Former New York Jets quarterback Sam Darnold shrugged of his label of being a former top-five bust by making his first Pro Bowl in 2024 before cashing in on a $100 million contract this offseason. Another former quarterback chosen by one of New York’s franchises may soon follow his footsteps.
While the Minnesota Vikings likely couldn’t have envisioned Darnold’s breakout last season, following incoming rookie quarterback J.J. McCarthy’s season-ending injury last summer, the Indianapolis Colts are betting big that history will repeat itself with Daniel Jones.
Jones, chosen No. 6 overall in the 2019 NFL Draft by the New York Giants, arrives in Indianapolis setting the stage for a preseason competition against Anthony Richardson for the starting quarterback job both with the chance at redemption, and the Colts hope to elevate head coach Shane Steichen’s offense.
NFL Coaches Bullish on Daniel Jones
With NFL free agency well into its second wave, I asked a current general manager the signing he believes will prove to be the biggest value add of the offseason, and he noted the Colts’ Jones signing.
“Daniel Jones will be next year’s Sam Darnold,” the general manager recently told me. “We have spoken to several coaches who believe that he’s going to be the guy.”
The Colts signed Jones to a one-year contract worth upwards of $14 million, including $13.15 million fully guaranteed, so, there are some parallels to Darnold’s one year pact in head coach Kevin O’Connell’s quarterback-friendly system in Minnesota.
Whether Jones can cash in by building a strong rapport with the likes of Colts running back Jonathan Taylor, and wide receivers Michael Pittman Jr., and Alec Pierce could determine if this is a one-year audition for a starting job and high-paying contract or the beginning of a second-career as a journeyman backup.
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