The Indianapolis Colts have some important decisions to make this offseason, among them what to do with quarterback Daniel Jones. He is a free agent and free to sign anywhere he pleases. The team could franchise tag him, but that is less than ideal.
The positive aspect, if you believe in Jones as the future of Indy as QB1, is that the team is looking to address a new deal with Jones soon, at least according to the NFL Network's Tom Pelissero. He reported ahead of the Super Bowl between the Seattle Seahawks and New England Patriots that the Colts are trying to get ahead of a narrative that could be very bad for the team.
The problem with Pelissero's reporting is that literally everyone knows that Indy is interested in bringing Jones back. General manager Chris Ballard said as much in his season-ending press conference. Nothing about what Pelissero reported is new, and that's a problem,
Indianapolis Colts needed to be more aggressive in extending Daniel Jones
More straightforwardly, the Indianapolis Colts didn't need to wait until now to seek a new control with Daniel Jones. As he played for the team in 2025 and did extremely well in the first half of the season, Indy could have worked out an extension with him during the season. That isn't Ballard's normal way of doing business, though, and it could cost the Colts.
If Indianapolis doesn't find an agreeable number with Jones and his people, and doesn't franchise tag the quarterback, he could leave in free agency, which would, in turn, leave Indy with a mess at quarterback. The returning players would be first-round draft bust Anthony Richardson and 2025 pick Riley Leonard, who the team didn't seem to trust this season.
Taking a quarterback in the first round in 2026 isn't an option, as Ballard traded the team's next two picks for cornerback Sauce Gardner in a midseason deal with the New York Jets this year. The other quarterbacks available in free agency don't appear to be great options, either.
The Indianapolis Colts could potentially offer the Miami Dolphins a trade for quarterback Tua Tagovailoa or the Atlanta Falcons a deal for QB Kirk Cousins, but neither is ideal. Tagovailoa is injury-prone. Cousins is 37 years old. His addition would remind many Indianapolis fans of the team acquiring Philip Rivers in 2020, or Matt Ryan in 2022, or Carson Wentz in 2021.
The team needed to be more aggressive in extending Daniel Jones previously. No reason existed to wait. He might return to the Indianapolis Colts, but should he leave, the blame falls fully on Chris Ballard's shoulders.