In his regular mailbag column, Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer was asked which defensive coordinator candidate Indianapolis Colts fans should keep their eye on as the team looks to fill that role.
The first name that Breer mentioned is current Michigan defensive coordinator Wink Martindale.
At the NFL level, Martindale has been a defensive coordinator for the Baltimore Ravens, New York Giants, and Denver Broncos and is known for his uber-aggressive, blitz-heavy defensive schemes. Also, needless to say, the defensive performances that Martindale’s Michigan team put together against Ohio State and Alabama to close out the college season were impressive.
The second name that Breer brought up, and a bit of a surprising one, is Rex Ryan. The last time that Ryan was on a sideline coaching was in 2016, his second season as the Buffalo Bills head coach.
Before that, he was the New York Jets head coach from 2009-2014 and was the defensive coordinator for the Ravens from 2005-2008 behind some very good units.
This coaching cycle, Ryan has interviewed for the Jets head coaching opening. It’s unclear, however, if he wants to get back into coaching at the defensive coordinator level.
Lastly, Breer mentioned Steve Wilks as a candidate and we later learned that Wilks has an interview scheduled for the role with the Colts. For more on Wilks, click here.
The theme amongst all three names mentioned by Breer is the Colts potentially going with experience over an up and comer.