Caldwell "under evaluation", expects to hire a GM before making a final decision on the coaching staff.

JasonLaCanforaJason La Canfora


Irsay says he has final say on big decisions, like first overall pick and Peyton Manning's contract. "That's the way it has to be." ...

problems over the future of the franchise?
will they draft Luck or not with this news?

just maybe the owner is dedicated to Peyton?

To me it seems like Irsay is hitching his horse to the Manning wagon. That to me says he will probably trade the #1 pick for a buttload of picks and try to rebuild the team. Although everyone thinks the world of Luck, trading him is better for Indy long term. It is clear that they have a serious lack of talent across the board and need help. To assume they can get away with it by having Luck like they did with Manning might be a stretch. Even though Luck seems like a sure thing, until he proves it there is no guarantee. I still hope we make a play for Luck.

Manning is not the greatest ever. Unitas was a better QB than Manning and is the greatest QB of all time.

Honestly I didn't get anything out of it that he picked Manning over Luck. It sounded like a Chris Polian problem to me. Irsay was very complimentary of Bill but didn't say much about Chris and kept talking about the overall future direction of the franchise. Also mentioned how Bill was close to retirement.

He also answered a question about finding a new GM along the lines of when you have a chance to acquire a great pillar for an organization, like a GM, coach, or QB, you have to be aggressive and go get them. Also said he couldn't answer if Manning would ever play again.

Meh

IndyStarSports Indy Star Sports
Irsay: "...We're interested in greatness, not going 9-7 and falling back."



Be nice to hear this outta of Hunt.

Clark is more worried about how he can skim $30 mil off the players side again next year

I guess Suck 4 Luck didn't turn out so good for them.


I still think there is a good chance they trade the Luck pick if Manning is healthy.

If I were Reggie Wayne I'd GTFO now and req a trade.

He is a free agent.

LMAO

Do you also think there could be another Favre-Rodgers situation unfolding?

I could see something along those lines.

http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/74...unned-decision

Stan Kroenke said somrthing similar today to Bernie Miklasz of the Post-Dispatch.


Sadly, our owner is probably sitting in Dallas thinking we're not that far away after beating the likes of Tim Tebow, Curtis Painter, Caleb Hanie, Donovan McNabb, Kyle Boller - and having Phillip Rivers go full reerun needing a chip-shot FG to win.

Jeff Fisher will have more success in St. Louis or wherever he goes than Romeo in KC.

Should Hunt fire Pioli and bring in Polian?

:thumb: Nothing in that interview shows Peyton as anything other than an intelligent team leader and classy guy. Behind closed doors when the media isn't present could very well be a different story. Eli and Archie aren't doing Peyton any favors with public relations.

If his severence package includes the no. one pick I'm in
Posted via Mobile Device

I'm thinking Manning would come with Polian.

Why not? Polian has a track record of success. Pioli's success is questionable.

Link? I've yet to read a quote from any reliable source outside sourpuss fans personal opinions.

The Clark is cheap mantra is the battle cry of the simple minded.

I understand the frustrations with Lamar, he was basically keeping the seat warm the last 5 years or so.

Clark has fired Peterson, spent big $ on a GM, right or wrong in choice, paid big $ to a coach and coordinators and also fired said HC and will have to pay him $3MM to sit at home.

He paid DJ, Hali, JC, Flowers, and Succop (lol) this season alone.

He paid Orton $2.6MM to start 3 games and ride the pine for 3.

We have spent real $ the last few years well over the $100MM mark per year even with a young team yet people get hung up on salary cap $ rather than cash spent, which is hilarious because you don't want to be bumping the salary cap ever.

But it's easy and simple to say Clark is cheap or we would have signed ummmmmmm that guy who cost a bunch of $ that kicked ass, his name is ummmmmmmmmmm, shit you know what I mean.

Hopefully this means they cut Manning..

Difficult choices for all teams and Manning..

If you are Manning, do you retire or see it out with another team if your neck actually gets healthy..

