Week 1 NFL conspiracy report: looking for in depth film breakdown Cheap Joe Haeg Jersey , or one of my opponent scouting reports, or even a Colts-centric article you’ve arrived at the wrong place. Welcome to the weekly conspiracy report where I, Chris Shepherd, will examine nefarious plots around the league and expose them for what they are. Now sure, I won’t be able to provide you any “proof” and no I don’t have any sources (that you know of). What follows should be treated purely as entertainment that include plausible (and not so plausible) scenarios that no one employed by NFL teams would ever admit to, I accept no responsibility for anything you do with the information I’m about to give you. In fact I accept no responsibility for anything you’re about to read, at all.In this inaugural expose of NFL conspiratorial glory we’re going to take a look at Indianapolis Colts general manager Chris Ballard and his plan to destroy the 2018 Colts defense. Theory: Chris Ballard has intentionally destroyed the 2018 Indianapolis Colts defense. There are some important questions that need to be answered so we might get to the bottom of the mystery that has been the building of this defense and I intend to answer them.The Colts added almost no one in their defensive backfield despite having the cap space and plethora of picks, why?Did Chris Ballard really believe he could trust Quincy Wilson, Malik Hooker and a ragtag group of DB’s and make something special? Of course not, no one could believe that. He didn’t add anyone in the draft despite having 11 picks and even if you look at the Colts DB’s and you like them more than you would like to be a Browns fan, you have to admit there is very little depth. If any one of the starters is injured it’s going to create a huge issue for the defense and with so many resources available, not adding talent seems inexplicable. Having cut John Simon and Jonathan Hankins the defensive line is younger but it sure looks worse, why cut two of your best defensive linemen?We’ve heard that both guys were a bad scheme fit and in Hankins’ case he was a bad fit due to the money he was owed, which is amazing considering the Colts will play nearly $50 million under the cap this season. So why cut two guys who have played well? Is it to give young guys more playing time? That could be, but you don’t cut a good player so you can give a worse player his spot, not unless you’re planning on being bad. To go one step further, we know the defensive backfield is suspect. So, to help them out it’s common knowledge you should have a good pass rush. If the Colts aren’t planning on having a bad defense why did they cut Hankins who could push the pocket inside and Simon who was an effective, active, second-effort kind of pass rusher? Why not have all hands on deck if you aren’t planning on giving up a lot of points?The linebackers were the weakest position group of the 2017 Colts, yet the only real draft capital was spent on Darius Leonard, why?Okay, so the Colts didn’t add any real help in the defensive backfield, they cut a couple of the best players from their defensive line, surely that means they must have focused on adding talent to their linebacking corps, right?Wrong. The Colts went out and drafted Darius Leonard, I assume because they knew they couldn’t actually start Antonio Morrison again without starting a riot. After Leonard, there was nothing more than two seventh round draft picks and undrafted free agents. It’s almost like Chris Ballard didn’t want the defense to be good, but why?Why would Chris Ballard want the defense to be bad?Simple, this guy:Thomas J. Russo-USA TODAY SportsAnd also this guy:Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty ImagesNo not Reggie Wayne. Chris Ballard had a lot of problems going into 2018 but his biggest problem probably doesn’t seem like a problem to most people, but considering the objective given to him by Jim Irsay, a healthy Andrew Luck presents a real problem. See, you don’t want Luck to get hurt again, you need him for the future, but you can’t add all of the defensive pieces you need in a single offseason. So what’s a guy to do? Well you protect your quarterback better than he’s ever been protected and you throw your defense in the garbage Cheap Darius Leonard Jersey , but why?Jim Irsay said the following:So Chris Ballard had three major problems: The first, Jim Irsay wants to win multiple championships and he’s willing to lose (to get better draft picks one would assume) to get there.The second, he just fired one losing coach, the only way he can retain his new hire is if he loses early, you can’t have a coach go 8-8 and then 4-12 in his first two seasons without moving on from him, not for a franchise with only 4 losing seasons in 20 years. The third, Andrew Luck if healthy, with even a below average supporting cast and defense gets you to 10 wins, 11 if Bruce Arians is on your coaching staff. So how does Chris Ballard ensure he can accomplish his boss’ objective of multiple Lombardy trophies via a few losing seasons, while not firing his newly hired coach and trying to account for Luck’s greatness? Simply put, he had to build a historically bad defense. Fitting The Pieces TogetherOne man is going to take the heat for the defense that takes the field for the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday but Chis Ballard didn’t have much of a choice. An Andrew Luck led offense might score 30 points per game this year and Ballard needed a defense that would give up 32. So Colts fans, when the defense goes out and plays worse than any defense in the 35 year history of the Indianapolis Colts, we should all place blame where it belongs, on the shoulders of a single player, too good to have his team lose without extraordinary measures:Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images*Once