It's Time for the Colts to Panic After Daniel Jones's Achilles Injury

After spending most of the season as the NFL's best feel-good surprises, Indianapolis is fading fast. Plus, the Bears earned some respect and the Steelers got up off the mat to get back into the playoff picture.

Colts quarterback Daniel Jones suffered a season-ending Achilles injury in Sunday's loss to the Jaguars. / Doug Engle/Florida Times-Union / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Fortunes can change quickly in the NFL, just ask the Bears and Colts.

Bears coach Ben Johnson was ridiculed for taking shots at Packers coach Matt LaFleur at his introductory news conference, but there he was Sunday pushing one of his biggest rivals until the end, just like he said he would. LaFleur’s Packers prevailed 28–21, but Johnson and his Bears gained plenty of respect and they could be ready for their moment when the two NFC North rivals meet again in Week 16.

As for the Colts, there was no moral victory after the 36–19 beatdown in Jacksonville. Indianapolis was thinking about the Super Bowl not that long ago when it landed Sauce Gardner in a blockbuster trade. Now the season could be over after Daniel Jones sustained a torn Achilles injury against the Jaguars. To make matters worse, the Colts might now have doubts about re-signing Jones in the offseason.

So much occurred during an eventful NFL Week 14. Here’s what we learned. 

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Fast-fading Colts have many QB questions after Daniel Jones injury 

There’s a good chance the Colts don’t win a game again this season without Jones. 

Anthony Richardson, the 2023 No. 4 pick, is on injured reserve with a fractured orbital, which occurred in a freak accident with a resistance band while he was warming up for a Week 6 game against the Cardinals. Riley Leonard, a sixth-round rookie, didn’t look the part of a starting quarterback while playing in relief of Jones on Sunday, completing 18-of-29 passes for 145 yards and one interception against Jacksonville.   

Obviously, Leonard could show improvement with a week to prepare, but the Colts (8–5) go on the road next week to face the red-hot Seahawks and their dominant defense. From there, Indianapolis has home games against San Francisco and Jacksonville and ends the regular season in Houston. Given the circumstances, one of the most surprising teams in the NFL probably won’t be making the postseason in a crowded AFC. 

As for another quarterback issue, the Colts will need to decide in the offseason whether to commit to paying Jones, who had struggled before the injury in Jacksonville. Jones, the No. 1 player on Sports Illustrated’s top 50 free agents, was instrumental in helping Indianapolis start 8–2 this season, but he was too reliant on running back Jonathan Taylor, who has cooled off in the past month. 

The Colts went from having a bright future with the trade deadline addition of Gardner to a dim one that now brings uncertainty to a franchise lacking draft picks and may not have a franchise quarterback on its roster.  

The Jaguars (9–4) are also short on draft picks after sending their 2026 first-round pick to the Browns in the draft-day trade for two-way playmaker Travis Hunter, but they’re in first place in the AFC South and have received standout performances as of late from Trevor Lawrence, including going 17-of-30 for 244 yards and two touchdowns in Sunday’s win over the Colts. 

Bears gain plenty of respect in narrow loss against the Packers

Johnson not running the ball for his final play against the Packers was just as surprising as the verbal shots he directed toward LaFleur during his introductory news conference earlier this year. 

Johnson’s digs at LaFleur seemed unnecessary at the time, but it signified that he wasn’t going to shy away from his biggest rivals, forcing them to take notice even when the team had done nothing to warrant respect. So it was a bit surprising that Johnson didn’t punch Green Bay in the mouth with bruising rookie running back Kyle Monangai when he had fourth-and-1 at the 14-yard line with 35 seconds left in regulation. And I didn’t totally hate seeing D’Andre Swift in the backfield because it created some doubt about what the Bears were about to do. Still, they should have run the ball but instead opted for a pass play that led to a Caleb Williams interception to Keisean Nixon.

It was a golden opportunity for Johnson to back up his words, but it says plenty that they were only a first down from possibly pushing the Packers into overtime at Lambeau in a critical NFC North showdown. Respect was finally earned the right way, not with trash talking to win a few points from the local media.

