Why Polian Will, and Absolutely Must, Fire Caldwell

Any way you look at it, the Indianapolis Colts have been absolutely awful this season. Even after a solid 27-13 win over a decent Tennessee Titans team, the Colts still have to be considered the NFL's worst team. At 1-13, Indianapolis will want to do whatever it takes to wipe this season from its memory, and the first step in doing that will be to fire head coach Jim Caldwell.

While Caldwell is a heck of a nice guy and this season certainly hasn't been his fault, he needs to go for the sake of the franchise. The Colts need to wipe the slate clean after this season, and the first thing Vice Chairman Bill Polian has to do to make that happen is fire his head coach. 

The Colts currently rank 31st in the league in total offense, averaging just 283.6 yards per game. They also rank 28th in total defense, allowing 385.1 yards per game. Yes, Peyton Manning's injury has a lot to do with both numbers. If the offense can't move the ball, the defense will be on the field a lot. But still, one player shouldn't have that much of an impact on a team.

The fact that Caldwell hasn't been able to get other players to step up in Manning's absence and make contributions to help the team falls squarely on his shoulders. 

Caldwell took over the head job for the Colts in 2009, and the team proceeded to go 14-2 and reach the Super Bowl, where Indianapolis lost to the New Orleans Saints. Last season, the Colts took a step back, going 10-6 and losing to the New York Jets in the opening round of the playoffs. And, obviously, this season has been a disaster.

Caldwell has a 25-21 record in three years as the head coach in Indianapolis, and while the players have been voicing their support for him, there is almost no reason he should return next season.

If Polian wants to erase this season from his memory, he needs to fire the guy steering the ship.