Indianapolis Colts

Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay was reportedly "hellbent" on hiring Jeff Saturday as the team's interim head coach despite members of the front office expressing concern.

Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reported Colts president Pete Ward and general manager Chris Ballard were among the executives who "expressed their reservations" about the widely criticized hiring.

Saturday, a member of the Colts' Ring of Honor, has no coaching experience beyond the high school level and was working at ESPN as an analyst before being hired Monday to replace Frank Reich.

The hire was roundly lambasted by fans and the media, with critics pointing out Saturday's inexperience and expressing frustration given the NFL's poor track record of hiring Black coaches and others from historically excluded groups.

"Never seen anything like it," an executive told Jeff Howe of The Athletic. "Will never see anything like it again."

Saturday spent 13 seasons with the Colts from 1999 to 2011 and was a six-time Pro Bowler. He was best known for being the center to Peyton Manning during the franchise's dominant offensive run in the 2000s.

Despite retiring nearly a decade ago, Saturday never served on an NFL staff before being hired as a head coach in Indianapolis. He went 20-16 in three seasons at Hebron Christian Academy in Georgia before resigning in 2020.

"Here's the deal, I'm completely comfortable in who I am as a man. I know I can lead men. I know I know the game of football and I'm passionate about it," Saturday told reporters Wednesday. "I have no fear about—are you as qualified as somebody else? I spent 14 years in the locker room. I went to the playoffs 12 times. I've got five dudes in the Hall of Fame that I played with. You don't think I've seen greatness? You don't think I've seen how people prepare, how they coach, how they GM, how they work?"

Irsay strongly defended his decision, saying he's "glad [Saturday] doesn't have any NFL experience."

"I'm glad he hasn't learned the fear that's in this league because it's tough for all of our coaches," Irsay said. "They're afraid. They go to analytics and it gets difficult. I mean, he doesn't have all that. He doesn't have that fear, and there was no other candidate."

There is no telling whether Saturday will be good at the job, but there's also no denying the optics are horrible. If the Colts turn their season around, Irsay will look like a genius. If not, the chorus of criticism will only grow louder.

The 3-5-1 Colts face the 2-6 Las Vegas Raiders on the road Sunday.

If any fantasy managers are still holding out hope for players on the Indianapolis Colts, here's some advice about how to handle the Nov. 30 trade deadline.

Among many stunning moves the Colts have made this season, then-head coach Frank Reich's announcement Oct. 24 that Sam Ehlinger would take over as the starting quarterback began a ripple effect that is turning into a tidal wave for the franchise.

The Colts seemed like they had a strong infrastructure around their quarterback, but that hasn't been the case. The offensive line has been a mess, which compounded issues for Matt Ryan before he was benched.

Ehlinger was an unknown taking over the offense. The 24-year-old was a sixth-round draft pick out of the University of Texas in 2021. His only regular-season experience prior to Week 8 this year came in three games last season in which he didn't throw a pass and rushed three times for nine yards.

Through his first two starts, Ehlinger looks like a second-year quarterback who was drafted in the sixth round. He has thrown for 304 yards with no touchdowns and one interception. The Colts had just 43 net passing yards in a Week 9 loss to the New England Patriots as Ehlinger threw for 103 yards but was sacked nine times.

Michael Pittman Jr.'s performance has fallen off a cliff since Ehlinger took over the offense. He has 75 yards on 10 catches in the past two games after averaging 79.2 yards and 7.3 receptions with Ryan from Weeks 1 to 7.

Jonathan Taylor has missed time with an ankle injury and hasn't been nearly as effective through six games in 2022 (88.8 average yards from scrimmage, one touchdown) as he was last season (2,171 yards from scrimmage, 20 touchdowns).

Taylor was the consensus No. 1 overall pick in fantasy drafts coming into the season. He's probably the only Colts player worth rostering in fantasy, but his value is only as an RB3/flex player because of how limited he's looked because of the ankle injury and how poor the offensive line has been.

Former NFL offensive lineman Joe Thomas sounded off Friday on the Indianapolis Colts' decision to hire Jeff Saturday as interim head coach.

Appearing on NFL Network's Good Morning Football, Thomas called Saturday's hiring "one of the most disrespectful things I've ever seen in my entire life."

