August 6, 2025 • 37 mins
Inside Football with Rick Venturi returns this week as former Colts coach and radio analyst Rick Venturi joins Matt Taylor to discuss the Colts’ progress in training camp Venturi shares what he's looking for in the preseason opener against the Ravens, discusses the team's quarterback plan and highlights the players beginning to separate themselves on the depth chart heading into the regular season.
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Speaker 1 (00:02):
Football is about the Jimmies and Joe's and x's and o's.
Speaker 2 (00:06):
Guys, writing numbers, three jets, Spielberg, I'm one all right,
Nast big Fly, Turbo, Zelda fourteen, Diablo, whim out a bunch, right,
Robert de Niro.
Speaker 3 (00:15):
It's time to get out the chotboard and diagram. Some
plays make sure you get enough dep like twelve yard
fourteen yards break on everything.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
This is Inside Football with former Colts and NFL coach
Rick Venturie. Well, that third week of Colts training camp
is here and we are back at and breaking it
all down on Inside Football with Rick Venturrey. Welcome back
to the podcast, everybody, Thanks for joining in. I'm Matt
Taylor on the road today, coming to you from Baltimore, Maryland.
Speaker 1 (00:43):
This week, the.
Speaker 2 (00:44):
Colts held a joint practice with the Ravens on Tuesday
ahead of their preseason game with the Ravens coming up
tomorrow night.
Speaker 1 (00:51):
Thursday night.
Speaker 2 (00:51):
We're taping this on Wednesday, telling you what's going on
with the Colts here at the present time. And Rick,
I am in the Land of Crabcakes, your old stopping
grand before the Colts moved back in nineteen eighty four,
how are things for you back in the Hoosier State
right now?
Speaker 3 (01:05):
Well, it's kind of a letdown not being there with you.
I didn't know how that was gonna work minute. You know,
it is a little bit of a leadown. And I
find it ironic that our first joint practices is at
Owings Mills, you know where obviously I got my start,
I mean my first two years of professional football right
at Owings Mills. You know what, I had to laugh
(01:28):
to myself. I said, the last time the Colts are
at Owings Mills, they were on the Nave Flowers heading west.
Speaker 2 (01:35):
And it's really cool, and I mean it was, you know,
going along with that, it was surreal yesterday. I mean
the Ravens, like you said, they have their training facility
and the same town where the Colts were before they
moved to Indianapolis. And I was talking with with Colts
COO Pete Ward last night and he said that the
Colts facility was just a handful of miles in a
(01:57):
handful of minutes down the road from where the Ravens
facility it's currently located. And hearing that gave me some
really good historical goosebumps.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
I'm not gonna lie.
Speaker 2 (02:05):
I thought that was pretty cool and certainly yourself and Pete,
you guys live that entire deal.
Speaker 3 (02:10):
Well, there's only three of us really left after you know,
Jim's passing. There's Pete, there's myself, and there's John Scott,
you know, who's still essentially work with the Colts. I mean,
that's it, and you know that we're there that faithful night.
So yeah, it would have meant a lot to me.
I wish, I wish I could have made that one
because that like I said that, that, like you said,
(02:32):
I got a little goosebumps myself.
Speaker 2 (02:33):
Yeah, I mean it was cool to see the horseshoe logo,
the brand, the Colors, you know, in that town. I
talked with Jerry Sandusky there radio play by play guy,
and he said the same thing, first time in forty
one years, the culture back in Owings Mills, and cool
to see the Colts in that setting at least for
an afternoon, right with all the history that that's gone
on between the two franchises and certainly the two you know, and.
Speaker 3 (02:55):
It's you know, it's a good day, you know, as
a real solid day for the Colts. I mean, I
love now that we're really into significant things. I did
think that the night practice last week in Westfield ended
up being one of that. I added that to my
significant six six occasions, right, you know, the three preseason
(03:19):
games and the two joint practices, And I have to
say I have to give Stike and credit on that
when that ended up being a very significant practice that
Thursday night. But you know, I you know, to go
to Baltimore in you know, to work against an elite
team and hold your own here in the first week,
that's really important. I mean, that's I'm being optimistic there. Yeah.
(03:41):
You know, Baltimore is a number one team on offense,
number one team rushing. You know, Lamars has the best
quarterback rating of anybody in the league. You know, they
were number eight on defense, number one in sacks, a
really good secondary. They got three front guys with thirty
three sacks combined. So you know, when you go in
(04:01):
there and you hold your own on opening day, I mean,
that's that's a really good thing, you know, And I've
talked to you off air, you know, one of the
really important things of the first week, and this just
adds a bonus to it. With the first preseason games,
this is this is a bonus because you get a
composite rating here on players. Is that I always felt
(04:22):
like that the one thing you really wanted to come
out of the first week was to find your baselines,
you know, where you know good and bad, you know,
but primarily you know, where do we really have to
fix that? Where you know, where are we? You know,
we had a couple you know, pre snap penalties on offense,
you know, but better to get them, you know, over
with now, you know. But that's jitters and stuff like that,
(04:45):
you know, I mean that kind of stuff. But I
think it's it's really important to find those baselines and
having this pre practice and then the game it's you know,
and we're still at that stage where there's enough juice
to come out and play the game hard.
Speaker 2 (05:00):
So Shane Stike in after practice on Tuesday reveals that
Anthony Richardson will start at quarterback coming up Thursday night.
The plan is for him to play about a quarter
and a half and then Daniel Jones will play the
rest of the half, and then Jones would start the
second preseason game next Saturday against the Packers, with the
quarterbacks flipping that playing time. Same strategy, just different games
(05:23):
if you will. So are you good with that playing?
Speaker 1 (05:25):
Rick?
Speaker 3 (05:25):
Is that?
Speaker 1 (05:26):
Is that enough of a good look for those two
guys at this point?
Speaker 3 (05:29):
Well, I think it's a start, you know. I mean,
I think the only difference I would probably do, I
would probably let Ar take the whole half and then
let you know, and let Jonesy take it the second game,
and strictly because I think once you get into the rhythm,
let him play, and if you get a too good
two minute drill there at the end, you will evaluate
(05:50):
them both. And I like to just let the guy
have the rhythm and let them play it. But I
can understand. I think Shane has really been careful. I mean,
he has been so careful. You know, we've seen it
every day. I mean, he has really made it an
open competition in terms of reps. I mean, there's nobody.
(06:13):
I mean, I'm really kind of amazed at how well
that's gone, you know, and there's really not a lot.
There's not a substantial separation, which is probably a good
thing for Richardson because you know, even yesterday he had
a much higher percentage of completions. You know, maybe not
the big plays, but you know, the thing with Richardson
(06:33):
is completion average. That's what is the area that's got
to go up, and other than the one day last Saturday, Yeah,
you know, he's been much better there. And you know,
if you know, and I've always said, if there's not
a lot of separation, it's like when we were kids
playing baseball, Ty goes to the runner, and in this case,
they're both pretty good runners. But Richardson is a tremendous
(06:55):
explosive runner. So you know, as long as his percentage
is up, you know you're gonna you're gonna give him
a little bit of an edge because of the explosiveness
and explosive plays that he can create, both of his
legs and the deep ball. So you know, yeah, I think,
like I said, I has really done a terrific job
of splitting that down the middle in a very intelligent
(07:16):
but competitive way.
Speaker 1 (07:18):
What about you know, the players around them?
Speaker 2 (07:20):
Though, in these preseason games, does it need to be
apples to apples comparison, I mean to the same skill,
same skill players need to play around both guys so
you get a clear evaluation.
Speaker 3 (07:30):
Yeah, I think, yes, I mean, I think and I
think particularly in the offensive line. Okay, you know, I
think with your skill players. If you know, if if
Goual's playing a snap or Mitchell, the way he's playing
is you know, get snaps. You know, you know, the
tight ends can roll a little bit. I think the
most important thing, as far as apples to apples is
(07:53):
keep that offensive line as intact as you can, because
you know, I think there's a big drop off there,
and you know, I don't. You know, I don't necessarily
I don't necessarily want to see that backup line against
that Raven front.
Speaker 2 (08:08):
I don't know what the Ravens are going to do.
I don't know what the Packers are going to do.
I got a hunch that the Ravens aren't going to
play their front line guys, especially in the fight seven
on defense. So what about I mean, if one goes
up against a starting defense the other one doesn't. What
if one has a two minute drive at the end
of a half the other one doesn't. How do you
how do you evaluate those things? I mean, just thinking
about that makes my head spin.
