The Colts added Vic Fangio to their coaching staff, and I think that’s a nice get for them. He didn’t have as much success as he would have liked in Denver, but he’s still one of the game’s premier defensive coaches.
Consider, for example, red zone defense. Over the past three years, Fangio’s defenses were the best in the league in this area, tending to force opponents to settle for field goals.
Since 2019, all but 12 defenses have allowed touchdowns on over half possessions inside the red zone. Fangio had three of those 12 defenses. The rest of the league combined was able to reach that level of performance only 9 times in 93 chances.
I’ve not sure exactly how they intend to use Fangio. They’re calling him a senior assistant. Gus Bradley is the defensive coordinator, and I’m not sure how the responsibilities will be divided up. But I would think Fangio, with his wealth of experience, would have plenty to offer this defense.
Oddly enough, the worst red zone defense in recent years was the one that Bradley oversaw last year in Las Vegas. The Raiders allowed touchdowns on 35 of 43 possessions, by far the worst of the last three years.
| BEST RED ZONE DEFENSES (last 3 yrs) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Team | Poss | TD | Pct | FG | Pts/Poss | |
| 2019 | Denver | 46 | 18 | 39.1 | 20 | 4.00 | |
| 2021 | New Orleans | 46 | 20 | 43.5 | 19 | 4.22 | |
| 2019 | Minnesota | 48 | 21 | 43.8 | 19 | 4.23 | |
| 2020 | Denver | 61 | 29 | 47.5 | 27 | 4.61 | |
| 2019 | Baltimore | 44 | 21 | 47.7 | 20 | 4.73 | |
| 2021 | New England | 48 | 23 | 47.9 | 13 | 4.08 | |
| 2019 | New England | 29 | 14 | 48.3 | 10 | 4.38 | |
| 2019 | Cincinnati | 51 | 25 | 49.0 | 19 | 4.59 | |
| 2019 | Green Bay | 48 | 24 | 50.0 | 15 | 4.35 | |
| 2021 | Denver | 42 | 21 | 50.0 | 12 | 4.36 | |
| 2019 | Tampa Bay | 60 | 30 | 50.0 | 22 | 4.62 | |
| 2019 | Pittsburgh | 46 | 23 | 50.0 | 18 | 4.63 | |
| 2021 | Seattle | 61 | 31 | 50.8 | 20 | 4.54 | |
| 2020 | N.Y. Giants | 59 | 30 | 50.8 | 21 | 4.51 | |
| 2021 | Pittsburgh | 59 | 30 | 50.8 | 24 | 4.73 | |
| 2019 | Kansas City | 57 | 29 | 50.9 | 16 | 4.28 | |
| 2019 | Dallas | 57 | 29 | 50.9 | 21 | 4.67 | |
| 2021 | Buffalo | 45 | 23 | 51.1 | 12 | 4.40 | |
| 2021 | Tennessee | 58 | 30 | 51.7 | 22 | 4.69 | |
| 2020 | Arizona | 56 | 29 | 51.8 | 16 | 4.39 | |
| 2021 | L.A. Rams | 56 | 29 | 51.8 | 17 | 4.59 | |
| 2019 | Indianapolis | 50 | 26 | 52.0 | 19 | 4.78 | |
| 2021 | N.Y. Giants | 71 | 37 | 52.1 | 24 | 4.63 | |
| 2021 | Tampa Bay | 59 | 31 | 52.5 | 21 | 4.73 | |
| 2021 | Miami | 57 | 30 | 52.6 | 18 | 4.60 | |
—Ian Allan