The Indianapolis Colts learned a lot during the 2024 season. The team found out that 2023 first-round draft pick Anthony Richardson still had a long way to go before he had any chance of being elite. He might never get there.
Indy learned that a veteran quarterback, even one likely long past his prime, is more efficient than Richardson. Joe Flacco, the team's presumed backup QB, had to step in a number of times in place of the injured Richardson. While the win-loss record did not see a change between Flacco and Richardson, the offense was much better with the veteran.
The Colts are stuck with Richardson, though. A team does not give up easily on such a high draft pick. Flacco was nearing 40 years old and might not play after 2024.
Joe Flacco should have stayed as the starter for the Indianapolis Colts
Times have changed. Not only is Richardson now in a battle for Indy's QB1 spot (the guess here is that he definitely wins the spot for at least Week 1, but Flacco is now with the Cleveland Browns and will be QB1 for them.
Sure, the Browns are a quarterback room in flux, and Flacco is not going to be the long-term starter, but he might give Cleveland the best chance to win this year, and that's what matters. He might have also given the Colts the best chance to win this year, too.
More so, Flacco would have been the less expensive option than Daniel Jones. The 40-year-old has a cap hit of slightly under $3 million. Jones has a cap hit of almost $14.5 million. What exactly was Indianapolis thinking by not bringing Flacco back and instead adding the always underwhelming Jones?
It was a poor decision. Even if Jones becomes QB1, he is not likely to be all that good, as he never has been. Meanwhile, Flacco is a great veteran voice in the locker room and a calm presence on the field. He might not elevate the excellent skill position players he has around him, but he won't make them worse, either.
Richardson and Jones very well might. Does Indy have the overall roster to make the postseason with decent quarterback play? Yes. The AFC South is not the best division in football. But with poor quarterback play, the team could snatch a postseason victory from the jaws of potential success.
No reason to worry about that now, however. Joe Flacco is the starter for the Cleveland Browns. Anthony Richardson and Daniel Jones will be the starter for the Indianapolis Colts. Indy would have been better off keeping Flacco.