Jeff Saturday, Matt Ryan Silence Doubters, Lead Colts to Big Win Over Raiders
Disrespectful. Embarrassing. Unproven. Inexperienced. Entitled.
All of those words were used to describe the Indianapolis Colts and their decision to hire Jeff Saturday as their interim head coach.
The national media was in an uproar about what was transpiring on W 56th Street. Tirades by former Cleveland Browns left tackle Joe Thomas and former Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Bill Cowher went viral. How could the Colts hire someone to take over their team who had no coaching experience in the NFL or even college?
And while Colts’ owner Jim Irsay had some very peculiar things to say on Monday, he made one thing clear: Saturday would not be afraid. He was right.
Saturday did not blink, lit a spark into a spiraling Colts team, and trusted his coaches and players to get the job done. The result was a 25-20 win over the Las Vegas Raiders and Josh McDaniels, who spurned the Colts for their head coaching vacancy in 2018. For all the talk about inexperience, Saturday gets the win in his debut.
“Man, just an incredible win,” Saturday said with a smile after the game. “I told the guys, in all three phases, it was just an incredible team effort. These guys have been through it. I told the staff, the coaches, the players, just the fortitude that they presented and the way they played today, they laid it all out there today. And I just could not be more appreciative of those guys and the way they played.”
Saturday said on Monday in his introductory press conference that he was “drinking from a fire hose.” He spent his first afternoon as the head coach of the Colts introducing himself to his staff, the coaches that would be going into battle with him in just six days. He met with the players for the first time on Wednesday morning, four days before kickoff.
But one thing you can tell right away from Saturday is the passion he has in everything he does. Whether it was playing center for the Colts on his way to five Pro Bowls, being an analyst for ESPN covering the NFL, or leading this Colts team as their coach, Saturday gives it his all. He is honest and holds everyone accountable, including himself.
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Saturday did not come in demanding respect as the new head coach. He knew he would have to prove himself to all of the coaches and players in the organization. Sunday was a great first step.
“I felt like we had a really good plan in place,” Saturday admitted. “I felt like all the men who I had talked about empowering and giving them the ability to do what they can do exceptionally well, they all stepped up. And so, I knew what my role was, and I was going to execute my role to the best of my ability. And I was going to allow all of those men to do the same and they stepped up, man. It was an incredible day.”
Saturday did not come in to take over the team. He came in to help the talented coaches on the Colts’ staff in any way he could, and the connection seems to be building quickly. Saturday embraced defensive coordinator Gus Bradley after the Colts’ final stop. He ran up the sideline with running backs coach Scottie Montgomery after a 66-yard Jonathan Taylor touchdown run. He encouraged offensive line coach Chris Strausser as the unit was in the midst of one of their best performances of the season.
But the coach on Saturday’s staff that really stepped up, and introduced himself to the rest of the NFL, was Parks Frazier. Before Sunday, Frazier had spent the season as the Colts’ pass game specialist/assistant quarterbacks coach. Saturday named Frazier as the offensive play-caller for the rest of the season, and his debut was just as impressive as Saturday’s.
The Colts’ offense rebounded nicely after their abysmal showing against the New England Patriots last week. The Colts had 415 total yards of offense with 208 passing yards and 207 rushing yards – 147 by Taylor – in a very balanced attack. The 7.0 yards per play was more than triple what the Colts mustered against the Patriots. They were 6-11 on third down as opposed to 0-14 last week.
The Colts’ offense, finally, looked competent. Frazier kept it simple, calling plays the Colts could execute at a high rate. He dialed up calls to get the ball into the hands of the Colts’ best playmakers in Taylor, Michael Pittman Jr., and Parris Campbell. The results were obvious, and Saturday was pleased with how Frazier handled his new duties.
Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports
“I thought Parks did an excellent job of organizing and making sure his thoughts, ideas and that everybody contributed where they felt like we could take advantage, where they felt like we could make plays, and explosive plays in particular.”
"I thought Parks did a hell of a job,” quarterback Matt Ryan remarked. “That's a hard situation, you know? And the first time doing it, to come on the road, to have all of the changes that we had this week. I thought he did a great job. Parks is going to be a really good coach in this league for a long time, but we also have some other really good coaches on the staff who helped him through the week, and I think they all picked up the slack.”
Speaking of Ryan, the former NFL MVP made his return this week as the Colts made another surprising move by starting the veteran quarterback. On Monday, Saturday had said that Sam Ehlinger would be the starter. But as the week went on, Saturday knew Ryan was the quarterback that gave the Colts the best chance to win.
“I saw Matt throw, and that was the first time I had seen him throw,” Saturday explained. “He's coming off an injury and he put a good practice together on Thursday. So, Friday, I told him, ‘Go back-to-back.' And again, now this is my first experience really ever seeing him throw and he looked really good. I wanted to talk to the staff on Friday afternoon, but I knew what I was going to do, and I knew everybody was with it. I felt like Matt gave us the best chance to win.”
After missing the last two weeks with a shoulder injury, Ryan returned to have his most efficient day as a Colt. Ryan finished 21-of-28 (75%) for 222 yards, two total touchdowns (one passing, one rushing), no interceptions or fumbles, and a QB rating of 109.5. Ryan even had the longest run of his career, a 39-yard sprint from the 37-year-old quarterback.
“Maybe if I was a little faster, I could have scored, but I did the best I could,” Ryan said with a laugh.
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It took only two plays after the long run for Ryan to find Campbell for a 35-yard touchdown strike. Campbell led the Colts with seven catches, a career-high 76 yards, and a touchdown. The Raiders tried to respond with a 14-play drive, but great defensive plays by Bobby Okereke and Stephon Gilmore sealed the win for the Colts.
The win also sealed a 1-0 start for Saturday as the interim head coach. Multiple players spoke about how Saturday handled things this week and how he empowered the coaches and players to handle their business, ensuring he would help when they needed him. That did not go unnoticed by the leaders of this team.
“I thought (Saturday) did a great job at the beginning of the week of addressing the situation, understanding it's completely unprecedented, completely unique, and was very clear about how he was going to try and go about it, and very clear about what he expected from the guys.” Ryan explained. “And, as players, I think players are extremely resilient. In this league there's tons of turnover when it comes to the roster. That's how the nature of this works, and I think it creates guys with hard mindsets, understanding that they got to go perform, regardless of what the circumstances are every week.”
He continued, “I think it was a combination of Jeff doing a good job of making it clear in telling us that he needed to earn our trust. And it was a great job by the leaders in our locker room and the guys from one through 70, basically of saying, 'You know what? We got to get to work.' And I'm proud of the guys for doing that."
"I gave (a game ball) to everybody,” Saturday said. “That's the way it should have been. It was a complete team effort. Like I said, coaches, players, everybody."
The Colts deserve to enjoy this victory. It may have been against the lowly Raiders, but a win’s a win in the NFL. They are all tough, no matter who you play.
This victory is especially important for Saturday and Ryan. The head coach was crucified in the media all week because he wanted to help the franchise he loves. The quarterback faced criticism of being washed because his team failed to keep their promises.
But wait, do you hear that? It is silence from the doubters. Music to Saturday and Ryan’s ears. But knowing them and what they are made of, they were never listening in the first place.
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