Getty NFL Insider addresses how likely Indianapolis Colts owner Frank Reich fires head coach Frank Reich and general manager Chris Ballard.
Even after 4 weeks, there are rumblings with the Indianapolis Colts that head coach Frank Reich and general manager Chris Ballard are on the hot seat. The Colts have opened the 2022 season 1-2-1 and have lost 4 of their last 6 games dating back to January.
But in a mailbag article on October 5, Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer wasn’t willing to claim Reich and Ballard as close to losing their jobs. Even if the Colts don’t make the playoffs this season, Breer argued the head coach and general manager should not be fired.
“I’d have to imagine, even with Jim Irsay’s itchy trigger finger, that Ballard and Reich would get another shot if this year goes the wrong way,” Breer wrote. “I think they’ve earned that much in leading the franchise through the shocking retirement of Andrew Luck, and finding a way to head off a lot of the tumult that could’ve followed.”
Other than the Luck situation, Breer pointed to a few other reasons as to why Reich and Ballard have earned more time to prove they have the Colts on the right track.
Colts’ Perception Switched After Loss to Jaguars
One loss in the NFL can completely change a narrative around a team, coach or player. Breer argued that happened for the Colts and Reich when the team fell to the Jacksonville Jaguars in Week 18 and missed the postseason in January.
“It’s incredible to think of how perception changed during Week 18 of last year,” Breer wrote. “Going into that last game of the 2021 season in Jacksonville, the Colts had gotten a pretty good, if uneven, year out of Carson Wentz. They also had the NFL rushing champion and a top-10 scoring defense.
“That overall record at the time was 37–27, and beating a Jaguars’ team with an interim coach would’ve meant a third playoff berth in four years.”
But the Jaguars won, so instead of a third playoff berth, it became the second time in four years the Colts lost at least 8 games under Reich.
All offseason, Reich and the Colts talked about seeing the Jacksonville loss as a battle wound or scar that would motivate the team to be better in 2022. That still may happen, but it hasn’t yet, and the Colts already lost again in Jacksonville, 24-0, during Week 2.
Changes to Colts Coaching Staff
The other main point Breer made in favor of Reich and Ballard was about Indianapolis’ turnover on its coaching staff. The Colts lost former offensive coordinator Nick Sirianni and defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus to head coaching gigs. The team has also seen key position coaches leave.
Breer argued that Colts owner Jim Irsay should take this under consideration when deciding whether or not to fire Reich and/or Ballard.
“That much change can certainly have an impact,” Breer wrote. “So it’s worth looking there, too.”
The Colts own a 6-10-1 record in September under Reich. The turnover on the coaching staff and at quarterback could be a big reason why.
Since Reich became head coach in 2018, Indianapolis has yet to enter a season with a quarterback who is already familiar with their system. It takes time for new offenses to gel, and that could be why the Colts are annually struggling in the first month of the season.
Reich, Ballard on the Hot Seat?
There are likely a couple issues Colts fans will take with Breer’s take on the job security for Reich and Ballard.
NFL pundits can weigh “ifs and buts” all day, but the fact remains that the Colts didn’t beat the Jaguars in Week 18. Indianapolis did miss the playoffs, and in response, the franchise elected to enter another season with a new, aging quarterback.
Whether or not the Colts turn things around in 2022, it won’t be long until Indianapolis has another new signal caller. Matt Ryan turned 37 in May and has looked slow this fall.
Breer is correct that Reich and Ballard navigated the Luck situation well. But they also have yet to find a permanent solution behind center.
The changes on the Indianapolis staff are valid concerns as well, but it’s something every good NFL team must overcome. Furthermore, Reich has been the Indianapolis play caller, so even with losing Nick Sirianni, there wasn’t wholesale changes to the Colts offense.
Arguments can be made for both Reich and Ballard keeping their jobs and getting fired if the Colts fail to make the postseason in 2022. The best way for the pair to guarantee staying in Indianapolis is to guide the Colts to a playoff berth.