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OPPOSITION TERRITORY: Indianapolis Colts · The Philadelphia Sports Table | Philly Sports News & Views

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Hey there everybody, it's Jeff. We wanted to let you know we recorded
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this Opposition Territory podcast on Monday, March twenty fifth, twenty twenty four,
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so by the time you hear this, some things may have changed here or
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there. Well, we hope you enjoy the show. Wow. All right,
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folks, welcome to Opposition Territory here at the Philadelphia Sports Table podcast show,
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the longest running weekly phillip sports podcast show in the world. Yes,
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close to eleven years strong. Here in April, man, we're gonna be
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celebrating eleven years of doing the PSD podcast show. All right, Well,
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with that being said, we got a great Opposition Territory show coming your way,
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a great discussion about the Indianapolis Colts, a team that, yes,
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I believe is potentially on the rise here in the NFL. This coming season
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is going to be very interesting. They have had an interesting offseason thus far.
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What's happening with this team and organization. We're gonna get right to it,
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and it is great to have back on the podcast to get into this
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Indianapolis Colts team the offseason. It has been an interesting offseason. As I
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mentioned in the intro, we have from Colts Law and also the Believe in
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Colts podcast. We love having them on to talk about this team. Mister
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Lawrence Owen, how you doing, Buddy, Hey, I'm doing great,
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man. Obviously, free agency has got you know, all the fans and
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analysts in a roar right now, Yes, and then the draft coming up.
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But other than that, you know, I think we're all doing We're
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just waiting to see what happens. Absolutely, absolutely, Look, we've been
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talking a lot about free agency recently on this podcast, not just with the
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Eagles, but a lot of different NFL teams here, Lawrence, and you
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know, I gotta say, when it comes to the Indianapolis Colts, taking
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in what has happened, digesting what has happened with this organization and team during
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the offseason, I gotta be honest, like I'm actually gonna give him a
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B minus grade overall for the moves they've made in free agency. Michael Pittman
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Junior. He's coming back, which is huge for this offense. Grover Stewart's
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coming back. That defensive line and important piece of the defensive equation. Taekwon
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Walker. I'm sorry, Taekwon Walker. Dear Lord, Taekwon Lewis. He
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isn't a starter on the defensive line, but he is just He's a key,
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diverse and talented edge rusher. I'm wondering, you know they have a
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solid backup now in Joe Flacco, not that Gardner Minshew wasn't a solid backup,
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but brought Joe Flacco in after a nice season last year. What grade
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do you give the Colts their free agent signings and why? I think you're
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about fair with the B minus somewhere between B minus C plus. I think
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Ballard has done exactly what he has said that he will do from the point
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that he's signed. He says, I will re sign all the guys,
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my hometown guys, my guys that I get if they produce right, And
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that's exactly what he has done. Michael Pittman, Grover Stewart. As you
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said, Taekwon Lewis, Kenny Moore, which you know is a top two
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three you know nickel, some people say he's the best nickel in the NFL.