Thomas' main point of contention is Saturday and Colts owner Jim Irsay likely didn't give enough consideration to the "commitment, the lifestyle and the experience that it takes" to be a coach of any kind in the NFL, let alone a head coach.

There have been many criticisms directed at Irsay for his decision to hire Saturday as Frank Reich's replacement for the rest of this season.

Perhaps the biggest issue that has been raised was the Colts' ability to skirt the Rooney Rule by bringing Saturday in on an interim basis.

Irsay attempted to dismiss the criticism during Monday's press conference by naming two former Black head coaches for the Colts.

"Tony Dungy, being in the Hall of Fame as the first African-American coach, and being followed by Jim Caldwell," Irsay told reporters. "When Tony took a leave of absence for a very unfortunate family situation, Jim Caldwell was our interim head coach. It was interim, just like this is."

The Colts were not obligated to interview minority candidates in this case because Saturday is an interim head coach hired during the season. They will have to interview minority candidates during the offseason before naming a full-time head coach.

Another significant issue is Saturday has no previous coaching experience at the college or NFL level. He did go 20-16 in three seasons as a head coach at a Georgia high school from 2017 to 2020.

Saturday had been working as an NFL analyst for ESPN prior to being named Colts interim head coach. The 47-year-old spent the first 13 years of his 14-year NFL career in Indianapolis. He was a six-time Pro Bowler, two-time All-Pro and was inducted into the Colts' ring of honor in 2015.

Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay and interim head coach Jeff Saturday talked during the team's 26-3 loss to the New England Patriots on Sunday, but it wasn't about the possibility that Saturday would replace Frank Reich.

Saturday told reporters at a press conference Wednesday that Irsay called him during the Week 9 game to ask why the Colts were giving up so many sacks to the Patriots defense.

"This wasn't a conversation about Frank," Saturday said.

The Colts fired Reich as their head coach and named Saturday as his replacement on an interim basis Monday. New England's defense sacked Colts quarterback Sam Ehlinger nine times in Sunday's loss.

Reich told Mike Chappell of Fox 59 that Irsay called him around 10:45 a.m. on Monday morning to let him know the Colts were making a coaching change.

Much has been made about how Saturday got the job as Indianapolis' interim head coach. The 47-year-old is one of the most beloved players in franchise history. He was a two-time first-team All-Pro selection and was part of their Super Bowl-winning team in 2006.

Aside from being a Colts icon, Saturday has no coaching experience at the college or NFL level. He did have a 20-16 record as a high school head coach at Hebron Christian Academy in Georgia.

During his introductory press conference Monday, Saturday told reporters that "shocked would be an understatement" to describe his reaction to getting the job.

"We had a conversation and it escalated quickly," Saturday said of the hiring process with Irsay. "He asked me and my wife. He told me he was going to meet with [general manager] Chris [Ballard] about it. As the day progressed, we finally came to a conclusion. It was a 12-hour whirlwind. It was a late call."

Irsay said during the same press conference he's "glad" Saturday doesn't have any NFL coaching experience.

"I’m glad he hasn’t learned the fear that’s in this league, because it’s tough for all our coaches. They’re afraid," he explained. "They go to analytics and it gets difficult."

It seems as if Irsay is making impulsive decisions during a disappointing season for the Colts. The Athletic's Zak Keefer reported Irsay was heavily involved in the decision to bench Matt Ryan for Ehlinger.

Irsay told ESPN's Chris Mortensen as recently as Oct. 30 he was giving no thought to firing Reich or general manager Chris Ballard.

"I'm in a great spot with Chris and Frank," Irsay said. "We're all re-energized with the move to Sam Ehlinger. Nothing is easy, but feel really good."

The Colts have lost Ehlinger's first two starts, and the offense scored a total of 19 points. They had 43 net passing yards against the Patriots.

Reich finished his tenure as Colts head coach with a 40-33-1 record and two playoff appearances in four-and-a-half seasons. They are in second place in the AFC South with a 3-5-1 record.

Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay is not happy with the narrative that the team is tanking the 2022 season after hiring Jeff Saturday as interim head coach despite his inexperience.

