Lou Anarumo will be the Indianapolis Colts new defensive coordinator.
This won’t be his first time in this position either, coming to Indianapolis with plenty of defensive play-calling experience. From 2019-2024, Anarumo was the defensive coordinator for the Cincinnati Bengals.
So, during his tenure in charge of the Bengals’ defenses, how did Cincinnati fair?
Now, the important caveat here is that stats are not the be-all-end-all when it comes to evaluation. They are one piece of the puzzle and context is important.
Such as knowing that the Bengals would lose several key defensive players to free agency in recent years. In addition to that, following the decision to fire Anarumo, The Cincinnati Engquirer’s Jason Williams would call Anarumo the “scapegoat” in what had been a disappointing season for the Bengals overall.
Or that throughout Anarumo’s tenure, the Bengals defense put together a number of high level performances against some of the game’s top quarterbacks.
For more on the addition of Anarumo, you can learn four things about him here, and why he is called the ‘Mad Scientist’ here.
Year by year, here is where Anarumo’s Bengals ranked in several key defensive metrics. One thing that stands out is that Anarumo has fielded some productive defensive backfields–obviously and area where the Colts must get better.
2024
| Stat | Ranking | |
| Points per game | 25.5 | 25th |
| Yards per rush | 4.4 | 14th |
| Missed tackles | 116 | 25th |
| Yards per pass | 7.0 | 12th |
| Completion rate | 64.9% | 11th |
| Turnovers | 25 | 7th |
| Pressure rate | 23.2% | 12th |
| Third down defense | 42.0% | 23rd |
| Red zone defense | 67.9% | 30th |
2023
| Stat | Ranking | |
| Points per game | 22.6 | 20th |
| Yards per rush | 4.7 | 31st |
| Missed tackles | 71 | 3rd |
| Yards per pass | 8.1 | 32nd |
| Completion rate | 65.6% | 19th |
| Turnovers | 26th | 12th |
| Pressure rate | 22.1% | 14th |
| Third down defense | 40.8% | 23rd |
| Red zone defense | 51.5% | 10th |
2022
| Stat | Ranking | |
| Points per game | 19.6 | 5th |
| Yards per rush | 4.2 | 10th |
| Missed tackles | 69 | T15 |
| Yards per pass | 6.8 | 9th |
| Completion rate | 58.9% | 1st |
| Turnovers | 24 | 11th |
| Pressure rate | 22.4% | 13th |
| Third down defense | 39.7% | 19th |
| Red zone defense | 50.0% | 5th |
2021
| Stat | Ranking | |
| Points per game | 21.8 | 13th |
| Yards per rush | 4.3 | 16th |
| Missed tackles | 108 | T14 |
| Yards per pass | 7.2 | 22nd |
| Completion rate | 67.1% | 26th |
| Turnovers | 21 | 17th |
| Pressure rate | 24.3% | 14th |
| Third down defense | 41.2% | 20th |
| Red zone defense | 57.7% | 17th |
2020
| Stat | Ranking | |
| Points per game | 26.5 | 21st |
| Yards per rush | 5.1 | 31st |
| Missed tackles | 110 | T17 |
| Yards per pass | 7.3 | 21st |
| Completion rate | 62.8% | 6th |
| Turnovers | 17 | 27th |
| Pressure rate | 19% | 30th |
| Third down defense | 43.3% | 20th |
| Red zone defense | 63.7% | 25th |
2019
| Stat | Ranking | |
| Points per game | 26.3 | 25th |
| Yards per rush | 4.7 | 24th |
| Missed tackles | 109 | 18th |
| Yards per pass | 8.3 | 32nd |
| Completion rate | 61.7% | 10th |
| Turnovers | 16 | 28th |
| Pressure rate | 22.9% | 18th |
| Third down defense | 42.5% | 25th |
| Red zone defense | 49.02% | 3rd |
(This article was updated to provide additional information.)
