Daniel Jones is already turning heads in Colts camp, and the early signs are hard to ignore.
After his Achilles injury in Jacksonville against the Jaguars, the outlook looked bleak for Jones and for Indianapolis. Non-contact injuries have a way of stopping everything cold, and that one seemed to do exactly that. But now, back in Westfield for training camp, Jones looks a whole lot closer to his old self than anyone probably expected.
JJ Stankevitz of Colts.com saw Jones running without any obvious issue and even finishing a touchdown on the ground. That drew plenty of attention from his teammates, including Mo Alie-Cox and Quenton Nelson.
“He looks like he never got hurt,” Alie-Cox said. “He’s throwing dimes left and right on the field, getting out the pocket, scrambling and different things like that.”
“He’s been incredible. He’s back like he’s never left,” left guard Quenton Nelson said.
“He worked so hard to get here. It’s been awesome to see.”
That kind of progress matters a lot for a team whose season outlook is tied directly to Jones. Training camp always brings a little smoke and mirrors, and not every encouraging report turns into real production once the games start. Still, this is exactly the kind of development the Colts needed to hear after the injury sent everything off the rails.
Jones is the team’s best quarterback, and Indianapolis’ hopes start and end with him. Seeing the rust fall off, watching the leg hold up, and getting a full camp with his teammates gives the Colts something they badly lacked before: stability.
It has been eight months since Jones went down, and now he’s back in the mix. For a quarterback who depends on mobility, that return matters even more.
A healthy Jones won’t fix every problem in Indianapolis, but an unhealthy one leaves the whole thing in pieces. Right now, the Colts have to like where this is headed.
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Rodgers now gets a quick path into the mix after earning his opportunity at rookie minicamp, while the Colts wait to see how Mitchells waiver process plays out. If Mitchell clears, he would land on injured reserve, but for now the bigger picture is simply that Indianapolis needed another healthy body at a spot where every practice rep matters this time of year. [Read more 🡒]