The Athletic's Bob Kravitz reported Tuesday that Irsay called him and Fox 59's Mike Chappell to fire back at those who believe the Colts have called it quits midway through the season.

"That's the most absurd thing I've ever heard, that we're tanking," Irsay said. "That's bulls--t. We're in this thing; 9-7-1 get us in, no question about it. … We're not tanking the season."

The Colts shocked the NFL world when they fired head coach Frank Reich on Monday and replaced him with Saturday, who has never coached beyond the high school level. The former center had been acting as a consultant to Indianapolis this season after playing 13 years with the Colts (14 overall) and making five Pro Bowls (six total). He has been an analyst for ESPN since 2013.

Saturday inherited a team without an offensive play-caller after offensive coordinator Marcus Brady's firing last week. The Colts also have questions at quarterback as veteran Matt Ryan has been benched in favor of second-year quarterback Sam Ehlinger.

Many believed starting Ehlinger was a sign Indianapolis was looking toward the future, but Irsay maintained the team still hopes to be competitive this year.

"Whoever says these things, that we're not playing Matt because [of an effort to tank], that's all bulls--t," Irsay said. "That’s not true. … We're going to do what it takes to win. I don't know who people think we are, they don't know us. We don't tank in Indianapolis."

To make matters more complicated, Irsay said Ehlinger is no longer locked in as the starter for the remainder of the year. He said the team could turn back to Ryan or goes with veteran backup Nick Foles:

"There was never a notion that you wouldn't go to Nick or Matt later in the season when (Ryan's) shoulder is healthy. They're all available to help us win, bottom line. … It's always been about whoever can help us win going forward. We're going with Sam, and if there's a notion for Jeff to make a change … that's Jeff's prerogative, and it was always Frank's prerogative. It's wrong to say I mandated it (the move to Ehlinger) and it's wrong to say they can't go to the other guy."

Saturday will make his head coaching debut when the Colts (3-5-1) visit the Las Vegas Raiders (2-6) on Sunday.

The Indianapolis Colts fired head coach Frank Reich on Monday following a brutal 26-3 loss to the New England Patriots, and he recently opened up about the disappointment he felt following the firing.

Reich said, via Mike Chappell of Fox 59 in Indianapolis:

“There’s disappointment and hurt. It hurts. It hurts to have it happen in the middle of the season.

“But I understand the business side of things. I have a tremendous amount of respect for Mr. Irsay and I’ve come to trust his instincts and his knowledge of the game. I just know he’s doing what he thinks is best for the team.

“I can live with that. I gave my heart and soul to the job, to the guys, to everything I did there. I didn’t take anything for granted."

The Colts entered the 2022 campaign with slightly higher expectations than they had in 2021 following the additions of quarterback Matt Ryan, cornerback Stephon Gilmore and defensive end Yannick Ngakoue.

However, Ryan has since been benched in favor of Sam Ehlinger, and neither Gilmore nor Ngakoue have lived up to expectations. That said, the Colts as a whole have been disappointing, particularly on offense.

The team's passing offense ranks 12th in yards per game (228.4), but the rushing offense ranks 30th in yards per game (86.7). In addition, they are averaging an NFL-worst 14.7 points per game.

Reich was hired as head coach of the Colts ahead of the 2018 season. The 60-year-old went 40-33-1 in the regular season and 1-2 in the postseason. Indy was never seriously in contention for a Super Bowl title in his tenure, and that bothered Reich:

“To fall short of those goals of winning championships, starting with a world championship, is very disappointing when you’re the head coach. You have mixed emotions. You feel like, ‘OK, there were different circumstances and dynamics and challenges that you faced.’ But as a coach and as a player and as a competitor, you say, ‘That doesn’t matter. We’ve still gotta obtain our goals.’

“When Mr. Irsay and Chris [Ballard, the general manager] hired me, I had no misrepresentations. Those were the expectations."

Reich isn't fully to blame for the issues in Indianapolis. The Colts have struggled to find an identity in the post-Andrew Luck era, and the franchise's unpreparedness for his retirement has left lasting effects.

The Colts named former center Jeff Saturday their interim head coach, and he will serve in the role for the remainder of the season, but a full-fledged head coaching search is expected to get underway.

Indy is second in the AFC South with a 3-5-1 record and will face the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday.

