AFC quarterback Peyton Manning of the Indianapolis Colts gestures during a warm-up session before the NFL Pro Bowl in Honolulu
Peyton Manning could reunite with Reggie Wayne in a host of different cities if the Colts release him. Reuters

The Indianapolis Colts have hired Baltimore Ravens defensive coordinator Chuck Pagano as their next coach, according to a report Wednesday.

Pagano spent a single season as the Ravens defensive coordinator, but had previously coached the Ravens secondary for three seasons. The news of Pagano taking the Colts job after two interviews was first reported by Pro Football Talk.

He joins a long list of Ravens defensive coaches who have gotten head coaching opportunities. Former Ravens tight end Shannon Sharpe noted on Twitter that Marvin Lewis, Jack Del Rio, Rex Ryan, Mike Nolan, Mike Smith and Mike Singletary all got head coaching jobs after coaching Ray Lewis and the rest of the Ravens defense.

The Ravens defensive specialist comes into a new-look Colts organization. He replaces Jim Caldwell, who was fired after a disappointing 2-14 season, but must also deal with an entirely new management team.

Colts owner Jim Irsay also fired vice president Bill Polian and general manager Chris Polian in the off-season; and might get rid of quarterback Peyton Manning before all is said and done.

There is some upside to the organization, though -- the Colts own the No. 1 draft pick in April's draft. The Colts are expected to draft Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck with the first pick, but must first figure out what to do with Manning.

The face of the Colts franchise since he came into the NFL, Manning is due a $28 million roster bonus in March. It will be extremely difficult for the Colts to commit so much of their cap room to the quarterback position, but the organization remains hesitant about cutting Indianapolis' most popular athlete.

Details about the contract were not immediately released.

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