If you are other teams close, do you get in a bidding war or throw a 3rd rounder to Indy to obtain his rights and pay him the jack anyway??

Yet they were waaaaay under the cap..

It is not simple as both are saying, but there is some truth to it... Clark if he were as smart as some want to say would of used that money to sign a couple more guys, Bowe/Carr this year... Well that is if he plans on keeping them.. Now, you just have less leeway next year if you plan on to pay them..

Why is there less leeway next year? What supports that logic?

The cap has jack and shit to do with it and Carr and Bowe haven't walked have they?

They spent well over $100MM in cash this year. Wake up and use fact instead of regurgitated internet fan wisdom. There is no correlation between $ spent and SB victories.

The Packers, Steelers and Patriots don't just hand out $$$.

Who were the Chiefs gonna sign who would have been worth it? Its not wise to spend money just to spend money. Its not like the Chiefs didnt go out and sign any free agents.

Clark's not cheap, he just (until very recently) spends it poorly.

There isn't anyone who cost a bunch of $ that would have made the difference.

All the issues fall on Pioli and his personnel decisions, we didn't blow the season because Clark wouldn't spend another $5MM on back up players we needed for depth as if Pioli was like "Piscatelli is all you will let me buy, I need to sign ............"

If you think about it Lamar was probably worse.

Chester McGlockton, Carlton Gray (lmao), Grbac, Kendrell Bell, etc........

How did Manning hurt his neck again?

Q: Was there any urgency with the fan attendance recently dwindling?

HUNT: “That really didn’t play into the decision. Obviously, we’re interested in building a championship team here and I know that our fans will respond to a winning football team. The decision was really guided by the fact that now is the time that we need to start the search for the GM of the future.”

Cassel, Orton for starters...

Barry Richardson...

Like Barry is making big $ nor would his replacement. It's not about $ its about stupid.

Clark Hunt isn't cheap guy he made only tried to make those firefighters participating in the 9-11 ceremony pay for their ticket same with the parking nazis.

You are an embarrassment to the human race if you think that Clark directly made any decision similar to those.

JFC

Derrick Johnson got top dollar
Tamba Hali got top dollar
Jamaal Charles got what used to be top dollar til Tennessee went full reerun.
Brandon Flowers got top dollar
Scott Pioli got top dollar
Charlie Weis got top dollar
Romeo Crennel got top dollar
Matt Cassel got top dollar
Ryan succop got top dollar
Clark Hunt gave 125 million toward the stadium upgrade
Steve Breaston got big money

FFS some of you guys...

I'm getting really tired of people trying to get personal when someone gives an opinion. Clark Hunt doesn't give a **** about you those people making those decisions represent Clark Hunts franchise.

ha ha

yes, possible

but the general consensus is that Luck doesn't need to sit for 3 years to be ready to go and all you would be doing is delaying his takeover. Also Manning is still playing at a high level so IF HE'S HEALTHY then you probably don't want to waste his playing years.

Manning uses too much cap space for the team upgrade in free agency too much. By using the 1st round pick on Luck you're basically saying that Manning is a lame duck QB and you are planning for the future. I just don't see how they do that with a guy that is as revered and productive as Manning.

You can't sit Luck
You can't flush Manning's productive years

:shrug:

If Manning is healthy i still think you have to trade the pick or trade Manning

If you don't want people on the Internet to call you stupid, stop saying stupid things.

Simple as that.

Whoa.

I can get very personal with you if you'd like. Judging by some of the things you've shared with us you're no rocket scientist, infact you might be closer to a deadbeat.

Ever considered taking your own advice? You speak out of your ass all the time. It was so embarrassing for the Chiefs they had to release a statement and walk bout charging the fire fighters.

Get personal.

I have NOTHING to hide.

I'm pretty much an open book...if people want to know something, they can ask.

I think it's ****ing hilarious that you complain about people getting personal in their responses to your dumbassery, even though that hasn't happened, and then turn around and make a dumbass threat like that.

