Taylor Heinicke is officially the Commanders’ starting quarterback and that’s bad news for Colts
The Washington Commanders have named Taylor Heinicke as their quarterback moving forward and that will impact the Indianapolis Colts.
In Week 8, Taylor Heinicke and the Washington Commanders came to Indianapolis and gave the Colts a devastating loss. With a clutch two-minute drive, the Commanders were able to leave Indy with a 17-16 victory. Now, just a few weeks later, Washington is delivering another tough blow to the Colts. The Commanders have named Heinicke as their starting quarterback moving forward this season and that means Carson Wentz will remain on the sideline.
The reason this impacts the Colts is that when Indy traded Wentz to Washington, a part of the package that the Commanders sent to Indianapolis was a conditional third-round pick. If Carson Wentz played 70% of the offensive snaps for Washington, that third-round pick would be elevated to a second-round pick for the Colts. Now, it seems like that won’t be happening, so Indy will be forced to stick with a third-rounder.
From @NFLGameDay: The #Commanders expect Taylor Heinicke to be their QB moving foward, while the #Steelers may have found the right formula for RB Najee Harris. pic.twitter.com/UPURHCsuSZ
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) November 20, 2022
Colts likely stuck with third-round pick in Carson Wentz trade
As Ian Rapoport reported, Heinicke’s status as the starter is still dependent on his performance. That means if he starts struggling, there’s a possibility that Wentz could find his way back into the lineup. However, as the team approaches Week 11, that decision will have to come in the next couple of weeks in order for Wentz to reach the necessary snap count percentage.
After 10 games, Carson Wentz currently has 59.94% of the team’s offensive snaps. That number will continue to plummet as Heinicke is now the man taking snaps. The door was opened for this opportunity after Wentz suffered a fractured finger in Week 6. With Heinicke going 3-1 in his four games as the starter, including being the first team to beat the Philadelphia Eagles this season, there was no way the Commanders would send him back to the bench.
For the Colts, it’s tough because a second-round pick is just better than a third. However, Indianapolis has traditionally been good in the draft and Chris Ballard usually works magic when it comes to moving around and gathering better picks. So while it would’ve been great for the third to become a send, it’s not the end of the world for the Colts.
