Daniel Jones’ latest outing left the Colts with the kind of answer no team wants to hear: Indianapolis cannot count on him to carry a game right now.
That reality was laid bare in Week 7, when the Colts fell 16-10 to the undefeated Minnesota Vikings and dropped their third straight game. Facing a team that had not lost, Indianapolis needed a sharp turn from Jones to keep pace. Instead, the quarterback turned in another rough performance and the offense never found steady ground.
Jones finished with 108 passing yards, no touchdowns and a game-ending interception. The box score was ugly enough, but the way the game unfolded told the bigger story.
He missed open throws with overthrows and underthrows, held the ball too long, and forced passes into tight coverage. On top of that, he never provided any real splash plays to lift the offense.
There were no completions longer than 13 yards. There were no runs longer than 6 yards. When the Colts still had a chance to make a late push, Jones ended that drive with an easy interception.
The stakes around him have only grown louder. The Colts already had a newsworthy week, with long-time GM Chris Ballard exiting and ownership signaling that patience is wearing thin. That kind of backdrop fed plenty of speculation about possible changes, including questions about whether Indianapolis would trade away stars for draft picks or bench Jones, the big-money starting quarterback.
The team has backed Jones for now, but Week 7 did nothing to quiet the noise. If anything, it pushed it higher. His issues with accuracy, judgment and playmaking were on full display again, with no sign of a correction.
Even with another classic Taylor performance and an elite effort from the Colts defense, Jones never gave Indianapolis the kind of quarterback play it needed. From the opening snap, he didn’t give his team a real path to win.
If he keeps the starting job, the Colts may have to start winning while asking for very little from their $88 million quarterback.
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