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They keep resigning these guys. Uh, you know last year Jonathan Taylor
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right that whole debacle. They I remember him one of the highest paid players
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in football right ye at the running back position anyhow, So he is keeping
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to his word. Now, obviously there are some positions on the Colts that
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still need addressed. There was some and still is some key names that I
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feel like could fill those positions. He does focus heavily on his own guys,
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right, and it doesn't seem like he goes out and gets you know,
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those stars that fans want you to go get, you know, outside
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of the organization. And that is why, you know, I think the
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B minus C plus kind of fits fits quite well because there are some glaring
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holes on this team. Otherwise we wouldn't have finished nine and eight, we
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would have won the division. Yeah, yep, yeah, we're just we're
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just waiting to see what he does the rest of this off season. Well,
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yeah, you talk about those holes and mentioned it, I should say,
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Lawrence. And again, it hasn't been a perfect free agency and offseason
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by any stretch of the imagination for this organization. That, like you said,
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team still has some needs here. So I'd like to really kind of
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get into what the Colts are missing here to you know, become you know,
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essentially contenders within this division here. So let's let's kind of parse this
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out rate here from an offensive perspective, what are they missing on offense that
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really needs to be addressed during this offseason here. That's a really good question,
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and it's not necessarily a position to either. It's an explosive go to
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player outside of the running back because obviously Jonathan Taylor is that explosive guy at
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the running back position, but wide receiver tied in somebody that can really take
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the top off a defense, whether it's hitting him deep down the field or
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you know, a short, quick guy who can get some a lot of
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yak yards afterwards. Now, is there a guy on the team that can
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do that and step into that position already? Possibly? We have a rookie
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that we got last year at the slot receiver that does a good job,
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but you know, again, you know, he hasn't shown that he can
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do that on a consistent basis. Alec Pierce on the opposite side of Michael
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Pittman junior that you established he has shown that from time to time, but
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it's not a consistent thing. We need someone who is a true threat,
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someone to get into that position on offense to keep the safeties honest because of
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wise, they're going to play short and focus in on the run game,
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in the short pass game, and that quite frankly, yes, the Colts
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do that well. But you know, if you're able to take the safeties
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back a little bit, that'll make things a whole lot easier. Absolutely,
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absolutely, Well, let's move over to the other side of the ball when
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we're talking about what the Colts may be missing from a defensive perspective too,
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because you know, not a terrible defense by any stretch, but what are
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they missing on defense that you really want to see this team address here?
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And whether it's free agency, the draft, just during the offseason, we
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need another veteran defensive back yep, all right, whether it's cornerback, safety,
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I prefer safety. I would rather have a star safety. A lot
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of people were big onto this whole. I'm sure a lot of your listeners
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were really you know, tuned in or at least knew about the need situation
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right over in Kansas City ended up with the Titans for a specific deal.
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The Colts fans were huge, hugely wanting to get Lugarius Sneed here wearing blue
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and white, but it didn't happen. I think the salary cap had a
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lot to do with that. But The deal is, we're very very young
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in the secondary cornerback and safety and very inexperienced. Last year, we had
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a lot of rookies and second year guys playing the defensive back position. Now
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we do have a veterank anymore. We just spoke about him earlier, but
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I feel like we need another guy there as well, because we gave talking
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about explosive plays on offense, while on defense, we gave up way too
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many explosive plays on defense last year. And again, you know you can't
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have that defensively if you want to win games. So yeah, that's a
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big, big time thing that needs to be addressed. In my opinion,
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I don't think drafting a rookie will settle that this year. Obviously, maybe
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down the road, but not this specific year. So I feel like,
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you know, getting a veteran safety or a veteran corner would help out a
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lot. And I feel like another guy that I think is a little bit
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under the radar position is a premier edge rusher. Now, the Colts were
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top five in sacks last year, broke the record for the Indianapolis Colts' most
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sacks by an Indianapolis Colts defense in a single season last year. But it
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was a team effort, right, it was. It was a group of
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guys. No one on the team had more double digit sacks, nobody and
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to be able to have you know, as many sacks as they had last
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year and no one had ten sacks or more, and you know, that's
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impressive because the depth and quality. But I feel like you need that guy
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off the edge that every team when going in goes all right, we got
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to focus on him, right, because that will open up a lot more
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you know, one on ones for those other really good players and really open
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up the defense and really help the secondary as well. So that's that's something
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I feel like is under the radar that the Colts need to find. And
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it's something that Ballard's had problems with since he's been with this organization. Absolutely,
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I mean talking about you know and kind of going as we're moving along
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here, you talk about that explosive aspect of the offense that isn't there,
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that needs to be there, And I think Anthony Richardson he needs that in
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terms of his development in this league and as the quarterback of the Colts.