The Indianapolis Colts continue to shake things up.

First, the team appointed former center Jeff Saturday as interim head coach Monday, despite his lack of coaching experience at either the professional or collegiate level.

Now, Saturday is reportedly expected to go with 30-year-old Parks Frazier—the team's pass game specialist and assistant quarterbacks coach—as the offensive play-caller, per the NFL Network's Tom Pelissero and Ian Rapoport.

Saturday's hiring was met with shock and consternation around the NFL world, both because the Colts had coaches with prior experience already on the staff like Gus Bradley and John Fox, but also because it served as another example of more experienced Black coaches around the league being bypassed for a less experienced white man.

"Because he's a better fit," Colts owner Jim Irsay said when asked by reporters on Monday about his decision to hire Saturday over the more experienced coaches already in the building. "He's the best man for the job. There's no question about it in my mind and I've been around it a long time."

Even Saturday was stunned by his appointment.

"Shocked would be an understatement," he told reporters when asked how he reacted to Irsay calling him about the coaching vacancy.

One of Saturday's first big decisions was to appoint an offensive play-caller going forward, a role that former head coach Frank Reich handled for the team. The Colts didn't have anyone on staff who had ever done so at the NFL level previously.

So Frazier—serving his fifth year on the team's staff and his first as a pass game specialist and assistant quarterbacks coach—got the nod. Last season, he served as the assistant quarterbacks coach, and also previously held roles as the offensive quality control coach (2020) and assistant to the head coach (2018-19).

The Colts, at 3-5-1, already face an uphill battle to get back into playoff contention, and given the uncertainty at quarterback, a poor finish to the season and better draft positioning wouldn't be the end of the world.

But it would call into question Irsay's decision-making on such a pivotal position for his football team. Both Saturday and Frazier are being asked to handle huge jobs with no prior experience in their particular roles.

NFL executives are just as perplexed as fans about the Indianapolis Colts' hiring of Jeff Saturday as their interim head coach.

“Never seen anything like it,” an executive told Jeff Howe of The Athletic. “Will never see anything like it again.”

Indianapolis hired Saturday, a longtime former Colts center who has no coaching experience above the high school level, to replace the fired Frank Reich on Monday. The decision drew widespread scorn from fans and the media alike, many of whom pointed out Saturday's lack of experience and the bad optics given the NFL's disappointing record of hiring Black coaches and others from historically excluded groups.

“It’s hard to fathom what is going on there,” a team executive told Howe.

Even Saturday himself seemed in awe of how his first NFL coaching job came together.

"Shocked would be an understatement," Saturday told reporters Monday night. "We had a conversation and it escalated quickly. He asked me and my wife. He told me he was going to meet with [general manager] Chris [Ballard] about it. As the day progressed, we finally came to a conclusion. It was a 12-hour whirlwind. It was a late call."

Irsay, for his part, has vehemently defended his decision. He said there was "no other candidate" for the job despite Colts assistants Gus Bradley and John Fox each having head-coaching experience.

"I'm glad he doesn't have any NFL experience," Irsay said. "I'm glad he hasn't learned the fear that's in this league, because it's tough for all our coaches. They're afraid. They go to analytics and it gets difficult.

"He doesn't have all that. He doesn't have that fear. And there was no other candidate. We were fortunate he was available. And he has tons of experience. He knows this game inside and out with relationships with coaches and players. I understand that he’s fully capable of doing this."

The NFL said Irsay did not violate the league's Rooney Rule in hiring Saturday, given it does not apply to interim assignments. The Rooney Rule requires teams to interview candidates from historically excluded groups for head coaching and major front-office positions and recently began awarding compensatory draft picks to teams that produce nonwhite and female coaches who are hired as head coaches.

The Colts will have to comply with the Rooney Rule before hiring a full-time coach.

Dan Orlovsky didn't rule out the idea of joining now-former ESPN colleague Jeff Saturday on the Indianapolis Colts' coaching staff.

The Colts shocked the NFL world when they announced Saturday will be their interim head coach following the firing of Frank Reich.

