While the Indianapolis Colts are still looking for a head coach, they are also making sure defensive coordinator Gus Bradley isn’t leaving.
The Indianapolis Colts are four weeks deep into a coaching search and there’s no telling when Indy plans to make a hire. Meanwhile, three other teams have already named head coaches and several other teams have hired new coordinators. After leading a quality Colts defense this past season, it only made sense that other teams and coaches would be interested in Indy’s defensive coordinator Gus Bradley. However, the Colts are making sure other teams can’t act on that interest in Bradley.
On Monday, Albert Breer reported that Indianapolis has blocked Bradley from leaving and interviewing for other positions. The reason for this is that several of Indy’s candidates would like to keep Bradley and the defensive staff around if they are hired. It’s unclear which candidates, but it makes sense that Bradley and the defensive staff would be popular after the 2022 season. The defense was one of the lone bright spots for Indy.
Believe @AlbertBreer mentioned in his MMQB column that Colts have blocked teams from interviewing Gus Bradley for their DC position. That's b/c several of the head-coaching candidates (as many as 4) have told Colts' brass they intend to bring Bradley and his staff back to Indy.
— Zak Keefer (@zkeefer) February 7, 2023
Colts candidates want to keep Gus Bradley
Bradley has only been with Indianapolis for a season. He was hired after Matt Eberflus left Indy for Chicago. Under Bradley’s coordination, the Colts allowed 334 yards a game, 15th-best in the league, but 25.1 points a game. However, the defense was much better earlier in the season and in games, but since Indy had one of the league’s worst offenses, the defense started to decline as time went on.
Additionally, the Colts were without All-Pro linebacker Shaquille Leonard. While Zaire Franklin was phenomenal filling in, Leonard brings a different game-changing element to the defense. If Indy can improve its offense, get Leonard healthy, and retain some of its defensive pieces, the defense should be even more dominant in a second year under Gus Bradley.
It’ll be interesting to know which candidates actually want to keep Bradley and if that affects their candidacy in any way. Of the eight candidates given second interviews, four were defensive coordinators. Is it possible that the defensive-minded head coaches could have a scheme conflict with Bradley and want to implement their own system? Does keeping Bradley around make it more likely that Indy is going to hire an offensive-minded head coach?
It’s all unclear. But the Colts should be providing an answer sometime soon as they conclude this seemingly never-ending coaching search.
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