The 2017 season was forgettable, as the Indianapolis Colts ended the year with a losing record. Fans can accept there will be growing pains, and so it goes. Not long after the season ended, the front office made the decision to part ways with head coach Chuck Pagano. After all, in sports the head coach or manager will be the one to take the fall, and not the players. Soon after, the Colts announced they had their man in (clutch the pearls) New England Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniel. Very shortly after the announcement, McDaniel either had a change of heart or couldn't stomach the thought of wearing the horseshoe, and backed out.
Enter Frank Reich. Fresh off a Super Bowl LII win with the Philadelphia Eagles, there was every reason to believe he could be the leader the team needed. While he would go on to have a winning record as the Colts head coach, he was fired nine games (3-5-1 record) into the 2022 season. Colts legend Jeff Saturday would leave his analyst role with ESPN to take over the reins and, while he was a definite leader during his playing days, he just wasn't the person to lead the team as head coach. Saturday finished the 2022 season with a 1-7 record. Once again, Indianapolis plucked a coach from Philadelphia, as they hired the Eagles offensive coordinator Shane Steichen, who is now going into his third season at the helm.
As if the coaching carousel wasn't bad enough, the sudden (but understandable) retirement of star quarterback Andrew Luck during the 2019 preseason sent things spiraling further out of control. The team has had no less than nine QBs since Luck retired, including Jacoby Brisset, Brian Hoyer, Philip Rivers, Carson Wentz, Matt Ryan Sam Ehlinger, Anthony Richardson, Gardner Minshew and Joe Flacco. Selecting Richardson with the fourth pick of the 2023 NFL draft was a roll of the dice that any Vegas high roller would be proud of. But it would also make them hang their head just the same as Colts fans have done in his first two years in the league. Starting just 13 college games, AR certainly showed he is talented, but he came with baggage in the form of a shoulder injury that would haunt him again just four games into the 2023 season. Enter former Giants signal caller Daniel Jones to challenge Richardson for the starting QB role for the 2025 season.
Will the 2025 NFL season be the last one in Indianapolis for Chris Ballard? If you've read this far, your guess is as good as mine. Certainly, the late Jim Irsay saw something in Ballard's leadership abilities, to the point Chris was given a five-year contract extension in 2021. But ladies and gentlemen of the jury, I ask you to consider the facts laid out before you. I don't know of many "regular" jobs where an employee could go four years without showing improvement, and continue being employed. If 2025 is another underperforming season, it's time for a change.