Jeff Saturday remains in the running for the Indianapolis Colts’ head-coaching position.
According to Gregg Doyel of the Indianapolis Star, the former ESPN analyst is tapping into his media connections to help bolster his candidacy.
“Since the season ended, Saturday has put on a full-court press with his friends in the media,” Doyel wrote. “He’s been especially active with his former colleagues at ESPN, spinning them every which way.”
The report made Colts fans even angrier at the prospect of retaining the former center, who had a disastrous stint as the interim head coach.
“Not a good look for Saturday at all,” Stampede Blue’s Destin Adams wrote on Twitter.
“Lost all respect for this man,” a fan said. “No way [Jim] Irsay can hire him and not lose the fan base.”
“Every single person who acted like hiring Saturday was a good idea or that this wasn’t the most ridiculous thing in the world can’t be trusted,” another fan commented.
“How sad is it Saturday can’t rest on his own laurels or trust his vision to get the HC job? He has to resort to begging and pleading his media friends to prop up his candidacy,” a fan said. “That should tell you all you need to know about his qualifications for the job.”
After firing Frank Reich, the Colts named Saturday the interim coach without any prior college or NFL coaching experience. Although they won his coaching debut, they ended the season with seven straight losses.
Indianapolis allowed 32 points per game during a losing streak that included the largest blown lead in NFL history and a Week 18 defeat to a Houston Texans team that could have garnered the No. 1 pick by losing.
However, ESPN’s Adam Schefter said Saturday is one of seven candidates who will conduct a second interview with the team. According to Josina Anderson of CBS Sports, Irsay would still like to hire Saturday, but others within the organization disagree.
A Colts fan created a Change.org petition urging the team not to hire Saturday. It has 2,300 signatures as of Thursday afternoon.