Shane

Steichen

Fowler said Bradley, hired last February as the team’s defensive coordinator, was widely expected to keep the job despite the head coaching turnover. Pro Football Focus graded the Colts as the NFL’s 12th best run defense and the 15th best coverage unit in 2022. Indianapolis’ defense held up through much of the 2022 season despite its offense time and again putting the defense in unenviable positions. The Colts last year allowed the tenth lowest EPA per rush.

Colts owner Jim Irsay’s lengthy, somewhat overwrought interviewing process is finally over. Steichen, coming off a Super Bowl berth as the coordinator of an elite Philadelphia offense, will have a tall task in turning around one of the NFL’s worst offenses. The Colts in 2022 ranked 30th in points per game and 27th in offensive yards per game. Only the Texans had a lower expected points added (EPA) per play than the Colts in 2022. Steichen, 37, will have to find a viable starting quarterback to start. Candidates include Derek Carr, who will reportedly be released by the Raiders. “We’re going to throw to score points and we’re going to run to win,” Steichen said at his introductory presser. Steichen developed Justin Herbert in his rookie season and oversaw Jalen Hurts’ emergence as a top-tier passer in 2022. Hiring Steichen means the Colts avoid becoming the laughing stock of the NFL by retaining interim head coach Jeff Saturday, a close friend of Irsay.

Just hours after a loss in the Super Bowl, Steichen could be the head coach of the Colts by the close of business Monday. Arguably the most thoroughly vetted process of any coaching hire this offseason, Steichen becomes tasked with turning around a 4-12-1 Colts team that finished 30th in points per game (17.0) and 28th in points allowed (25.1). In his two seasons with the Eagles, Steichen saw his team finish 12th and third in points per game, respectively. On the game’s biggest stage, Steichen helped lead the Eagles to 417 yards and 35 points in a near win over the Chiefs. With an aging and underwhelming quarterback room, Steichen has a chance to secure a franchise quarterback with the No. 4 overall pick, and get things going in the right direction.

This, combined with a report from The Athletic’s Zac Keefer that there’s a “sense” that owner Jim Irsay met with Shane Steichen in-person last week, is more than enough to suggest that Steichen could be a front runner to land the Colts head coaching gig. Steichen has been a widely coveted coach this offseason, having also met with the Texans for their head coaching position. Steichen is one of many coaches on the Eagles’ staff being sought for head coaching positions, as defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon is expected to interview with the Cardinals on Monday.

After earlier reports of the Colts having a “lengthy” interview with Steichen earlier in the week, it sounds like the team is nearing a decision to hire the Eagles’ offensive coordinator as their next head coach. Steichen has been with the Eagles for the last two seasons, proving instrumental in the development of quarterback Jalen Hurts and the team’s offensive success. Over the last two seasons, Steichen’s Eagles have finished 12th and third in points per game, while ranking fourth in EPA per play (0.081). The Colts currently hold the fourth overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, which Steichen will likely use to bring in a franchise quarterback to help with his rebuild. While a deal is not officially in place, it sounds like the Colts have their guy if all continues to go well.

This would appear to be a signal that Steichen is a front runner for the job, and he would be a logical hire for the Colts as they try to rebound from last season’s Saturdaypalooza. It would also help explain why the Colts have waited so long to hire a head coach. Irsay previously said this week that he expected a hiring to be finalized in “days” not “hours,” so barring some sort of Super Bowl news dump of Saturday coming back, it would make logical sense for Steichen to be the choice.

Colts owner Jim Irsay continues to bring in candidates despite the widely-held belief that Jeff Saturday will ultimately win the job. Steichen’s name has gained steam this offseason, with the Texans also interviewing him for their head coaching vacancy. Steichen helped the Eagles finish third in points per game in the regular season (28.1) and second in yards per game (389.1), and has them on the cusp of a Super Bowl berth. With two strong years in Philly under his belt, he could very well be the man to turn around a Colts team that was in complete disarray last season.

So far connected to the Colts and Texans, Steichen completed his initial Texans talk on Friday. The 37-year-old is understandably in high demand after Nick Sirianni’s Eagles crafted one of the league’s most dangerous, versatile offenses this season. Especially without any Sean McVay or Kyle Shanahan disciples in the mix this year, there’s a real chance Steichen gets a head gig.

Moore has been a head coaching candidate during his four years as the Dallas OC. Last year he interviewed for the head coaching gigs in Jacksonville and Miami. He coached the Cowboys offense this season through a two-month absence for starting QB Dak Prescott, leaning heavily on the run game before shifting to a more balanced approach upon Prescott’s return. Dallas finished the 2022 regular season with the league’s tenth highest EPA per play. Carolina has also requested permission to interview Giants OC Mike Kafka and Eagles OC Shane Steichen.

Multiple teams have targeted Steichen for their head coaching vacancies in the first 24 hours of the unofficial NFL offseason. Philly’s offensive coordinator has spent the last two seasons building a top-5 offense around quarterback Jalen Hurts, as the Eagles went on to finish third in the regular season in points per game (28.1) and second in yards per game (389.1). After two solid years with the Eagles, Steichen could very well be in line to orchestrate a rebuild elsewhere in 2023.