Child, please.

So you think Clark Hunt has no idea what's going on with his business?

Link? I want to see a link with a credible source stating that Clark refuses to invest his personal cash on players that make this team better. You know what you say isn't true because he's paid top dollar on multiple key positions and coaches. If the right guy was available, and Pioli asked Clark for the necessary cash, I guaran-damn-tee you Clark would sign the contract before the ink dries.

I was speaking about charging the fire fighters. As for Clark refusing to invest personal cash into the team just look where they are salary cap wise. Been at the bottom pretty much since he's taken over.

Clark Hunt owns a ****ton of companies and businesses.

His family are billionaires.

When you are in a position of power like that, you hire people to do a job and let them do it.

If you think Clark Hunt makes the call on something as minor as a few hundred dollars worth of tickets and would chose to make those types of decisions, I don't know what to tell you.

Yeah, actually I do.

You're a dumbass.

Those people making the decisions represent his franchise. It's not a good look and makes him look cheap.

You're a deadbeat.

They are right at the cash cap.

Just because they aren't like most teams and have a lot of dead money, doesn't mean we haven't spent the cash.

They have spent almost 120 million in cash this year on players.

The fact they aren't close to the regular cap means they are managing the cap in an efficient manor for future success.

They are spending the cash in frontloading these deals so that we can continue to work with space once the cap floor is in place.

What part of that doesnt make a lot of sense and needs further clarification?

Good point. Luck is a lot more polished and NFL ready than Rodgers was coming out of college. Which means he could start right away. And Manning is still playing at a high level, so......It's a bit of a difficult situation like that.

I could see it happening only if Luck doesn't mind sitting it out and learning behind one of the best. Which would extremely benefit his game. In fact, I think it would be a very wise choice if he does do such a thing.

So much so their best CB will be hitting the market?

Verifiable facts about me:

I outright own my house. Don't owe a cent.
I work for a retailer for Directv and Dishnetwork and work 6 days a week to hopefully retire early and have always worked more than most people.
I drive a brand new Nissan Frontier crew cab 4x4 and will own it in half the time it should take to do so.

Yeah, I'm a deadbeat.

Fool

Even fat ass Gretz thinks Clark is cheap. Maybe the people that don't are the dumbasses. People need to wake up and open their eyes

Quote:

I don’t understand Clark Hunt’s decision to dock the pay of the little people around his franchise because of the lockout. In the last two years, Hunt has sliced more than three dozen employees, almost all among the longest tenured people in the building. Plus, we know that over the last two seasons the Chiefs have been among the handful of teams with the lowest payrolls in the league…..the vault has been snapped shut for the last three years. No doubt, some of that was done in anticipation of the lockout. Take the money saved by firing all those long-term Chiefs employees, along with the money not spent on free agents, plus the money not spent to pay workout bonuses and Hunt should have a nice little lockout nest egg to see him through a lockout created by the owners. Instead, he’s cutting the salaries of secretaries and other low-pay employees, and taking even larger slices from scouts and coaches who make more money and for the most part give up their lives in doing their jobs for the franchise. That’s some loyalty being shown everyone in the building.

Gretz is suppose to be on Peterson's dime
doesn't mean what he says isn't true, but....

I don't give a shit about you. Deadbeat might be a poor choice of words you're certainly a power tool though.

Cash cap

30% rule

If he isn't offered the moon, he will re-sign in March.

Saying they spent $100 million this year a bold faced lie. They may have signed contracts worth $100 million over the life of those contracts, but they haven't spent $100 million this year. The Chiefs in August were $32 million under a personal cap of $99.5 million.

We started the year with a spending figure of 85 million or so.

Cassel had a 7.5 million dollar bonus that counts toward the cash cap

Tamba signed a deal averaging 12 million per year over 5 years that had to have a pretty big upfront bonus (though, I don't think it was reported)

Flowers signed a long term deal averaging 10 million per year and a lot of guaranteed money...surely a signing bonus of significant amount was included.

