If Irsay Wants Fisher, He Needs To Pull The Trigger

[GoColts8818]

Good point....I was just trying to make sense of not cleaning the entire house today. Can't see any way that doesn't happen....and why wait?

I think Jim Irsay honestly doesn't think coaching was the main problem this year. I think he feels the main problem was a lack of talent which is why he fired the GM. I think he honestly looked at the season and said you know I am not sure it would have mattered who the coach was there just wasn't enough talent on this team to be where we want to be. Irsay talked about the 98 season and when they fired Mora on the radio tonight and said those were different times because you could look at the talent and relize you had good young players to get you where you wanted to go. He said he didn't feel that way right now.

With that said by no means if Jim Caldwell's job safe. Like Kravitz said in his story tonight he's going to let the new GM have a say in this and he feels like he owes it to Caldwell to get a shot with the new GM because he's so respected by the players and clearly if you listened to Irsay today he likes Caldwell a lot too. He really went out of his way to try to disspell some of the fans major complaints about Caldwell at the presser today. He did akowledge Caldwell has made mistakes but also said he thinks Caldwell has corrected those.

I've said all along I don't think Irsay is looking for a reason to fire Caldwell like some fans are doing. I think it's the reverse he's looking for reasons to keep him and will fire him if he has too.

[Warhorse]

I think Jim Irsay honestly doesn't think coaching was the main problem this year. I think he feels the main problem was a lack of talent which is why he fired the GM. I think he honestly looked at the season and said you know I am not sure it would have mattered who the coach was there just wasn't enough talent on this team to be where we want to be. Irsay talked about the 98 season and when they fired Mora on the radio tonight and said those were different times because you could look at the talent and relize you had good young players to get you where you wanted to go. He said he didn't feel that way right now.

With that said by no means if Jim Caldwell's job safe. Like Kravitz said in his story tonight he's going to let the new GM have a say in this and he feels like he owes it to Caldwell to get a shot with the new GM because he's so respected by the players and clearly if you listened to Irsay today he likes Caldwell a lot too. He really went out of his way to try to disspell some of the fans major complaints about Caldwell at the presser today. He did akowledge Caldwell has made mistakes but also said he thinks Caldwell has corrected those.

I've said all along I don't think Irsay is looking for a reason to fire Caldwell like some fans are doing. I think it's the reverse he's looking for reasons to keep him and will fire him if he has too.

Extremely well put. Nice summary. I appreciate the fact that Jim saw that the coach had a pretty empty cupboard to start with, and then held it all together long enough to see them improve. People are forgetting just how devastating key injuries were to the O and D line, not to mention the secondary. Clark and Collie were also coming back from serious injuries. Throw in the loss of PM, he was doomed from the start. No way does Fischer or Gruden being inserted at the start of this disastrous season suddenly manufacture wins. JMO.

[Big UKE]

The Cowboys were talking about Rob Ryan possibly getting a look at a head coaching job. Why don't we go after Rob Ryan?

Im assuming you are kidding right??? He is only the most OVERRATED D coordinator in the league...who gets WAY too much airtime for no good reason

[GoColts8818]

Im assuming you are kidding right??? He is only the most OVERRATED D coordinator in the league...who gets WAY too much airtime for no good reason

If it weren't for his brother and dad no one would care about him.

[HungarianColtsFan]

Well...

I think it's too early to talk about our next HC.

1.) Jim Caldwell still hasn't been fired.

2.) I think Mr. Irsay will wait with this decision till he finds new GM.

He doesn't have much time to waste. Until beginning of draft he needs new men and a blueprint how to rebuild the team.

[GoColts8818]

Well...

I think it's too early to talk about our next HC.

1.) Jim Caldwell still hasn't been fired.

2.) I think Mr. Irsay will wait with this decision till he finds new GM.

He doesn't have much time to waste. Until beginning of draft he needs new men and a blueprint how to rebuild the team.

