a nickel. Uh that’s that’s going to really help him out. Uh, and I think they need it because if it wasn’t for that, it’d be it’d be rather high because I think Nick Cross, uh, he took a nice step forward last year, found a nice spot for him at strong safety. Uh, but, you know, there’s there’s times when he gets caught in coverage, and there’s and certainly if they’re relying on him to be that traffic cop, that’s where some of the concerns that have brought him down can come back out. Um, so Cam Bum being so durable helps a lot. Of course, any player can get hurt and they they are in trouble if they have an injury because I don’t even know. I guess Wooler would be the backup strong safety because they really don’t have another one. Uh that’s a little bit concerning to me because we just talked up how much they may need Waller a linebacker to play some snaps. So, like this could change once they sign a linebacker and if they could actually make Waller like a full almost full-time safety, I’d feel a little better about that. But that’s kind of where my concern is is that I don’t know that they have a a backup strong safety or free safety I feel good about. But I do feel good about the starters. Both guys have been very durable, played a ton, been in the action. I think they’re going to fit the defense pretty well. And I think while they’re out there, there’s worlds. I bet we see Hunter Waller as the third safety, kind of like a robber guy at times. Just a just a little bit of a wrinkle that Laro can throw out there. And I like that just from a schematic level. So, I think it’s a pretty good group that just doesn’t have the best depth. We’re going to finish this off now by talking about something people don’t usually think about, but I think is going to be a big deal this year. I have specialists at like an eight. And it’s an it has nothing to do with Luke Roads. And anybody who’s ever listened to this podcast and me specifically on this podcast know it has absolutely nothing to do with the punter who remains a witch. Um, it has everything to do with the fact that their kicking situation consists of a undrafted free agent from Temple and a admittedly promising kicker prospect from in Spencer Schrader who played well last year, but he’s only kicked five field goals in the NFL. So that I I the best way to I think the best thing that can happen to you with outside of the adminitary thing because kickers are so volatile is that you get a young guy and he establishes himself and uh and he ends up being a a long-term like decade plus kicker for you. Until you have that guy though, there’s there’s there’s generally and Colts fans know this because they’ve been going through it for the last five years or whatever, there’s a lot of uncertainty there. And just going into the season knowing that your two kickers are people who don’t really have much of a track record in the NFL or any track record in the NFL. You you so you’re not think about this the way that Chris Ballard did where he said that Spencer Shrader was so overwhelming that they released a Pro Bowl kicker because they knew I not okay because I’m with you. I don’t think that five kicks at the pro level gives a lot of security. So for this I’m going with an eight as well. Uh and it is very almost all about that kicker position though not entirely. I do also wonder about the return game a little bit. So, they gave that role back to Anthony Gold late in the year. They liked some of how he learned just in terms of aggressiveness and decisions. He did seem to be more decisive late in the year, but it’s still a bet on what he’s going to be. I mean, he had 10 10 punt returns for 95 yards. Uh kind of had one one good one against Denver, and that was kind of the only moment uh that we saw last season from the return game. Now, they do have Josh DS to play punt return if something goes wrong and he’s good at that and maybe Bliss is on his plate as a receiver with Tyler Warren. I don’t know. So, it’s not it’s not like a huge concern, but it’s a little there. And then I want to see how the coverage units shake out. That’s been kind of inconsistent under Brian Mason. Some of which has just been unfortunate injuries to Tyler Denbo and Daniel Scott. And now that’s where I think Hunter Waller ideally again though like keep bringing Hunter Waller up as like the depth of these things. He can’t do everything here as a rookie. So, it’s like I would like some of the depth here better if he wasn’t having to do it in three different areas. I think Yeah, he’s they’re setting him up where he’s got to be a really really valuable seventh round. Yeah. I mean, I really like him as a special team type of uh developmental player, but or even year one, but yeah, we’ll see how that works out if he’s having to play. It’s usually just hard for guys to handle a defensive load that’s