Speaker 3 (08:28):
Well, you're going to do the best you can, That's
what I said. I would probably give them a full
half this weekend next week and not worry about a
quarter and a half and more than anything else, you know,
you really can't control what the other guy is going
to do. Yeah, and so what you might have to
do is the third preseason game may be a significant
(08:49):
tiebreaker if there are inequities as you're talking about, which
they're very well might be an experienced you know, top
tier team like the Ravens are probably going to play less,
you know in that regard. You know, I don't know
so much about the Packers yet, but you know that
could happen. There's no doubt. I would like each guy
to get a realistic two minute drill that he's already
(09:10):
warm in, not that he not that he's just come
off the bench and he's going to do it. But
you know that's why I like the half ers of
the half. But that's a small deal. But you know,
you still have the third game, and you know, to me,
to me, you know, we've had so much trouble with openers,
I'm not going to hold back on that if there's
any decision to be made or we're just not quite
(09:31):
ready to you know, go to Cincinnati and you don't
play that out too. So you know, we got we
got time. But you know, I don't. I don't know
that there's any answer to that question. And you're you're
certainly right to bring it up, because it can happen,
you know, at the end of the day, at the
end of the day, these guys, you know, these guys
have kind of showed who they are to me, particularly
(09:52):
Daniel Daniels, exactly the guy expected. AR five has improved
definitely a conscious improvement on the intermediate game and decision making.
So you know, if it you know, it may just
play out very close like this. And I said from
day one that because you can't really you can't really
(10:14):
evaluate a quarterback really until after Labor Day in regular
season games.
Speaker 1 (10:19):
We found that out.
Speaker 3 (10:20):
Yeah, I mean we found that out all the way.
I mean, guys can tease you and then everything changes
on day one in September. So it you know, no
matter what we say, there will be an amount of
just gut decision here. I mean, they'll be you know,
it can never be totally objective in this game. There's
gonna be you know, you're gonna at the end of
(10:40):
the day say, you know, I just I look into
I look into Anthony's eyes, and I think he's ready,
you know, I mean, the biggest thing. I put two
sentences to two little phrases that I just keep looking at.
Can I trust Anthony Richardson and can Dan play like
he did in twenty two? I mean, those are the
two things I'm looking for every day out there.
Speaker 2 (11:01):
Well, let's take both of those. With Anthony Richardson. We've
talked about this off the air. I mean, he's not
perfect by any means. He can still get better in
all facets of the passing game. But the reality is
Rick he is improved. He is completing more intermediate passes
and generally looks more poised in the passing game now
than he did at the end of last season. In
(11:22):
your opinion, how far has he come based on what
you've seen and could the Colts could they go out
and win a game based on how he looks to
you so far in training camp?
Speaker 3 (11:30):
Well, you know, you know, it's much better. I mean,
it's much better than he left. I actually thought he
struggled in training camp last year. I didn't think he
looked as good last year in training camp as he
did as a rookie. There's definitely been a conscious effort
by the coaching staff and Anthony himself. I like the
fact that he's lighter. I just think he looks better lighter.
(11:51):
But I think there's been a big conscious effort to
be much more decisive. And when I say decisive early
in the day, you know, get a better get a
better pre snap look, get a better first step look,
and get rid of that ball quick. And don't think
you're going to hit a home run every time, you know,
get a five yard game, get it. And so every
(12:12):
time that he makes a decisive throw on time between
the numbers, I do jumping jacks because that is the
part of his game that is better. Now, you know,
in terms of does he have a totally We're not sure.
Thursday night last week he was terrific. I mean, it's
as good as I've ever seen him, both intermediate deep,
(12:36):
and then Saturday he was as bad as I've ever
seen him. Saturday morning he was horrendous, let's face it.
And so there's still an area of trust that he's
got to get through with me. But there's no question
that the area that I'm concerned with is there is improvement,
at least in practice.
Speaker 2 (12:55):
What about Daniel Jones, What is going to make Thursday
night a good one for him has to win this job.
How can he separate himself? And the reason why I
asked that it just seems like whenever Anthony has.
Speaker 1 (13:07):
A good day at camp, so does Jones.
Speaker 2 (13:09):
And when Richardson is maybe a little bit off, Daniel
Jones is as well. To a certain degree, they've been
kind of mirroring each other to this point on practice
a little bit.
Speaker 3 (13:19):
Yeah, And I think what really it is is Daniel
is going to be Daniel day in day out. The
word is steady. He's going to have high percentages. He's
not going to knock you out or wow you with
fantastic plays. He can make athletic plays. He's much more athletic,
(13:40):
but everything he does from personality wise to play is
never going to just excite you. But at the end
of the day, he has screw up much, very very accurate.
I mean, if Daniel Jones is the quarterback, I'm not
gonna panic, you know. And the difference in him is
I think there's a a more flat line, and I
(14:01):
don't mean that negative, a straight line, I should say,
in his performance day in and day out, where with
Anthony it's still jagged. But now it's been a lot better,
but there's still some things that you look in say Anthony,
oh my god, how did you do that? So you know,
I don't think you're gonna see much difference in Daniel.
(14:22):
You know, no matter what I mean, he's going to
be between sixty four sixty seven completions. He's gonna make
some play with his legs, not gonna make a lot
of explosive plays, but he's gonna wear you out underneath.
And I just think that's who he is, you know. Now,
you know, hopefully the coaching staff have you know, really
worked on his ego. You know, when you get beat
(14:44):
up like he did in New York after a great
start and you get beat up and you you know
you have failure, then you know it's an ego. It's
an ego problem. Like Sam Darnold now Minnesota was able
to you know, rework him and regroup him and O
become that And you know that's the big thing with Daniel.
Now you haven't seen any of that negativity in practice.
(15:06):
He's been consistent, day in day out. I mean, I
think he's a legitimate guy you can play with. Now
you will be a little bit more dependent on the
surrounding cast as he's the quarterback, you know, which I
think you know, we'll get into Mitchell in a minute.
Which I think the supporting cast is developing into a
(15:26):
pretty good looking group.
Speaker 2 (15:28):
Yeah, let's let's go right there. Ad Mitchell, his arrow
is pointing up. It is staying up. After a rocky
start to training camp, multiple drops in a couple of
practices early on in camp, he's bounced back in a
nice way.
Speaker 1 (15:41):
And it's really kind of corresponded.
Speaker 2 (15:43):
Since the full pads came on, since the physicality of
camp Rose, Mitchell has shine. He's making contested catches, he's
getting open. The route running is on full display, becoming
more reliable, hauling in passes. Yesterday against the Ravens and
that joint practice, Rick I thought he was the star
of the show, not backing down from elite players in
(16:04):
their secondary to Toby a woozy a. He had some
words for Marlin Humphrey beating him a couple of times
in some one on ones in some eleven on eleven periods.
How do you think Mitchell can put it all together?
That's the big question for him. I mean, he only
caught just over forty percent of his targets last season.
What are you expecting out of him from his sophomore
(16:24):
campaign in terms of a smoother year and just more
consistency is what it all boils down to for Ady Mitchell.
Speaker 3 (16:31):
Yeah, that was that. That was a good day, a
big day for him yesterday. As you said, as you
aptly pointed out, that is a that is a real
top tear secondary that's full of top guys, even though
Hamilton wasn't there, but particularly at the corner, that's a
bunch of top tier experienced guys. So to have that
kind of day, you know, he could just to me,
(16:52):
let's look at the positive side. If he gets it right,
if he makes layups, if he catches the ball, just
make that catch us make the routine catches, you know,
particularly coming back inside, you know, he could elevate us
to a whole nother level. Because with Pearce, who is
a game breaker on the other side, if he comes through,
(17:13):
he is he has it all. I mean, he has
speed to blow by you. He is the best separator.
You know. People can blow back on me downs as close,
but there's no separator on the outside. Uh like Mitchell,
you can't. You've seen him against Ward, You've seen him
against the Baltimore guys. He's very hard to cover off
(17:34):
the break because of that speed, and he comes off
that break and he snaps it. So you've got another
guy that is a game changer outside the numbers. If
he can continue to do it, I think, you know,
the only thing that we're you know, we're just you know,
in the back of my mind, I'm saying, just don't
tease us. Make sure this is the improvement. But the
(17:54):
only time we're going to find out is when there's
live bullets, and we're going to find out in games.
I think more than anything when he's coming to the inside,
when he's running a dig. The first time they throw
a dig and that linebacker's breathing down on him and
have safety's coming top down and he catches and secures
that ball, then you're going to see this old man
do a bunch of jumpings ass because that is the area.
