The Colts are betting big on the Daniel Jones-Alec Pierce pairing, and the numbers from 2025 give them plenty of reason to do it.
Jones and Pierce were both at or near the peak of their careers last season, and Indianapolis rewarded that production with new deals in the offseason. Jones signed for two years and $88 million, with the contract able to reach $100 million. Pierce landed a four-year, $114 million agreement that can climb to $116 million.
Their work together didn’t just stand out in Indianapolis. Pro Football Focus recently ranked the NFL’s top pass-catching duos, and Jones-to-Pierce came in seventh among the top 10. PFF’s Mark Chichester said the study examined “every quarterback-receiver target (in 2025) through the lens of PFF grading and expected points added (EPA) per play.”
On the field, the connection was efficient and explosive. Jones completed 35 of 60 throws to Pierce for 715 yards, a 20.4-yard average, and two touchdowns.
That produced an EPA per play of 0.60 and a positive play partnership rate of 45.0%. Among the top 10 combinations in EPA per play, Jones-to-Pierce ranked second in PPP.
What makes that even more notable is the timing. Pierce missed two games early in the season with a concussion, and Jones missed four games late because of an Achilles injury.
Pierce still put together a massive season. He led the NFL in yards per reception for the second straight year, following 22.3 in 2024 with 21.3 in 2025.
In 15 games, including four without Jones, he caught 47 of 84 targets for 1,003 yards and six touchdowns. He also set career highs in receptions, targets, receiving yards and receiving first downs with 41.
“Yeah, it was important because I believe in what we have going on here,” Pierce said about Jones re-signing as well. “I believe in our team.
I believe in the players we have in place. I think last year in the beginning season - just that first half of the season - I think we truly had something special going.
And I know we didn't finish the way we want to finish, but I think I'm able to look back to that and look at how we were playing, and know we can be the best team in the NFL.”
Pierce’s role should only grow after the Colts traded away Michael Pittman Jr. He has never finished higher than third on the team in targets, and even with a career-best total last season, he was fourth. Pierce has averaged 74 targets per year in his career, but he’s moving into a spot where Pittman averaged 130 from 2021-25.
Jones said he believes Pierce is ready for the bigger workload.
“I think he's capable and has the skill set to do that,” Jones said. “I think last year he did a lot of that.
He was obviously down the field making plays like he has his whole career, and then made a lot of plays in the intermediate game on crossers and in-cuts and deep outs and stuff like that, and he'll continue to do that for us. And I think continuing to feature him, I think he's capable of all of it.
There's nothing he can't do from a route receiver standpoint, so it's our job to get him the ball.”
In Other News...
Jonathan Taylor Just Added New Tension To The Colts Offseason
Jonathan Taylors contract situation is starting to cast a longer shadow over the Colts offseason, even if nothing has crossed into a formal standoff. James Boyd of The Athletic recently framed the running back as a player who could use training camp leverage if negotiations stay unresolved, and the logic is easy to follow: Indianapolis does not have a true replacement waiting behind him, which keeps Taylor at the center of whatever the offense wants to be.
The timing matters because the Colts are already navigating uncertainty at quarterback, with Daniel Jones trying to re-establish himself and Anthony Richardsons future still cloudy. That leaves Taylor as one of the few proven constants on the roster, and it is why his next move will be worth watching as camp approaches, even if the situation remains speculative for now. [Read more 🡒]
Colts Could Already Be Facing A Tough Call On Former Starter
The cornerback market took another hit when Detroit released Terrion Arnold after his arrest on multiple felony charges, leaving the Lions even thinner at a position where depth was already a concern. For the Colts, that kind of ripple effect can create unexpected trade chatter, and Bleacher Reports Moe Moton pointed to Jaylon Jones as a name worth watching as teams around the league look for help on the back end.
Jones has a case to be moved because Indianapolis has reshaped its corner room, pushing him further down the depth chart after the additions of Sauce Gardner and Charvarius Ward. He was a full-time starter in 2024 and showed he can handle meaningful snaps, but the Colts also have other young corners they like, which is why a late-round draft return in 2027 could become the kind of practical deal that makes sense if a contender comes calling. [Read more 🡒]
Colts Roster Battle Just Got More Uncomfortable At The Worst Spot
With training camp and roster cuts looming, the Colts are staring at one of the trickier parts of building out the 53-man roster: the spots where need can matter as much as talent. That has put a few fringe names squarely in the conversation, including Mekhi Blackmon and Caden Curry, two players whose paths to sticking around are tied less to clean depth-chart certainty than to how the roster holds up around them.
The tension is especially noticeable in the quarterback room, where the backup picture has become a real point of pressure for a team trying to get every decision right in a critical season for Shane Steichen and Chris Ballard. Easton Stick remains part of that mix, and with Anthony Richardson unlikely to be on the team by Week 1, the Colts are left sorting through a situation that feels more uncomfortable the closer the opener gets. [Read more 🡒]