David Walker May Be in for Rough Times as Colts' New Running Backs Coach

On January 18, the Indianapolis Colts fired running backs coach Gene Huey after an 18-year tenure in Indy. It was a gut-shot to a lot of people because it's general consensus in the Colts' fan base that the offensive line has been the real weak spot for this team in recent years, and particularly in 2010. Now, we get word that David Walker has been hired as Huey's replacement, and one has to wonder if he's not being set up as a potential sacrificial lamb.

For all of Bill Polian's genius in building teams and keeping the Colts in the upper echelon of the NFL year after year, he seems fairly prone to deflecting blame and making sure that there is someone around to take the flak hit. After last year's Super Bowl loss, it was the offensive line in general and Ryan Lilja, who was unceremoniously cut, in particular. Now, a year later, and after a season in which the O-line turned into an expressway to the pocket, it appears that the blame is falling on the running game. If fact, though, if your offensive line is broken and you don't really do anything to fix it, it's probably not going to heal itself. But it must have been Huey who faltered, not the line that Polian put together. I mean, after 19 years, Huey must have lost his edge, right?

Enter David Walker, who was hired to be the running backs coach at the University of Maryland just three weeks ago. (I can't blame Walker for bolting to the Colts, as the NFL is the pinnacle of his profession, but I'm still a little taken aback by how little esteem coaches seem to have for the jobs they commit to these days.) Walker will now need to make sure that Joseph Addai stays healthy, that Donald Brown matures into the back we thought he might be, and he needs to mold the rest of the running crew, including any draft picks, into a cohesive unit. Oh yeah, he apparently needs to make sure that the offensive line is fixed, too, because that seems to be in the purvey of the running backs coach in Indianapolis these days.

Welcome to Indy, Mr. Walker, and here's hoping that Peyton feels a little less pressure in 2011. Otherwise, you're certain to feel it, too.