Sources: Tony Dungy to retire

[Hammer]

The Indianapolis Colts have scheduled a news conference for Monday afternoon, presumably to announce the retirement of coach Tony Dungy.

Foxsports.com and The Indianapolis Star reported Monday that Dungy, 53, will step down after seven seasons in Indianapolis. The news conference is scheduled for 5 p.m. ET at the team's practice facility, although the Colts did not given a reason early Monday for their announcement.

A source told Foxsports.com that Dungy has talked his decision over with family members and they decided it was the best time for him to step aside. Dungy, the source said, was at the team's complex in Indianapolis on Monday morning saying goodbyes to players and team employees. The Colts have designated associate coach Jim Caldwell as Dungy's eventual replacement.

Since winning the Super Bowl after the 2006 season, Dungy has thought long and hard each offseason about how much longer he really wants to work in the NFL. He said after the Colts' overtime playoff loss to the San Diego Chargers in the AFC wild-card game nine days ago that he would spend about a week deciding whether to return for an eighth season as coach.

He spent much of that time in Tampa, Fla., where his wife Lauren and children moved full-time about a year ago. The Dungys had the week to contemplate his future with the Colts, but a trip to New York for son Jordan's surgery on a broken leg occupied their time. Jordan Dungy is back home in Florida and doing well after surgery.

In Dungy's 13 seasons as a head coach, including six with Tampa Bay, he's put together a sparkling resume.

He has 148 career wins, including playoffs, and ranks 19th all-time in victories. He's the only black coach to win a Super Bowl, the first coach in league history to reach the postseason in 10 consecutive seasons and the only coach to preside over six straight seasons of 12 wins or more.

Two years ago, Dungy acknowledged there was a temptation to retire after winning the Super Bowl, at a time when he also was grieving the loss of his 18-year-old son James, who committed suicide in December 2005.

Dungy pondered retirement again last January, but returned after Colts owner Jim Irsay agreed to make Caldwell the eventual successor and offered Dungy the use of a private jet to visit his family in Florida.

Dungy also has spoken recently about his post-football plans and his desire to work more with All-Pro Dads, the prison ministry and becoming a mentor to teenagers and young adults.

Information from ESPN senior NFL analyst Chris Mortensen and The Associated Press was used in this report.

[indytraveler]

This day was going to come eventually. The question now is, can Jim Caldwell can lead the Colts to a playoff win? The answer is yes if they can add run stoppers on the defensive front and run blockers on the offensive front. If they want to "waste" money on offensive skill position players then no. We have seen all kinds of offensive records here the last 10+ years, but all that has gotten Colts fans is a bunch of AFC South banners to hang in their new place.

Unless the Colts can win another 2-3 Super Bowls (I'm sorry playoff GAMES). This period will go down as a waste of all that talent. 3 or more Hall of Famers on this team and only 1 Super Bowl?

[Melanie]

I'm glad to see Jim Caldwell get his chance.

[Missy_Mouses_Dad]

Dungy is an extremely classy individual. Unfortunately, he will be remembered as the first coach "of color" to win a Super bowl, rather than as a coach who's team won a super bowl, which is an injustice to him. Actually, couldn't Gruden's Super Bowl win count as 1/2 for Dungy since they were his players?

Does Dungy have the criteria to make the hall of fame? I say yes.

[sillyolbear]

I'm glad to see Jim Caldwell get his chance.

It certainly is good to see him get his chance. While his record as a head coach at Wake Forest wasn't all that impressive from a win/loss stand point, he set the stage for what the program enjoys today under Jim Grobe.

Jim Caldwell is a good football coach and one of the truly good guys in the the world of sports. I'll be pulling for him.