On Wednesday, Indianapolis Colts general manager Chris Ballard sat down and had a conversation with the media. Ballard spoke about some of the impressive young guys on the roster and the tough cuts he had to make, but the majority of the conversation focused on running back Jonathan Taylor and his messy situation with the team. In true Colts fashion, Andrew Luck was brought up, because there can’t be a conversation about Colts football without bringing up Andrew Luck.
When Ballard was asked if he felt that not having Taylor on the field would stunt the growth of rookie quarterback Anthony Richardson, he expressed that he didn’t think it would hurt Richardson, and then countered with a question, asking, “Did it stunt Andrew Luck's growth without a special back?” After asking the question, Ballard shrugged as if he had proven his point. However, NFL Twitter was quick to let Ballard know that response didn’t help his case at all.
Chris Ballard criticized for Andrew Luck statement
Fans from all over the NFL world were coming at Ballard, and all for different reasons. Some argued that comparing Luck out of college and a rookie Anthony Richardson was foolish, because of their drastically different levels of readiness. Others argued that an elite running back could’ve helped Luck, and led to him taking less damage. There was also a group of fans who felt Ballard shouldn’t even use Luck as a success story since the franchise failed him.
The statement just set Ballard up to be the punching bag of NFL Twitter for the day, but Ballard probably doesn’t care. He doesn’t have time to care, as he’s focused on building a competent roster that will support his rookie quarterback. That includes repairing the relationship with Jonathan Taylor. Ballard may not think that Taylor’s absence will stunt Richardson’s growth, but he knows that Taylor’s presence will make life easier for Richardson.
Taylor’s presence makes everyone’s life easier, and the Colts a better team. Ballard understands that, and that’s why he’s determined to keep the running back in Indianapolis as long as possible. While the easy way to accomplish that is just paying Taylor, the Colts have chosen a more complicated path, that could result in Taylor never playing for Indianapolis again. Only time will tell if Richardson will ever be able to benefit from handing the ball off to Jonathan Taylor.