The Indianapolis Colts are looking for a new defensive coordinator, as the team announced they parted ways with Gus Bradley after three seasons in the role.
The Colts' search for a new coordinator should be interesting, as some personnel around the league could see this as being a lame-duck situation with a head coach and a general manager on the hot seat. Still, there are only 32 of these jobs available in the league, so the Colts should be able to nab a quality hire regardless of speculation around the position.
This new series will profile several candidates the Colts are likely to look into in their search. Next up is Michigan Wolverines defensive coordinator Wink Martindale.
Background
Don "Wink" Martindale began his football career all the way back in 1981 when he played linebacker for Defiance College. His coaching career began shortly after, becoming the defensive coordinator for his alma mater in 1986. He hopped around the college game for nearly 20 years, holding down multiple roles for Notre Dame, Cincinnati, Western Illinois, and Western Kentucky in that span.
Martindale finally got his shot at the NFL level in 2004 as a linebackers coach with the Raiders under then-DC Rob Ryan. He served in that role for five seasons before making a lateral move to the Denver Broncos to work under Mike Nolan. He was promoted to defensive coordinator in 2010 following Nolan's resignation.
Martindale's first stint as a defensive coordinator was certainly a struggle, as his unit ranked last in the NFL in total yards allowed, last in points allowed, and bottom ten in passing defense. He was ultimately let go at the end of the season and didn't work in the NFL in the 2011 season. Martindale received his second chance in the league in 2012 as John Harbaugh and Dean Pees' linebackers coach with the Baltimore Ravens.
Martindale served in that role all the way up until 2017, when he took over as the team's defensive coordinator the following season. He didn't disappoint in his second opportunity in role, leading the Ravens to the number two defense in points allowed and the number one defense in total yards allowed. He followed that up with an equally impressive 2019 season, ranking number three in points allowed and number four in total yards allowed.
Martindale's defense continued its dominant ways in the stat sheet in 2020, ranking as the number two defense in points allowed and the number seven defense in total yards allowed. His unit also led the league with a league-high 44% blitz rate in the 2020 campaign.
His fourth and final season in Baltimore did see a bit of a decline in his vaunted defense, ranking outside the top 10 in both total yards allowed and points allowed in his tenure. This sudden step back was enough for both sides to part ways at the conclusion of the season. He took over as the New York Giants' defensive coordinator the following season.
Martindale struggled to replicate the success he had in Baltimore with the Giants. In 2022, he improved the Giants' defense to a middle-of-the-road unit in most metrics, but 2023 was a major step back from the progress made in the year prior. His defense finished number 27 in yards allowed, leading to his departure after the season.
He spent this past season with the Michigan Wolverines, leading his defense to the number 11 unit in the country in yards allowed per game.
Why The Colts Are Considering Him
Martindale, like a few other candidates the Colts are considering this cycle, doesn't have a direct connection to Chris Ballard or Shane Steichen through shared work history. He was a finalist for the Colts' head coaching job back in 2023, so there is at least some familiarity between him and the powers behind the Colts' decision-making.
As for fit, it's clear that the Colts are looking for more aggression from their defense in 2025. They want to see that blitz rate and disruption come up next season, and Martindale is essentially the poster child for aggressive defense (or at least he was prior to Brian Flores).
Martindale's defenses are uniquely built around creating pressure with extra rushers. Learning under coaches like Dean Pees and Rob Ryan has clearly had an impact on his style, and it is easy to see in how he deploys his linebackers and defensive backs in the pass rush game.
The expectation with a coach like Martindale is a ton of pre-snap disguise and sim pressures, with his defense likely having a blitz rate well above 30% (something the Colts' haven't had in at least the last decade). Players like Zaire Franklin, Kenny Moore II, and even Nick Cross would be asked to attack downhill much more in this system than what we've seen in years past.
This type of defensive system doesn't come without concerns (the Colts' struggles with tackling could be magnified in this type of approach), but it would least to more disruption up front against opposing offenses. Like I mentioned in the Ephraim Banda piece, Martindale's defense would be much closer to feast or famine rather than the bend-don't-break style we've seen in recent seasons.
Overall, Martindale fits the type of shift the Colts are looking for on defense and he has added familiarity with Chris Ballard due to the exhaustive head coaching search back in 2023. If he is the guy for the job, the Colts' defense would look drastically different in 2025.
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