again, please note this article is purely meant for entertainment and the conversation it can create. Chris Shepherd may or may not actually believe anything above. By looking at current events through alternative viewpoints we hope to come away with a better understanding of what we’re seeing by considering something we’ve never considered. Worst case? We have a lot of fun with conspiracy theories and turn on old episodes of the X-Files while wearing our tin-foil hats. Quarterback play has dominated the fantasy football scene during the first three weeks, which, in turn, has not led to fruitful results from the majority of running backs who were selected long before the first passer came off the boards.Outside of Todd Gurley and Alvin Kamara, most of the high-end backs need a fantasy wake-up call, and several should be able to answer in Week 4.That being said, don't expect the grip that quarterbacks_and the receivers who have benefited from them_have on fantasy leagues to slip this week, especially with a handful of passers sitting on favorable matchups that will keep their strong starts afloat.START: Matt Ryan, QB, Falcons: Looking more like the fantasy beast he was in 2016, Ryan has thrown for 646 yards and seven touchdowns in his last two games. The rise of rookie receiver Calvin Ridley and the ability to finally convert red zone visits into touchdowns have been key factors for Ryan, who gets a Bengals defense that allows 270 passing yards per game and is 25th in fantasy points allowed to opposing quarterbacks. It's also another home game, which is where Ryan has been devastating the past two weeks.SIT: Carson Wentz, QB, Eagles: Half of the Eagles' 120 passing attempts have gone to either Nelson Agholor or Zach Ertz. Agholor owns 75 percent of the team's targets to wide receivers. Add the fact that the Titans are 11th in pass defense and the numbers don't favor Wentz in his second game back into the lineup. Don't expect too many downfield shots from Wentz — he has no receiver to take long shots. Philadelphia has just five completions of better than 20 yards.START: T.Y. Hilton, WR, Colts: Hilton would be among the highest-paid receivers in the game if he could face the Texans' defense on a weekly basis. In 12 career games against Houston, Hilton has 63 catches for 1,131 yards and nine touchdowns while recording five 100-yard games. This should be the game Andrew Luck and the Colts ditch the short, safe stuff and improve upon a 7.8 yards per catch average.SIT: Isaiah Crowell Cheap Quincy Wilson Jersey , RB, Jets: Yes, Crowell did score a pair of short touchdowns in last week's loss to the Browns, but that doesn't hide the fact he has rushed for 69 yards on 28 carries over his last two games. That 2.4 yards per carry isn't going to get much better against a Jaguars run defense that is eighth in fantasy points allowed to opposing running backs and has given up one rushing touchdown.START: Trey Burton, TE, Bears: The Buccaneers defense has been shredded by the Eagles and Steelers tight ends in consecutive weeks, and while Burton has been disappointing so far, he gets a great chance to rebound. Chicago is 29th in yards per attempt (5.7) but need to take the gloves off quarterback Mitchell Trubisky as he lines up against a Tampa defense that has allowed a league-high 1,088 yards and 11 touchdowns through the air.SIT: Jordy Nelson, WR, Raiders: Last week's six catches for 173 yards against the Dolphins will likely be Nelson's high watermark for the season. It's easy to get sucked into believing Nelson is trending upward, but keep in mind that he had just five receptions for 53 yards in his first two games. The Browns are sixth in pass defense and have allowed just two touchdown tosses. With the kind of pressure quarterback Derek Carr will face, Oakland's passing game will be short-circuited.START: John Brown, WR, Ravens: The Steelers are one of three teams that have allowed at least 200 yards per game to opposing wide receivers. Brown has shown his big-play prowess with Baltimore, having recorded a reception of at least 29 yards in each game this season. He averages 18.5 yards per catch and won't need too many targets to put up big fantasy numbers against a Pittsburgh defense that has given up 15 completions of better than 30 yards.SIT: LeSean McCoy, RB, Bills: Shady is no longer a must-start caliber back. He's rushed for 61 yards on 16 carries and missed last week's win over the Vikings with a rib injury. McCoy plans on giving it a go, but it looks like the Bills are showing an increased commitment to Chris Ivory in what will be a favorable matchup against the Packers, who are 27th in rushing yards allowed. There will be mild affection for McCoy in PPR leagues, but it's time to accept the fact the wear and tear of a decade of excellence is starting to show on McCoy.START: Case Keenum, QB, Broncos: Held without a passing touchdown the last two games, Keenum gets a Chiefs defense that has allowed 363 yards per game and seven touchdowns. There is some risk in playing a quarterback on Monday night who is on a downward trend, but the Chiefs have shown no inclination toward bolstering their pass defense. A fast-paced game works into the strengths of Keenum, who has the receiving corps to light up Kansas City throughout the night.SIT: Dion Lewis, RB, Titans: After getting 24 touches in Week 1, Lewis has a combined 27 touches in the last two games. He has not been the PPR weapon he was with the Patriots, having been targeted just four times in the last two contests. Not having quarterback Marcus Mariota available has hurt Lewis' receiving production, and with Blaine Gabbert slated for at least one more start, Lewis is a huge risk, especially against an Eagles defense that has allowed a league-low 185 rushing yards in their first three games.