The Colts have added two more names to their list of HC finalists. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports (via Twitter) that Indianapolis will conduct a second interview with Eagles OC Shane Steichen this week, while Tom Pelissero of NFL.com says that Packers special teams coordinator Rich Bisaccia will get a second look as well.
Steichen, who also secured HC interviews with the Panthers and Texans in this year’s cycle, has quickly turned into a hot commodity on the head coaching market. The 37-year-old was the Chargers’ offensive coordinator in 2020 — which happened to be Justin Herbert‘s impressive rookie year — and he joined Philadelphia in the same capacity in 2021. Eagles HC Nick Sirianni handed Steichen the play-calling reins midway through the 2021 season, and the Eagles’ pivot to a run-heavy offense drove them to last year’s playoff bracket. Jalen Hurts’ progression as a passer this year helped the team secure the NFC’s No. 1 seed and a spot in today’s NFC Championship Game.
Bisaccia, 62, is one of the league’s most-respected third phase coaches. Of course, he took over as the Raiders’ interim HC in the wake of Jon Gruden‘s resignation in 2021, and he led Las Vegas to a 7-5 record down the stretch, which was enough to secure a playoff berth. That level of success earned him an interview to retain the position on a full-time basis, but the organization pivoted to Josh McDaniels instead. Bisaccia also took an HC interview with the Jaguars last offseason before accepting a job as Green Bay’s special teams coordinator.
Steichen and Bisaccia join a large group of candidates to advance from the Colts’ first round of virtual interviews — which did not include owner Jim Irsay — to a second round of meetings for which Irsay will be present. That group includes interim HC Jeff Saturday, Broncos DC Ejiro Evero, Rams DC Raheem Morris, and Giants DC Wink Martindale. Chiefs OC Eric Bieniemy and Indy’s own ST coordinator, Bubba Ventrone, also remain in the mix.
The shadow of Saturday continues to loom over these proceedings. Despite both internal and external backlash, Irsay is said to be “pushing” to remove the interim tag from Saturday’s title and keep the Colts’ former center aboard as the team’s permanent head coach. Here’s the full list of Indianapolis’ HC candidates:
- Eric Bieniemy, offensive coordinator (Chiefs): Interviewed 1/12; in finalist mix
- Rich Bisaccia, special teams coordinator (Packers): Interviewed 1/20; second interview scheduled
- Brian Callahan, offensive coordinator (Bengals): Interviewed 1/20
- Ejiro Evero, defensive coordinator (Broncos): Conducted second interview 1/26
- Aaron Glenn, defensive coordinator (Lions): Interviewed 1/14
- Jim Harbaugh, head coach (Michigan): Mentioned as candidate, to remain at Michigan or join Broncos?
- Ben Johnson, offensive coordinator (Lions): Interviewed 1/13; plans to stay with Lions
- Mike Kafka, offensive coordinator (Giants): Interviewed 1/22
- Don Martindale, defensive coordinator (Giants): Planning second interview
- Raheem Morris, defensive coordinator (Rams): Conducted second interview 1/27
- Dan Quinn, defensive coordinator (Cowboys): Second interview scheduled for 1/28; to stay with Cowboys
- DeMeco Ryans, defensive coordinator (49ers): Interview on hold; Colts still want to meet; prefers Texans’ job
- Jeff Saturday, interim head coach (Colts): Conducted second interview 1/25
- Shane Steichen, offensive coordinator (Eagles): Interviewed 1/14; second interview scheduled
- Bubba Ventrone, special teams coordinator (Colts): Interviewed 1/11; in finalist mix
Seems like a very meh list of guys. None really jump out as super exciting. Which is par for the way Irsay is currently running this organization. Luck broke his heart, and he plans on punishing everyone, forever, about it.
Ryans and Steichen are both excellent HC candidates, as is Morris.
I can see Saturday being a good coach someday. It’s just bad optics for Irsay to take the trajectory of making it happen so aggressively while other qualified, especially minority options, are consistently overlooked.
It would be great to see more head coaches not being the de facto OC or DC as well. If I had to guess, this may be a reason for the high turnover amongst coaches.
All that being said Rich Bissaccia has proven to be a great leader, and I could see him being successful with a solid playcaller on both sides of the ball.
I think being a former ST guy could be an asset as long as you are comfortable bringing in top notch OC/DC people (as they could ultimately replace you). The HC is being pulled in so many different directions during the week (media commitments/personnel decisions/front office coordination) it would seem too difficult to be highly involved in the details of either the offensive or defensive game plan(s). Let someone else do the detailed work and simply review/critique/adjust their game plan(s) and their execution.
I think people would also be more open to a special teams coordinator candidate who wasn’t already over 60.
I am of the opinion that the Colts could do worse than to hire Rich Bisaccia. In the wake of the Jon Gruden implosion in Las Vegas, Bissccia was able to keep the team focused amid the media frenzy and have them playing respectably. Given the opportunity to form his own staff, he should be able to provide some stability to a team likely to see significant roster turnover.
That being said, of those known to have been selected for second interviews, Dan Quinn seems to be the best fit for the roster as currently constructed.