It's been a while since the Indianapolis Colts were considered a Super Bowl contender. Of course, plenty of that has had to do with their quarterback situation, but at the end of the day, the head coach has to figure things out.
That's why Shane Steichen has been a somewhat polarizing figure in Indianapolis. On the one hand, he's kept the team hovering around .500 despite not having a steady quarterback situation. On the other hand, he has yet to coach a playoff game.
Steichen found his best version early last season with Daniel Jones at the helm, but the team was showing signs of regression before his season-ending injury. Jones also has some question marks of his own, so it's hard to know what to make of this pairing.
The Indianapolis Colts may fire Shane Steichen after another disappointing season
Considering that, NFL Spin Zone's Lou Scataglia ranked the Colts at No. 19 in his quarterback-head coach rankings, and it's hard to disagree. Clearly, they both have to prove themselves, especially the head coach.
"Shane Steichen is a fine head coach, but he has been rather average at his job thus far, and Jones suffering yet another major injury throws a wrench into things," wrote Scataglia. "Even before that injury, there were certain games where Jones was beginning to play sloppy football, so this entire operation kind of needs to start from square one and prove themselves again."
Steichen has coached the Colts to a 25-26 (.490) record. He finally had a top-ten offense last season, ranking No. 9 in yards and No. 8 in points. It still didn't lead to a playoff berth, though, and that's ultimately all that matters.
The former Philadelphia Eagles offensive coordinator may have been dealt a tough break in Indianapolis. Clearly, no one expected Anthony Richardson to turn out the way he did, and that inevitably changed the plans.
That said, he's been there long enough for the team to realize whether he's the right guy for the job or not, excuses and context be damned. He's shown that he can field a competitive team and win games he wasn't supposed to win, but, much like his quarterback, consistency has been an issue.
This will be a make-or-break season for the reigning regime in Indianapolis. General manager Chris Ballard made a huge gamble by trading two first-round picks for Sauce Gardner. Then, he moved on from Michael Pittman Jr. to give Alec Pierce a huge contract and gave Daniel Jones $88 million over two years.
Everybody will have to prove themselves and earn their keep in Indianapolis. They've been knocking on the door of contention for way too long, but it's time to push through once and for all. Otherwise, it will be hard to take Jones and Steichen more seriously.
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