Jeff Saturday Defends Clock Management in 4th Quarter of Colts' Loss vs. Steelers

Indianapolis Colts interim head coach Jeff Saturday explained Monday night why he elected not to use timeouts during Indy's final drive of the game in a 24-17 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Coming out of the two-minute warning, Colts quarterback Matt Ryan was sacked for a loss of seven yards and then scrambled for 14 yards on second down, leaving him a few yards short of the first.

The Colts had all three of their timeouts, but rather than taking one and regrouping prior to the third-down play, they stayed in their offense and handed it off to running back Jonathan Taylor, who was tackled for no gain.

Saturday finally used the team's first timeout after that with 30 seconds left, and the Colts were then stopped on 4th-and-3 in Steelers territory when Ryan's pass was broken up, effectively ending the game.

According to ESPN's Stephen Holder, Saturday said the following when asked about the logic behind not using any timeouts earlier in the sequence, particularly before the Taylor run:

"I thought we had a good play. And I felt like we would get it. Obviously, we didn't do a great job [blocking] on the backside, so it's worse. But I felt good about the call before. Felt like we had time, we would have timeouts afterwards. We were in striking distance. So, I never felt like the pressure of needing the timeout. We just didn't execute it."

Saturday added that he would have preferred if Ryan had been able to "snap it a little bit earlier" in the play clock, but he again downplayed the time issue, saying he "never felt pressed for time."

The Colts trailed 16-3 at halftime, but Saturday's team mounted a comeback, scoring back-to-back touchdowns in the third quarter to take a 17-16 lead.

Pittsburgh answered in the fourth when running back Benny Snell found the end zone from two yards out, and rookie quarterback Kenny Pickett completed a two-point-conversion pass to rookie wideout George Pickens, putting the Steelers back on top 24-17.

The Colts had their opportunities to strike back, but the offense sputtered, much as it has throughout the season.

Offensive issues played a huge role in head coach Frank Reich's firing, which led to Saturday's surprising appointment as interim head coach.

Saturday is a beloved figure in Colts history as a six-time Pro Bowl and two-time first-team All-Pro center, as well as a Super Bowl champion, but his coaching credentials are limited.

Prior to being named interim head coach, Saturday had only served as the head coach at Hebron Christian Academy in Georgia from 2017 to 2020.

Naturally, Colts owner Jim Irsay's decision to hire Saturday sparked some criticism, although the move initially seemed to work well, as Indy upset the Las Vegas Raiders in his first game at the helm.

He then nearly led the Colts to a huge win over the Philadelphia Eagles, who came from behind to down the Colts 17-16.

The honeymoon phase may now be over for Saturday, though, especially in the wake of Monday's failed two-minute drill. Calling timeouts may not have made a difference in the end, but the Indianapolis offense seemed hurried, and the decision to hold off on timeouts may have contributed to that.