(18:17):
That is the area where he broke down when the
you know, when the regular season started, when the fight
was really there. You know, I think he can get it.
I liked him from the beginning. I liked him when
we drafted him, and then you know, there was those disappointments,
and you know, people immediately begin to brand him as
a guy that doesn't like contact. I'm not sure of that.
(18:39):
I'm really not so right now, you just love what
you see. And like I said, if he could come
along and play to that potential, he and Pierce on
the outside. Piers has become a you know, number one
deep threat in the league. And now you got Warn
and Downs and Pittman and you got the running running game.
I mean, you're gonna but you do need that extra
(19:03):
guy on the outside. That is a game changer. Like
I use the analogy all the time. The Eagles got
really good. They got great on offense, you know when
they traded for aj Brown and got him and Smith
on the outside. So that now, like if you're playing
against Taylor and Warren and Downs, you're gonna pack that inside, okay.
(19:24):
And what do you do when you pack the inside,
You strip the outside to one on one. I mean,
I'm oversimplifying, but that's what happens. And so when you
can win out there. You saw what pe of the
difference Pierce made. If we get two of them, one
on each side. Lookout, all right.
Speaker 2 (19:39):
Well, let's go over to the defensive side of the ball,
and I want to talk about the guys up front first,
and I thought they had another nice solid day against.
Speaker 1 (19:46):
The Ravens and that was really good to see yesterday.
Speaker 2 (19:49):
And specifically one of the standouts there lately has been
Latu Latu. He's been against the Colts anyways, speeding past
Brayden Smith a couple of times in practice, getting some
consistent pressure there. It's been talking about outwardly working on
that power game to add to his speed rushes, and
that allowed him to put up a fairly decent rookie
(20:11):
season thirty six pressures for sacks. How have you seen
him progress so far in training camp and what are
your mild expectations for him trying to grow as a
sophomore as well.
Speaker 3 (20:21):
Yeah, well he's been the Mitchell of the defense and
he could have that kind of impact. You know, I
think we're very I think we have a solid front.
I think our two starting tackles are just really really outstanding.
I mean Buckner and Grover. I mean, you know you're
gonna you can't find two better players than those guys inside,
(20:42):
So you know that isn't a worry. The depth. I'm
still concerned. You know, I'll tell you after we play
a game interior wise, and then you know, we have
a lot of solid edge guys, and you know, with
some diversity. I think Tim Milo is going to have
some diversity. I know Lewis Lewis, you know he can
come in and play a Dingbo's role, being an outside
(21:02):
gun first down, inside on third down. Quity seems to
be pretty much settled at eight to ten guys solid.
What we need is the impact guy, that guy that
when you know, I call him the ambient guy. We
need a guy to become the ambient guy. Where you know,
on Tuesday night, if I'm an offensive coordinator, I'm looking
at this team and I say, listen, that guy that
(21:24):
ninety seven over there or at fifty two, We've got
to turn the protection every time we throw it. We
have to tip him every time we throw it intermediate
because this guy can ruin our game. This guy is
a game changer. You know, I call a guy an
ambient when I feel like it. I need a schematic
approach to him, not just one on one technique was
(21:47):
I need a schematic real and that's why we really
need a lot too to do that. Although It's good
to see Ebu Khan back and I think he does
bring you know, speed to the edge on the table.
But a lot two is the guy that you drafted
to be that guy. Lou likes him. I think he
sees some qualities of Hendrickson there. He's had a really
(22:10):
good camp. I mean, you know, he will rush that passer.
He's got a terrific get off, and he has that
really good hand placement, you know with a you know,
if he's up and then he can make that he
can flash across your face. And the biggest key, and
you mentioned it in the question, is when tackle sits
(22:31):
soft on him and close the inside and run him
by the quarterback in those situations, can he learn how
to try, you know, change what we call speed to
power and when you see a guy sets off, you know,
rather than run around him, you just take him right
down the sternam and walk him right back to the quarterback.
And if he can accomplish that, you know, I think
(22:53):
Mathis did that really well when he who was here.
Freeney was more of a speed spin guy. But you know,
Ansets could turn that into into power and I think
that's that will be the key but you know, he's
done a really good job. He looks good and uh,
you know again, but I think that's a necessity. I
you know, I don't think we can just have a
(23:15):
solid defensive line. I think you have to have that
impact edge rusher, you know, that can make the difference.
Speaker 2 (23:23):
I was gonna ask you me, how badly do the
Colts need someone to turn into a stud? Just a
badass that makes the play when the game's on the line.
Speaker 3 (23:31):
Great way to put it. And that's what you gotta have,
you know, you you know, in two minutes or the
key third down, you know, in the game, and in
two minutes when you're not blitzing a lot, you got
to have that guy that makes the difference, that can
make that play in that moment. We yes, stud, you
call it. That's exactly right. Impact guy. And the other
(23:54):
thing is once you have an impact guy, let's say
it's a Miles Garrett, you know, or or you know
somebody like that Parsons. What happens also is they get
so much attention that everybody else now is one on one.
Everybody else gets ideal matchups, and if you bring the
fifth guy into it to the equation, you know, you
(24:15):
got a chance to really get a bad matchup on
a back or something like that. So yeah, I you know,
and there's no there's not gonna be an excuse for
not doing it because this secondary is long. You know,
hopefully we get Wally back and hopefully we can stay
healthy because this is a much better secondary, which a
much better scheme, which will you know, force the quarterback
(24:35):
to hold it a little bit longer. You know, there's
not there's not gonna be any excuses for not getting
to the quarterback. And again, Lato's probably got to be
the guy. I'm I'm gonna be interested when we play
live with Timlowe because I see some things in him
that I really like. And he hasn't you know, it
hasn't you know, been you know, great yet, but I've
(24:56):
seen him in some of those one on ones. He
is a powerful He's kind of the opposite of Latto.
He's a power guy with enough cutting ability, So you know,
I'll be interested to see him the more we play
in games.
Speaker 2 (25:10):
I want to talk about linebacker for just a second
because that first depth chart was released before the preseason
game and Cameron mcgroen's name was listed as the starting
linebacker at the will spot over Jalen Carlis and mcgron.
For those that don't know, local kid from Lawrence Central
went to Michigan. He's heading into his third full season
(25:31):
with the Colts. He was picked up off the New
England practice squad late in twenty twenty two, but last
season played nine games but just one snap on defense,
and for his career, he's played in just eight snaps
on defense in the regular season. But he's making the
most of his chants this year in camp. Sire Franklin's
been banged up, but again he's playing that other position
(25:53):
right now at linebacker over Jalen Carlis. Carl Lies dealing
with a little bit of an injury this week as well.
I'm not sure if he's going to play on Thursday
against the Ravens, but he is earning this opportunity and
he is out playing some other linebackers at that position.
What what do you know about Cameron mcgroon in terms
of his playing style and and how viable is he
(26:14):
to have a big role within this defense.
Speaker 3 (26:16):
Yeah, well, you know, I think he's taken advantage of
a totally new scheme, a new set of coaches. You know,
Lou has mentioned in press conferences there are no sacred cows.
You know, we're going to coach all of them hard
than whoever the best guys are and who produces are
going to play in. I don't think it's any disrespect
(26:39):
to Aluvi or Carlisles because we saw flashes with those guys.
Both of them tended to be ball magnets when they
were in there. But they're only snapshots. That's that's all.
There's no way that you could say and label you
know these guys have These guys are proven NFL guys,
so you know there are there's a lot of competition.
(27:01):
And the two guys to me that have really stood
out in practice in playmaking is mcgrone obviously and Bacci. Now.
Mcgrone is a very very good athlete, you know who
we know as a special teams guy. You know, he's
he's looked good in space. Uh you know, he's knockball down,
he's tip balls, he's got interceptions. Bachi has some advantages
(27:25):
because he really knows the system. He's played significant snaps
for Lou at Cincinnati. Also outstanding a special teams guy.
So I think what's happened. Is it's just you know,
based this is based on now performance, it's you know,
based on now. Jaki is another guy that's had some
pretty good snaps in there. So but mcgrone and and
(27:47):
and and Boci have really stepped up, you know in
terms of when you just evaluate performance day in and
day out. They're ahead. That doesn't mean they'll stay ahead
because you know, I think a louvi in Carlis have
a lot to offer. But you know, this is I
think this is really a tight competition all the way.
