2 Things New Coach Chuck Pagano Will Bring to Indianapolis Colts in 2012

As reported by Pro Football Talk and later confirmed by Indianapolis-Star beat writer Bob Kravitz, the Indianapolis Colts have hired Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator Chuck Pagano to be their new head coach. 

The Colts went through numerous coaching names and interviews, including talks with Jim Tressel, Mike Zimmer and Peter Carmichael after firing Jim Caldwell following the season. 

Pagano became a candidate late in the process, and he interviewed on Tuesday with Colts' brass. The meeting obviously went well, as new Colts GM Ryan Grigson picked Pagano for the job on Wednesday.

Here's the tweet from Kravitz confirming the hire:

Now that we know Pagano will be the Colts' next head coach, let's run down a few things he can bring to the franchise:

Defensive mindset

There's no doubt that losing Peyton Manning to start the season was a major factor in the Colts finishing 2-14. But the defensive half of the Colts' roster also suffered a complete collapse, as they allowed 430 points and were in the bottom half of the NFL in both run and pass defense.

By bringing in Pagano, who in his first year as defensive coordinator led the Ravens to a top-five finish in several defensive categories, the Colts should be in better hands defensively. At the very least, they'll have a head coach that knows that side of the football and can fix things when it goes as wrong as it did in 2011. 

Fresh start

If the Colts need anything heading into 2012, it's a fresh start. With both Grigson at GM and now Pagano at head coach, the Colts have that new start in important leadership areas. Will the quarterback position be next?

Irsay, Grigson and Pagano have a big decision to make regarding Manning's future. Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck is almost certain to be a Colt, but will Manning be retained? The Colts could truly get a fresh start across the board by letting Manning go before the 2012 season.