Head coach Shane Steichen was asked about his job status and whether quarterback Daniel is going to be benched, and it made sense because the Indianapolis Colts lost to the previously winless Tennessee Titans on Sunday.
And let’s cut to the chase:
Steichen said Jones is not going to be benched despite throwing two interceptions to increase his season total to six in as many games. Jones has thrown at least one interception in each of the past four games.
So Jones sticks for now.
“I think Daniel knows he’s got to play better,” Steichen said. “I got to coach better.”
We all know by now that neither Steichen nor general manager Chris Ballard are likely to remain past the end of this season – assuming they even last that long – unless the club gets on a roll.
That’s how it is when the team has lost four of its six games, including two of three at home, and the home crowd booed lustily on Sunday afternoon.
The boos metastasized to “fire Ballard” chants by game’s end.
Steichen understood the sentiment.
“We’ve got to give them something to cheer about, you know?” he said. “I don’t blame them for booing one freaking bit.”
The thing is, owner Carlie Irsay-Gordon seemed inclined to agree with fans’ frustrations last season when she put everyone on blast.
“I’m pissed. We’re all pissed,” she famously said after her team’s 2025 collapse, consisting of seven consecutive losses to end the season.
“We have been very clear with Chris and Shane that giving them another opportunity means that the sense of urgency for them to deliver and perform has never been higher. Chris and Shane are both capable of facing this challenge head-on and finding a way to achieve the results that our fans deserve, which is winning games, getting to the postseason and ultimately winning championships.”
So if that was the starting point, would Irsay-Gordon be likely to support her coach and GM now in the face of boos from her best customers?
Nope.
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Losing to the Titans, who have struggled to merely keep their organizational flow chart straight the past three years, blew the pick of Malik Willis as their franchise quarterback, followed that by blowing the pick of Will Levis and are on track to blow the pick of Cam Ward, is embarrassing.
So, of course, questions about Steichen’s job status are fair.
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“Obviously, my job is to get this team ready and that’s what I’m focused on right now,” Steichen said.
Steichen would be lucky to finish out the season barring a change of direction by his team.
Such a move wouldn’t necessarily fix things, but it would help give Irsay-Gordon a head start on a search for new people while avoiding the untidy approach of going behind her coach’s back.