Frank Reich's fortune turned when Andrew Luck abruptly retired

The Indianapolis Colts fired Frank Reich on Monday. His tenure was doomed ever since Andrew Luck retired on Aug. 25, 2019.

In five seasons as head coach, Reich started each season with a different quarterback. When he was hired, the idea was that Reich and Luck would become the next great head coach-QB duo in the sport. After the team's failure in protecting its most important piece caused Luck to reevaluate his career, the Colts and Reich never learned from their mistakes.

The 2019 season was always going to be difficult with Luck's surprise retirement. The team sputtered to a 7-9 record with Jacoby Brissett at QB.

In 2020, Philip Rivers signed with the team as the Colts made a short-sighted bet that put them in a "win-now" mode with an aging QB. They won 11 games and reached the playoffs but lost in the Wild Card round to the Buffalo Bills, 27-24. Rivers retired following one season with the franchise, once again leaving the Colts without a viable option in his place.

Next, the team traded for Carson Wentz, who appeared to have the team on the verge of a playoff appearance a season ago. The lasting memory of Wentz in a Colts jersey, however, was in Week 18 when the team inexplicably fell on its face against the lowly Jacksonville Jaguars. The loss helped eliminate the Colts from playoff contention.

Instead of seeing that as a sign that maybe Reich wasn't putting his players in the best position to succeed, the team doubled down once again, trading for Matt Ryan this offseason. That move backfired enormously as the Colts made the former NFL MVP look like a shell of himself. Before being benched after starting the season 3-3-1, Ryan threw nine interceptions and the offense scored over 20 points just once.

Before Reich left, he had one more quarterback to ruin. In two starts, Sam Ehlinger went 0-2 and the offense scored 9.5 points per game. He averaged 152 yards and threw no touchdowns with one interception as well as taking 11 sacks.

During Reich's tenure, the offense peaked in 2018 with Andrew Luck. Rivers helped elevate the team's floor in 2020, but he was always going to be a stopgap. When it came to developing QBs, Reich failed.

We knew Luck's explosive decision to retire would have a lasting impact on the franchise. It took until today for the shrapnel to land.