Colts Perform Quarterback Shuffle Ahead of Final Game Against Texans

The Indianapolis Colts have made some adjustments to their quarterback depth chart ahead of their season finale with the Houston Texans.

Instead of Philip Rivers serving as the backup quarterback to Riley Leonard, it will be the recently signed Seth Henigan, instead.

Colts HC Shane Steichen: QB order at Houston - Riley Leonard, Seth Henigan. A chance Philip Rivers won't be up for the game. Just watched practice today.
— Mike Chappell (@mchappell51) January 2, 2026

It's not a shock that the Colts are going with Henigan over the 44-year-old Rivers. The future Hall of Famer served as the starter against the Seattle Seahawks, San Francisco 49ers, and Jacksonville Jaguars.

Unfortunately for Rivers, he couldn't lead the team to a victory during this time, dropping all three games to add to what is now a horrific six-game losing skid.

Leonard steps into his first chance to start in the NFL, but against a monstrous Houston defense that has only allowed 18.0 points per game over their eight-game winning streak.

The sixth-round rookie will have his work truly cut out for him at NRG Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

As for Henigan, this will be the first time he's on the Colts' 53-man roster for a game this year. While Henigan's name may not catch a lot of eyes, his college resume speaks for itself and gives a bit of insight as to what he might be able to accomplish in the pros.

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Colts quarterback Seth Henigan (blue and white uniform) runs the football. — Dec 17, 2024; Frisco, TX, USA; Memphis Tigers quarterback Seth Henigan (9) runs the ball against the West Virginia Mountaineers in the first quarter at Toyota Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-Imagn Images | Tim Heitman-Imagn Images

Henigan put up incredible numbers during his four years as the quarterback for the Memphis Tigers. Below are his impressive statistics through 50 games.

Passing Yards - 14,266
Passing Touchdowns - 104
Interceptions Thrown - 31
Rushing Touchdowns - 10
Pass Completions/Attempts - 1,147/1,791
Completion Percentage - 64.0

Henigan didn't blow anyone away at the 2025 NFL Combine, but it's not all about the athletic metrics that make a serviceable NFL quarterback.

This is the chance that Henigan has been searching for since being signed by the Jaguars to their practice squad in April.

After getting released in September, the Colts quickly brought him onto their practice squad three months later on December 29th.

we have signed QB Seth Henigan to the practice squad.
— Indianapolis Colts (@Colts) December 29, 2025

After the Colts finish up their 2025 campaign on Sunday afternoon, their quarterback mystery will continue as it has since Rivers called it a career (the first time) in 2020. This was also the last time Indianapolis made the playoffs.

This game is an audition for Leonard to show Indianapolis what he can do, and if he might be the answer as a backup going forward.

The assumption is that the franchise will turn to Jones with a fresh contract after the great year he produced before his injury, but that's not a given.

Will the Colts retain Jones? Will they let Jones walk in free agency to give Anthony Richardson Sr. one more chance? Could Leonard, somehow, show enough to shock everyone and look like a long-term answer?

Everything is on the table for the Colts while simultaneously having very limited avenues to take for their quarterbacking troubles.

But before any QB drama can continue, there's one game left to play. We'll see if Leonard can conjure up magic and upset the Texans ahead of what will be a huge 2026 offseason for a team that just had arguably the biggest collapse in NFL history.

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