He said on the radio tonight he was going to start making phone calls for the new GM. With that said he also said if he wants a guy on a team in the playoffs and he has to wait to talk to that person he will. He made a big point about it's more important to get the right guy than to rush on this. It might cost us Fisher but after listening to him tonight It sounds like he's leaning towards youngers less experienced people and who knows they might very well keep Caldwell this season not unlike what the Browns did a couple of years ago.

[HungarianColtsFan]

He said on the radio tonight he was going to start making phone calls for the new GM. With that said he also said if he wants a guy on a team in the playoffs and he has to wait to talk to that person he will. He made a big point about it's more important to get the right guy than to rush on this. It might cost us Fisher but after listening to him tonight It sounds like he's leaning towards youngers less experienced people and who knows they might very well keep Caldwell this season not unlike what the Browns did a couple of years ago.

Honestly, I'm not against Jeff Fisher, but would like to see a younger talented and proven guy as HC. I don't know who is available for us this off season. I think new waves are in NFL, so we have to develop our play schemes and managing methods too. I don't know keeping Caldwell would be a good start, but this is up to Mr. Irsay and new GM.

[Revis FL]

Why, oh why do so many people think Jeff Fisher is a good coach? He's a 50 percenter! His record is 142/120! And Gruden? Irsay? You hire Jon Gruden..... I'm DONE as a Colts fan! Grudens record is 95/81. ANOTHER 50 percenter. ONLY reason Gruden has a ring is because he rode Tony Dungy's team into California. As soon as Jon started making changes, the team tanked.

Irsay needs to go to coach Dungy's house and throw obscene amounts of cash at Tony. Get that man BACK! Dungy's record? 139/69. He was 85/27 in Indy..... the man won 75% of his games in Indy! THAT is a coach.

Jim? Go get Tony back. Thats what I want.... I want to read that you were arrested throwing stacks and stacks of money at the coach. Go make this right.

You realize when Dungy was in Tampa Bay he was just as mediocre as Fisher and Gruden. 54-42. There was a reason TB fired him. His success in Indy came because of Peyton Manning. I'm not going to say Dungy is a bad coach, but the point I'm making is that coaches need players. What would Belichick be without Brady? What would Bill Walsh have been without Montana? Phil Jackson without Jordan/Shaq/Kobe? Every coach needs players to succeed. Even Jim Caldwell is 24-6(not counting the 2 losses at the end of '09, should actually be 26-6) with Peyton which is right on stride with Dungy's career in Indy.

Everyone wants to rip Fisher and talk about how overrated he is because of his record, but what players did he have? He took freaking Vince Young and an old Kerry Collins to the Playoffs. He was great when Steve McNair was there. I don't know, I like Jeff Fisher and really don't understand why people call him overrated. His teams were very rarely terrible and they were always well coached. He just didn't have the talent there for the most part, and when he did he was successful.

[GoColts8818]

You realize when Dungy was in Tampa Bay he was just as mediocre as Fisher and Gruden. 54-42. There was a reason TB fired him. His success in Indy came because of Peyton Manning. I'm not going to say Dungy is a bad coach, but the point I'm making is that coaches need players. What would Belichick be without Brady? What would Bill Walsh have been without Montana? Phil Jackson without Jordan/Shaq/Kobe? Every coach needs players to succeed. Even Jim Caldwell is 24-6(not counting the 2 losses at the end of '09, should actually be 26-6) with Peyton which is right on stride with Dungy's career in Indy.

Everyone wants to rip Fisher and talk about how overrated he is because of his record, but what players did he have? He took freaking Vince Young and an old Kerry Collins to the Playoffs. He was great when Steve McNair was there. I don't know, I like Jeff Fisher and really don't understand why people call him overrated. His teams were very rarely terrible and they were always well coached. He just didn't have the talent there for the most part, and when he did he was successful.

