The Indianapolis Colts have fired head coach Frank Reich, parting ways with him following a disastrous 3-5-1 start and a looming playoff absence for the second consecutive season.
After just falling short of the NFL playoffs in 2021, Indianapolis traded Reich’s former quarterback Carson Wentz to the Washington Commanders. The Colts acquired veteran Matt Ryan, hoping he would provide some stability and leadership at the position.
- Frank Reich career record: 40-33-1 in the regular season, 1-2 in NFL playoffs
Instead, things progressively got worse for Indianapolis. After losing to the Tennessee Titans, Reich permanently benched Ryan and named Sam Ehlinger as the starting quarterback. When that didn’t spark one of the worse offenses in the NFL, Reich fired offensive coordinator Marcus Brady.
Following Sunday’s loss to the New England Patriots, owner Jim Irsay decided to fire Reich. The move comes a day after the Colts’ offense averaged just 2.0 yards per play and failed to convert any of their 14 third-down conversions.
As first reported by Adam Schefter of ESPN, Irsay has been fired with the team officially confirming the news shortly after reports broke.
Reich took over in 2018, only hired after Josh McDaniels backed out on the Colts. He kept many of the coaches who McDaniels planned to hire, including defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus.
Things got off to a promising start, with Indianapolis going 10-6 in Reich’s first season with Andrew Luck at quarterback. Seemingly on the verge of becoming a perennial Super Bowl contender, Luck retired before the 2019 season and the Colts’ offense never recovered.
The Colts will hold a press conference on Friday afternoon, with Irsay and general manager Chris Ballard expected to speak. Surprisingly, per Schefter, the Colts are hiring former Pro Bowl center Jeff Saturday as their interim coach.
Schefter is currently an NFL analyst for ESPN and a member of the Colts Ring of Honor. The only coaching experience the 47-year-old has is when he served as head coach for the Hebron Christian Academy football team in Georgia.
- Jeff Saturday high school coaching record: 20-16
During three seasons as a high school coach, Saturday’s teams went 20-16 with their beast season coming in 2019 when they went 8-5.