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The Indianapolis Colts had known for a month that they were hiring Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz. However, Colts coach Frank Reich and GM Chris Ballard were unable to discuss the deal directly until it became official with the start of the new league on Wednesday.
The handcuffs were removed and Reich talked about meeting Wentz in Indianapolis in an interview with Sirius XM NFL Radio on Wednesday night.
“We are very excited about Carson“Said Reich, who trained Wentz for two years as an offensive coordinator for the Eagles before taking the position of head coach for the Colts in 2018.” Obviously, I know him well, I have a high regard for him as a player, as a teammate, you know, as a leader, what he can do for this team.
“We think it can make a big impact. He is very smart. He is big, strong, can do all the pitches you need to be a great NFL defender. But we need to play within ourselves, you know. We need to play our football style, we need to grow every week. We just have a mantra around here, it just keeps getting better. We are not going to focus on having crazy thoughts, goals or timelines about this or that. We will just strive to improve each day. “
Wentz has regressed in the past two seasons and ended up being replaced by Jalen Hurts last season in Philadelphia. After peaking with a 69.6 percent completion rate in 11 games in 2018, Wentz completed just 57.4 percent of his passes last season for the Eagles, with the highest number of interceptions in the league.
Reich cited his relationship with Wentz as something he believes will be beneficial in getting Wentz back on track and succeeding with the Colts.
“Well, there is no doubt that it will help,” said Reich. “I had a very close relationship with Philip [Rivers] and I think it really helped, just personally, just the belief in just the right person and friendship, the genuine man-to-man friendship and camaraderie and the respect of fighting to get better all the time, and the respect for who he was as a player . And Philip, you know, I know I knew that and I believed that and I think the same would be true for Carson. It all starts with mutual respect and who he is as a person and as a player, and I am very excited to work with him again. I hold him in high regard.
“Obviously it was a difficult year in Philadelphia and things are happening. This league is complicated, right. It is hard. It’s the NFL. And sometimes things happen and it is better to start from scratch. I am happy that we were able to close a win-win deal. I think an exchange between us and the Eagles that in many ways was very fair. And we are excited about that. We are excited about the new start with Carson and what he can bring to this team. “