Colts becoming NFL’s laughingstock after Commanders-Carson Wentz trade is hilarious

Oh, how the tables have turned. It wasn’t long ago (just seven months) that the Washington Commanders were taken to the woodshed by the general media for saving the Indianapolis Colts from their Carson Wentz headache.

While the trade hasn’t necessarily panned out for Washington — Wentz is on injured reserve after hand surgery, and the offense has had more juice with Taylor Heinicke pulling the strings — the Colts officially lost the blockbuster after they benched Matt Ryan, Wentz’s successor, for the rest of the season.

Since then, the Colts’ season has gone off the rails. It started with the firing of offensive coordinator Marcus Brady, which came after Indy’s home loss to the Commanders. Fast forward seven days later and the Colts dismissed Frank Reich as head coach months after inking him to a contract extension.

Already a dumpster fire, Indy officially became the NFL’s foremost laughingstock after they appointed Jeff Saturday as Reich’s replacement.

The Colts becoming the NFL’s laughingstock after they were praised for trading Carson Wentz to the Commanders is hilarious.

The Commanders haven’t “won” anything here, but fans have every right to laugh at Indianapolis after Reich and general manager Chris Ballard were praised for finding a buyer for Wentz in the offseason … as if the quarterback wasn’t coming off a season where he threw 27 touchdowns to seven interceptions.

But hiring Saturday to replace Reich? That’s a laughingstock move, especially when you consider the candidates Indy already had on its staff.

Those include defensive coordinator Gus Bradley, who’s coached in the NFL in some capacity for 14 years, and John Fox, who served as a head coach in the league from 2002-18 between the Panthers, Broncos and Bears, and compiled a 133-123 record during that span. Fox’s coaching career in the NFL has spanned 23 years and he’s been to two Super Bowls.

To make matters worse, Colts special teams guru Bubba Ventrone is a rising head-coaching candidate. Ventrone was a breakout star on HBO’s Hard Knocks In Season that cataloged Indy’s 2021 season. Don’t be surprised if Ventrone has a head coaching gig somewhere in the near future.

Oh yeah. Reggie Wayne is the Colts’ receivers coach!

Saturday, meanwhile, has no prior coaching experience in the NFL or college ranks. The former six-time Pro Bowler’s lone coaching stint was with the Hebron Christian Academy football team in Dacula, Georgia. That’s a high school, for those wondering, and Saturday posted a 3-7 record in his final season with the program.

What more is there to say? Seven months ago, the Commanders were the so-called laughingstock of the league after they traded for Wentz. Now, they’re seemingly on the precipice of new ownership and in the wild card hunt, while the Colts are one fire away from completing the grand slam of firings in one season.

The tables have flipped, and it feels good.