Colts Fire Head Coach Frank Reich After 3-5-1 Start, Jeff Saturday Named Interim
Less than 24 hours after a humiliating 26-3 loss to the New England Patriots, the Colts fired head coach Frank Reich.
“The offensive performance - that’s why I was brought here. That’s my responsibility.”
Colts’ head coach Frank Reich didn’t mince words in his postgame press conference Sunday after his squad suffered a 26-3 loss to the New England Patriots, where his offense gained just 121 yards - their lowest single-game total since 1997. Less than 24 hours later, it was announced via multiple reports that Indianapolis had fired the 60-year-old head coach.
The list of statistics to signify the Colts’ woes, especially on the offensive side, goes on and on. After Sunday’s effort that dropped them to 3-5-1, their scoring average per game fell to 14.7 points, dead last in the league. The coach’s “new toy”, QB Sam Ehlinger, was sacked 9 times in this week alone, and Indianapolis was 0/14 on third down. Reich, who had already appeared to be on the hot seat, shouldered both the blame and the consequences while at the helm of a stagnant team with poor playcalling.
Indianapolis hired Frank Reich in 2018 after his Super Bowl-winning performance as the offensive coordinator for the Eagles. That success clearly didn’t translate to his new team, as the Colts failed to get past the divisional round of the playoffs during his tenure, which ended with a record of 40-33-1. His time with the Colts began to come to a slow end when he “stuck his neck out” to bring QB Carson Wentz to Indianapolis in 2021 - a move that many fans had high expectations for after Wentz’s MVP-caliber season (before tearing his ACL in early December), which was coordinated by Reich. This move seemed to be the primary cause of an embarrassing late-season collapse in 2021, including a season-ending loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars, who finished the year at 3-14.
Similarly, the Colts were the heavy favorites to win a weak AFC South before this season, but poor offensive line play, injuries to stars like RB Jonathan Taylor and LB Shaquille Leonard, and inexplicable playcalling led to a 3-5-1 start. The Colts, in a move speculated to be heavily influenced by owner Jim Irsay, decided to solve one of those problems by pulling the plug on their playcaller.
Indianapolis named 47-year-old Jeff Saturday as interim head coach. Saturday played center for the Colts for 13 seasons, won a Super Bowl, was selected to 5 Pro Bowls, and is a member of the Colts’ Ring of Honor. He becomes the first person in NFL history to be named head coach without any coaching experience at either the NFL or collegiate level. Saturday takes over a team that has practically limitless potential and is starting to finally get healthy. He will make his Colts coaching debut Sunday afternoon when the Colts travel to Las Vegas to face the Raiders.
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