Colts fire offensive coordinator Marcus Brady
The Colts are making their first coaching change of the season.
Indianapolis has fired offensive coordinator Marcus Brady, the team announced Tuesday.
"This was an incredibly hard decision, but one I felt needed to be made in the best interest of the team," coach Frank Reich said in a statement. "I appreciate Marcus's commitment to the organization, and he made a significant contribution to our offensive success over the last five seasons. I wish him the best moving forward."
Brady, 43, spent the past five seasons with the Colts, all working for Reich. He was an assistant quarterbacks coach in 2018, sole quarterbacks coach in 2019 and 2020 and offensive coordinator in 2021 and 2022. The Colts have been his only NFL job after he spent 2009-2017 coaching in the Canadian Football League, where he spent seven years as a quarterback.
As of 2020, Brady was one of just two Black quarterbacks coaches in the NFL.
Brady's role was to help develop the offensive game plan along with Reich, who calls the plays on Sundays. The Colts have struggled on offense this season, ranking 18th in yards but just 30th in points. The same issues have plagued the Colts in almost every game, with red-zone struggles, sacks and a league-high 16 turnovers.
Brady took over as offensive coordinator after Nick Sirianni took the head coaching job with the Eagles. Sirianni has had success in his new stop, leading Philadelphia to a 7-0 record with a third-year quarterback in Jalen Hurts, who has 10 touchdowns and just two interceptions this season. That followed up a season with the Colts where he helped elevate a 39-year-old Phillip Rivers in his first year in the offense, and Indianapolis has not had the same success with first-year starters Carson Wentz or Ryan since.
The move comes two days after Sam Ehlinger made his first career start at quarterback. The 2021 sixth-round pick finished 17 of 23 for 201 yards and a quarterback rating of 100.1.
"I thought Sam looked good," Reich said after the game. "He looked really poised. He threw it well. Yeah, I thought he played well.”
Ehlinger made his first start after the Colts benched Matt Ryan in a move that left the locker room stunned. Brady was part of a Zoom call with Reich that sold the four-time Pro Bowler on requesting a trade from Atlanta to Indianapolis. Ryan led the league in turnovers through his seven starts, though he also led three fourth-quarter comebacks for the Colts' three victories.
It's unclear whether the Colts will consider any other changes to the staff. They are 3-4-1, and the offense continues to struggle behind an offensive line that has allowed 26 sacks. On Sunday, owner Jim Irsay told ESPN's Chris Mortensen that the offensive line let Ryan down, and now Ryan is nursing a Grade 2 shoulder separation.
Contact Colts insider Nate Atkins at natkins@indystar.com. Follow him on Twitter @NateAtkins_.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Colts: Marcus Brady out as offensive coordinator
