Colts to hire Shane Steichen: Why Indianapolis chose another Eagles OC as its head coach

The Eagles have settled on their everlasting substitute for Frank Reich after a protracted wait.

It will not be Jeff Saturday. It can as a substitute be Eagles offensive coordinator Shane Steichen.

The Colts have not but formally employed Steichen, however all indications are that the 37-year-old can be tapped to interchange Reich and Saturday, the crew’s shock midseason option to be interim head coach. 

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Steichen is a rent that can be acquainted to Colts followers. It is not as a result of he has ties to the group, nevertheless. It is as a result of he simply helped lead the Eagles to an look in Tremendous Bowl 57 and it marks the second consecutive hiring cycle wherein Indianapolis has settled on hiring Philadelphia’s offensive coordinator.

Additionally, Steichen labored below Reich when each have been on the Chargers in 2014 and 2015. Reich was the crew’s offensive coordinator whereas Steichen was an offensive high quality management assistant.

So, why are the Colts hiring Steichen? Here is what to know in regards to the franchise’s eleventh full-time coach because it moved to Indianapolis in 1984.

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Why the Colts employed Shane Steichen

The Colts are hiring Steichen as a result of he represents the right cross between what basic supervisor Chris Ballard and proprietor Jim Irsay are on the lookout for in a coach.

As outlined by Nate Atkins of The Indianapolis Star, Ballard and Irsay have been on the lookout for particular traits in a brand new coach. Steichen checked these key bins.

Steichen is the rent for 2 key causes: He is a proficient and versatile offensive thoughts, and he is a fiery character who will problem gamers publicly. The previous mattered to Ballard, a extra defensive-oriented scout who has at all times tried to rent that prototype, from Bruce Arians to Josh McDaniels to Reich to now Steichen. The latter mattered to Irsay, who has been eager for a special model of chief than he is had previously.

Steichen’s depth wasn’t a match for each crew, however it may be for a Colts locker room that has requested for some extra public shows of participant accountability.

Steichen is not only a good tradition match for the Colts. He additionally comes with important expertise in growing younger quarterbacks, which can be necessary as Indianapolis explores choosing a first-round quarterback within the 2023 NFL Draft.

Steichen has been a full-time offensive coordinator for 3 years on the NFL stage. In his lone season with the Chargers, Justin Herbert was named Offensive Rookie of the 12 months after finishing 66.6 % of his passes for 4,336 yards, a career-best 31 touchdowns and simply 10 interceptions in 15 begins.

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In his two seasons with the Eagles, Steichen has helped to quickly develop Jalen Hurts into one of many NFL’s greatest quarterbacks. He completed second in MVP voting for the 2022 NFL season after main the Eagles to a playoff berth in his first full season as a starter.

Because the stats point out, Hurts made a serious leap from his first 12 months with Steichen to his second.

Hurts’ success with Steichen is a giant a part of the explanation that the Eagles had a top-three scoring offense and a top-three offense by way of complete yardage.

The Colts will ask Steichen to carry out related work with whichever younger signal-caller they land within the 2023 NFL Draft, be it Bryce Younger, C.J. Stroud or another person. He stands a greater probability of doing that than Reich, who failed to seek out or develop a constant beginning quarterback in wake of Andrew Luck’s stunning retirement earlier than the 2019 NFL season.