Mike Florio reported earlier in the day that the Indianapolis Colts had found their new coach according to a source with knowledge of the situation. That man, is Chuck Pagano, the former defensive coordinator of the Baltimore Ravens.
Pagano will represent just one part of a massive shift in Indianapolis; a shift that hasn’t been seen by the Colts since the late 90s, if not before then. The Colts were defined by a potent offense and a flimsy bend-but-don’t-break defense. With Pagano now in place, it would appear the Colts are going to try a different formula with Ryan Grigson as their general manager and Chuck Pagano as their head coach.
While the manner in which the Colts blew up their front office may have seemed unexpected and even poorly handled, the sudden change in philosophy is at the very least warranted. With Manning as the Colts’ quarterback and Bill Polian in the front office, the Colts were able to win the Super Bowl just one time. Manning is without a doubt a future Hall of Fame quarterback and is considered by some the best to ever play the position. The fact that they only ever won one Super Bowl makes some, myself included, wonder what could have been had Manning gone to the Chargers back in 1998.
Manning’s well-documented neck surgeries were the final nail in the Colts’ coffin. Their Super Bowl window closed with a crash, and the time to start over was brought on unexpectedly sudden. With the future of their star quarterback in question and the number one overall pick of the 2012 draft in their possession, it was the perfect time for a change in philosophy.
The hiring of Pagano leads me to believe that the Colts will restructure their team in a far more balanced way than we’ve seen in years past. Make no mistake about it, the Colts will draft Andrew Luck, and it seems likely that they’ll release Peyton Manning. They’ll likely build their defense in a manner that is friendly to a young quarterback such as Luck, helping him as much as possible. The investment in the defense may effect the Colts’ ability to build the same high flying offense we’ve come to expect from them, but that’s often the price of balance.