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I mean, he's gonna be returning this season and so many of us,
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we can't wait to see really how he's going to perform, because as a
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football fan in general, I can't wait to see Anthony Richardson out on the
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field here. And part of me thinks he may need those weapons that you
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were talking about, you know, he needs that guy to help out and
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make those explosive plays as well, which, who knows, maybe the Colts
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will look to provide him that hope, maybe during the NFL draft. How
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are you looking at Anthony Richardson's upcoming season, Lawrence and the pressure that may
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be on him after sustaining that season ending injury back in October. What does
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the future kind of look like for him here? Well, obviously all around
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the league, fans, analysts and all that content creators we're discussing. You
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know, can he stay healthy for a whole season. I'm not saying he
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can't miss some snaps or even a game or two. You know, that
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just happens. But you got to be able to play the majority of the
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games, right. Can he play at least fourteen games this year? You
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know, that's that's the big thing. Now, That's also something that he
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needs to get out of his head immediately. He can't think about that,
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right, right, that's you kind of end up willing stuff like that to
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happen if you think about it too much. So obviously that's a that's a
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concern. But I feel like he just needs more experience sitting back there.
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The more playtime he has, I think, the better he'll end up being.
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He's this, this roster is built for him and his natural abilities outside
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of his arm strength. His arm strength is ridiculous. He could throw the
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literal videos I've watched him at training camp last year right in front of me
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jumping backwards, jumping backwards and threw the ball eighty yards in the air and
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hit Alet Pears on a din s. I'm like, what you know?
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But really, we got the offensive line, we have the protection, we
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got the running game, we got a plethora of adequate tight ends and guys
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who you know, receivers that have some decent hands. We you know,
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that's built for him. He just needs to utilize that and get comfortable and
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not really worry about getting hurt. But he's still got to learn how to
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get down and not take those risks that, right, I mean, that's
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every quarterback, does I mean? We saw yeah, we saw Jalen Hurts
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doing the same thing. You know, us Eagles fans, we saw a
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different type of Jalen Hurts this year. And yeah, he was kind of
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nursing a little bit of a knee injury. But I think those type of
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quarterbacks that not just use their legs, they try to extend plays. What
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they want to do is inevitably, if it's a third and long, if
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they are able to use their body to get that first down, sustain that
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drive, they are gonna do it. That is the mentality of so many
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quarterbacks in this league, Anthony Richardson as well. And you know what's that
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balance? You know what's that balance, Lawrence. There's no easy answer for
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it, player by player, team by team. You know, we can
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we all talk about that. But I think that's what's really interesting is the
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balance that he is going to need, Anthony Richardson is going to need as
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the upcoming season starts. I think I think we may need to see that
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a little bit more from him. Oh. Absolutely, He's got to have
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situational situational awareness. Yes, right, it's the situation, first second down.
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If the play's not there, don't try to force it, right,
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don't don't try to take off and run through three people in order to get
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the first down. Third down, that situation where if you feel like,
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you know, you might need to to put your body into somebody to get
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that first down. You know, fine, you know that's a situation.
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But first and second down obviously you don't need to. Don't try to run
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over a defensive lineman either, you know. I mean, if it's third
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down and twelve, you know, and there's two guys coming out, it
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doesn't matter, you know, just slide, don't. Don't risk it,
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right, you know so, But definitely, definitely, this is a situation
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where every every team that has, as you said, one of those got
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scrambling type quarterbacks that have the legs and the feet to be able to extend
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place, are always worried, you know, every time they take off when
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they get outside the pocket. But you got to remember they can get hurt
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in the pocket too. I mean, you know, the you got Peyton
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Manning, you know, had his neck injury. That was a pocket thing.
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H Tom Brady right with with his with his injury, that was a
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pocket thing. Yep, All these lots of quarterbacks get hurt inside the pocket.
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As well, so it's not just a scrambling thing. But let's face
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it, once he gets outside the tackles, every fan holds their breath.
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Absolutely. Absolutely, That's a great way to put it, A great way
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to put it. All right. Well, as we're moving along in our
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conversation here, Lawrence, I have a two part question for you here in
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terms of some some legitimate concerns and possibly some some not legitimate concerns for this
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upcoming season here. As you look at the roster, you look at the
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way that things are constructed here with this Indianapolis Colts team, what is the
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biggest concern for Colts fans, for yourself, for people who follow this team,
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what's the biggest concern heading into the sea? And? Oh? Defense?
