Colts Head Coaching Search Wish List: Steve Wilks

The Colts have requested an interview with Panthers defensive coordinator Steve Wilks. Let’s take a look at his résumé and determine if he is a good fit for the Colts.

Résumé

Steve Wilks spent ten years in college football from 1995-2005 bouncing around a multitude of different jobs. He was a defensive coordinator at three small colleges during that time, and spent one year as a head coach at Savannah State.

From 2003-05, Wilks was the defensive backs coach at Bowling Green, Notre Dame, and Washington before getting his first job in the NFL in 2006.

He was the Bears’ defensive backs coach from 2006-08, and took the same job with the Chargers from 2009-11. He moved on to Carolina to be their defensive backs coach in 2012, and he earned the title of assistant head coach to go along with his role as defensive backs coach in 2015.

He took over as the Panthers’ defensive coordinator in 2017 after Sean McDermott left for a head coaching job in Buffalo, and he’s become a hot coaching candidate as the NFL coaching carousel begins to turn.

Steve Wilks’ fit in Indianapolis

There is no doubt that the Colts need an upgrade on the defensive side of the ball after finishing the year as the league’s 27th-best defense according to Football Outsiders. Wilks has done a great job on that side of the ball in Carolina, but the Panthers have much more defensive talent than he’d be working with in Indianapolis next season.

It’s hard to determine if Wilks is a great fit without sitting in on an interview with him, but his résumé suggest that he may need some more seasoning before he’s ready for an NFL head coaching job.

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Here are the rest of the candidates on our radar during the Colts’ head coaching search: