Frank Reich Favorite For Colts’ HC Job
Eagles offensive coordinator Frank Reich has emerged as the favorite to become the Colts’ next head coach, as Chris Mortensen and Adam Schefter of ESPN.com report. The two sides still have to work out contractual details, but Indianapolis wants to bring Reich aboard.
The Colts, of course, were left at the altar when their previous top choice, Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, spurned Indy’s offer at the eleventh hour. After the McDaniels debacle, the Colts interviewed Reich, Bills DC Leslie Frazier, and Saints tight ends coach Dan Campbell. In all, the team has interviewed eight candidates for the position, several of whom accepted head coaching jobs elsewhere before the Colts’ “second search” commenced.
Reich was a hot name at the beginning of this year’s coaching cycle, which makes sense considering how effective the Eagles’ offense was in 2017. However, over time, quarterbacks coach John DeFilippo wound up garnering more attention from teams with HC vacancies thanks to his role in Carson Wentz‘s development (DeFilippo, of course, wound up taking the Vikings’ offensive coordinator position). Reich’s candidacy may also have been hurt by the fact that Doug Pederson is the play-caller in Philadelphia.
Reich, a former third-round pick from the University of Maryland, was an NFL quarterback for 13 seasons, though he started only 20 games during that time (posting a 5-15 record in the process). His playing career ended in 1998, and his coaching career began in 2006 as an intern with the Colts. He eventually moved up Indianapolis’ coaching ranks and served as the team’s WRs coach in 2011. He served in the same capacity with the Cardinals in 2012 and worked as the Chargers’ quarterbacks coach in 2013 before being named the Bolts’ OC in 2014. He worked in that role for two seasons before becoming the Eagles’ OC in 2016.
Speaking of the Eagles, this leaves the Super Bowl champs in a bit of a lurch. They are on the verge of losing two well-respected offensive coaches in Reich and DeFilippo, which means that current running backs coach Duce Staley could be in line to become the team’s new OC. Staley was also rumored to be the Giants’ current top choice for OC, so Big Blue will be left scrambling if Philadelphia does not let Staley get away.
In the end, the Colts may well get a Super Bowl LII OC, just not the one they expected. However, as Schefter and Mortensen note, neither GM Chris Ballard nor the team had any comment Sunday about this latest development. Given what Indianapolis just went through with McDaniels, no announcement will be made until after a contract is fully executed with a new coach, a source said.
Colts Intend To Switch Defense In 2018
The Colts may not have a head coach, but they certainly aren’t lacking a defensive scheme. As Stephen Holder of IndyStar.com writes, general manager Chris Ballard has stated that he intends to keep Matt Eberflus as the team’s defensive coordinator next season.
What scheme will the defense be learning in 2018? As Holder writes, the team is planning to replicate the “Tampa 2-style defense” that the Colts and Bears used throughout the early-2000s. The system also “will be a speed-based, 4-3 scheme that relies heavily on the defensive front to create pressure on quarterbacks,” similar to what the Cowboys have been running in recent seasons.
Belichick Did Most To Sway McDaniels?
Josh McDaniels‘ seminal Tuesday in Foxborough included conversations with both Robert and Jonathan Kraft, but afternoon discussions with Bill Belichick had the most influence on the longtime Patriots OC, Mike Reiss of ESPN.com reports.
Belichick’s offer included involving McDaniels in conversations about the inner workings of the franchise, from roster construction to cap considerations, and Reiss reports the 42-year-old OC viewed this opportunity as “extremely valuable.”
While Reiss reports Belichick did not explicitly talk McDaniels out of going to the Colts, he could see his longtime assistant was wavering on this decision. The hours of meetings with the Patriots on Tuesday led to a five-minute phone call with Chris Ballard on Tuesday night, Reiss notes. While Ballard wished McDaniels luck and didn’t try to talk him out of the about-face maneuver, Reiss reports the second-year GM was “pissed and angry” because this decision “blindsided” him.
Ballard and McDaniels had spoken earlier that morning, with the second-year Colts GM calling to check in on McDaniels and finalize plans for his Wednesday arrival in Indiana. The would-be Colts coach informed Ballard his press conference suit was already chosen, per Reiss. But this obviously changed once Patriots brass — whom multiple outlets have reported did not exercise previous opportunities during the season to express their desire to keep McDaniels — went to work.
However, Reiss notes McDaniels has said privately in the past he does not want to succeed Belichick as HC. He might not have a choice, in the event McDaniels wants to rebuild his reputation as a head coach after a dubious run with the Broncos, after the events of this week.
“I don’t think he can ever be a head coach in the NFL,” a former GM told ESPN’s Mike Sando. “I wouldn’t take a chance hiring him. I know it is a stressful time, but what happens again with Josh when the s— gets tight? Does he do the same thing? That is what I would worry about in hiring him as a head coach. That is why I would just pass.
“If the owner develops a relationship with him, he has a chance, but GMs will be scared to death.”
McDaniels and perennial GM candidate Nick Caserio‘s close relationship may be the biggest key to a possible chance outside of New England, if/when Caserio takes a GM job. But for now, these two and Belichick will remain as the Patriots’ top decision-makers.
Latest On Josh McDaniels’ Decision, Future
Josh McDaniels will be staying in New England on an unusual contract, with Albert Breer of SI.com hearing the Patriots‘ OC is expected to sign a four- or five-year extension. Coordinators’ deals typically do not run this long, but with the Patriots convincing their longtime play-caller to make this kind of a decision, it makes sense they’d want to keep McDaniels around long-term. Breer notes McDaniels’ current contract is believed to expire after the 2018 season, so the sides figure to hammer out an agreement soon.
Here’s the latest on the McDaniels saga:
- Nick Caserio‘s presence was a key factor in McDaniels’ decision to spurn the Colts, Breer reports. The Patriots executive’s choice to stay in Foxborough last year likely kept McDaniels from moving to the Bay Area. The tandem would likely be running the 49ers had Caserio become their GM. The two played college football together in Ohio in the 1990s and will continue to be Bill Belichick‘s right-hand men.
- As for Belichick, Breer notes he’s not operating like a coach who is planning an exit strategy. “He’s certainly not acting like he’s leaving anytime soon,” a source informed Breer. The 65-year-old coach will be entering his 19th season with the Patriots in 2018. While McDaniels may be the heir apparent, Belichick staying on for multiple years would likely drain the remainder of Tom Brady‘s historically long prime and make it more difficult for the prospective McDaniels teams to build on the Belichick squads’ legacies.
- It appears McDaniels did call the three non-Patriots assistants who were set to be on his first Colts staff. Tom Pelissero of NFL.com tweets McDaniels phoned Matt Eberflus, Mike Phair and Dave DeGuglielmo to alert them of this seminal about-face. The three have signed deals with the Colts, leaving Chuck Pagano‘s actual successor with an interesting predicament. Chris Ballard said he wanted Eberflus to run his defense regardless of McDaniels’ arrival, however.
- As for why McDaniels initially became enamored with the Colts, their second-year GM served as the chief reason he was once all set to move to Indianapolis, Breer notes. McDaniels holds Ballard in high regard, and although Andrew Luck was a prime selling point, the Colts’ top decision-maker was the primary reason behind the would-be McDaniels New England exodus.
- Despite the Patriots’ offensive success under McDaniels, Charles Robinson of Yahoo.com writes NFL teams were slow to offer him a second chance after how badly his Broncos tenure went. Robinson noted some around the league questioned whether the 42-year-old assistant had really matured much since his failed Denver stint. The Giants appear to have felt he didn’t. McDaniels became a hot commodity in recent years but now has effectively set a potential bridge to an HC job outside of Massachusetts ablaze. Although, Cesario landing a GM job could lead to an attempt to sell his owner on McDaniels sometime down the line.
- Not only do the Colts not have any legal recourse they can take after being burned here, Mike Wells and Kevin Seifert of ESPN.com write they don’t look to have grounds for a grievance with the league. McDaniels never signed Colts contract or stopped being the Patriots’ OC.
Colts To Interview Leslie Frazier
Leslie Frazier will meet with the Colts about their HC vacancy on Saturday, Josina Anderson of ESPN.com tweets.
This will be the third confirmed interview of the team’s second search process, with the Bills’ DC joining Saints tight ends coach Dan Campbell and Eagles OC Frank Reich.
Frazier’s last head-coaching job came with the Vikings from 2011-13. He spent last season with the Bills and has been a defensive coordinator for four teams. The 58-year-old assistant also has Colts history, having spent the 2005 and ’06 seasons working for the Jim Irsay-owned franchise. The owner is reportedly fond of the former Indianapolis assistant head coach, who collected a Super Bowl ring for his Colts work.
As the only defensive-minded candidate among the three early interviewees, Frazier would bring a different style to the Colts — who were obviously all set to hire an offensively geared HC prior to the Josh McDaniels snafu. Counting six games as the Vikings’ interim HC in 2010, Frazier went 21-32 in his time leading the Vikes in the early 2010s.
Bears Questioned McDaniels Leaving Pats
Before Josh McDaniels flip-flopped on the Colts, he was in the running for other head coaching gigs, including the Bears. The Bears ultimately settled on Matt Nagy as their HC, in part because the team questioned whether McDaniels was actually willing to leave the Patriots, Adam L. Jahns of the Chicago Sun-Times writes. 
[RELATED: Bears Meet With CB David Amerson]
Before the Super Bowl, McDaniels spoke glowingly of the Bears and Ryan Pace, using adjectives like ‘‘tremendous’’ and ‘‘very well-prepared’’ to describe the GM. However, it seems that Pace & Co. picked up on McDaniels’ very real trepidation in leaving New England. The Colts had a funny feeling about McDaniels waffling days before they announced his hire, but they surely wish that they had a sense for his cold feet before settling on him and passing on runner-up Mike Vrabel.
Now that Vrabel and other top names are off the board, the Colts will be forced to start from square one with a whole new cast of candidates. As of this writing, the team has interviews scheduled with Saints assistant Dan Campbell and Eagles offensive coordinator Frank Reich while an interview request has been put in for Bills defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier. Chiefs special teams coach Dave Toub may also be in consideration.
Colts Request Interview With Leslie Frazier
The Colts have officially requested an interview with Bills defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier for their vacant head coaching position, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (on Twitter). Rapoport hears that owner Jim Irsay is a big fan and he is of the belief that Frazier might restore normalcy in Indianapolis following the bizarre chain of events that have taken place. 
Frazier is now the third confirmed candidate for the Colts’ head coaching job. On Wednesday, the Colts lined up interviews with Saints assistant Dan Campbell and Eagles offensive coordinator Frank Reich. Campbell will interview with the team on Thursday while Reich’s meeting will take place on Friday.
Frazier previously served as the Vikings’ head coach and just wrapped up his first season as the Bills’ defensive coordinator. He also offers familiarity with the organization thanks to two years as a Colts staffer.
The Bills’ D didn’t light the world on fire, but the unit did okay considering that they traded away core players such as cornerback Ronald Darby and defensive tackle Marcell Dareus.
Colts To Interview Dan Campbell, Frank Reich This Week
The Colts have received permission to interview Saints tight ends coach Dan Campbell and Eagles offensive coordinator Frank Reich, and will do so later this week, tweets Mike Chappell of CBS4. Indianapolis will meet with Campbell on Thursday before speaking with Reich on Friday, per Chappell. The Colts, of course, were forced to restart their head coaching search on Tuesday after Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels backed out of his agreement to take over the role. Campbell and Reich were actually part of Indianapolis’ original list of possible interviewees, but their team’s playoff runs prevented meetings, reports Stephen Holder of the Indianapolis Star. So far, Campbell and Reich are the only candidates known to have scheduled interviews with Indy, but Chiefs special teams coordinator Dave Toub and Bills defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier are also viewed as possible contenders
Latest On Colts, Josh McDaniels
On Wednesday morning, GM Chris Ballard faced the media in the wake of Josh McDaniels‘ shocking decision to back out on becoming the team’s next head coach. Here’s a look at the highlights plus other news on McDaniels’ flip-flop:
- McDaniels’ agent, Bob LaMonte, told him that he’s making perhaps the biggest professional mistake of his career by backing out of this Colts job at this point, according to sources who spoke with Mike Garafolo of NFL.com (Twitter link). On Wednesday afternoon, LaMonte terminated his relationship with McDaniels, a source tells Dan Graziano of ESPN.com (on Twitter). LaMonte is forfeiting a potentially large commission down the road should McDaniels become a head coach again, but he is also protecting future business by distancing himself from the Patriots OC.