Orlovsky said Tuesday on The Dan Patrick Show that he hasn't been asked directly about going to Indianapolis, but he and Saturday "have had conversations about coaching" (via Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio):

"We’ve had some really good, in-depth conversations of like what coaching looks like. Who are the good ones, who are the bad ones. My interest level in it. Where I am in the present moment. That’s when I look back and I’m like, ‘Aha.’ You know, like, I think he was gathering kind of a feel and information without revealing some of the stuff that was going on behind the scenes."

Orlovsky added he "won't lobby" for a job with the Colts but would like to break into the NFL coaching ranks one day.

The 39-year-old made 26 appearances in the NFL over seven seasons. He has gone on to work for ESPN, where he's one of the network's most prominent analysts.

It might only be a matter of time before Orlovsky makes the transition to an NFL sideline. ESPN's Adam Schefter reported in January 2020 his colleague had "[received] calls from NFL teams to gauge his interest in leaving the network for an offensive coaching job."

For now, the Colts have a quarterbacks coach in Scott Milanovich. Leaving that aside, now probably isn't the right time for Indianapolis to bring Orlovsky aboard.

Saturday, who has no NFL or college coaching experience, is learning on the job. The last thing he should do is surround himself with high-level assistants without any experience, too.

The optics would also be terrible.

The Rooney Rule doesn't apply to interim head coaches, but Saturday's hiring reflected for many how minority coaches are continually bypassed or ignored for the best coaching jobs.

Colts owner Jim Irsay told reporters the organization intends to follow the Rooney Rule when it launches a full coaching search in the offseason. At the same time, he said Saturday will coach the team for eight games "and hopefully more."

Indianapolis wouldn't be evaluating all of the candidates if it's already tipping the scales in Saturday's favor.

Now imagine what the reaction would be if the Colts turned around and hired Orlovsky in a high-level offensive capacity. Considering working on the offensive side is often a pipeline to a head-coaching role, critics might contend that Orlovsky got to skip the line.

As much as he could relish the opportunity, the former NFL quarterback might be better off cooling his heels until the offseason.

Fritz Pollard Alliance executive director Rod Graves questioned the impact of the Rooney Rule after the Indianapolis Colts' selection of Jeff Saturday as their interim head coach.

CBS Sports' Josina Anderson provided a statement from Graves on Monday:

The FPA was formed in 2003 to "champion diversity" in the NFL through networking, mentoring and advocating for minority candidates.

Colts owner Jim Irsay cited his history of hiring Black coaches when asked about the Rooney Rule during a press conference introducing Saturday, a former center for the franchise with no NFL coaching experience.

"Tony Dungy, being in the Hall of Fame as the first African American coach, and being followed by Jim Caldwell," Irsay told reporters. "When Tony took a leave of absence for a very unfortunate family situation, Jim Caldwell was our interim head coach. It was interim, just like this is."

The Rooney Rule doesn't apply to interim hires, and Irsay confirmed the front office would go through a standard hiring process during the offseason, per Grant Gordon of NFL.com.

Still, even Saturday was caught off guard when Irsay called about taking over the coaching staff following the firing of Frank Reich on Monday after the team's 3-5-1 start.

"Shock would be an understatement," Saturday said. "We had the conversation and it escalated quickly. He asked me and my wife. He told me he was going to meet with Chris [Ballard] about it. As the day progressed, we finally came to a conclusion. It was a 12-hour whirlwind. It was a late call."

His only coaching experience came with the Hebron Christian Academy at the high school level from 2017 through 2020.

The NFL entered the 2022 season with just three Black head coaches—Todd Bowles (Tampa Bay Buccaneers), Lovie Smith (Houston Texans) and Mike Tomlin (Pittsburgh Steelers). The number increased to four when the Carolina Panthers promoted Steve Wilks to interim head coach following the firing of Matt Rhule.

In February, commissioner Roger Goodell said the league "fell short" in its efforts to increase the number of minority hires.

"I think we have to continue to look and find and step back and say, 'We're not doing a good enough job here.' We need to find better solutions and better outcomes," Goodell said. "Let's find more effective policies. Let's make sure everyone understands. Let's make sure that we're looking at diversity and incentivizing that for everybody in our building."

Meanwhile, Saturday will make his debut on the Colts sideline Sunday when they visit Allegiant Stadium to take on the Las Vegas Raiders.