That's what impressed me with Fisher. I think he did more with less than any other coach in the NFL. Frankly he only had a handful of true stars in his career and most of them were early in his career and when he had those guys they went to a Super Bowl and went to a few AFCCG's. When he lost his stars he did a wonderful job coaching up far less talent than most other teams had and still had some respectable seasons with the team. You don't last as long as he did with the Titans and be a bad coach in the NFL.

[Rich Cannon]

At this point we need a whole new defensive mindset, I think Caldwell and the Tampa 2 are out the door by friday

[doogansquest]

I hope Irsay doesn't drag his feet on the Caldwell decision. Fisher is a hot commodity, and if Irsay wants him in horseshoe blue, he needs to go ahead and can Caldwell and get the call into Fisher before he is snatched up by Tampa Bay, Miami, or St. Louis. I think Fisher would take the job here if he can get assurances from Irsay that Manning will be back if healthy. I mean, isn't it a foregone conclusion that Caldwell is gone? If not, why not? If so, why delay the inevitable?

How could Irsay assure Manning's health to Fisher in time to "pull the trigger" on him? That is not a promise he could make, and it could set up a disaster.

[Hoosier]

I'd be happy with Fisher, Cowher or Billick.

My pick would be Fisher for the simple fact that he knows all three of the Colts AFC South opponents and I don't think he ever had a great team to work with in Nashville.

[Balzer40]

Im sorry, but the fact that Caldwell seems to be ok with being left in limbo just makes me want him out of here even more. This guy knows he's lucky he even sniffed a head coaching gig in the NFL and he's willing to be left twisting in the wind just to have the microscopic chance to keep his job. I have no respect for somebody that can't even respect himself enough to tell the owner he needs to know something definitive. He knows he has virtually no shot of landing another gig in the NFL unless its at a low level posistion that don't mean anything.

[Balzer40]

How could Irsay assure Manning's health to Fisher in time to "pull the trigger" on him? That is not a promise he could make, and it could set up a disaster.

Wait a minute, Aren't you the same guy thats been pretty much guaranteeing the health of Manning for the next 4 yrs.? I mean, afterall this is the reason (you've said) that it would be stupid to draft Luck since it's a guarantee Manning will be here and healthy for 4 more yrs.. Wouldn't it be possible that Irsay (the owner of the team) should be able to guarantee Mannings health, since you've been doing virtually the same thing here on a Colts forum.

[bayone]

I think he wants his new GM to atleast be in the mix. Everybody has to be on the same page.

Exactly

Irsay said leaving HC up to new GM, keep Caldwell or bring in own, until we get that GM , HC candidates will be signing elswhere , not because they may rather go there than here , but because they dont know who will be GM & if an HC will be open for sure & need to ensure have a job then , thus available HC pool will dwindle

[JColts72]

If Rams or Miami get Fischer this week or next; will really show Irsay has no desire to hire a new coach and we''ll remain with Clump Caldwell. I think we all agrre longer wait for GM, the less coaching talent may be available. Maybe Jim can tweet potential GM's

[oldunclemark]

I hope Irsay doesn't drag his feet on the Caldwell decision. Fisher is a hot commodity, and if Irsay wants him in horseshoe blue, he needs to go ahead and can Caldwell and get the call into Fisher before he is snatched up by Tampa Bay, Miami, or St. Louis. I think Fisher would take the job here if he can get assurances from Irsay that Manning will be back if healthy. I mean, isn't it a foregone conclusion that Caldwell is gone? If not, why not? If so, why delay the inevitable?

I'm certain the call has already been made..

[oldunclemark]

If Fischer wants Manning for a QB w/ Luck he will wait. There's plenty of time.

There's no rush here....Fisher already agreed to take his interviews....elsewhere....

,.,but he wont pass up Indy..He know them too well and the team is set up to win Now

[KyFan18]

How could Irsay assure Manning's health to Fisher in time to "pull the trigger" on him? That is not a promise he could make, and it could set up a disaster.

