Chuck Pagano has taken over the team that had the worst record in the NFL last year, but the Colts’ head coach doesn’t want to hear anyone say that Indianapolis is a rebuilding team.
Pagano said on NFL Network’s Total Access that the word he prefers to describe his team is “reloading.”
“Like I told these guys when I first got here, there’s a lot of players here that, if someone didn’t see something special in them they wouldn’t be in an NFL football facility,” Pagano said. “We’ve raised the bar, we’ve raised the expectations. I know everybody is looking in a different direction as far as what their expectations are for us, but we’re certainly not doing that. We’ve got some guys who are running out of time, so to speak, and have high expectations for themselves and the rest of the players here.”
Pagano said he views Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis, who are making the transition from playing 4-3 defensive end for the last decade to 3-4 outside linebacker in Pagano’s defense, as veteran players who are ready to lead a team that can win right now. Last year’s 2-14 record notwithstanding, Pagano thinks the team he inherited should be preparing to win this year.