Colts might lose secondary coach Leslie Frazier

Unknowns like Kelvin Hayden have developed into good DBs under Frazier's guidance

Gonzo over at Daily Norseman asked me to discuss Colts secondary coach Leslie Fraizer. It's possible that Colts will lose secondary coach Frazier to either the Cowboys or the Vikings as their new defensive coordinator. Frazier coaches the Colts DBs, and is a special assistant coach to Dungy. He was once Cincinnati's defensive coordinator until Marvin Lewis fired him after an 8-8 Bengals season in 2004. Frazier came to the Colts to coach the DBs, and there is no arguing with the results.

I am a big Fraizer fan. I am also of the mindset that Dungy should let Ron Meeks go and hire Frazier as the defensive coordinator. Since Frazier's arrival, the Colts secondary has been one of the best in the NFL. This past season, they allowed only 159 passing yards a game and snatched 15 INTs. Now, some would argue that the 159 yards allowed is misleading. The Colts run defense surrendered 173 rushing yards a game. The reason the passing yards were so low is because teams were running all over the Colts.

Not true.

The pass defense validated their dominance by allowing only 156 passing yards a game in the playoffs, surrendering only 3 Tds and snatching 7 INTs in four playoff games (and in the playoffs, the Colts stuffed the run). All year long, teams feared to throw against the Colts. Part of it was their pass rush, but equally big was the play of the DBs, and the playmaking ability of those DBs can be directly attributed to Frazier. Remember 2004, when teams threw the ball at will against the Colts? Remember Jason David that year? Look at him now. A big reason for his development is Leslie Frazier. Frazier was also key in developing Philadelphia's secondary from 1999-2002. That unit featured a younger Troy Vincent, who had some of his best years with Frazier coaching him. I don't think it a coincidence that Nick Harper's best years are with Frazier as his mentor.

Bottom line: Frazier is a fine coach, and he'd be a good fit in Minnesota running their Cover 2 defense. He'd also be perfect to fix their woeful pass defense.