significant along with special teams just from a kind of mental preparation level. So, there’s a little there, but yeah, it’s the kicker position. It’s the fact that neither guy is remotely proven. And I think they took the opposite approach that of what they said with Matt Gay, which is really they were paying a premium rate and not getting premium production. And now they’re back at the well, we’re not going to spend much and hopefully it’s good enough and we’ll go for it a lot on fourth downs and we kick in a dome and maybe they get by. But definitely you could see where like you could you could see this group costing them a game or two. We’ve this is not that far off of a couple years ago when they went in with I guess the difference is we knew they didn’t believe in Rogo Blankenship and his confidence was already fading. So that’s not the case for Spencer Schrader. It doesn’t take a lot much to get there. We saw Matt Gay get there when he’s had a great track record. So, it’s uh it is a real flip of the coin as to how this is going to go. Yep. Um that’s it. That’s the whole roster. Uh I I think it’s hard to put like this stuff into a full team thing just because the quarterback position plays such an out outstanding um role in it. I almost think that with if you did this with any team that whatever you said for your concern level for the quarterback position, you could just apply that to the whole roster. That’s just the way it works in the NFL. I’m trying to think. I I based on our scale, we said that the the most trustworthy positions were what? Running back, wide receiver, cornerback. Yeah. And then the least were quarterback, offensive line, special teams linebacker. Um, so there’s more concerning positions and certainly if you weight it with how much quarterback matters. There is more risk than there is bulletproof. No doubt about it. But I do think those other positions help them out in that like there are a lot of average level positions that are just going to be fine. And so really it comes down to if the quarterback can play well. Honestly, if the quarterback can play well, we’re not going to care all that much about what’s going on with linebacker, you know, relative to everything else. Like, that’s going to be it’s gonna be the story of everything. And and if the quarterback plays well, they just think their offense usually it’s because their offensive line’s playing well. Their offense has a chance to be really, really strong and especially late in the run game, but it could also it could also fall apart. So, this this team is kind of there’s a lot of there’s a few different ways this could go this year. Uh, so I guess that makes it interesting. Next week is uh the return for the Colts. We didn’t have anything over there this week in terms of availability. Uh, next week is the return for the Colts to uh the the field and us getting to talk to people. Um, and then on the weekend it is rookie mini camp time. Um, do you have any undrafted free agents you are interested in? I have not looked that far into it. So, other than the kicker, I was going to say Maddox Trillo I think is an automatic here. Oh, automatics. Yeah, he he has to be he has to be interesting right away just because five kicks there’s regardless of what Chris Ball says there’s some uncertainty there, you know, and so I I think that that’s definitely a piece of this. Yeah. I mean, it’ll just be interesting to see some of these guys out there on the field up up close and personal. Sometimes sometimes guys pop when you didn’t expect them to and sometimes I remember a couple years ago Josh DS just kind of stepped right out there and we were like okay he’s he’s going to play it’s going to be fine and then he always has been occasionally till you get a guy out there that you’re just like oh he may not be ready like if they don’t look like they can hang in the rookie mini camp they’re probably not going to hang during the season and so there’s always especially if they’re especially as a drafted player Yep. Yep. So, that’s what we’ve got. Uh, one one quick note, one of the reasons I don’t do a whole lot of reporting on the tryyouts, just in case anyone’s ever wondered this, is just that it changes a ton. Um, guys can pick up stuff and get rid of stuff and that that list is kind of always getting moved around. So, I try I don’t usually try to kill myself trying to find out those. the same way we we go after the the guys who actually sign undrafted free agent contracts. But um yeah, that’s just a piece of it. We’ll be back next week at some point, probably before the rookie mini camp just because that’s on the weekend. We won’t have any thoughts on that until later. Uh but for the Colts cover 2 podcast, this has been Nate Atkins and Joel A. Ericson. You guys have a good week. It is May in Indiana and I am told that that is a big thing.