Shit, even Succop got a few million dropped into his account.

Still think we spent less than 100 million?

How about less that 110 million?

This article was published on INDYSTAR.COM on Sunday November 6, 2011. The only way to read the story, is here:

Bob Kravitz - Sports columnist for The Indianapolis Star makes a strong case for firing Bill and Chris Polian. His story clearly was a hit piece among the national media. In an earlier article, Kravitz touches on nepotism in the organization.



The Indianapolis Star

Who's to blame for 0-8 Colts? Chris Polian, for one

Bob Kravitz

November 6, 2011 ET

If I'm properly reading between the lines, Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay is more committed to staying the course with the Family Polian than he is coach Jim Caldwell.

Asked this week about both, Irsay thought it was "pretty radical'' to even ask the question about the Polians' future, but when asked about Caldwell, he said, in part, "When it comes to changes and Jim's status, it's something that eight games going forward, more will be revealed. This situation is always changing. But it's really going to be always what's best to give us a chance to win."

Which leads me to this question: What has Chris Polian done to assure his long-term security?

I've spoken to several former Colts people in recent weeks, and while none of them will go on the record -- many have non-disclosure agreements and fear public comment will hurt their NFL job prospects -- virtually all of them told me Chris Polian has been a toxic force who has brought this franchise to its knees for reasons other than Peyton Manning's injury.

This may be Chris Polian's first full year with complete control over the team's daily operations, but since he started moving up the organizational ladder in the early 2000s for no apparent reason other than being a Polian, he has been instrumental in hastening the exits of scouts and assistant coaches who led the Colts to previous greatness.

The following men were here in 2004 and are no longer here in 2011.

Scout Tom Gamble, gone after the 2004 season.

Scout Paul Roell, out after the 2006 draft.

Di*rector of college scouting Mike Butler, out after the 2006 draft.

Scout David Caldwell, out in 2007.

Coordinator of player personnel John Becker, out in 2008.

Area scout Ryan Cavanaugh, out in 2008.

Assistant general manager/scouting Dom Anile, pushed out in 2009. Anile was a precious resource as one of the few men who would tell Bill Polian things he didn't want to hear.

A fairly direct line can be drawn between some of those departures and the decline in the quality of the Colts' drafts.

In 2007, they drafted (in order): Anthony Gonzalez, Tony Ugoh, Daymeion Hughes, Quinn Pitcock, Brannon Condren, Clint Session, Roy Hall, Michael Coe and Keyunta Dawson.

In 2008: Mike Pollak, Philip Wheeler, Jacob Tamme, Marcus Howard, Tom Santi, Steve Justice, Mike Hard, Pierre Garcon and Jamey Richard.

In 2009: Donald Brown, Fili Moala, Jerraud Powers, Austin Collie, Terrance Taylor, Curtis Painter, Pat McAfee, Jaimie Thomas.

In 2010: Jerry Hughes, Pat Angerer, Kevin Thomas, Jacques McClendon, Brody Eldridge, Ricardo Mathews, Kavell Conner, Ray Fisher.

Then there are the longtime assistant coaches who left, in some part because of troubled relationships with the Polians, specifically Chris.

Howard Mudd, the offensive line coach, who left Indy after the 2009 season, returned to the Colts briefly, retired after the Super Bowl loss and then came out of retirement to join Philadelphia. Mudd was thinking about leaving for some time, but when Bill Polian blamed the offensive line for the Super Bowl loss, he knew he wasn't welcome to return.

Gene Huey, the running backs coach, who was shown the door in 2010.

Tom Moore, the offensive coordinator, who was gracelessly cast aside without notice or fanfare after the 2010 season. Over time, Moore was cut off at the knees, his voice no longer audible.

Tell me, what has Chris Polian actually done besides win the genetic lottery? If the Colts were doing a national search for a new general manager right now, would Irsay even glance at Chris Polian if his name was Schwartz or Smith?