I think you misunderstood what I said. I meant that Irsay would need to tell Fisher that Peyton would be back IF he is healthy. Clearly, if he isn't healthy and can't play, you have to go in a different direction. What I was saying, was that Fisher would want to know that the team has no plans to cut or trade Manning if he is able to play.

[JoKeR]

So he tells all these other teams that are ready to hire him NOW that he is going to wait and see what happens with Indy? Those teams all go in another direction, and it turns out Indy isn't interested? Waiting is not worth the risk for him.

Almost, he will tell them he's weighing his options because he has multiple offers. That would the professional way to do it, plus there is time. If they can't wait a month or 2 they must not be very interested.

[bayone]

If Rams or Miami get Fischer this week or next; will really show Irsay has no desire to hire a new coach and we''ll remain with Clump Caldwell. I think we all agrre longer wait for GM, the less coaching talent may be available. Maybe Jim can tweet potential GM's

According to Irsay, the search for a new team general manager will begin immediately. He said this new G.M. will likely be someone who has not been a G.M. before.

Irsay said he's looking for someone who is a great talent evaluator. Also, the people he is interested in are currently working on teams in the playoffs. Thus, Irsay cannot interview them until the playoffs end for those respective teams.

Irsay suggested the new G.M. will be unknown to fans, unlike what Bill Polian was in 1997. He also said it is possible that a new coach for next year is someone who is not a head coach now.

other radio show comments

http://www.stampedeblue.com/2012/1/3/2678293/recap-of-the-indianapolis-colts-season-wrap-up-show-week-17-2011#storyjump

[Rblake]

Why, oh why do so many people think Jeff Fisher is a good coach? He's a 50 percenter! His record is 142/120! And Gruden? Irsay? You hire Jon Gruden..... I'm DONE as a Colts fan! Grudens record is 95/81. ANOTHER 50 percenter. ONLY reason Gruden has a ring is because he rode Tony Dungy's team into California. As soon as Jon started making changes, the team tanked.

Irsay needs to go to coach Dungy's house and throw obscene amounts of cash at Tony. Get that man BACK! Dungy's record? 139/69. He was 85/27 in Indy..... the man won 75% of his games in Indy! THAT is a coach.

Jim? Go get Tony back. Thats what I want.... I want to read that you were arrested throwing stacks and stacks of money at the coach. Go make this right.

Since when is .540 not good? I suppose the likes of Parcells (57%), Ditka (56%), Marv Levy (56%), Hank Stram (58%), Bill Walsh (60%), Mike Shanahan (57%), Chuck Knoll (57%), Weeb Ewbank (50%), and Jimmie Johnson (56%) aren't good either?

[Jaric]

If Irsay has an interest in Fisher, I'm sure he'd let Jeff know but explain that we need to straighten out the GM position which should happen in X amount of weeks.

[bayone]

If Irsay has an interest in Fisher, I'm sure he'd let Jeff know but explain that we need to straighten out the GM position which should happen in X amount of weeks.

Irsay made it clear that Jim Caldwell could be retained as the head coach. However, he also stated that if there is a coach out there that he wants, he won't hesitate to hire him before hiring a new G.M.

( This statement was, of course, NOT a ringing endorsement for Caldwell, and strongly suggests Caldwell is toast. )

http://www.stampedeb...-2011#storyjump

[JColts72]

Fischer being interviwed today at Miami via pick-up by ther owner (ESPN). So if Irsay wants GM and coach, he can get off his duff to make things happen instaed of weeks on end-

[doogansquest]

Fischer being interviwed today at Miami via pick-up by ther owner (ESPN). So if Irsay wants GM and coach, he can get off his duff to make things happen instaed of weeks on end-

He's got far too much on his plate to just snap-hire Fisher. That's not the kind of decision one rushes to make. Besides, if Fisher wants to be here, he will wait. Irsay has a ton of contracts to consider, a star player in rehab, a Super Bowl to host, a GM to replace, and a slew of playoff coaching/FO trees to analyze.