Speaker 2 (28:05):
I want to talk about the secondary before we break here, Nick,
I mean, you look at it now, the depth here,
Brent's Jalen Jones. They're still dealing with hamstring injuries. Charvarius
Ward has dealt with tightness and his legs recently, although
he did practice on Tuesday. But all of that combined
has forced the Colts to make a couple of roster
moves at that position. Trey Herndon was signed, Duke Shelley
(28:29):
is here, Chris Lamons was brought in. He was with
the Colts last year as well. All of those moves
in the last couple of days, and then Justin Waally
banged up his knee a little bit yesterday in practice.
I'm not sure if he's going to play against the Ravens.
That would be really unfortunate just because he's a rookie.
You want to see what he can do on a
game field, albeit a preseason game field. But how are
(28:50):
those injuries impacting this race at corner so far? And
is it becoming more and more clear that justin Wally
when fully right, he's got a really good track at
starting at corner this season as a rookie.
Speaker 3 (29:03):
Oh my god, you know I liked him. I liked him,
Chris liked him. They invested the third round pick. People
you know, said it was a controversial pick. All he's
done is come in here and validated that tick. I
mean he he has been outstanding from day one, from
rookie Mini Caamp to miniicamp. You know, he's been in
(29:23):
that starting lineup every day. I was really I hope
that that injury is not going to set him back
because as a rookie you still want to have every
snap you can get to get ready. I mean that
secondary with him, you know, as really the fifth guy
really looks improved to me. I mean, you've got Ward
(29:44):
bydam who are top tier players in the league wards,
you know, right in the elite level, Kenny is a
top tier nickel Cross is becoming a top tier safety.
So you've got four guys right there, you know, the
talent wise a top tier and then if you get
Wally and they're playing like he can play, that is
(30:04):
really a good unit. And the sad thing for me
is the guy that was really balling it was Jalen Jones.
I thought Jones was off to a great start and
if he was going to be the fourth corner when
they go dime, you know, I was going to live
with that. And so you know what it does is
it brings just a tough guy who played pretty well
(30:25):
till the very end last year, and that's Womack. I mean,
you know, if you have to play a game this afternoon,
Womack comes back as your third starter, was you know,
as your third corner, which is not the end of
the world, because he was kind of the least of
our worries last year, to be honest with you, until
the very end when he had some slip pups. But again,
it's really important to get those all those guys healthy.
(30:47):
You can never have enough corners. It's just it's amazing
how when you get injuries you seem to get them
all in the same spot, no doubt, and it's really amazing.
It's just depleted the corner position. But again, you know,
the big key to I think there's Wally Hopefully, whatever
it is with Wally, it's something that he can get
too Quickie. I mean, Saturday night is not a big issue,
(31:07):
but you know you certainly don't want him to miss
much time.
Speaker 2 (31:10):
All right, save these for your memory bank because we'll
get into them next week as training camp progresses and
we'll have a preseason game under our belt as well.
We're also going to preview what we're going to see
in a joint practice setting with the Green Bay Packers
coming up next Thursday. But I do want to talk
to you about the kicking battle next week. You know,
second year kicker Spencer Schrader, undrafted rookie Mannix Trahillo are
(31:33):
battling it out. Also want to talk to you about
undrafted rookies, you know, some of those young guys you
have that crop who's catching your eyes so far there.
But as we wrap up here right here, right now, Rick,
what's gonna make Thursday night a successful one for the Colts.
Preseason game number one, What do you want to see
from the team? What do you want to see from
the starters? You have a specific grating system for the preseason,
(31:56):
so go ahead and lay that out for us and
dictate what's going to make it a successful night of
the Colts regardless of the score.
Speaker 3 (32:02):
Yeah, I've always coached like two games within the game. Okay,
when you play a preseason game, the first game obviously
is the most important game. You know, that's when your
starters and key top guys, key first guys in are
in the ballgame. And in that sense, you know, what
I want to see in the opener is I want
(32:24):
to see clean game. You know, you know I want
to see don't turn it over. I was really happy
yesterday we didn't have a lot of big players on offense,
but we didn't turn it over as well. Obviously this
year we want to see quarterback efficiency, defense, eliminate those
big plays and show us that you're going to be
(32:44):
a better tackling team. That's what That's what I'm looking for.
And with my starters, with my first groups, and like
I say, that first guy in type of situation. I
want to win that part of it. I you know,
you've gotten all the reps regardless of who you play
in that first quarter. Hopefully we do play the Ravens.
I always wanted to play them at their best. Is
that you want to go out and you're going to
(33:06):
win that. Now they're not going to play Lamar, but
they still have a really good team around them. So
you know, I expect to win from my top guys,
and I always put pressure on them. This is you know,
don't don't look at this as preseason. You go out
and win your part because you know, in about a
month we're playing for real. And then what my second game.
(33:26):
I always wanted my young kids like, keep it simple,
let them play. And what I always wanted to see
was and I would tell them to show us why
you're here. Okay, you were drafted or we brought you
in as a free agent or as an undrafted free
agent because you have certain skill sets that we really
(33:46):
like and we feel like you could fit. And so
what I want to see is I want you to
flash that talent, you know, you know, if it's getting
I want to see him kick and run, you know,
you know, a roller flasted yesterday with interceptions. You know,
it's the new guys. You want to see them flash,
you know, you know, you know, make a play. I
(34:07):
don't expect them to be perfect. They're gonna make mistakes,
you know. And I'm not concerned with the scoreboard. And
as you said, you know, I'm glad you alluded to
it because I started this when I was a coach.
I always wanted to say, how can I really evaluate
a preseason game because the scores are meaningless. I mean,
nobody will ever remember them. If you win because you
(34:30):
came from behind with you know, third stringers that aren't
going to be in the game, and you had a
great fourth quarter, you know you can you can put
that the refs because it's not going to matter. And
so what I've always done has had came up with
a little scoring system that I think is pretty accurate,
and I call it the realistic score, you know, the
real score in terms of evaluating your team. And what
(34:51):
I do is I give you points per quarter. The
old World Hockey League used to do this. I give
you seven points if you win the first quarter. If
it's tied, then it's seven to seven, then I give
you three points for who wins the second quarter, and
then two points for the third quarter, in one point
for the fourth quarter. And so what you're doing there
(35:14):
is you're weighing what your team really is good versus good,
and so if you don't win the first quarter, you
can't really win the game if you follow what I'm saying.
And that's why it's seven three, two one in the
in the in the bottom three quarters only adds up
to six. So Corre, you know, it puts a real premium.
But I think if you follow that through the preseason,
(35:35):
you're gonna have a much better view of what your
team really is.
Speaker 1 (35:38):
Well said right there.
Speaker 2 (35:39):
We will follow that formula coming up tomorrow night against
the Baltimore Ravens. See what the realistic score from Rick
van Turry, what that ends up being, that is Rick
vent Turry rights there, and that's going to do it
for this week's edition here of Inside Football, recapping training
camp to this point, the joint practice with the Ravens.
Speaker 1 (35:58):
Rick, we miss you.
Speaker 2 (35:59):
Here on the road, There's no doubt about it, man,
but it's great to talk to you as always, no
matter the setting.
Speaker 3 (36:03):
Here.
Speaker 2 (36:04):
Have a great rest of your week and we'll talk
to you over the weekend and recap what we see
on Thursday night here in this preseason opener.
Speaker 3 (36:10):
Absolutely, and you and I, You and I are going
to have a great season analyzing this team and talking
about this team both in games and during the weekend.
So I'm really excited about that.
Speaker 1 (36:20):
No doubt about that. The train keeps on rolling.
Speaker 3 (36:23):
Man.
Speaker 2 (36:23):
We're going to tap into that brain of yours each
and every Wednesday here on the podcast that is the
great Rick Van Turrey. And reminder, in terms of programming
for game day, Thursday's game starts at seven. You can
watch it locally television wise in Indianapolis, Fox fifty nine
and the NFL Network has it as well. And then
on radio, our coverage is going to start at four
(36:44):
o'clock Eastern time the Colts pregame huddle on our flagship
station ninety three five one oh seven five the Fan.
Then at six pm we bring you countdown to kickoff
on the fan also ninety seven to one Hank FM
and Indy and all over the Colts Radio networked and
at seven pm it's Colts and Ravens preseason opener for
both teams. Looking for a good showing there, especially in
(37:05):
the first quarter. Like Rick Ventury laid out, hope you
can watch, Hope you can listen on Thursday night. If not,
we'll have a full recap of everything you missed right
here on colts dot com and the Colts podcast channel.
Speaker 1 (37:17):
I'm Matt Taylor for Rick Ventury.