- Colts were going to pay McDaniels “fabulously,” a source tells Tom Pelissero of NFL.com (on Twitter), so money was not the issue in Indianapolis. Pelissero hears that the coach also wasn’t warded off by Andrew Luck’s injured shoulder, owner Jim Irsay, or Ballard. At the end of the day, the Patriots just convinced him to stay. There’s no new contract in place for McDaniels yet, but Pelissero expects that to happen soon.
- Ballard says two doctors who looked at Luck after the season have determined that he does not need surgery (Twitter link via Pelissero). Luck’s arm strength is good, the GM says, but he is now working on motion and arm speed. He has yet to pick up a football, but the team will not rush him or skip any steps.
- The GM confirmed that none of the coaches from the initial wave of interviews will be in the mix, meaning that Kris Richard and Matt Rhule will not be considered (Twitter link via Pelissero).
- There were other candidates the Colts wanted to interview, Ballard said, but the playoffs got in the way (Twitter link via Stephen Holder of ESPN.com). The Colts are expected to request an interview with Eagles OC Frank Reich and he fits the bill as a coach who was tied up during the playoffs. Of course, the same could be said of McDaniels and that did not stop Indy from interviewing him.
- The Colts will honor the contract of defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus and others who have already signed their deals. That’s not an issue for Ballard who explained that he knew Eberflus well through Rod Marinelli. The former Dallas assistant was already a guy he wanted to run his defense.
- The Colts got an uneasy feeling a week ago that something could be stalling with McDaniels, despite moving forward with his contract (Twitter link via Jay Glazer of FOX Sports).
- McDaniels arrived at Gillette Stadium on Tuesday with the intention of cleaning out his office, but Bill Belichick‘s willingness to take his mentorship to a higher level played a big part in McDaniels reversing course, sources tell ESPN.com’s Mike Reiss. Belichick told McDaniels that he would spend more time with him on the inner workings of the team, including roster construction and salary-cap management, which was viewed as “extremely valuable” to McDaniels. That could be part of a succession plan for Belichick in the future, but no assurances have been made to McDaniels.
Colts Eyeing Frank Reich, Dan Campbell
The Colts’ head coaching search is on. Again. This time, the Colts are expected to start by requesting permission to speak with Eagles offensive coordinator Frank Reich and Saints assistant head coach Dan Campbell, sources tell Adam Schefter of ESPN.com (on Twitter).
Reich was a hot name at the beginning of this year’s coaching cycle which makes sense considering how effective the Eagles’ offense was in 2017. However, over time, quarterbacks coach John DeFilippo wound up garnering more attention from teams with HC vacancies for his role in Carson Wentz‘s development. His candidacy may also have been hurt by the fact that Doug Pederson is the play caller in Philadelphia.
Last season, the Philly offense ranked third in scoring, seventh in yards, and eighth in DVOA. The 56-year-old has worked as an NFL coach since 2008 and is perhaps best known for leading the Bills offense back from a 32-point deficit in a 1993 playoff game, After spending time with the Colts and Cardinals, Reich was the Chargers’ offensive coordinator from 2014-15 before joining the Eagles the following year.
The 41-year-old Campbell has served only as a tight ends coach or an interim head coach in his seven-year tenure as a full-time NFL assistant. Still, he was one of 12 head coaching candidates recommended by the NFL’s Career Development Advisory Panel late last year and he was a candidate for the Vikings’ OC opening. The Dolphins also interviewed him in early 2016 for their HC job before settling on Adam Gase.
Other names linked to the job include Bills defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier and Chiefs special teams coach Dave Toub.