This is a decision that won't likely be made until after the Super Bowl.

[mystrymaster]

According to Kravitz the Colts have already reached out to Fisher

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/01/03/kravitz-thnks-colts-have-already-reached-out-to-fisher/

[Gwinn Hill]

wake up Indy Fans, Losing was the game plan from the start to get the first pick

Manning will be the new GM (and eventually the owner) Luck will be QB

and adding Fischer as a coach is a joke!! Look what he did to Bud Adams, he set up

several assistance to get alot of money knowing he was going to get fired and they were

going with him,Adams had to threaten him to change quarterbacks when the Titans lost

5 in a row. You really want Fischer? again FISCHER IS A JOKE>>>>

[JColts72]

Caldwell is a bigger Joke. Wait unitl after superbowl for GM, OK, as long as it includes Caldwell being out-I mean how long to have a person twist in the wind, unless Caldwell already assured by Irsay that he'll be back-

[bayone]

According to Kravitz the Colts have already reached out to Fisher

http://profootballta...-out-to-fisher/

fisher would want to know peyton is healthy enough to play if peyton is reason as article suggests

[JColts72]

So he would not want to coach Luck? and take a chance on Moore or Bradfford instead? if Manning is not healthy?

[ACollie17]

Why don't we get the best guy available? Just being better than Caldwell shouldn't be the benchmark. That's a pretty sorry reason for hiring a head coach, especially if that's your strongest argument.

I think most Colts fans agree that Caldwell should be gone. Maybe some could stand to see him stay, but particularly after the Polians were fired, it would seem that there's no reason to hang on to what they've been building here recently. It's time to move in a different direction, and Jim Irsay made that painfully clear today.

Still, that doesn't mean just run out and hire the first guy that comes to mind. Some people really like Jeff Fisher. I'm not one of them. I've explained why ad nauseum. I think we could do a lot better. But if we interview a bunch of candidates (Irsay said today he interviewed 12 candidates in '95; we didn't interview anyone but Dungy in '02; didn't interview anyone in '09, as Caldwell had already been appointed), and Irsay and his new GM decide on Jeff Fisher, I'll support that decision.

I would much rather prefer someone else. I think there are plenty of better options out there. If we're going to go with a retread, I'd prefer Brian Billick. Now that Polian is gone, perhaps Bill Cowher would be interested, even though he's stated he's not ready to return to coaching. Those are much better options than Fisher, to me. And there's always the "new blood" route, which a lot of media people have suggested Irsay is interested in at both coach and GM. There's Joe Philbin from Green Bay, Mike Mularkey from Atlanta, and so on. There are a couple of college coaches I'd take a look at, like Chris Peterson from Boise State. And so on.

I'm not advocating for anyone in particular. These are just ideas. The point is that there are numerous candidates available, and I hope we do what we can to interview as many as possible. Then, we settle on the best guy. Ideally, we'd tab our GM first, and then make sure he has input on Irsay's final decision. Maybe we don't have time to do that. Hopefully Irsay is interested in a guy like Reggie McKenzie from Green Bay to be the new GM, and that's why he's waiting to pull the trigger on anything.

At the end of the day, I'm sure Irsay is on top of things. Never been more sure of that than I am today. He'll make sure we get good people to run the team moving forward. If he feels the best option is Jeff Fisher, I'll support that. But he certainly wouldn't be my choice, just based on his past record and experiences.

You're right I did jump the gun a little bit with Fisher. I just want Caldwell out ASAP.

