Colts fire coach Reich, name Saturday interim

One day after one of the Indianapolis Colts‘ worst offensive performances in recent memory, the team fired fifth-year head coach Frank Reich.

The Colts named Jeff Saturday as their interim head coach. Saturday, 47, a six-time Pro-Bowl center who played 13 seasons for the Colts and is currently an ESPN analyst, has been a consultant for the team and is in its Ring of Honor. Saturday also was head coach for the Hebron Christian Academy in Dacula, Georgia, for three seasons.

The Colts have scheduled a news conference for Monday evening with owner Jim Irsay, general manager Chris Ballard and Saturday to discuss the coaching change.

Although Saturday was hired to be the interim coach from outside the organization, the move does not violate the Rooney Rule, which requires teams to interview minority candidates for head coaching vacancies, the NFL told ProFootballTalk.com.

“The rule does not apply to an interim head coach during the season,” league spokesman Brian McCarthy told the website in an email. “It does apply after the conclusion of the team’s season. The club would have to fulfill the rule before hiring a full-time coach.”

The Colts’ 26-3 loss to the New England Patriots on Sunday was their third straight defeat. It was the latest example of their deepening offensive challenges that are beginning to appear insurmountable despite a recent quarterback change from Matt Ryan to Sam Ehlinger and last week’s firing of offensive coordinator Marcus Brady.

Reich, 60, was 40-33-1 (.547) in the regular season and had a 1-2 record in two playoff appearances. It was a tenure defined by incessant turnover at quarterback; the Colts had different opening-day starters in each of Reich’s five seasons, as the franchise has struggled to find a quarterback to fill the shoes of Andrew Luck, who retired before the 2019 season. The tenures of the past two — Carson Wentz and Ryan — ended in ugly fashion (Wentz was traded after one season and Ryan benched after seven starts).

The Colts have been unraveling since the end of last season, when Indianapolis lost its final two games despite needing just one victory to clinch a postseason berth. The 2021 finale, a 26-11 loss to the 3-14 Jacksonville Jaguars, was a particularly unsightly performance that drew Irsay’s ire and prompted him to recommit to fixing the problems that led to the poor finish.

Ultimately, 2022 has not brought markedly different results.

Offensively, the Colts (3-5-1) are in the worst shape of Reich’s tenure. After Sunday’s game, the longtime NFL quarterback and Super Bowl-winning offensive coordinator with the 2017 Philadelphia Eagles alluded to the frustration of the Colts being so inept on offense, his area of expertise.

“Offensive performance, that’s why I was brought here. That’s my responsibility,” he said. “So, we’ve got the players. We’ve got the players that are plenty good enough. I have to do a better job. It starts with me on offense. I need to do a better job getting the guys ready to play, putting guys in a good position to win and having answers when we face problems.”

Lately, there have been no answers.

The Colts failed to convert any of their 14 third-down attempts Sunday, tied for the worst single-game mark in the NFL in the past 30 years. Indianapolis generated 121 yards of total offense, the team’s lowest output since 1997 and the lowest of Reich’s tenure by 84 yards.

Reich gained a reputation during his time in Indianapolis for being able to bring the team back from the brink. The Colts have been notoriously slow starters, but they have consistently rallied late in seasons. The Colts started 1-5 in 2018 but finished 10-6 and made the playoffs. Last year, they started 1-4 before rallying to 9-6, only to lose those final two regular-season games.