Colts Defensive Coordinator Candidates: Lou Anarumo

Lou Anarumo was once a promising head coach candidate who now finds himself on the open market.
Cincinnati Bengals defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo takes the field as the Bengals warm up before facing the Dallas Cowboys for Monday Night Football at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas on Monday, December 9, 2024.
Cincinnati Bengals defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo takes the field as the Bengals warm up before facing the Dallas Cowboys for Monday Night Football at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas on Monday, December 9, 2024. / Cara Owsley/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
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The Indianapolis Colts are looking for a new defensive coordinator, as the team announced they parted ways with Gus Bradley after three seasons in the role.

The Colts' search for a new coordinator should be interesting, as some personnel around the league could see this as being a lame-duck situation with a head coach and a general manager on the hot seat. Still, there are only 32 of these jobs available in the league, so the Colts should be able to nab a quality hire regardless of speculation around the position.

This new series will profile several candidates the Colts are likely to look into in their search. Next up is former Cincinnati Bengals defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo.

Background

Anarumo's career with football began when he was in college, but not as a player. He served as a Junior Varsity head coach for a local high school while attending Wagner and then became his alma maters' running backs coach in 1989. He worked his way through the college circuit until 2011, serving in multiple roles for Syracuse, Harvard, and Purdue (he worked as a defensive backs coach for Purdue from 2004-11).

Anarumo made the jump to the NFL back in 2012 on an impressive Miami Dolphins staff that included Dan Campbell, Ben Johnson, Zac Taylor, and Joe Philbin. He served as the team's defensive backs coach for six seasons, which included a brief stint as an interim defensive coordinator back in 2015. He departed for a one-year stint as the New York Giants' defensive backs coach job in 2018 (under James Bettcher) before landing his first defensive coordinator job in 2019.

Reuniting with his old coworker, Taylor, Anarumo took over as the Bengals' defensive coordinator. He inherited a defense that was truly one of the worst in the league, allowing the most yards and over six yards per play in 2018. Anarumo wasn't able to turn this defense around overnight, as his units still ranked average to below average in the years following his hiring.

The turnaround point in Anarumo's tenure came during the 2021 postseason. After a mediocre regular season for the defense, the unit turned up the heat come playoff time. They held the Las Vegas Raiders and the Tennessee Titans to under 20 points in the first two games, and then shocked the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship to earn a trip to the Super Bowl.

Anarumo's defense forced seven turnovers in three games en route to that Super Bowl appearance, and his unit arguably had a bigger hand in that team being in the final game than Joe Burrow and the Bengals' offense. They came up just short in the Super Bowl, but it was a major milestone for Anarumo's tenure.

He followed up the strong end to 2021 with an impressive 2022 season on defense, as he led the Bengals' to the number seven defense in the league in total yards allowed while holding opposing quarterbacks to a passer rating of just 80.1. Unfortunately, the Bengals' defense would begin a downward trend following the successul season.

In the last two offseasons, the Bengals let Jessie Bates III, Chidobe Awuzie, and D.J. Reader walk in free agency. This departure of talent led to a decline in play from the defense, and Anarumo struggled to adjust to the youth on his team. The Bengals did regroup well late in 2024 to finish closer to league-average in several metrics, but the downward spiral in play ultimately led to his firing this offseason.

Why The Colts Are Considering Him

Anarumo is another name in this defensive coordinator search that doesn't appear to have a prior connection to the Colts or their power structure involved in the search. He has spent some time in Indiana in his career though, as he was with Purdue for eight seasons as a defensive backs coach.

The Colts' interest in Anarumo appears to be solely based off of his experience in the NFL and Shane Steichen's experience coaching against him over the years. Steichen has had a few difficult run-ins with the savvy defensive coach, including a 34-14 beatdown loss late in the 2023 season when the Colts were looking to make a playoff run.

Anarumo's best trait is his flexibility as a defensive coach. He is a true chameleon that adjusts to his opponents' strengths rather than sticking to a rigid base structure. He certainly has his preferences in single-high coverages, but a lot of his game to game focus is about game-planning for a particular opponent.

Anarumo specializes in muddying the water pre-snap for opposing offenses and mixing what he does up front to create pressure and disruption. Much like how offenses will mix in dozens of personnel groupings and pre-snap movement, Anarumo matches that with his own style in order to dictate play on his own terms. He may not bring the uber-aggressive blitz-heavy approach Colts' fans are looking for, but he will bring the diversity needed to work.

Anarumo has the reputation that he has around the league for a reason. He may not have had consistent success with the Bengals, but he had his units playing good football against top teams and in the biggest moments in his tenure. There is some concern regarding his fit with the Colts' overall personnel on defense, but Mad Scientist Lou would be a strong candidate to replace Gus Bradley this offseason.

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Zach Hicks
ZACH HICKS

Zach Hicks is the Lead Analyst for HorseshoeHuddle.com. Zach has been on the NFL beat since 2017. His works have appeared on SBNation.com, the Locked On Podcast Network, BleacherReport.com, MSN.com, & Yardbarker.com.