Colts GM Issues Confident Take on Daniel Jones's Future in Indianapolis

It sure does seem like the Colts want DJ back.

Jones's 2025 season was cut short when he suffered an Achilles tear. / Travis Register-Imagn Images

It might sound wild after they ended their season on a seven-game skid, but, for a while there, the Colts looked like serious Super Bowl contenders. And it's even wilder to think that was in part thanks to ex-Giants quarterback Daniel Jones, who signed a one-year deal with the Colts over the 2025 offseason following some serious drama in New York and a quick stint in Minneapolis.

Jones began his tenure in Indy as the presumed backup, though things changed during training camp. Eventually, much to the surprise of the general public, coach Shane Steichen opted to go with Jones as the team's Week 1 starter, demoting 2023 first-round pick Anthony Richardson.

Right off the bat, it was pretty clear why. Although things derailed toward the end of the season—and Jones himself exited with an Achilles tear—the 28-year-old put up some of the best numbers of his career and threw for 19 touchdowns across 13 games (he also ran in five himself).

But considering the draft capital Indy used up to acquire Richardson, as well as Jones's injury and newfound status as a free agent, the question for Indy now becomes: who will serve as the starter in 2026?

Though it wasn't a crystal-clear response, we did receive what seemed to be a big hint on that front when GM Chris Ballard spoke on Thursday.

"I think Daniel Jones has a really bright future here in Indianapolis," Ballard said.

He added: "I think [a return is] mutual on both sides. I think Daniel was a really good fit for this organization, and I think this organization and city were a really good fit for Daniel."

That certainly seems to suggest the Colts would like to bring DJ back. (And, for what it's worth, Jones has expressed interest in a return, as well.)

As for Richardson's future in Indy, Ballard said he was "really happy" with Richardson, but that the QB has had "some really bad luck."

"I'll tell you this about Anthony—he's a great teammate, he's a great teammate. He never sulked, never complained, was doing a great job as a backup quarterback, and then had a freak accident in the locker room," the GM said, per a write-up from NFL.com.

"I think time will tell. … He's gotta still work through the vision that he has, and we'll see what the future holds there, but [he's had] a little bit of bad luck."

The vision here will certainly become clearer as the offseason progresses. But it does seem as though Jones, at the very least, is wanted back in Indy for another go at a playoff berth next fall.

Whether he can play, however, will be a different story, of course. Though Jones recently expressed a desire to be back in action by the start of training camp, recovery from an Achilles tear can take roughly three to six months, depending on the severity of the injury. The quarterback underwent surgery in early December, so that puts him in the June/July range, assuming all goes well.

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