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Okay, just straight defense, Yeah, just straight up defense. I
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feel like our run defense is fine. I think our run defenses, the
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defensive line and the linebackers, that front seven is incredibly good for the Indianapolis
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Colts, even depth flies. But the secondary when it comes to pass defense,
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yeah, past defense is scary. I think we were thirtieth in the
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NFL last year in total yards given up, and that is not acceptable by
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any means, any means at all. I get, like I said earlier
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that they were all young and inexperienced, and you know, Ballard and Shane
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Steichen, we're all about, you know, taking the lumps, you know,
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to get the experience last year. But we can't. We can't have
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that again this year, not if you expect any kind of postseason run.
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So that is the biggest worry I feel on any any any Colts fan has
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is that that pass defense in general is very very worrisome. Okay, well,
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on the flip side of things there, if you take the coin,
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flip it over, what are you least concerned about as it pertains to the
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cult heading into the season. The ground game, the offensive ground game.
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We have a very very good offensive line. We have a very good running
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back. We got a quarterback that can run. Whether we have Shane Steichen,
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who is an amazing play designer, play callers him. Yeah, I
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hear you absolutely loved. I'm glad he is the head coach of the Indianapolis
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Colts. He's a guy who can draw up a play that looks like the
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same play. Everybody's lined up, all the emotions exactly the same. But
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you can have four different you know, targets or or four different plays out
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of that same exact look. And it's hard to defend something like that.
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So the ground game, whether it's the running back, whether it's the quarter
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back, whether it's a sweep or you know, a tied in pitch or
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whatever, you know, anything of that nature. I feel like the Indianapolis
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Colts ground game, as long as Anthony Richardson is there on the field with
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it will be nearly unstoppable. Awesome. All right again, folks, we're
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talking to Lawrence Owen from the Believe in Colts podcast. You know, we
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love the Believe Network. Good good folks over there. And also he is
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the host of Colts Law as well. You can check out everything he's doing
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on YouTube. Just search Colts Law and you're gonna get some really really cool
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content. Follow him on Twitter slash x at Colts Underscore. Law a great
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great follow for sure. And as we're moving along here with our conversation here
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with Lawrence, the Colts have submitted a rule change. It's gonna be talked
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about and voted on this week of the owners meeting, and they may have
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already done it by now. The hip tackle that already has gone is now
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going into effect. I saw that right before we hit the record button here.
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Not sure about the the rule change here that the Colts have submitted,
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and that is that any team can challenge a penalty that's called within the final
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two minutes of the game. I'm wondering, do you like this potential and
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possible rule change here? Why or why not? What are your thoughts?
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I think there's pluses and minuses to this rule change. Okay, most penalties
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are kind of opinionated, right It really it has to do with the eye
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of the beholder of the referee is looking at it. And that's that's a
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problem. It's a big problem. Yeah, it is, and it's been
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a problem. And yes, that's that's the thing, all right, Like
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every fan has been through games going what why didn't the referee call this?
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Yes? Or why did the referee call this? You know? And why
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is it standing? It's obvious, you know, sitting right there on the
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jumbo tron that you know, blah blah blah whatever. I think it's okay
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to have this as long as it's not the same. See, that's that's
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the problem, right. Do you want the same referee that called that to
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to uh, look over for the challenge point or do you want someone you
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know from the office or something, because it's the last two minutes of the
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game. It's so important, right, So that's the biggest deal right there,
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is whether you want you know, the referee that called it, which
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would be semi biased, I would think right on how he would call that
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that versus you know, having a booth official go over. Well, obviously
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the replay official is you know booth official, the guys that that say,
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hey, you need to look at this again. It's up in the up
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in the booth for replay. So that's I think there's a lot of stuff
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that needs to be ironed out, but there needs to be something done because,
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like I said, you know, it was multiple games that have been
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affected last year, many many games that have been affected in the last two
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minutes, not just Colts games. Yeah, not just Colts games. No,
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I was all these all these teams last year alone, you know,
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and it's been a problem the last few years, and it's just been getting
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worse and worse and worse. Everything from uh obviously you know that was that
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was that really uh necessary to call roughing the passer? You know, stuff
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like that down to is that a catch? Is that pass interference? You
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know, uh, we're offensive pass interference, you know, things of that
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nature. Something needs to be done because it is affecting the outcomes of games
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and it's frustrating the very not just for fans, but for the players as
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well. Yeah. Absolutely, I like where you're coming from with this.
