INDIANAPOLIS — New Colts defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo believes it’s not always possible to outplay the NFL’s top quarterbacks. Sometimes you have to resort to other tactics, like tricking them.
“Going through the playoffs and things like that and to the Super Bowl, you have to keep those great quarterbacks off balance,” he said during his introductory news conference last week. “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.”
After a disappointing 8-9 finish, the Colts have promised changes in philosophy this offseason. And what Anarumo laid out on in his first week on the job might represent one of the biggest schematic shifts this franchise has seen in a quite some time.
The Colts are moving from one of the NFL’s most static and predictable defenses under recently fired defensive coordinator Gus Bradley to one of the game’s more unpredictable and varied attacks under Anarumo.
Asked during his end-of-season briefing whether there was value in deploying a more aggressive defense, Colts general manager Chris Ballard — a longtime fan of simpler, zone-heavy schemes — seemed open to change.
“I definitely think there is value,” he said. “You have to be able to affect the quarterback.”
Whereas Bradley typically relied on a handful of zone coverages, Anarumo is much more likely to mix up coverages. The Colts in 2024 played zone coverages on 67.9% of opposing quarterback dropbacks — the third-highest rate in the league. They played man coverages on just 31.8% of opponent dropbacks.
Meanwhile, the Bengals under Anarumo mixed up coverages much more often and therefore were less predictable. Cincinnati played zone coverages on 56.7% of opponent dropbacks while using man coverages on 43.3% of dropbacks.
It’s just one reflection of Anarumo’s belief that allowing quarterbacks to anticipate what your defense is going to do doesn’t typically end well.
“I think you have to be flexible these days and [be] multiple,” he said. “When you’re playing the quarterbacks, especially on our side in the AFC — going against Joe [Burrow] every day in practice, trying to guard Tee [Higgins] and Ja’Marr [Chase], guys like that — it lends to not just, ‘Hey, you’re going to be in this coverage. You’re going to stay in that.’
“It’d be a long day.”
Another philosophical difference in Anarumo is his history of tailoring his defensive attack to his team’s weekly opponents. He famously did this in the AFC Championship Game against Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs in the 2021 season, helping Cincinnati upend the defending conference champions. Mahomes was sacked four times and threw two interceptions in the game.
Anarumo used the example of the multifaceted Baltimore Ravens, saying he prefers a targeted game plan that identifies the opponents’ playmakers and looks for specific ways to attack them (as opposed to sticking with a more consistent approach from week to week).
“You’re going to identify what the team does well,” Anarumo said. “Identify who the problem players are. Where’s the great receiver and what do we have to do to slow him down? Derrick Henry, Lamar Jackson, guys like that we had to play twice a year, they present multiple problems along with Zay Flowers and guys like that. So, whoever or whatever the issues are, you want to put it in front of the guys and say, ‘OK, if we can take these guys away or minimize their damage in the game, we’re going to give ourselves a chance to win.'”
However he goes about it, Anarumo will need to have more success than he did in Cincinnati next season. The Bengals fired him after six seasons, a stint marked by highs but a disappointing end. The Bengals finished the season 25th in points allowed (25.5) and yards allowed per game (348.3).
Can Anarumo find his stride in Indy while implementing his more diverse approach? The Colts are hoping he can put the lessons learned in Cincinnati to good use in Indianapolis.
“You learn from those things,” he said. “And on to the next.”
