Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
The Colts' 30-27 loss to the Jaguars in London yesterday was a football abomination. Blame the body clocks all you want, but in shipping an AFC South matchup overseas, the NFL showcased the worst of its product. A sloppy affair full of dumpoffs to running backs late in the down, sacks, and runs that never had a chance.We've come to expect this from the Jaguars, the NFL's recurring rebuilding project that's actually a version of a Larry Burns joke. But after a year in the shadows, this was supposed to be the year that Indianapolis reclaimed the AFC South. After all, they have the best young quarterback in the NFL, right? Can't every good quarterback make up for the team around them? It's certainly what Luck did in his first couple of seasons in the league.Luck's career has been derailed not only by the injuries but by his boss, Colts owner Jim Irsay. Irsay is the one who decided to keep the combustible combination of Chuck Pagano and Ryan Grigson together after the 8-8 fall last year, despite all accounts that Pagano would be fired. Even when the Colts reportedly wanted him out years ago—before they knocked off dead-armed Peyton Manning in the 2014 playoffs—Indianapolis brought him back because "the players rallied behind him."If there's one thing that Pagano has proven over the past few years, it's that he's a dud of a game theory coach. He believes in establishing the run to a fault. He's frequently given up on fourth down on his opponent's side of the field, often with hilarious results. He believes in his players sure, but sometimes that's not a good thing. For instance, earlier this year when he left plenty of time on the clock against the Lions because he "believed" the defense that had given up 32 points already was going to stop Detroit when it counted. That's the kinda stuff that will make your defense rally around you and also make you lose games. Pagano is a terrific leader of men, but that's only half the recipe for being a good NFL coach.As for Grigson, he inherited a team with bad depth, and has had no real solution to the problem. You might find the odd scrapheap guy having a decent season, but his drafts have been bad. Nobody could have done anything but pick Luck No. 1 overall. Outside of that I'd give him credit for wideouts T.Y. Hilton and Donte Moncrief, and tight end Dwayne Allen, even though Allen has been perpetually hurt and Moncrief is currently hurt. The fact that stopgap guys like linebacker Erik Walden and corner Antonio Cromartie can immediately start here with no real challengers says it all. Safety Mike Adams is 35 and has started for this team for three straight seasons.Luck had a bad season last year when he was clearly hurt. The bloom has come off the rose a bit for him recently. He does invite a bit too much pressure at times in the current flow of the offense, but he's still a great quarterback. It's the rest of the organization that's holding the Colts back. Normally you'd point the finger at the coach or the general manager, or both. But the Colts had their chance to clean house. The finger needs to be pointed at the owner.