Colts: This sneaky position coach hiring has bolstered Indy’s offense

When Nick Sirianni departed the Indianapolis Colts to become the head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles, he took several of Frank Reich’s assistants along with him. While former Eagles QB coach Press Taylor might’ve been the most noteworthy name on that list, hiring Scottie Montgomery to be the running backs coach raised some eyebrows.

Montgomery got his start under David Cutcliffe at Duke, eventually serving under Mike Tomlin as the Steelers’ wide receivers coach from 2010-2012. After returning to Duke, Montgomery embarked upon a very rough stretch in college football.

Montgomery won just nine games in three years as the head coach at East Carolina and was not retained as the offensive coordinator at Maryland after 2020.

Nevertheless, Reich decided that Montgomery should be charged with making sure Jonathan Taylor evolves into one of the best running backs in the league while Nyheim Hines starts justifying the multi-year contract he earned.

Based on what we’ve seen so far, he’s been excelling. Not only is Hines performing at about the same clip he was last year despite a lower target share, but Taylor has emerged as a Pro Bowl lock. Even with offensive line injuries, Taylor is thriving, and Montgomery’s tutelage may be a big reason why.

Scottie Montgomery has been a solid addition to the Colts.

Indianapolis is one of the best teams in the league on the ground this year. The Colts rank fifth in the league in rushing yards per game and second in yards per carry, with only the Browns having a better number in that category. Indy ranks fifth in rushing touchdowns with 11.

While it might sound hard to believe now, Taylor came into NFL with questions about his game. Most of the hate was directed at his ball security and receiving skills. Taylor has taken a massive stride in the right direction in both of those areas, as the fumbles have disappeared and his pass-catching looks better than it did at Wisconsin.

Montgomery did not have an easy task on his plate, as he came into the year expected to replace one of the best fullbacks of all time in Tom Rathman. Rathman retired after 23 years of coaching running backs, but Montgomery has done everything he can to make sure the offense hasn’t skipped a beat.

Though the record might not reflect it, the offense is performing well without Sirianni despite all of the injuries. Montgomery can’t be overlooked as one of the main reasons the ground game has been so effective.

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