Speaker 2 (37:18):
Thanks for listening to Inside Football everybody, and we will
talk to you next week.
Speaker 1 (37:22):
You're on the podcast. So long
Football is about the Jimmies and Joe's and x's and o's.
Speaker 2 (00:06):
Guys, writing numbers, three jets, Spielberg, I'm one all right,
Nast big Fly, Turbo, Zelda fourteen, Diablo, whim out a bunch, right,
Robert de Niro.
Speaker 3 (00:15):
It's time to get out the chotboard and diagram. Some
plays make sure you get enough dep like twelve yard
fourteen yards break on everything.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
This is Inside Football with former Colts and NFL coach
Rick Venturie. Well, that third week of Colts training camp
is here and we are back at and breaking it
all down on Inside Football with Rick Venturrey. Welcome back
to the podcast, everybody, Thanks for joining in. I'm Matt
Taylor on the road today, coming to you from Baltimore, Maryland.
Speaker 1 (00:43):
This week, the.
Speaker 2 (00:44):
Colts held a joint practice with the Ravens on Tuesday
ahead of their preseason game with the Ravens coming up
tomorrow night.
Speaker 1 (00:51):
Thursday night.
Speaker 2 (00:51):
We're taping this on Wednesday, telling you what's going on
with the Colts here at the present time. And Rick,
I am in the Land of Crabcakes, your old stopping
grand before the Colts moved back in nineteen eighty four,
how are things for you back in the Hoosier State
right now?
Speaker 3 (01:05):
Well, it's kind of a letdown not being there with you.
I didn't know how that was gonna work minute. You know,
it is a little bit of a leadown. And I
find it ironic that our first joint practices is at
Owings Mills, you know where obviously I got my start,
I mean my first two years of professional football right
at Owings Mills. You know what, I had to laugh
(01:28):
to myself. I said, the last time the Colts are
at Owings Mills, they were on the Nave Flowers heading west.
Speaker 2 (01:35):
And it's really cool, and I mean it was, you know,
going along with that, it was surreal yesterday. I mean
the Ravens, like you said, they have their training facility
and the same town where the Colts were before they
moved to Indianapolis. And I was talking with with Colts
COO Pete Ward last night and he said that the
Colts facility was just a handful of miles in a
(01:57):
handful of minutes down the road from where the Ravens
facility it's currently located. And hearing that gave me some
really good historical goosebumps.
Speaker 1 (02:05):
I'm not gonna lie.
Speaker 2 (02:05):
I thought that was pretty cool and certainly yourself and Pete,
you guys live that entire deal.
Speaker 3 (02:10):
Well, there's only three of us really left after you know,
Jim's passing. There's Pete, there's myself, and there's John Scott,
you know, who's still essentially work with the Colts. I mean,
that's it, and you know that we're there that faithful night.
So yeah, it would have meant a lot to me.
I wish, I wish I could have made that one
because that like I said that, that, like you said,
(02:32):
I got a little goosebumps myself.
Speaker 2 (02:33):
Yeah, I mean it was cool to see the horseshoe logo,
the brand, the Colors, you know, in that town. I
talked with Jerry Sandusky there radio play by play guy,
and he said the same thing, first time in forty
one years, the culture back in Owings Mills, and cool
to see the Colts in that setting at least for
an afternoon, right with all the history that that's gone
on between the two franchises and certainly the two you know, and.
Speaker 3 (02:55):
It's you know, it's a good day, you know, as
a real solid day for the Colts. I mean, I
love now that we're really into significant things. I did
think that the night practice last week in Westfield ended
up being one of that. I added that to my
significant six six occasions, right, you know, the three preseason
(03:19):
games and the two joint practices, And I have to
say I have to give Stike and credit on that
when that ended up being a very significant practice that
Thursday night. But you know, I you know, to go
to Baltimore in you know, to work against an elite
team and hold your own here in the first week,
that's really important. I mean, that's I'm being optimistic there. Yeah.
(03:41):
You know, Baltimore is a number one team on offense,
number one team rushing. You know, Lamars has the best
quarterback rating of anybody in the league. You know, they
were number eight on defense, number one in sacks, a
really good secondary. They got three front guys with thirty
three sacks combined. So you know, when you go in
(04:01):
there and you hold your own on opening day, I mean,
that's that's a really good thing, you know, And I've
talked to you off air, you know, one of the
really important things of the first week, and this just
adds a bonus to it. With the first preseason games,
this is this is a bonus because you get a
composite rating here on players. Is that I always felt
(04:22):
like that the one thing you really wanted to come
out of the first week was to find your baselines,
you know, where you know good and bad, you know,
but primarily you know, where do we really have to
fix that? Where you know, where are we? You know,
we had a couple you know, pre snap penalties on offense,
you know, but better to get them, you know, over
with now, you know. But that's jitters and stuff like that,
(04:45):
you know, I mean that kind of stuff. But I
think it's it's really important to find those baselines and
having this pre practice and then the game it's you know,
and we're still at that stage where there's enough juice
to come out and play the game hard.
Speaker 2 (05:00):
So Shane Stike in after practice on Tuesday reveals that
Anthony Richardson will start at quarterback coming up Thursday night.
The plan is for him to play about a quarter
and a half and then Daniel Jones will play the
rest of the half, and then Jones would start the
second preseason game next Saturday against the Packers, with the
quarterbacks flipping that playing time. Same strategy, just different games
(05:23):
if you will. So are you good with that playing?
Speaker 1 (05:25):
Rick?
Speaker 3 (05:25):
Is that?
Speaker 1 (05:26):
Is that enough of a good look for those two
guys at this point?
Speaker 3 (05:29):
Well, I think it's a start, you know. I mean,
I think the only difference I would probably do, I
would probably let Ar take the whole half and then
let you know, and let Jonesy take it the second game,
and strictly because I think once you get into the rhythm,
let him play, and if you get a too good
two minute drill there at the end, you will evaluate
(05:50):
them both. And I like to just let the guy
have the rhythm and let them play it. But I
can understand. I think Shane has really been careful. I mean,
he has been so careful. You know, we've seen it
every day. I mean, he has really made it an
open competition in terms of reps. I mean, there's nobody.
(06:13):
I mean, I'm really kind of amazed at how well
that's gone, you know, and there's really not a lot.
There's not a substantial separation, which is probably a good
thing for Richardson because you know, even yesterday he had
a much higher percentage of completions. You know, maybe not
the big plays, but you know, the thing with Richardson
(06:33):
is completion average. That's what is the area that's got
to go up, and other than the one day last Saturday, Yeah,
you know, he's been much better there. And you know,
if you know, and I've always said, if there's not
a lot of separation, it's like when we were kids
playing baseball, Ty goes to the runner, and in this case,
they're both pretty good runners. But Richardson is a tremendous
(06:55):
explosive runner. So you know, as long as his percentage
is up, you know you're gonna you're gonna give him
a little bit of an edge because of the explosiveness
and explosive plays that he can create, both of his
legs and the deep ball. So you know, yeah, I think,
like I said, I has really done a terrific job
of splitting that down the middle in a very intelligent
(07:16):
but competitive way.
Speaker 1 (07:18):
What about you know, the players around them?
Speaker 2 (07:20):
Though, in these preseason games, does it need to be
apples to apples comparison, I mean to the same skill,
same skill players need to play around both guys so
you get a clear evaluation.
Speaker 3 (07:30):
Yeah, I think, yes, I mean, I think and I
think particularly in the offensive line. Okay, you know, I
think with your skill players. If you know, if if
Goual's playing a snap or Mitchell, the way he's playing
is you know, get snaps. You know, you know, the
tight ends can roll a little bit. I think the
most important thing, as far as apples to apples is
(07:53):
keep that offensive line as intact as you can, because
you know, I think there's a big drop off there,
and you know, I don't. You know, I don't necessarily
I don't necessarily want to see that backup line against
that Raven front.
Speaker 2 (08:08):
I don't know what the Ravens are going to do.
I don't know what the Packers are going to do.
I got a hunch that the Ravens aren't going to
play their front line guys, especially in the fight seven
on defense. So what about I mean, if one goes
up against a starting defense the other one doesn't. What
if one has a two minute drive at the end
of a half the other one doesn't. How do you
how do you evaluate those things? I mean, just thinking
about that makes my head spin.
