The Fritz Pollard Alliance announced Thursday that they have launched an inquiry to see if the Indianapolis Colts properly followed NFL guidelines for hiring a new head coach.
Per NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, the Fritz Pollard Alliance shared the following statement:
“In light of the recent interim head coaching hire in Indianapolis, the FPA has initiated an inquiry with the NFL into whether this hiring process conformed with NFL Hiring Guidelines for naming an interim Head Coach.”
The Colts fired head coach Frank Reich from his position on Nov. 7, one day after the team fell 26-3 to the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium. In a massive surprise, owner Jim Irsay hired ESPN analyst and former Pro Bowl center Jeff Saturday as the team’s new head coach.
Saturday’s hiring was largely criticized for a variety of reasons. For starters, Saturday had zero coaching experience at the NFL and collegiate levels. From 2017 to 2019, he was the coach of the Hebron Christian Academy high school team in Dacula, Georgia.
Secondly, the Colts have two assistants on their staff who previously served as head coaches in defensive coordinator Gus Bradley and senior defensive assistant John Fox. Bradley was previously the head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars (from 2013 to 2016), and Fox served as head coach of the Carolina Panthers (2002 to 2010), Denver Broncos (2011 to 2014) and Chicago Bears (2015 to 2017).
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But Saturday and the Colts got the first laugh over the critics on Sunday by defeating the Las Vegas Raiders on the road by a final score of 25-20. Saturday stunned many by starting Matt Ryan, who was benched after the team’s Week 7 loss to the Tennessee Titans, in favor of sophomore Sam Ehlinger.
Saturday joined the Baltimore Ravens organization in 1998 as an undrafted free agent before landing with the Colts in 1999. The six-time Pro Bowler helped the Colts to a Super Bowl 41 championship in the 2006 season Saturday also spent one season for the Green Bay Packers in 2012.
