New Colts Defensive Coordinator Wants Defense to Be “Smart. Fast. Physical.”
Source: Indianapolis Colts
INDIANAPOLIS–The new Indianapolis Colts Defensive Coordinator Lou Anarumo has arrived in Indianapolis and is ready to get to work.
At his introductory press conference Thursday, Anarumo said he wants his defense to play fast, smart, and physical.
“Those three things. You don’t want to beat yourself in this league. You want to make sure that guys know where their help is on every down. No unforced errors. Things like that where you can eliminate and win games by just allowing the other team to make their mistakes. And we’re going to stay steadfast. If you don’t play fast, you don’t have a chance. And certainly coming from the AFC North, it’s a physical division and certainly that’s – everybody in football prides themselves on that, but that’s certainly something we’ll bring home as well,” said Anarumo
Prior to joining the Colts, Anarumo was the Defensive Coordinator for the Cincinnati Bengals from 2019 through 2024. He knows the importance of putting pressure on opposing quarterbacks.
“Going through the playoffs and things like that and to the Super Bowl, you have to keep those great quarterbacks off balance. I think you have to make them uncomfortable. Even the best ones at times – you’re not going to fool them all day, but if it’s in the most critical situation, that’s what you’re hoping to do. And certainly, we’ve had some success doing that,” said Anarumo.
He also mentioned the word “culture.”
“I think that’s a word that shows up when things aren’t going so well. When things are going well, everybody’s going to be on board. Everybody’s pulling the rope the same direction. It’s in those challenging times where we’re 4-8, not playing great. And the leadership in the room, guys that we’ve been to war with whether it’s a playoff game, a preseason game, whatever it may be, we would not allow anybody to let go of the rope,” said Anarumo.
The Colts fired former defensive coordinator Gus Bradley at the end of the season after the team finished 8-9 and ranked near bottom in most defensive categories.
