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LAS VEGAS — Indianapolis Colts interim coach Jeff Saturday was doing his level best to stay locked in on the next offensive play on Sunday, with nothing less than the game itself on the line.
But when you are charged with presiding over all of the ever-moving parts of an NFL roster, tasked with overseeing the frenzy that unfolds on each and every play, singular focus is a luxury you cannot enjoy.
With the Colts on offense, Saturday was being summoned on his headset by defensive coordinator Gus Bradley, who was making plans for how the Colts would attack the Las Vegas Raiders on their ensuing, final possession in the one-score contest.
To blitz or not to blitz was the question.
“Gus is talking about, ‘Hey, can we heat him up?'” recalled Saturday, the parlance meaning Bradley wanted to blitz Raiders quarterback Derek Carr. At such a critical juncture, decisions like that fall to the head coach — even interim ones with zero experience.
“Man, it’s all the back-and-forth,” Saturday added. “But you still have to be mindful of what’s happening on offense. It’s like, ‘What are we talking about? Is it a two-minute? Is it four-minute?’ A lot of different scenarios, situations, and the decision’s got to be made right there. What ya got?”
The whole experience was, at times, bewildering to Saturday, who stunningly took the helm for Indianapolis last week after fifth-year coach Frank Reich was fired. Saturday assumed the role with no experience beyond the Georgia high school team he coached for three seasons from 2017 to 2019.
Now, everything about his role is new. The game-planning process. The logistics of the job. The breadth of the responsibilities. And, most of all, the pace of managing the game.
“It’s fast,” Saturday said. “I looked up…
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