Reggie Wayne – the Colts' all-time leader in postseason receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns – will lend his expertise to the next generation of wide receivers in Indianapolis. On Monday, the Colts announced the hiring of Wayne as wide receivers coach along with six other new assistant coaches.
In a full-circle moment, Wayne was hired to coach wide receivers by Frank Reich – who was Wayne's wide receivers coach with the Colts in 2011. Wayne previously served as a volunteer wide receivers coach with the Colts in 2018, and Reich said earlier this month he's been trying to get Wayne on his coaching staff for four years.
"He's a winner," Reich said. "He's a really smart player, a really motivated guy, very structured in how he works and what he does. And very analytical and intellectual in how he approaches the receiver position. So we've been talking about this for four years. The timing has not been right but now the time is right. So really excited for what he's going to bring to the room and to the team."
Wayne replaces Mike Groh, who served as the Colts' wide receivers coach from 2020-2021 before joining the New York Giants earlier this year.
While Wayne does not have any full-time coaching experience on his resume, Reich said he's confident one of the best wide receivers in NFL history can make an immediate, major impact on the Colts.
"It is a big step," Reich said. "There's a lot to learn and he knows that. He's a guy who's willing to put in the work, I know that. He knows that. We'll support him but the thing is, when you make a decision like that, you say, 'Why would you bring in a guy who's got no coaching experience?' Those little coaching things, not to minimize those, but you can learn those. But he has an upside into what he can bring to our team. That's what you bet on. You bet on that upside that he can bring."
Wayne was inducted into the Colts Ring of Honor in 2018 after a remarkable 14-year career in Indianapolis. The 2001 first-round pick caught 1,070 passes for 14,345 yards with 82 touchdowns – all of which are second-most in franchise history behind his Hall of Fame teammate Marvin Harrison.
But Wayne saved some of his best moments for the playoffs – he's fifth all-time in postseason receptions (93), seventh all-time in postseason yards (1,254) and 10th all-time in postseason receiving touchdowns (10). Wayne and Hall of Famer Jerry Rice are the only players in NFL history to rank in the top 10 in both regular and postseason receptions and yards.
"I'm excited for the prospect that we take that final step with someone like Reggie and I think he'll bring a lot, not only to the individual receivers there about how to play the position but also just a mentality," Reich said. "That championship mentality that we want to have to go forward."
