Frank Reich fired as coach of stumbling Colts

At some point after one of many Indianapolis Colts’ worst offensive performances in latest reminiscence, fifth-year head coach Frank Reich was fired by the staff on Monday.

The Colts’ 26-3 loss to the New England Patriots on Sunday was their third straight defeat. It was the most recent instance of their deepening offensive challenges which can be starting to seem insurmountable regardless of a latest quarterback change from Matt Ryan to Sam Ehlinger and final week’s firing of offensive coordinator Marcus Brady.

Reich, 60, was 40-33-1 (.547) within the common season with a 1-2 file in two playoff appearances. It was a tenure outlined by incessant turnover at quarterback; The Colts had totally different opening-day starters in every of Reich’s 5 seasons, because the franchise has struggled to discover a quarterback to fill the sneakers of Andrew Luck, who retired earlier than the 2019 season. The tenures of the final two — Carson Wentz and Ryan — ending in ugly vogue (Wentz was traded after one season and Ryan benched after seven begins).

The Colts have been unraveling because the finish of final season, when Indianapolis misplaced its last two video games regardless of needing only one victory to clinch a postseason berth. The 2021 finale, a 26-11 loss to the 3-14 Jacksonville Jaguars, was a very unpleasant efficiency that drew the ire of proprietor Jim Irsay and prompted him to recommit to fixing the issues that led to the poor end.

In the end, 2022 didn’t carry markedly totally different outcomes.

Offensively, the Colts (3-5-1) are within the worst form of Reich’s tenure. After Sunday’s recreation, the longtime NFL quarterback and Tremendous Bowl-winning offensive coordinator with the 2017 Philadelphia Eagles alluded to that frustration of the Colts being so inept on offense, his space of experience.

“Offensive efficiency, that is why I used to be introduced right here. That is my accountability. So, we have the gamers. We have got the gamers which can be a lot ok. I’ve to do a greater job. It begins with me on offense. I must do a greater job getting the blokes able to play, placing guys in an excellent place to win and having solutions after we face issues,” he mentioned.

Recently, there have been no solutions.

The Colts on Sunday didn’t convert any of their 14 third-down makes an attempt, tied for the worst single-game mark within the NFL up to now 30 years. Indianapolis generated 121 yards of whole offense, the staff’s lowest output since 1997 and the bottom of Reich’s tenure by 84 yards.

Reich gained a repute throughout his time in Indianapolis for having the ability to carry the staff again from the brink. The Colts have been notoriously gradual starters, however they’ve constantly rallied late in seasons. The Colts began 1-5 in 2018 however completed 10-6 and made the playoffs. Final season, they began 1-4 earlier than rallying to 9-6, solely to go on to these two fateful season-ending losses.

What stays unclear is the destiny normal supervisor Chris Ballard, the person who put the staff collectively and employed Reich.