Outside of the final play, Johnson again leaned on the rushing attack, even when it wasn’t working for long stretches. That balance allowed Williams to throw darts away from the pocket, and he too earned respect with all the plays he made running to his right side. Williams finished 19-of-35 for 186 yards, two touchdowns and one interception while Chicago outrushed Green Bay, 138 to 117.

Yes, Williams forced the interception, but he flashed his high upside and let the Packers know he will be a problem for years to come. Chicago (9–4) can make up for the missed opportunity on fourth-and-1 when it welcomes Green Bay (9–3–1) to Soldier Field in two weeks. 

Kevin Stefanski’s two-point play-call hurt Browns in various ways

Browns quarterback Shedeur Sanders had his best game of the season in a 31–29 loss to the Titans. / Jeff Lange / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The conspiracy theory of Browns coach Kevin Stefanski attempting to sabotage rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders picked up steam after Stefanski’s strange decision to keep Sanders on the sideline during a critical two-point conversion in the 31–29 loss against the Titans.

I probably shouldn’t put more of a spotlight on this dumb storyline, but it’s an actual topic in Cleveland because Sanders had to answer questions about this in a news conference not that long ago. So here’s my attempt at trying to balance this out from idiocy to more of a fair debate. 

No, I don’t believe that Stefanski is aiming to hold back Sanders, the popular fifth-round pick. Sanders just landed with a team that valued the other rookie quarterback (Dillon Gabriel) on the roster more and needed to wait his turn. 

Also, let’s credit Stefanski for having Sanders prepared for his third career start because he showed real potential of one day being a consistent starter in the NFL. But it’s also fair to say that Stefanski got too cute with his head-scratching wildcat call with rookie running back Quinshon Judkins taking the snap on the failed two-point conversion that could have sent the game into overtime. Sanders got the team into a game-tying position with an impressive seven-play, 80-yard scoring drive that ended with a seven-yard touchdown pass to rookie tight end Harold Fannin Jr.

Sanders finished 23-of-42 for 364 yards, three touchdowns, one interception, and added three carries for 29 yards and one touchdown. Sanders can play at this level, even though it came against the lowly Titans. Let’s pump the brakes on the Browns (3–10) not investing in Sanders because they were confident enough in him to take off the guard rails in his third career start. 

Now, it’s fair to debate whether Stefanski deserves another year in Cleveland because of all the losing the past two seasons, and it doesn’t get any lower than losing to a team that had one win heading into Sunday. This loss and the strange two-point call could hurt Stefanski in more ways than one at the end of the season, but let’s kill this dumb conspiracy theory regarding Sanders.

We all need to shut up about the Steelers after statement win vs. Ravens 

Aaron Rodgers is right. We all need to shut up about Mike Tomlin’s future in Pittsburgh after the Steelers’ 27–22 statement victory over the Ravens. 

Now, a critical Week 14 victory against an arch rival doesn’t necessarily mean Tomlin will be back for a 20th season, because the real problem is the zero playoff wins in nearly a decade. But it’s best to wait until after the season before trying to predict Tomlin’s future, because it’s starting to look like this team is going to find another way into the postseason. 

And, yes, the Steelers (7–6) caught a break with an Isaiah Likely touchdown that probably shouldn’t have been overturned, but the Ravens (6–7) still had second-and-10 from the 13-yard line and failed to score. Baltimore later got one more opportunity to steal the game, but did nothing despite getting the ball back with 1:56 left in regulation.  

Instead of planning the Steelers’ demise, let’s give Tomlin and his team credit for again being in the mix for a playoff spot. It hasn’t been pretty, and this Steelers season has the same feel as the eight previous ones, but we’ve never seen Tomlin and Rodgers in a playoff game together. Those two key figures were instrumental in the victory that gave Pittsburgh sole control of the AFC North, with Tomlin’s defense putting plenty of pressure on Lamar Jackson while Rodgers (23-of-34, 284 yards, TD) carved up Baltimore’s secondary with the help of DK Metcalf (seven catches, 148 yards).  

So, yeah, I’ll shut up about the Steelers because I’ve been calling this team a pretender all season and have been waiting for them to step aside for Baltimore to take the division. It’s time to stop waiting for Jackson and the Ravens to wake up. Shame on me for thinking a Tomlin–led team would roll over for any team.

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