Speaker 3 (08:28):
Well, you're going to do the best you can, That's
what I said. I would probably give them a full
half this weekend next week and not worry about a
quarter and a half and more than anything else, you know,
you really can't control what the other guy is going
to do. Yeah, and so what you might have to
do is the third preseason game may be a significant
(08:49):
tiebreaker if there are inequities as you're talking about, which
they're very well might be an experienced you know, top
tier team like the Ravens are probably going to play less,
you know in that regard. You know, I don't know
so much about the Packers yet, but you know that
could happen. There's no doubt. I would like each guy
to get a realistic two minute drill that he's already
(09:10):
warm in, not that he not that he's just come
off the bench and he's going to do it. But
you know that's why I like the half ers of
the half. But that's a small deal. But you know,
you still have the third game, and you know, to me,
to me, you know, we've had so much trouble with openers,
I'm not going to hold back on that if there's
any decision to be made or we're just not quite
(09:31):
ready to you know, go to Cincinnati and you don't
play that out too. So you know, we got we
got time. But you know, I don't. I don't know
that there's any answer to that question. And you're you're
certainly right to bring it up, because it can happen,
you know, at the end of the day, at the
end of the day, these guys, you know, these guys
have kind of showed who they are to me, particularly
(09:52):
Daniel Daniels, exactly the guy expected. AR five has improved
definitely a conscious improvement on the intermediate game and decision making.
So you know, if it you know, it may just
play out very close like this. And I said from
day one that because you can't really you can't really
(10:14):
evaluate a quarterback really until after Labor Day in regular
season games.
Speaker 1 (10:19):
We found that out.
Speaker 3 (10:20):
Yeah, I mean we found that out all the way.
I mean, guys can tease you and then everything changes
on day one in September. So it you know, no
matter what we say, there will be an amount of
just gut decision here. I mean, they'll be you know,
it can never be totally objective in this game. There's
gonna be you know, you're gonna at the end of
(10:40):
the day say, you know, I just I look into
I look into Anthony's eyes, and I think he's ready,
you know, I mean, the biggest thing. I put two
sentences to two little phrases that I just keep looking at.
Can I trust Anthony Richardson and can Dan play like
he did in twenty two? I mean, those are the
two things I'm looking for every day out there.
Speaker 2 (11:01):
Well, let's take both of those. With Anthony Richardson. We've
talked about this off the air. I mean, he's not
perfect by any means. He can still get better in
all facets of the passing game. But the reality is
Rick he is improved. He is completing more intermediate passes
and generally looks more poised in the passing game now
than he did at the end of last season. In
(11:22):
your opinion, how far has he come based on what
you've seen and could the Colts could they go out
and win a game based on how he looks to
you so far in training camp?
Speaker 3 (11:30):
Well, you know, you know, it's much better. I mean,
it's much better than he left. I actually thought he
struggled in training camp last year. I didn't think he
looked as good last year in training camp as he
did as a rookie. There's definitely been a conscious effort
by the coaching staff and Anthony himself. I like the
fact that he's lighter. I just think he looks better lighter.
(11:51):
But I think there's been a big conscious effort to
be much more decisive. And when I say decisive early
in the day, you know, get a better get a
better pre snap look, get a better first step look,
and get rid of that ball quick. And don't think
you're going to hit a home run every time, you know,
get a five yard game, get it. And so every
(12:12):
time that he makes a decisive throw on time between
the numbers, I do jumping jacks because that is the
part of his game that is better. Now, you know,
in terms of does he have a totally We're not sure.
Thursday night last week he was terrific. I mean, it's
as good as I've ever seen him, both intermediate deep,
(12:36):
and then Saturday he was as bad as I've ever
seen him. Saturday morning he was horrendous, let's face it.
And so there's still an area of trust that he's
got to get through with me. But there's no question
that the area that I'm concerned with is there is improvement,
at least in practice.
Speaker 2 (12:55):
What about Daniel Jones, What is going to make Thursday
night a good one for him has to win this job.
How can he separate himself? And the reason why I
asked that it just seems like whenever Anthony has.
Speaker 1 (13:07):
A good day at camp, so does Jones.
Speaker 2 (13:09):
And when Richardson is maybe a little bit off, Daniel
Jones is as well. To a certain degree, they've been
kind of mirroring each other to this point on practice
a little bit.
Speaker 3 (13:19):
Yeah, And I think what really it is is Daniel
is going to be Daniel day in day out. The
word is steady. He's going to have high percentages. He's
not going to knock you out or wow you with
fantastic plays. He can make athletic plays. He's much more athletic,
(13:40):
but everything he does from personality wise to play is
never going to just excite you. But at the end
of the day, he has screw up much, very very accurate.
I mean, if Daniel Jones is the quarterback, I'm not
gonna panic, you know. And the difference in him is
I think there's a a more flat line, and I
(14:01):
don't mean that negative, a straight line, I should say,
in his performance day in and day out, where with
Anthony it's still jagged. But now it's been a lot better,
but there's still some things that you look in say Anthony,
oh my god, how did you do that? So you know,
I don't think you're gonna see much difference in Daniel.
(14:22):
You know, no matter what I mean, he's going to
be between sixty four sixty seven completions. He's gonna make
some play with his legs, not gonna make a lot
of explosive plays, but he's gonna wear you out underneath.
And I just think that's who he is, you know. Now,
you know, hopefully the coaching staff have you know, really
worked on his ego. You know, when you get beat
(14:44):
up like he did in New York after a great
start and you get beat up and you you know
you have failure, then you know it's an ego. It's
an ego problem. Like Sam Darnold now Minnesota was able
to you know, rework him and regroup him and O
become that And you know that's the big thing with Daniel.
Now you haven't seen any of that negativity in practice.
(15:06):
He's been consistent, day in day out. I mean, I
think he's a legitimate guy you can play with. Now
you will be a little bit more dependent on the
surrounding cast as he's the quarterback, you know, which I
think you know, we'll get into Mitchell in a minute.
Which I think the supporting cast is developing into a
(15:26):
pretty good looking group.
Speaker 2 (15:28):
Yeah, let's let's go right there. Ad Mitchell, his arrow
is pointing up. It is staying up. After a rocky
start to training camp, multiple drops in a couple of
practices early on in camp, he's bounced back in a
nice way.
Speaker 1 (15:41):
And it's really kind of corresponded.
Speaker 2 (15:43):
Since the full pads came on, since the physicality of
camp Rose, Mitchell has shine. He's making contested catches, he's
getting open. The route running is on full display, becoming
more reliable, hauling in passes. Yesterday against the Ravens and
that joint practice, Rick I thought he was the star
of the show, not backing down from elite players in
(16:04):
their secondary to Toby a woozy a. He had some
words for Marlin Humphrey beating him a couple of times
in some one on ones in some eleven on eleven periods.
How do you think Mitchell can put it all together?
That's the big question for him. I mean, he only
caught just over forty percent of his targets last season.
What are you expecting out of him from his sophomore
(16:24):
campaign in terms of a smoother year and just more
consistency is what it all boils down to for Ady Mitchell.
Speaker 3 (16:31):
Yeah, that was that. That was a good day, a
big day for him yesterday. As you said, as you
aptly pointed out, that is a that is a real
top tear secondary that's full of top guys, even though
Hamilton wasn't there, but particularly at the corner, that's a
bunch of top tier experienced guys. So to have that
kind of day, you know, he could just to me,
(16:52):
let's look at the positive side. If he gets it right,
if he makes layups, if he catches the ball, just
make that catch us make the routine catches, you know,
particularly coming back inside, you know, he could elevate us
to a whole nother level. Because with Pearce, who is
a game breaker on the other side, if he comes through,
(17:13):
he is he has it all. I mean, he has
speed to blow by you. He is the best separator.
You know. People can blow back on me downs as close,
but there's no separator on the outside. Uh like Mitchell,
you can't. You've seen him against Ward, You've seen him
against the Baltimore guys. He's very hard to cover off
(17:34):
the break because of that speed, and he comes off
that break and he snaps it. So you've got another
guy that is a game changer outside the numbers. If
he can continue to do it, I think, you know,
the only thing that we're you know, we're just you know,
in the back of my mind, I'm saying, just don't
tease us. Make sure this is the improvement. But the
(17:54):
only time we're going to find out is when there's
live bullets, and we're going to find out in games.
I think more than anything when he's coming to the inside,
when he's running a dig. The first time they throw
a dig and that linebacker's breathing down on him and
have safety's coming top down and he catches and secures
that ball, then you're going to see this old man
do a bunch of jumpings ass because that is the area.
(18:17):
That is the area where he broke down when the
you know, when the regular season started, when the fight
was really there. You know, I think he can get it.
