There have been 19[a] head coaches for the Colts franchise.Keith Molesworth became the first coach of the Baltimore Colts in 1953, but he was reassigned to a different position with the team following the season.[2] In terms of tenure,Weeb Ewbank has led the team for more games (112) and more complete seasons (nine) than any other head coach. He led the team to two of theirNFL championships. Four Colts head coaches; Ewbank,Don Shula (3),Ted Marchibroda, andTony Dungy have been namedcoach of the year by at least one major news organization. Ewbank, Shula, and Dungy are members of thePro Football Hall of Fame, having been inducted in 1978, 1997, and 2016 respectively.[3][4]
Six times in Colts history there were interim head coaches. In 1972,Don McCafferty was fired five games into the season.[2]John Sandusky was named as the interim head coach for the rest of the season, during which he led the Colts to a 4–5 record, but he was not made the permanent coach the next year. In 1974, head coachHoward Schnellenberger started off the season 0–3 and was fired.Joe Thomas assumed the duties of head coach and finished the season at 2–12.[2] In 1991, the Colts started off 0–5 andRon Meyer was fired as head coach.Rick Venturi was named as the interim for the final 11 games.[5] In 2005Tony Dungy was forced to miss one game due topersonal issues.Jim Caldwell was named as the one game interim.[6] In 2012 offensive coordinatorBruce Arians was named as the interim head coach indefinitely afterChuck Pagano was diagnosed withleukemia four weeks into the 2012 NFL season.[7] Arians led the Colts to a 9–3 record – the record being credited to Pagano – and made the playoffs.Following a 3–5–1 start, Frank Reich was fired and on November 7, 2022, the Indianapolis Colts named Jeff Saturday as the team's interim coach for the rest of the season, during which he led the Colts to a 1–7 record. He was not made the permanent coach the next year.
^AlthoughBruce Arians was named as interim head coach during the 2012 season, he was not credited with the team's record while in charge.
^John Sandusky was the interim head coach for nine games during the 1972 season.
^Joe Thomas was the interim head coach for 11 games during the 1974 season.
^Hal Hunter was the interim head coach for the final game of the 1984 season.
^Ron Meyer was the interim head coach for three games during the 1986 season.
^Rick Venturi was the interim head coach for 11 games during the 1991 season.
^During the 2012 season, Chuck Pagano was diagnosed withleukemia.Bruce Arians was the interim head coach for 12 games, while Pagano underwent treatment. Arians led the team to a 9–3 record and won theAP NFL Coach of the Year for 2012. However, the record was credited to Pagano.
^Originally, Indianapolis intended to hireJosh McDaniels as their head coach for the 2018 season. Though the Colts and McDaniels had verbally agreed to terms for a contract, McDaniels backed out of the agreement a day before his official introduction as head coach to return to his position asoffensive coordinator of theNew England Patriots. As such, Frank Reich was hired instead.
^Jeff Saturday was the interim head coach for eight games during the 2022 season.
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