The Indianapolis Colts second choice for head coach could turn out to be even better than the first.
And Frank Reich has the Super Bowl championship gear to prove it.
Five days after New England Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels reneged on a deal to take the Colts job Foster Moreau Jersey , Ballard hired Reich, the man who outwitted McDaniels last week and helped lead the Philadelphia Eagles to their first NFL title since 1960.
Frank is a leader of men who will demand excellence from our players on and off the field, Ballard said in a statement released Sunday. I look forward to working with Frank to deliver a championship-caliber team to the city of Indianapolis.
Terms of the deal were not immediately available, but Reich is expected to be introduced at a news conference Tuesday.
Colts officials posted a photo of Reich signing the deal on the teams website.
The move ends a search that spanned 41 days, included two coaching announcements and the embarrassment of McDaniels changing his mind Tuesday night just eight hours after telling the Colts hed take the job.
On Wednesday, Ballard answered questions for nearly 20 minutes before finishing with the rivalry is back on.
By hiring Reich, another touted offensive coordinator and a potential leading candidate next season, only added another chapter to the long and bitter series.
Exactly one week after backup quarterback Nick Foles executed an exquisite game plan to beat Tom Brady and the favored Patriots, the Colts brought back a longtime assistant who spent two seasons working with Peyton Manning.
But this wasnt just about sending a message.
Frank has all the ingredients of a successful head coach: intelligence, innovation, character, organizational and leadership skills, and a commanding presence Joey Bosa Jersey , team owner Jim Irsay said. He also has a stellar reputation, and his myriad of life experiences and the people he has worked with make him the perfect fit for us and our fans. I feel extremely fortunate and could not be more excited for Colts Nation and the future of our franchise.
It sure didnt take long to make the decision.
Ballard interviewed the 56-year-old Reich on Friday, the day after Philadelphia held its victory celebration.
He replaces Chuck Pagano, who was fired hours after finishing the season with a 4-12 record and missing the playoffs for the third consecutive year.
Reich takes over a franchise that appears to have some key pieces in place especially if Andrew Luck is healthy.
Luck missed the entire 2017 season after having surgery for a partially torn labrum in his throwing shoulder. He went on injured reserve in November because of lingering pain in his right shoulder after he had started throwing a football.
On Wednesday, Ballard said Luck still hasnt thrown a football since October.
Hes going to do everything right to get himself ready to play and Im very confident, hes very confident, that hes going to come back and prove a lot of people wrong, Ballard said.
The Colts also have a defense that showed steady improvement throughout the season, the No. 3 overall draft pick in April, nearly $80 million to spend in free agency and a promising backup quarterback in Jacoby Brissett, who started 15 games in 2017.
And the Colts already have three assistants on Reichs staff probable defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus, Mike Phair and Dave DeGuglielmo. All three agreed to join McDaniels staff in Indy and have been promised by Ballard that they will remain on the staff.
Reich, meanwhile Tony Pollard Jersey , returns to the franchise where he started his coaching career as an intern in 2006. He was named an offensive assistant in 2008, succeeded Jim Caldwell as quarterbacks coach the next season and became receivers coach in 2011.
In 2012, he coached the receivers in Arizona and then was hired as San Diegos quarterbacks coach in 2013. The Chargers promoted him to offensive coordinator in 2014 where he stayed until joining the Eagles in 2016.
Reich may be best known, however, for rallying the Buffalo Bills from a 35-3 deficit to a 41-38 overtime victory over the Houston Oilers in January 1993 the biggest comeback in playoff history.
Now, in his first head coaching job, he will be paired with the architect of the second-biggest playoff comeback, Luck.
Frank Reich was with me at the end of my tenure with the Colts, Hall of Fame coach Tony Dungy wrote on Twitter. He has a creative offensive mind. Hes a great communicator and a high quality person. The Colts are in great hands.
Reich graduated from the University of Maryland where he was a backup to Boomer Esiason. He won the starting quarterback job as a senior and spent 14 seasons in the NFL playing for Buffalo, Carolina, the New York Jets and Detroit.
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) The New York Giants kept two-time Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning in the dark until recently about his future with the team, and didnt give him a warning about the trade of star receiver Odell Beckham Jr. to the Cleveland Browns.Speaking as organized team activities started Monday Noah Fant Jersey , the 38-year-old quarterback said the Giants informed him a month ago that he would be returning for a 16th season.The stunning news of the Beckham deal came secondhand: Manning read it on a crawl across the bottom of his television screen.In other areas, Manning expects the Giants, who have won eight games over the past two seasons, to draft a quarterback. He is entering the final year of his four-year, $84 million contract.Manning is looking forward to running the offense in Pat Shurmurs second season as coach. Other players will have step up to replace Beckham, but he noted the offense ran well in the final four weeks when his top receiver was sidelined with a quad injury.I think every year I am just worried about that next year, Manning said. That is what I am thinking about. I am thinking about right now with this team. Getting rolling, getting wins and doing whatever it takes to be a good teammate to get this team winning football games.After going 5-11 last season, the Giants offered Manning no guarantees he would be back in 2019. In his postseason talk with general manager Dave Gettleman and Shurmur, Manning told them wanted to return. They evaluated the team for roughly two months before letting him know he would have another season.The Beckham deal was less personal, coming from a TV screen. Then came the texts.That is how I found out, Manning said. The reaction, I wanted to reach out to him. Odell has been a teammate for five years and has been a friend. These circumstances Dalton Risner Jersey , you think about the player involved. It is more than just a player; it is someone you have a relationship with. You think more about that person, how they are handling it and that they are OK and doing well with it.The two spoke, and now they have to move on.I think after being in the NFL for 16 years, I dont think there are a whole lot of surprises anymore, Manning said. You learn to deal with everything. You learn to adjust, you move on and do my job. Do it to the best of my ability and get the players that are here up to speed.Sterling Shepard, who is the No. 1 receiver since the trade, had a different reaction.I was a little shocked at first, like everyone was I think, but you sit back and you look at it, its kind of the nature of the business, said Shepard, who signed a $41 million contract extension last week. That was a point for me to really sit back and realize that this is a business Drew Lock Jersey , and thats just how things go sometimes.Heading into the draft next week, the Giants have the Nos. 6 and 17 picks in the first round, the second one coming from Cleveland in the Beckham deal. New York probably needs more help on defense after losing safety Landon Collins to Washington in free agency and trading linebacker/edge rusher Olivier Vernon to the Browns.Expect a lineman to be taken with the sixth choice. With Mannings age, its possible they could go with a quarterback at No. 17.I can see the Giants getting a young quarterback, Manning said. I understand that. I still have to do my job. I will do my part, same as last year. Go out there, play quarterback, win football games. That is what I am trying to do.In talking to the team Monday, Shurmur did not focus on the moves the Giants made in the offseason. He is looking to move forward.NOTES: Shurmur said CB Sam Beal (shoulder) and C Jon Halapio (broken right ankle, leg) are working and getting ready for the season. Ohio State quarterback Dwayne Haskins visited the Giants on Monday.