The Indianapolis Colts have fired head coach Frank Reich following the team's blowout loss to the Patriots on Sunday at Gillette Stadium ... and, stunningly, have named former star offensive lineman Jeff Saturday the interim HC.
Colts owner Jim Irsay confirmed the news on his Twitter page on Monday morning ... which caught most folks off-guard, considering Jeff has ZERO coaching experience in college or the pros.
His only experience came as ... err, a high school coach with Hebron Christian H.S. in Georgia. His last season on the sidelines was in 2020 ... where his team finished with a 3-7 record.
We have named Jeff Saturday interim head coach. pic.twitter.com/GetJtD9yAr
— Jim Irsay (@JimIrsay) November 7, 2022
The Colts dropped to 3-5-1 after losing to New England, 26-3 ... as the team demonstrated an inability to score offensively under rookie quarterback Sam Ehlinger.
Reich took over the Colts in 2018 -- after Josh McDaniels scorned the franchise at the last minute -- leading the team to a 10-6 record that season and an 11-5 record in 2020.
Reich led the Colts to the playoffs twice.
However, the 60-year-old play-caller didn't always enjoy success in Indy ... in 2019, he finished with a 7-9 record, and things were assuredly trending in that direction this season.
The org. benched Matt Ryan ... and turned to Ehlinger to salvage their season, but after falling further behind in the AFC South race, Indy is giving up on the Reich experiment.
Now, they'll turn to Saturday to lead them the rest of the way this year. Peyton Manning's former center had been working as an analyst for ESPN.