I was reading something and it wasn't an Indy report but it just had possible head coach candidates. The obvious ones weren't on there like Cowher and Billick, but there were guys like Mike Mularkey in Atlanta, Herm Edwards, and dark horses like Gregg Williams and Dom Capers. Personally after thinking about it I like Mularkey ONLY if there aren't any defensive guys available. Some defensive help would be great and I see that as the first priority. But if Irsay and the new GM want to go in an offensive direction, Mularkey would be a great option. Being the OC in Atlanta, he knows how to run a balanced offense with Ryan and Turner. That could be a great change from our usual pass pass pass with Peyton (other than this year obviously). I'm not saying that the dominant pass offense hasn't worked because everyone knows it has, and I'm not going to get into the whole Manning/Luck thing because thats a different issue, but you don't know how much longer that's going to work and it would be nice to have some type of running game going to the future.

[Superman]

You're right I did jump the gun a little bit with Fisher. I just want Caldwell out ASAP.

At this point, I see a slight benefit to keeping Caldwell (the players obviously like him), but I don't believe he's a good coach, and now is as good a time as any to move on.

I was reading something and it wasn't an Indy report but it just had possible head coach candidates. The obvious ones weren't on there like Cowher and Billick, but there were guys like Mike Mularkey in Atlanta, Herm Edwards, and dark horses like Gregg Williams and Dom Capers. Personally after thinking about it I like Mularkey ONLY if there aren't any defensive guys available. Some defensive help would be great and I see that as the first priority. But if Irsay and the new GM want to go in an offensive direction, Mularkey would be a great option. Being the OC in Atlanta, he knows how to run a balanced offense with Ryan and Turner. That could be a great change from our usual pass pass pass with Peyton (other than this year obviously). I'm not saying that the dominant pass offense hasn't worked because everyone knows it has, and I'm not going to get into the whole Manning/Luck thing because thats a different issue, but you don't know how much longer that's going to work and it would be nice to have some type of running game going to the future.

I think the whole "offensive minded vs. defensive minded" thing is tremendously overstated. Dungy was defensive minded, and our defenses weren't that good overall, but the offense was great. Brian Billick was offensive minded, but the offense was challenged, and the defense was great. Belichick has made his living on defense (has some offensive background, but mostly a defensive guy), and the Pats defense has gone steadily downhill the past three years. There are numerous other examples. I don't think this is very important in a head coach. I'm much more concerned with the coordinators under the head coach.

As for offensive balance, our run game fell off a cliff in 2008 when the offensive line was decimated with injuries. Before that, we always had a good run game. Not top ten most years, but that's mostly because we were still a pass-first offense. Continue improving the offensive line, and the run game should be plenty good enough, regardless of the head coach.

Gregg Williams and Dom Capers remind me of guys like Wade Phillips and Norv Turner: good coordinators, not so good head coaches. Either might earn their way back into the #1 job, but I wouldn't want either of them for the Colts. Nor would I want Herm Edwards. I'd take either of Cowher or Billick before Fisher.

[ACollie17]

At this point, I see a slight benefit to keeping Caldwell (the players obviously like him), but I don't believe he's a good coach, and now is as good a time as any to move on.

I think the whole "offensive minded vs. defensive minded" thing is tremendously overstated. Dungy was defensive minded, and our defenses weren't that good overall, but the offense was great. Brian Billick was offensive minded, but the offense was challenged, and the defense was great. Belichick has made his living on defense (has some offensive background, but mostly a defensive guy), and the Pats defense has gone steadily downhill the past three years. There are numerous other examples. I don't think this is very important in a head coach. I'm much more concerned with the coordinators under the head coach.

As for offensive balance, our run game fell off a cliff in 2008 when the offensive line was decimated with injuries. Before that, we always had a good run game. Not top ten most years, but that's mostly because we were still a pass-first offense. Continue improving the offensive line, and the run game should be plenty good enough, regardless of the head coach.

Gregg Williams and Dom Capers remind me of guys like Wade Phillips and Norv Turner: good coordinators, not so good head coaches. Either might earn their way back into the #1 job, but I wouldn't want either of them for the Colts. Nor would I want Herm Edwards. I'd take either of Cowher or Billick before Fisher.

http://www.pewterreport.com/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=7669:&Itemid=15

There's that link if you want to check it out. Focused on Tampa Bay but still names possible HCs.

