The Colts may have their starter settled, but the real tension in Indianapolis sits behind Daniel Jones.
Jones is set to be QB1 and will be a full participant in training camp, leaving the backup job as the only true competition. That battle is expected to come down to Anthony Richardson and Riley Leonard, though even that feels like a temporary setup rather than a clean quarterback room.
Richardson, according to general manager Chris Ballard on Tuesday, still has not backed off the trade request he made earlier this offseason. That leaves Indianapolis in an awkward spot: why keep leaning on a quarterback who wants out if Jones gets hurt again?
Leonard also has a case to be made. In his lone start as a rookie, Week 18 against the Houston Texans, he looked as good in the first half as Richardson ever has. With more work, Leonard could turn into the first-round talent Indianapolis hoped Richardson would become.
Richardson’s desire to move on has not changed, and it makes the Colts’ situation even messier. Ballard said the team would be fine keeping all three quarterbacks on the roster, the same way they did in 2025. But Richardson spent most of that season sidelined after breaking an orbital bone in Week 6 warm-ups, another strange injury in a career already full of them.
The money is still there, of course. Richardson is guaranteed $5,385,549 from Indianapolis in 2026. But the contract doesn’t change the reality: he wants to be traded, and he is standing by that.
At this point, the Colts may simply have to take whatever draft value another team is willing to offer. The hope in Indianapolis is that Jones becomes the long-term answer at quarterback.
Leonard has three years left on his deal. Richardson has one, and it does not sound like the Colts expect that to last much longer.
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