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Again talking about the word balance. There is a balance with this stuff,
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but as the game has changed over the years, league needs to absolutely find
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that balance. So as we're moving along, and the final topic here,
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want to get into the AFC South a little bit with you Lawrence here because
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it's going to be a very interesting division this coming season, especially with the
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Texans I think on the rise CJ. Stroud having a really nice rookie season.
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He's looking to continue his development. What are you concerned about most when
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it comes to the AFC South Division and whether or not the Colts can be
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competitive within the division. What are your thoughts? My biggest worry is it
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seems to me like the other three teams in this division have been trying to
21:37
load up on offensive talent for the most part, right and especially in the
21:44
passing, and that's worrisome because We just talked about so much about how worried
21:51
I am about the past deepense, and I don't want to get in a
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shug. I know a lot of fans love these fifty to fifty games,
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you know where you right, this team just blew up fifty points, and
22:03
this team blew up fifty points. But no one wants to see the Dolphins
22:07
over the Broncos again, right, you know, it's like eighteen or thirteen
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or something. You know, you don't want to see that. That's a
22:14
boring game. So that's that's the biggest worry is they're they're you know,
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the other teams are really loading up on offensive talent right now, and I'm
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worried that the Colts may end up happening to get into shootouts rather than being
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able to, you know, really hold their own defensively and set the tone
22:37
themselves, rather than allowing the other team to set the tone with their offense.
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Yeah, all right, well I think that is fantastic. It's a
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great way to end it. And thank you so much, Lawrence for jumping
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on the PSD podcast show in our Opposition Territory show this week again, folks,
22:53
Colts law search them out on the YouTube out there as well as a
23:00
fum on Twitter, slash x at Colts Underscore law and also the bleeve on
23:06
Colts podcast as well. Lawrence Owen, folks, buddy, take care,
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enjoy this offseason as much as you can. I know you do so much
23:14
work there in the course of the regular season. Come back join us.
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I'd love to talk more NFL, more Colts with you down the road,
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my friend. Absolutely appreciate you having me on. It was a pleasure.
23:23
Look the AFC South, they are going to be a very interesting division for
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sure. And look, there are some folks out there saying that the Houston
23:32
Texans were simply a fluke this past year. I really don't think they were
23:36
a fluke. You take a look at what CJ. Stroud did, what
23:38
he did in the pocket outside the pocket had some pretty good mechanics. His
23:41
pocket management was not all that terrible. Certainly has some things to work on.
23:47
But again, like we were talking about, you know, the Houston
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Texans, they're gonna be a team to be reckoned with this coming season two.
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And I mean it's gonna be fun to watch, for sure. It's
23:56
gonna be fun to watch. So all right, that's gonna do it for
23:59
us here on Opposition Territory. If you are listening on Apple Podcasts, give
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Gotta admit it just haven't been doing as much. There are too many social
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media platforms. Oh my gosh, there's just too many. And I'm extremely
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busy, and the guys are extremely busy. Well I don't know if they're
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as busy as I am, but they're busy as well. So anyway,
24:45
folks, that's gonna do it for Opposition Territory. We've got a great show
24:49
this coming week, our Phillies season preview. My gosh, cannot wait to
24:55
get into this baseball season. It's gonna be so much fun for sure,
24:57
but we're gonna be following what the Phillies are doing the future. Stay tuned
25:02
for that Phillies season preview. All right, everybody, take care, we'll
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catch you next time.