Regarding Mularkey, also remember that we lost Tom Moore. The line was definately destroyed, but Moore was here for a while and him leaving probably had even a small affect on the run game. I'm just thinking that maybe if Castonzo and Ijalana pan out and if possibly we can pick up another O-lineman in the draft this year, plus if we resign Saturday, Mularkey could rejuvinate the run offense to what it was and hopefully better for the future with that line. We could also do a HC/OC thing with Mularkey like the Jets have with Rex Ryan (HC/DC).

I do agree with you about the DCs I named, but as I said they're dark horses.

What do you think will happen with the OC and DC spots? Because personally I don't like Christensen or Murphy. Possible Raheem Morris at DC? Only because he coached under the Dungy system

[Superman]

http://www.pewterrep...7669:&Itemid=15

There's that link if you want to check it out. Focused on Tampa Bay but still names possible HCs.

Regarding Mularkey, also remember that we lost Tom Moore. The line was definately destroyed, but Moore was here for a while and him leaving probably had even a small affect on the run game. I'm just thinking that maybe if Castonzo and Ijalana pan out and if possibly we can pick up another O-lineman in the draft this year, plus if we resign Saturday, Mularkey could rejuvinate the run offense to what it was and hopefully better for the future with that line. We could also do a HC/OC thing with Mularkey like the Jets have with Rex Ryan (HC/DC).

I do agree with you about the DCs I named, but as I said they're dark horses.

I think the offensive line is almost there. Health is a big deal, as we haven't had any of that the past two seasons. And then there's the continued improvement of the young guys. And if we add a guy or two in the draft, then we'll continue moving forward.

I wouldn't like to have a head coach serving as the coordinator or calling plays during the game. There's plenty of instances where that becomes problematic, and the head coach begins to be spread too thin. I prefer the head coach to be the big picture, game managing guy who dictates the team's approach and makes situational decisions. Then he should have coordinators calling the plays and determining packages and such. The position coaches should have a say in what personnel is used in certain situations, and so on. Delegate. That's my preference.

What do you think will happen with the OC and DC spots? Because personally I don't like Christensen or Murphy. Possible Raheem Morris at DC? Only because he coached under the Dungy system

Raheem Morris would probably do the same things Murphy would do. I don't see the benefit. If you want a Dungy defense, keep Murphy. Only reason to change coordinators is if you want to change your defensive system.

(This is what's ironic to me about all the comments about Larry Coyer. Why get rid of Ron Meeks if you wanted a Tampa 2 coordinator? I always assumed we hired Coyer because we wanted more than a Tampa 2 zone guy. Why is everyone so surprised that we got a guy who wasn't a Tampa 2 disciple? Isn't that what the point was?)

Along those same lines, if Caldwell stays, it wouldn't surprise me one bit if we don't change any coordinators. Maybe Rychleski goes, but I don't know how much difference that makes. Christensen hasn't proven anything, but I don't think Caldwell wants to try to install a new offense. This is what he's been doing for ten seasons now, and Christensen has been with him the entire way. Murphy improved the defense in his five weeks as the coordinator.

If we get rid of Caldwell, all bets are off. If we were to hire a guy like Dom Capers, get ready for a transition to a 3-4. I would hope he could do it as efficiently and effectively as Wade Phillips did in Houston this year. He'd bring 3-4 assistants with him (coordinator, linebackers coach, line coach), and the new GM would put a premium on getting good interior linemen and some corners who can play more man coverage. If it were a guy like Mularkey, I don't know what he'd do. I would imagine he would stay with a base 4-3, considering our personnel, but your guess is as good as mine. It all depends on what direction Irsay and the new GM want to go in.

