An Inside Look at the New Era of Colts Football

How the Indianapolis Colts are leaving the past where it belongs in order to build success in a new era featuring quarterback Anthony Richardson and head coach Shane Steichen.

To properly prepare for this next chapter of Indianapolis Colts football, it's essential to turn back the pages.

From the highest of highs — “Marlin’s got it, we're going to the Super Bowl!” — the famous words said after Colts cornerback Marlin Jackson intercepted Tom Brady to seal the AFC Championship victory in 2007. That led to the image of Peyton Manning holding up the Lombardi Trophy after he and the Colts finally reached the mountaintop, which fans still visualize to this day.

Then, there's the lowest of lows — “From the bottom of my heart, I truly have enjoyed being your quarterback” — the words an emotional Manning directed to Colts fans as he and the team prepared to go their separate ways. And, of course, the words that started the quarterback carousel the Colts have been stuck on since 2019 when Andrew Luck said, “This certainly isn't how I envisioned this or planned this, but I am going to retire.”

Remembering The Past

Mandatory Credit: Jason Parkhurst-USA TODAY Sports Copyright © 2007 Jason Parkhurst

While Luck's retirement came in 2019, the franchise has been pushing off the inevitable of drafting the team's next franchise QB. Since that day in August, the team has rolled with Jacoby Brissett, Philip Rivers, Carson Wentz, and most recently, Matt Ryan at the position. Those years in limbo were long and directionless, as a season ticket holder recently shared this sentiment. “Since Luck retired, we’ve (Colts fans) been ready to draft the next QB here in Indianapolis, and that desire has grown and grown each year the team rolled with a new vet QB.”

This new era of Colts football has been highly anticipated, and now the team that seemed to have no clear direction has set its course to return to the top of the mountain yet again.

Entering the New Era

Michael Conroy | Associated Press

With the new era set to begin, the first decision that had to be made was who would lead the team through it. The Colts didn't take that lightly, as they held the most extensive head coaching search of this cycle by a wide margin. The team's search ended up including 11 candidates from across the league. From that 11, the team would take a select group into a second round of interviews, and a source from inside the building shared with Horseshoe Huddle that the hire ended up coming down to Philadelphia Eagles offensive coordinator Shane Steichen and Los Angeles Rams defensive coordinator Raheem Morris.

Both had people in the organization banging the table for them. One of those who preferred Steichen after his time with him during the process was owner Jim Irsay himself. In the end, Steichen’s history with young QBs and offensive success loomed large, with the Colts primed to draft a quarterback in the 2023 NFL Draft.

The first report of the Colts' expected hire came on the morning of the Super Bowl, Feb. 12, via ESPN’s Adam Schefter.

The Indianapolis Colts have targeted Eagles’ offensive coordinator Shane Steichen to be their next head coach after informing other remaining candidates this morning that they are moving in a different direction, sources tell ESPN. pic.twitter.com/VgUa5YFXfa

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) February 12, 2023

Once the hire of Steichen was finalized, the focus for him was to build his offensive staff. One in which the only returning coach from the previous year was wide receivers coach Reggie Wayne. Steichen would name Jim Bob Cooter as the offensive coordinator. During the team's search for a head coach, one of the topics discussed with each candidate was who their potential staff would be. A source says that Steichen was not the only candidate to mention Cooter as an offensive coordinator that they had an interest in bringing on their staff if they got the job.

Sources tell me that multiple of the #Colts finalists for the head coaching job mentioned Jim Bob Cooter as a OC candidate they had interest bringing on staff if they got the job!

— Destin Adams (@TheDestinAdams) February 21, 2023

After the offensive coordinator job was taken care of, the Colts rounded out their offensive staff with the hires of Cam Turner (Quarterback Coach), Tom Manning (Tight Ends Coach), DeAndre Smith (Running Backs Coach), and Tony Sparano Jr. (Offensive line Coach). An important theme to note is that the Colts hired an offensive coordinator and quarterback coach who has had success working with QBs and experience working with young QBs. Cooter is coming off a year with the Jacksonville Jaguars, where he helped Trevor Lawerence rebound from a disappointing rookie season. Before being with Jacksonville, Cooter spent three years as the offensive coordinator with the Detroit Lions from 2015-18 with Matthew Stafford.

Turner comes to the Colts after being with the Arizona Cardinals since 2018. He began with the title “Offensive Assistant Coach” and worked his way up to being named “Quarterbacks Coach & Co-Passing Game Coordinator” where he worked with QB Kyler Murray from the moment he was drafted in 2019 to this past season. Before his stint with the Cardinals, Turner was “Assistant Quarterbacks Coach” for the Carolina Panthers, where he worked with then-Panthers QB Cam Newton. By reading between the lines of these hires, the Colts seemed to be tipping their hand towards doing what many were already anticipating; drafting their next franchise QB.

The New Kid on the Block

© Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

“With the fourth pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, the Indianapolis Colts select Anthony Richardson.” The words that officially started the new era of Colts football. But how did the Colts come to terms with selecting the exciting QB from the University of Florida? When general manager Chris Ballard was asked by Zak Keefer of The Atheltic when they knew Richardson was their preferred pick, Ballard answered by saying he knew for about a month. The overall interest though, goes back further.

The first time HH was told by a source of the team's intrigue with Richardson goes back to before the 2023 Scouting Combine began. A member of the Colts' staff attended a practice at Florida and had been banging the table for him ever since. We have since learned this individual was Colts Chief Personnel Executive Morocco Brown. At the time of the Combine, the source shared that the two QBs the Colts were the most interested in at that moment were Richardson and Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud. The exact statement the source said was, “They view Richardson and Stroud as Tier 1 in this class.” He also shared that the team viewed Alabama’s Bryce Young and Kentucky’s Will Levis as solid options for the team to consider, but at that time, had them in “Tier 2.”

Early Return on Investment

Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

The NFL draft has come and gone, and when the dust settled, the Colts selected Richardson to develop him into their next franchise QB. Since hearing his name called by Commissioner Roger Goodell, Richardson has had boots on the ground in Indianapolis since his introductory press conference, rookie minicamp, and the team's OTAs, which got underway on Monday. The early word is Richardson has been intentional anytime he is in the office or on the field. A source shared their first impressions by saying, “Every conversation with him, you can see his focus is on improving, and I don't just mean as a QB. He wants to know the area of Indianapolis better, he wants to be a better teammate, he wants to be a better man. He's tremendous to be around, and his overall want to be great is contagious.”

Many around the league believe the Colts were playing the long game when they selected Richardson. Ballard even hinted at that notion when he said, “We drafted him for what we think he can really be.” The early reactions HH has heard seem to believe Richardson isn't as far away from starting as some may believe. During rookie minicamp, he wowed teammates and coaches with his practice habits.

One fellow rookie minicamp participant shared this sentiment by saying, “The man grinds harder than anyone I've ever been around. There was a drill where he ran through a rep, and before anyone could say anything to him, he asked for another shot at it. Because he already knew what he did wrong and wanted to get it right before the next person would go. When you see the top pick of your team's draft class doing that, it pushes everyone to follow suit.”

Richardson is yet to play his first NFL snaps, and only time will tell if he will join the list of great Colts quarterbacks, but one thing is certain if he fails; it won't be for lack of effort and heart.

It also won't be because of a lack of preparation and due diligence from the Colts throughout the scouting process. The wait was longer than expected for Colts fans anticipating the true long-term replacement for Luck, but the new era of Colts football has arrived. And the success of this era sits on the shoulders of Anthony Richardson. While we don't know yet if he will be successful, it is very evident that he is mentally ready for the challenge.

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