I liked him from the beginning. I liked him when
we drafted him, and then you know, there was those disappointments,
and you know, people immediately begin to brand him as
a guy that doesn't like contact. I'm not sure of that.
(18:39):
I'm really not so right now, you just love what
you see. And like I said, if he could come
along and play to that potential, he and Pierce on
the outside. Piers has become a you know, number one
deep threat in the league. And now you got Warn
and Downs and Pittman and you got the running running game.
I mean, you're gonna but you do need that extra
(19:03):
guy on the outside. That is a game changer. Like
I use the analogy all the time. The Eagles got
really good. They got great on offense, you know when
they traded for aj Brown and got him and Smith
on the outside. So that now, like if you're playing
against Taylor and Warren and Downs, you're gonna pack that inside, okay.
(19:24):
And what do you do when you pack the inside,
You strip the outside to one on one. I mean,
I'm oversimplifying, but that's what happens. And so when you
can win out there. You saw what pe of the
difference Pierce made. If we get two of them, one
on each side. Lookout, all right.
Speaker 2 (19:39):
Well, let's go over to the defensive side of the ball,
and I want to talk about the guys up front first,
and I thought they had another nice solid day against.
Speaker 1 (19:46):
The Ravens and that was really good to see yesterday.
Speaker 2 (19:49):
And specifically one of the standouts there lately has been
Latu Latu. He's been against the Colts anyways, speeding past
Brayden Smith a couple of times in practice, getting some
consistent pressure there. It's been talking about outwardly working on
that power game to add to his speed rushes, and
that allowed him to put up a fairly decent rookie
(20:11):
season thirty six pressures for sacks. How have you seen
him progress so far in training camp and what are
your mild expectations for him trying to grow as a
sophomore as well.
Speaker 3 (20:21):
Yeah, well he's been the Mitchell of the defense and
he could have that kind of impact. You know, I
think we're very I think we have a solid front.
I think our two starting tackles are just really really outstanding.
I mean Buckner and Grover. I mean, you know you're
gonna you can't find two better players than those guys inside,
(20:42):
So you know that isn't a worry. The depth. I'm
still concerned. You know, I'll tell you after we play
a game interior wise, and then you know, we have
a lot of solid edge guys, and you know, with
some diversity. I think Tim Milo is going to have
some diversity. I know Lewis Lewis, you know he can
come in and play a Dingbo's role, being an outside
(21:02):
gun first down, inside on third down. Quity seems to
be pretty much settled at eight to ten guys solid.
What we need is the impact guy, that guy that
when you know, I call him the ambient guy. We
need a guy to become the ambient guy. Where you know,
on Tuesday night, if I'm an offensive coordinator, I'm looking
at this team and I say, listen, that guy that
(21:24):
ninety seven over there or at fifty two, We've got
to turn the protection every time we throw it. We
have to tip him every time we throw it intermediate
because this guy can ruin our game. This guy is
a game changer. You know, I call a guy an
ambient when I feel like it. I need a schematic
approach to him, not just one on one technique was
(21:47):
I need a schematic real and that's why we really
need a lot too to do that. Although It's good
to see Ebu Khan back and I think he does
bring you know, speed to the edge on the table.
But a lot two is the guy that you drafted
to be that guy. Lou likes him. I think he
sees some qualities of Hendrickson there. He's had a really
(22:10):
good camp. I mean, you know, he will rush that passer.
He's got a terrific get off, and he has that
really good hand placement, you know with a you know,
if he's up and then he can make that he
can flash across your face. And the biggest key, and
you mentioned it in the question, is when tackle sits
(22:31):
soft on him and close the inside and run him
by the quarterback in those situations, can he learn how
to try, you know, change what we call speed to
power and when you see a guy sets off, you know,
rather than run around him, you just take him right
down the sternam and walk him right back to the quarterback.
And if he can accomplish that, you know, I think
(22:53):
Mathis did that really well when he who was here.
Freeney was more of a speed spin guy. But you know,
Ansets could turn that into into power and I think
that's that will be the key but you know, he's
done a really good job. He looks good and uh,
you know again, but I think that's a necessity. I
you know, I don't think we can just have a
(23:15):
solid defensive line. I think you have to have that
impact edge rusher, you know, that can make the difference.
Speaker 2 (23:23):
I was gonna ask you me, how badly do the
Colts need someone to turn into a stud? Just a
badass that makes the play when the game's on the line.
Speaker 3 (23:31):
Great way to put it. And that's what you gotta have,
you know, you you know, in two minutes or the
key third down, you know, in the game, and in
two minutes when you're not blitzing a lot, you got
to have that guy that makes the difference, that can
make that play in that moment. We yes, stud, you
call it. That's exactly right. Impact guy. And the other
(23:54):
thing is once you have an impact guy, let's say
it's a Miles Garrett, you know, or or you know
somebody like that Parsons. What happens also is they get
so much attention that everybody else now is one on one.
Everybody else gets ideal matchups, and if you bring the
fifth guy into it to the equation, you know, you
(24:15):
got a chance to really get a bad matchup on
a back or something like that. So yeah, I you know,
and there's no there's not gonna be an excuse for
not doing it because this secondary is long. You know,
hopefully we get Wally back and hopefully we can stay
healthy because this is a much better secondary, which a
much better scheme, which will you know, force the quarterback
(24:35):
to hold it a little bit longer. You know, there's
not there's not gonna be any excuses for not getting
to the quarterback. And again, Lato's probably got to be
the guy. I'm I'm gonna be interested when we play
live with Timlowe because I see some things in him
that I really like. And he hasn't you know, it
hasn't you know, been you know, great yet, but I've
(24:56):
seen him in some of those one on ones. He
is a powerful He's kind of the opposite of Latto.
He's a power guy with enough cutting ability, So you know,
I'll be interested to see him the more we play
in games.
Speaker 2 (25:10):
I want to talk about linebacker for just a second
because that first depth chart was released before the preseason
game and Cameron mcgroen's name was listed as the starting
linebacker at the will spot over Jalen Carlis and mcgron.
For those that don't know, local kid from Lawrence Central
went to Michigan. He's heading into his third full season
(25:31):
with the Colts. He was picked up off the New
England practice squad late in twenty twenty two, but last
season played nine games but just one snap on defense,
and for his career, he's played in just eight snaps
on defense in the regular season. But he's making the
most of his chants this year in camp. Sire Franklin's
been banged up, but again he's playing that other position
(25:53):
right now at linebacker over Jalen Carlis. Carl Lies dealing
with a little bit of an injury this week as well.
I'm not sure if he's going to play on Thursday
against the Ravens, but he is earning this opportunity and
he is out playing some other linebackers at that position.
What what do you know about Cameron mcgroon in terms
of his playing style and and how viable is he
(26:14):
to have a big role within this defense.
Speaker 3 (26:16):
Yeah, well, you know, I think he's taken advantage of
a totally new scheme, a new set of coaches. You know,
Lou has mentioned in press conferences there are no sacred cows.
You know, we're going to coach all of them hard
than whoever the best guys are and who produces are
going to play in. I don't think it's any disrespect
(26:39):
to Aluvi or Carlisles because we saw flashes with those guys.
Both of them tended to be ball magnets when they
were in there. But they're only snapshots. That's that's all.
There's no way that you could say and label you
know these guys have These guys are proven NFL guys,
so you know there are there's a lot of competition.
(27:01):
And the two guys to me that have really stood
out in practice in playmaking is mcgrone obviously and Bacci. Now.
Mcgrone is a very very good athlete, you know who
we know as a special teams guy. You know, he's
he's looked good in space. Uh you know, he's knockball down,
he's tip balls, he's got interceptions. Bachi has some advantages
(27:25):
because he really knows the system. He's played significant snaps
for Lou at Cincinnati. Also outstanding a special teams guy.
So I think what's happened. Is it's just you know,
based this is based on now performance, it's you know,
based on now. Jaki is another guy that's had some
pretty good snaps in there. So but mcgrone and and
(27:47):
and and Boci have really stepped up, you know in
terms of when you just evaluate performance day in and
day out. They're ahead. That doesn't mean they'll stay ahead
because you know, I think a louvi in Carlis have
a lot to offer. But you know, this is I
think this is really a tight competition all the way.
