WESTFIELD, Ind. (AP) - Frank Reich might not have been the Indianapolis Colts’ first choice as head coach.
Turns out, he might be the better fit anyway.
Just three days into training camp, the 56-year-old former quarterback has injected energy, enthusiasm and excitement into a team desperately needing to change directions after three straight seasons of missing the playoffs.
“I think he brings a really neat perspective,” Andrew Luck said this week. “He’s certainly had an amazing career as a player and has done an amazing job as a coach. I’ve really enjoyed talking to him, learning from him, talking with him and figuring out what the best course of action is in many different arenas.”
The new tandem is just getting started.
Throughout the first two public workouts in suburban Indianapolis, Luck and Reich have been conversing regularly as Luck learns his fourth offense in seven pro seasons.
But Reich does more than just talk.
He’s innovative, passionate and personable, and players seem to respect the unique journey Reich took to his first head coaching gig.
After graduating from Maryland, he was drafted by the Buffalo Bills and joined a cast of future Hall of Famers while playing for the only team to appear in four straight Super Bowls.
His coaching career began when another Hall of Famer, Tony Dungy, hired Reich as an intern with the Colts in 2006. Peyton Manning earned his first championship ring that season, though Reich did not receive one.
In 2009, Reich was promoted to quarterbacks coach as Manning captured his fourth MVP Award, led the Colts to a 14-0 start and another AFC title.
Then after stints in Arizona and San Diego where he worked directly with Larry Fitzgerald and Philip Rivers, Reich was named the Philadelphia Eagles’ offensive coordinator in 2016 and finally picked up the elusive ring when Nick Foles beat New England in February.
Not enough?
Even before he replaced injured Bills quarterback Jim Kelly in the 1992 playoffs and overcame a 32-point deficit to complete the largest comeback in NFL history, Reich threw three second-half TD passes in relief of Stan Gelbaugh and led the Terrapins back from a 31-poinnt deficit to beat highly-ranked Miami in 1984. At the time, it was the largest comeback in major college football history and still ranks No. 3.
“The backup role has suited me well in my career,” Reich joked at his introductory news conference in February.
The Colts are counting on him to do it again, this time in the family tradition.
His father was a football coach, his mother coached sports and his brother, Joe, is entering his 18th season as head coach at Division II Wingate University in North Carolina.
And Reich may need all of his expertise to turn things around in Indy.
He inherits a young roster that has more questions than answers, a team the outside world believes will be among the worst in the league and one that was spurned by its top coaching choice, New England offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, shortly after the Patriots season-ending loss.
So instead of McDaniels, general manager Chris Ballard brought in a reigning champion who understood the organization, who helped Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz put himself in the MVP conversation in just his second NFL season and who refused to take a single interview until Philadelphia’s season was over.
He didn’t care what the critics said then about the Colts, and he doesn’t care now.
“I see and hear the chatter, but we don’t focus too much on that,” he said, referring to one projection of a two-win season. “That is, I guess, a little bulletin board material, but for the most part, it’s about believing in one another. I’ve seen what we’ve done. I’ve seen the kind of players we have. I just have a lot of confidence in who we have here.”
The players like what they have in this coach, too.
Reich, for instance, remembers what it’s like to play the game and can provide perspective and stories about his own NFL experiences including a surgical procedure he had on his shoulder following his retirement in 1998 that was similar to what Luck endured in January 2017.
“He certainly is a sounding board for all of us quarterbacks,” Luck said. “I think he’s also a great teacher. The best coaches have always been the best teachers. He does a fantastic job of that.”
Reich’s frank, succinct assessments have been a big hit, too.
He’s made no secret of his personal expectations: The Colts must work hard, be prepared, play with discipline and finish games. He also encourages players to be themselves, a combination that led free agent tight end Eric Ebron to Indianapolis and could bring more help to Indy in the future.
“Frank is just Frank, he always just keeps it real,” Ebron said. “That’s what I like about him.”
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