Report: Colts Showing Interest in Chicago Bears' Assistant for Vacant Coaching Position

The Indianapolis Colts lost one of their better coaches this week, as Special Teams Coordinator Bubba Ventrone took a slight promotion to head to the Cleveland Browns. This move is a return home for Ventrone, as he spent a good chunk of his playing career with the Browns.

The Colts now face the daunting task of replacing Ventrone's impact on the team. The Colts' special teams units ranked in the top ten in four of his five years with the team, the only exclusion being the 2019 disaster with Adam Vinatieri as the kicker. According to sources, the Colts may have already found their next man for the job.

I have been told that the Colts are showing interest in Chicago Bears' Assistant Special Teams Coordinator Carlos Polk for the newly vacated role. Polk, 45, does have a connection to both Shane Steichen and Chris Ballard (according to sources).

I’m guessing this is a drill new assistant special teams coach Carlos Polk brought with him. They’re drilling on downing a punt at the goal line. #cowboyswire pic.twitter.com/1mZxR9tjLV
— David Helman (@davidhelman_) July 28, 2019

Polk coached alongside Steichen with the San Diego Chargers from 2011-2012, where Polk served as an assistant special teams coordinator and Steichen served as a defensive assistant. Polk's connection to Chris Ballard is a bit more roundabout, as Ballard personally scouted Polk back in 2001 and tried to get the Chicago Bears to select him in that draft.

Ultimately Polk was selected by the San Diego Chargers, but I've been told that Ballard and Polk have kept that connection up until this day.

As for Polk's resume, he was selected in the fourth round of the 2001 NFL Draft by the San Diego Chargers as a linebacker out of Nebraska. He was a special team's star in his NFL career, tallying multiple seasons with double digit tackles on special teams. He officially retired following the 2008 season with 121 career tackles under his belt.

Polk quickly got into coaching following his retirement, and he found himself on the Chargers' staff (alongside Steichen) from 2010-2012. He then took another assistant special teams coach role with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2014 and he held that position until 2018. Recently, he has also held jobs with the Dallas Cowboys (2019), the Jacksonville Jaguars (2021), and the Chicago Bears (2022).

While the level of interest on the Colts' end is unknown at this point, I can confirm that Polk is one of the contenders being considered for the job. He would have awfully big shoes to fill if he were to land the job, but there is no reason to think that this talented coach isn't capable of handling this role.

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