[ACollie17]

Raheem Morris would probably do the same things Murphy would do. I don't see the benefit. If you want a Dungy defense, keep Murphy. Only reason to change coordinators is if you want to change your defensive system..

I'm seeing alot of comment in other threads about going after Spagnuolo. That would mean changing the entire defensive scheme because Spagnuolo likes man to man and the occasional blitz. He would totally mess up the Tampa 2. So the only way I see that happening is if Caldwell is fired.

.

If we get rid of Caldwell, all bets are off. If we were to hire a guy like Dom Capers, get ready for a transition to a 3-4. I would hope he could do it as efficiently and effectively as Wade Phillips did in Houston this year. He'd bring 3-4 assistants with him (coordinator, linebackers coach, line coach), and the new GM would put a premium on getting good interior linemen and some corners who can play more man coverage. If it were a guy like Mularkey, I don't know what he'd do. I would imagine he would stay with a base 4-3, considering our personnel, but your guess is as good as mine. It all depends on what direction Irsay and the new GM want to go in.

The problem I see with a 3-4 is that right now I don't think we have the linebackers or corners. Personally I would take Angerer over Brackett at MLB right now and I don't think Gary will come back next year. Now other than that who do we have? Conner? Sims? Edds? Wheeler? I don't know how a 3-4 change would help because I don't think we have the linebackers make it successful. The corners would be a big issue like you said. Lacey? Powers? I don't think so. No matter what defense we're in, we need secondary help anyway, but I dont see those guys being able to play consistent man coverage. That would mean devoting alot of the draft to defense or dipping into free agency, something that a new GM may be interested in.

[GoColts8818]

According to Kravitz the Colts have already reached out to Fisher

http://profootballta...-out-to-fisher/

Maybe the bring Fisher in as the GM? That seems to have been a trendy thing as of late in the NFL to bring in ex NFL head coaches as GMs. Miami did it a few years ago and the Browns have done it as well and the Seahawks reached out to Tony Dungy a couple of years ago about their GM job.

The guys on WNDE just brought up a good point and said the Polians getting fired was a shock to most people around football and has people rethinking plans because a job just came open that many people didn't think was giong to be open. They also brought up that according to the people they have talked the Colt job is viewed as one of the better jobs in the NFL because you have an owner in Irsay who wants to win and will spend money to do it and you are either going to have Peyton Manning or Andrew Luck at QB if not both.

[coltsfanmilyman]

Like a bunch of other people have put it (gocolts, warhorse and others) Jim Irsay is taking a methodical approach to it, not a knee-jerk reaction. He (Irsay) is beginning another chapter in colts history; do you want a knee-jerk reaction to define the next decade?

Also like others said Irsay looked at a very shallow talent pool past 1st stringers on all sides of the ball. I place blame 70% on GM 30% coaching. Polian should know better. How can you be gm of the year 9x and this bad season is because 1 player goes down to injury? 2-14 really? Coaching is bad all over the field; but you can't teach proper technique to people who shouldn't be playing?

Is it weird to go into an offseason sad and excited at the same time?

[Tony Sullivan]

Miami did it a few years ago and the Browns have done it as well and the Seahawks reached out to Tony Dungy a couple of years ago about their GM job.

And how have those teams fared since?

We don't need a guy that's already been a GM elsewhere, although it wouldn't hurt. I just don't see the Colts hiring a HC directly to GM.

[coltsfanmilyman]

The guys on WNDE just brought up a good point and said the Polians getting fired was a shock to most people around football and has people rethinking plans because a job just came open that many people didn't think was giong to be open. They also brought up that according to the people they have talked the Colt job is viewed as one of the better jobs in the NFL because you have an owner in Irsay who wants to win and will spend money to do it and you are either going to have Peyton Manning or Andrew Luck at QB if not both.

FWIW on Dan Patrick this morning they had a poll regarding this. We came in second to SD (before they announced Turner and Smith were staying) the question was as a head coach/gm which is the best job:

sd

IND

stl

mia