NFL Trade Rumors
In a devastating blow for the Indianapolis Colts, starting QB Daniel Jones tore his Achilles early in Sunday’s loss to the Jaguars, ending his season. Jones was already playing through a fractured fibula in his other leg, and though he wasn’t playing quite as well on it, he was gutting it out for his team.
His injury leaves the Colts at 8-5, currently outside looking in at an extremely competitive AFC playoff picture when just weeks ago they were 8-2 and vying for a first-round bye. Jones’ injury doesn’t just wreck this year, though. One torn Achilles turned what was a clear path forward for the Colts upside down. After trading two first-round picks for CB Sauce Gardner at the trade deadline with the intention of signing Jones to a long-term deal this offseason, Indianapolis finds itself at an unexpected and unwelcome crossroads. What will the Colts do?
With former first-round QB Anthony Richardson on IR, the Colts were forced to turn to sixth-round QB Riley Leonard against the Jags, to predictably poor results. Leonard would seem to be the one to finish out the season, except now he’s also dealing with a knee injury. Brett Rypien is on the team’s practice squad and is the only other quarterback on the roster. Even if Leonard was healthy, expect Indianapolis to add someone to their quarterback room in the short term.
The options for the Colts on the free agent market are extremely limited, as you might expect in December. Desmond Ridder spent some time with the Colts during minicamp early in the offseason, so he has a little experience with the team. Dorian Thompson-Robinson and Taylor Heinicke are some other options with relatively recent playing experience. The Colts are working out 44-year-old former QB Philip Rivers, which would be a different kind of Hail Mary to try and save the season. Rivers hasn’t played since 2020.
Alternatively, there are some intriguing options on other teams’ practice squads, including Trevor Siemian, Mike White, Kyle Trask, C.J. Beathard, Adrian Martinez, Sam Ehlinger and Will Grier. The most interesting name on that list is Ehlinger, a fifth-year pro out of Texas who spent the first four years of his career in Indianapolis. He started a couple of games for the Colts back in 2022 and was a valuable part of the organization during his time there, and the coaching staff is already familiar with him.
Players can be signed straight from other practice squads even after the trade deadline has passed, so if the Colts want to bring in Ehlinger (or another quarterback currently sitting on a practice squad) they can do so immediately. Players have to agree but the chance to play that the Colts are offering will be attractive.
As for Richardson, his return timeline is unknown, but it’s possible he could return for the last game or two of the season. At that point, it will likely be too late for Indy to...