All Colts decisions are made by the entire front office, but I'm told the Ugoh draft, the decision to get rid of Ryan Lilja, the failures to reconstruct the offensive line, the doomed Corey Simon signing, all of them had Chris Polian's fingerprints all over them.

Give him credit for what appears, at least now, to be a pretty solid 2011 draft class. Before they got hurt, Anthony Castonzo and Drake Nevis looked like keepers.

But beyond that?

As Chris' star rose in recent years, others in the organization bristled at what they viewed as clear nepotism. Bill would stroke his son in staff meetings, remind everybody what a huge impact he made. Meanwhile, scouts and others saw Chris getting raises and promotions without doing what they perceived to be the necessary legwork.

I can appreciate Irsay's commitment to continuity. On the face of it, there wouldn't seem to be a reason for panic, even after a horrible season that was hastened, in large part, by Manning's injury.

But Irsay has to look as long and hard, and as critically, at Chris Polian and the Polian regime as he does his coaching staff.

It wasn't Caldwell who chose to start the season with a paper-thin secondary. It wasn't Caldwell who woke up one day and said, "Gosh, I'd really like to start the season with four offensive linemen who are either starting for the first time or playing a new position.'' It wasn't Caldwell who held on to Curtis Painter, then showed so little faith in the quarterback he went out and spent $4 million on Kerry Collins.

If Caldwell is going to be judged on this season after going 26-10 his first two years, shouldn't Chris Polian?


http://www.indystar.com/article/2011...ris-Polian-one

This story published on INDYSTAR.COM by Bob Kravitz you can read online.

Kravitz: Colts owner Jim Irsay followed his gut and made the right decision in firing Bill Polian
10:14 PM, Jan. 2, 2012

Kravitz's columns where he pushes for the Colts to cut ties with Peyton Manning are interesting to read.

His column go up behind a paywall after a few days.

Kravitz is an award-winning sports columnist : http://www.indystar.com/

IndyStarSportsIndy Star Sports

Reporter Mike Chappell expects Colts to retain Jim Caldwell, announcement tomorrow or Wednesday. http://indy.st/AcKVaV

How can they keep Caldwell, when there's a great football mind like Haley just sitting there???

ROFL

OTOH

It could mean that Peyton is staying?

BossChief is worth 100 billays. Slow your roll.

Mike Chappell of the Indianapolis Star expects the Colts to announce by mid-week that they will retain Jim Caldwell as head coach.
Chappell admits it's "just a feeling I have," but retaining Caldwell would seem to align with the Colts' public stance that they will pay Peyton Manning's $28 million option bonus and stay the course. The idea would be to maintain some semblance of continuity while at least making one more playoff run. Caldwell is 26-22 in 48 regular-season games as Colts head coach. It was widely expected that Indianapolis would move on after appointing Ryan Grigson as GM, but owner Jim Irsay has apparently convinced Grigson that keeping Caldwell (and Manning) would be in the organization's best interest.


So are they still drafting Luck, or might they let him go to the highest bidder?

With Peyton at QB, does it really matter who HC is?

Way to try and stir old shit.

ProFootballWklyPro Football Weekly

RT @nflcolts: The Indianapolis Colts have released Jim Caldwell of his duties as head coach of the Indianapolis Colts.

Wow well it looks like there are no sacred cows in Indy. This has me very curious as to what Indy is going to do with Manning/Luck. :hmmm:

Adam Schefter @AdamSchefter 5m
Colts announced they fired Jim Caldwell.

Caldwell will be devastated, I'm sure. Or just stare blankly.

They waited for Fisher to signed sealed & delivered first ROFL
& they all ready have him connected to the Chiefs' OC job -google

Mark Clayton today said Colts keep Manning if Manning shows enough progress by the time his 428 million comes due AND draft Luck. Said no way Irsay wants to be the guy who lets go of a Peyton who can still play or passes on Andrew Luck.

Month old news.

Yes but it seemed noteworthy that clayton would say so today in light of recent developments.