Speaker 2 (28:05):
I want to talk about the secondary before we break here, Nick,
I mean, you look at it now, the depth here,
Brent's Jalen Jones. They're still dealing with hamstring injuries. Charvarius
Ward has dealt with tightness and his legs recently, although
he did practice on Tuesday. But all of that combined
has forced the Colts to make a couple of roster
moves at that position. Trey Herndon was signed, Duke Shelley
(28:29):
is here, Chris Lamons was brought in. He was with
the Colts last year as well. All of those moves
in the last couple of days, and then Justin Waally
banged up his knee a little bit yesterday in practice.
I'm not sure if he's going to play against the Ravens.
That would be really unfortunate just because he's a rookie.
You want to see what he can do on a
game field, albeit a preseason game field. But how are
(28:50):
those injuries impacting this race at corner so far? And
is it becoming more and more clear that justin Wally
when fully right, he's got a really good track at
starting at corner this season as a rookie.
Speaker 3 (29:03):
Oh my god, you know I liked him. I liked him,
Chris liked him. They invested the third round pick. People
you know, said it was a controversial pick. All he's
done is come in here and validated that tick. I
mean he he has been outstanding from day one, from
rookie Mini Caamp to miniicamp. You know, he's been in
(29:23):
that starting lineup every day. I was really I hope
that that injury is not going to set him back
because as a rookie you still want to have every
snap you can get to get ready. I mean that
secondary with him, you know, as really the fifth guy
really looks improved to me. I mean, you've got Ward
(29:44):
bydam who are top tier players in the league wards,
you know, right in the elite level, Kenny is a
top tier nickel Cross is becoming a top tier safety.
So you've got four guys right there, you know, the
talent wise a top tier and then if you get
Wally and they're playing like he can play, that is
(30:04):
really a good unit. And the sad thing for me
is the guy that was really balling it was Jalen Jones.
I thought Jones was off to a great start and
if he was going to be the fourth corner when
they go dime, you know, I was going to live
with that. And so you know what it does is
it brings just a tough guy who played pretty well
(30:25):
till the very end last year, and that's Womack. I mean,
you know, if you have to play a game this afternoon,
Womack comes back as your third starter, was you know,
as your third corner, which is not the end of
the world, because he was kind of the least of
our worries last year, to be honest with you, until
the very end when he had some slip pups. But again,
it's really important to get those all those guys healthy.
(30:47):
You can never have enough corners. It's just it's amazing
how when you get injuries you seem to get them
all in the same spot, no doubt, and it's really amazing.
It's just depleted the corner position. But again, you know,
the big key to I think there's Wally Hopefully, whatever
it is with Wally, it's something that he can get
too Quickie. I mean, Saturday night is not a big issue,
(31:07):
but you know you certainly don't want him to miss
much time.
Speaker 2 (31:10):
All right, save these for your memory bank because we'll
get into them next week as training camp progresses and
we'll have a preseason game under our belt as well.
We're also going to preview what we're going to see
in a joint practice setting with the Green Bay Packers
coming up next Thursday. But I do want to talk
to you about the kicking battle next week. You know,
second year kicker Spencer Schrader, undrafted rookie Mannix Trahillo are
(31:33):
battling it out. Also want to talk to you about
undrafted rookies, you know, some of those young guys you
have that crop who's catching your eyes so far there.
But as we wrap up here right here, right now, Rick,
what's gonna make Thursday night a successful one for the Colts.
Preseason game number one, What do you want to see
from the team? What do you want to see from
the starters? You have a specific grating system for the preseason,
(31:56):
so go ahead and lay that out for us and
dictate what's going to make it a successful night of
the Colts regardless of the score.
Speaker 3 (32:02):
Yeah, I've always coached like two games within the game. Okay,
when you play a preseason game, the first game obviously
is the most important game. You know, that's when your
starters and key top guys, key first guys in are
in the ballgame. And in that sense, you know, what
I want to see in the opener is I want
(32:24):
to see clean game. You know, you know I want
to see don't turn it over. I was really happy
yesterday we didn't have a lot of big players on offense,
but we didn't turn it over as well. Obviously this
year we want to see quarterback efficiency, defense, eliminate those
big plays and show us that you're going to be
(32:44):
a better tackling team. That's what That's what I'm looking for.
And with my starters, with my first groups, and like
I say, that first guy in type of situation. I
want to win that part of it. I you know,
you've gotten all the reps regardless of who you play
in that first quarter. Hopefully we do play the Ravens.
I always wanted to play them at their best. Is
that you want to go out and you're going to
(33:06):
win that. Now they're not going to play Lamar, but
they still have a really good team around them. So
you know, I expect to win from my top guys,
and I always put pressure on them. This is you know,
don't don't look at this as preseason. You go out
and win your part because you know, in about a
month we're playing for real. And then what my second game.
(33:26):
I always wanted my young kids like, keep it simple,
let them play. And what I always wanted to see
was and I would tell them to show us why
you're here. Okay, you were drafted or we brought you
in as a free agent or as an undrafted free
agent because you have certain skill sets that we really
(33:46):
like and we feel like you could fit. And so
what I want to see is I want you to
flash that talent, you know, you know, if it's getting
I want to see him kick and run, you know,
you know, a roller flasted yesterday with interceptions. You know,
it's the new guys. You want to see them flash,
you know, you know, you know, make a play. I
(34:07):
don't expect them to be perfect. They're gonna make mistakes,
you know. And I'm not concerned with the scoreboard. And
as you said, you know, I'm glad you alluded to
it because I started this when I was a coach.
I always wanted to say, how can I really evaluate
a preseason game because the scores are meaningless. I mean,
nobody will ever remember them. If you win because you
(34:30):
came from behind with you know, third stringers that aren't
going to be in the game, and you had a
great fourth quarter, you know you can you can put
that the refs because it's not going to matter. And
so what I've always done has had came up with
a little scoring system that I think is pretty accurate,
and I call it the realistic score, you know, the
real score in terms of evaluating your team. And what
(34:51):
I do is I give you points per quarter. The
old World Hockey League used to do this. I give
you seven points if you win the first quarter. If
it's tied, then it's seven to seven, then I give
you three points for who wins the second quarter, and
then two points for the third quarter, in one point
for the fourth quarter. And so what you're doing there
(35:14):
is you're weighing what your team really is good versus good,
and so if you don't win the first quarter, you
can't really win the game if you follow what I'm saying.
And that's why it's seven three, two one in the
in the in the bottom three quarters only adds up
to six. So Corre, you know, it puts a real premium.
But I think if you follow that through the preseason,
(35:35):
you're gonna have a much better view of what your
team really is.
Speaker 1 (35:38):
Well said right there.
Speaker 2 (35:39):
We will follow that formula coming up tomorrow night against
the Baltimore Ravens. See what the realistic score from Rick
van Turry, what that ends up being, that is Rick
vent Turry rights there, and that's going to do it
for this week's edition here of Inside Football, recapping training
camp to this point, the joint practice with the Ravens.
Speaker 1 (35:58):
Rick, we miss you.
Speaker 2 (35:59):
Here on the road, There's no doubt about it, man,
but it's great to talk to you as always, no
matter the setting.
Speaker 3 (36:03):
Here.
Speaker 2 (36:04):
Have a great rest of your week and we'll talk
to you over the weekend and recap what we see
on Thursday night here in this preseason opener.
Speaker 3 (36:10):
Absolutely, and you and I, You and I are going
to have a great season analyzing this team and talking
about this team both in games and during the weekend.
So I'm really excited about that.
Speaker 1 (36:20):
No doubt about that. The train keeps on rolling.
Speaker 3 (36:23):
Man.
Speaker 2 (36:23):
We're going to tap into that brain of yours each
and every Wednesday here on the podcast that is the
great Rick Van Turrey. And reminder, in terms of programming
for game day, Thursday's game starts at seven. You can
watch it locally television wise in Indianapolis, Fox fifty nine
and the NFL Network has it as well. And then
on radio, our coverage is going to start at four
(36:44):
o'clock Eastern time the Colts pregame huddle on our flagship
station ninety three five one oh seven five the Fan.
Then at six pm we bring you countdown to kickoff
on the fan also ninety seven to one Hank FM
and Indy and all over the Colts Radio networked and
at seven pm it's Colts and Ravens preseason opener for
both teams. Looking for a good showing there, especially in
(37:05):
the first quarter. Like Rick Ventury laid out, hope you
can watch, Hope you can listen on Thursday night. If not,
we'll have a full recap of everything you missed right
here on colts dot com and the Colts podcast channel.
Speaker 1 (37:17):
I'm Matt Taylor for Rick Ventury.
Speaker 2 (37:18):
Thanks for listening to Inside Football everybody, and we will
talk to you next week.
Speaker 1 (37:22):
You're on the podcast. So long
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