Shane Steichen Will Hire Colts Defensive Coordinator
Source: Al Bello / Getty
INDIANAPOLIS – As the Colts are in the midst of searching for a new defensive coordinator, is Chris Ballard ready to evolve from his defensive approach?
But the early gist of candidate the Colts are interviewing certainly has a look of more aggressive coaches.
And even Ballard has admitted some benefit in searching for that with Gus Bradley not being brought back.
“I definitely think there is value (in being more aggressive),” Ballard said at his season-ending press conference, adding he would have say in the defensive coordinator hire, but pointing out that Steichen would make the ultimate decision..
“You have to be able to affect the quarterback. You do.”
That last part has to be a major focus as the Colts look for a new defensive coordinator.
Under Bradley, the Colts did not do enough—up front or at the back end to—-to disrupt the timing of the opponent’s passing game.
Contentment was way too prevalent in allowing opposing offenses to find easy, underneath completions.
While that is the overall schematic approach needing change, putting full blame on Bradley for recent Colts’ issues, especially on defense, would be unfair.
In January 2024, Ballard said this about the team’s defensive struggles, after the unit finished 28th in points allowed:
“Look, it’s an area we have to improve. In a little bit of defense, the year before (Bradley) comes in and we kind of had – I don’t want to say a veteran team, but we had some veteran players. Then I just said, ‘Look, we’re going to go young in some spots.’ We went young in the secondary and there were some rough moments at times in the secondary and I don’t completely put that on them. I put that more on me, but how do you ever develop any continuity, especially with your own guys if you don’t just play them? So I decided to go young. We took our lumps, took our lumps at times but I think it’s going to pay off down the line for them. I think we had five or six new starters on defense.
“We did do some good things now. It’s not like it’s all bad. The points do need to come down. We’ll continue to have long discussions about where we’re going and how we’ll get that done. But saying that, we had new starters on defense. We did do some good things too. We got after the passer pretty good. I think it’s got to be a little better, but 51 sacks is pretty good. Took the ball away, we need to be a little better there in that area and we have to take away the explosives. But I would expect us to take another jump here (in 2024) on defense.”
And in January 2025, Ballard said this about the continued defensive problems, after the unit ranked 24th in points allowed:
“That falls on all of us. No doubt. Look, I bet on some young players coming through. JuJu (Brents) gets hurt. Dallis (Flowers) was coming off his injury. And at the end of the day, I did not give them enough. And we’ve got to – in totality, have to do better defensively – from a player acquisition standpoint and from a play standpoint.”
Ballard’s personnel choices on that side of the ball have not lived up to the hype, with significant resources put into the defensive side of the ball.
When pressed further about the ’24 defense, Ballard actually thought the defensive line played pretty well, despite a lack of notable playmaking from that unit.
He didn’t feel that way about the back 7, particularly cornerback and safety.
Does that mean to expect more changes to linebacker (E.J. Speed is a free agent) and the secondary (Julian Blackmon is a free agency)?
Such answers on personnel will need to wait to see what happens at defensive coordinator.
The early return though on the pursuit of a DC appears to be the Colts willingness to finally evolve from one of the more vanilla defenses in the NFL.
Is that the start of the defensive changes this offseason, following a year in which the Colts returned all 11 starters?
