The trade deadline came and went without Daniel Jones leaving Indianapolis, but that doesn’t mean his long-term future with the Colts is settled.
Jones is still on the roster, yet the bigger picture remains cloudy beyond the 2026 season. He knows that reality is there, but he’s choosing not to let it take over his headspace.
“It definitely crosses your mind, right?" Jones said on Wednesday, via The Athletic's James Boyd.
"I think that’s pretty natural in most situations to think about your future. But as I've said, you gotta do as much as you can, you just gotta focus on being here and playing well.
There’s too much going on if you get caught up in a lot of that stuff, it affects your play, it affects how you interact with the guys, it affects how you lead, so you try to stay away from that as much as possible.”
There’s also a financial layer to the Colts’ decision to keep him. His deal could be moved, but the team would stand to create more cap space by releasing him with a post-June 1st designation in the offseason than by trading him now.
On the field, Jones has had a rough year. He’s completed 60% of his passes and is averaging just 5.7 yards per attempt, while turnovers have piled up with 10 interceptions and a handful of lost fumbles.
And the situation around him hasn’t exactly made life easier. The Colts have already traded away Jones’ top two wide receiver targets, which only adds more uncertainty to what comes next.
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