Communication was atrocious for the Indianapolis Colts' defense in Week 1 against the Baltimore Ravens. The breakdown led to Baltimore scoring 41 points on Indy, and the score could have been worse. On Wednesday, head coach Shane Steichen let the media know that safety Cam Bynum won't be the green dot anymore, but linebacker Akeem Davis-Gaither will be.
The blame for the communication issues should not fall on Bynum. He isn't calling the plays, but simply relaying what they are. His job is to provide quality coverage deep on the field and play the run near the line of scrimmage at times. Instead, the blame should fall completely on Steichen and defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo.
How the two coaches could not have seen in training camp that, once real games begin, having a safety be the green dot would cause problems is astonishing. Steichen and Anarumo have been doing their jobs far too long to allow for such a situation to unfold.
Indianapolis Colts make a change and give the green dot to linebacker Akeem Davis-Gaither
It also implies that Anarumo has total control of the defense and that Steichen doesn't offer valuable input. After all, Steichen is the head coach and, therefore, Anarumo's boss. If Anarumo isn't seeing an issue developing, Steichen needs to make a change, as needed.
Asking a free safety to be the green dot means that he must run to the huddle from many yards away, depending on what happened on the last play. This is inherently going to cause delays in alignments and preparation from play to play.
Steichen and Anarumo might not admit their mistake, but simply generally say that the communication was a problem in Week 1. That is the current Indianapolis Colts way. Answers to the media are given in generalities, and no specifics are given. That's fine, but the Indy coaching staff acts as if they are afraid of giving away nuclear secrets. This is only football they are discussing.
What is more telling than the coaching staff's words is their actions. Making a change from Bynum to Davis-Gaither after just one week of the regular season implies Steichen and Anarumo (or just Anarumo) were in panic mode after what the Ravens did.
Moreover, the Colts are now trusting a linebacker who has only been a presumptive full-time starter in one of his seven seasons. He knows Anarumo's system, as ADG played with the Cincinnati Bengals when Anarumo was there, but that doesn't mean Davis-Gaither is a good player.
He is more of a rotational piece, and as the Colts hadn't settled on their starting inside linebacker duo in training camp and the preseason, giving Davis-Gaither the green dot means he is now definitely a starter who needs to be on the field every play. Ultimately, Indianapolis has created a mess for itself, and Shane Steichen and Lou Anarumo are to blame.
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