Unpacking the Overreaction on Daniel Jones

Daniel Jones is one of the NFL’s biggest surprises in 2025. The seventh-year veteran quarterback is having one of the best starts to a season in Indianapolis Colts history. Considering that the Colts had Peyton Manning under center for 14 seasons, that is quite an impressive statement. Coming into Week 9, Jones was putting up Offensive Player of the Year-like numbers.

Then in Sunday’s game against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Jones had a tough outing. He had three interceptions, two fumbles, took five sacks, and posted a 63.9 QBR. Without a doubt, this is Jones’ worst performance of the year. Now, the NFL season is a long season. Players and teams are bound to have bad games. So why the overreaction on Daniel Jones?

Why the Overreaction?

The overreaction to Daniel Jones is quite complex. The Indianapolis Colts have struggled to find an answer at the quarterback position since 2019. Since the sudden retirement of Andrew Luck in 2019, the Colts have had 11 different quarterbacks start at the position. After the 2023 draft, the Colts thought they had the answer in the fourth overall pick, Anthony Richardson. After injury and lack of skill development, Richardson found himself as QB2 at the beginning of 2025 behind Daniel Jones. Since being named the starter, Jones hasn’t looked back.

Jones has been what the Colts have been looking for in a quarterback for the last seven years. He is running the offense at an efficient and consistent level. Consistency and efficiency are what head coach Shane Steichen preached about the Colts needing in the offseason.

In training camp, Steichen said this about the decision to start Jones, “You guys heard me talk about the consistency, and that’s really what I was looking for. Really, the operation at the line of scrimmage, the checks, the protection, the ball placement, the completion percentage, I think all that played a factor in it. I think Daniel did a great job doing that, and I think AR has made strides in that area, but I do feel that he needs to continue to develop in those areas.” So if consistent play from the quarterback is what people are looking for, why the overreactions on Jones after one game?

Efficient and Consistent

To put his consistent and efficient play into perspective, Jones is having a career season (so far) in these categories: completion percentage, accuracy, and time to throw. Through nine games, Jones has a completion percentage of nearly 70%, which is about 6% better than his career average. Jones also has 2,404 passing yards (first), a 101.7 QBR (10th), and 14 passing touchdowns (14th). These stats prove that Jones is playing in the top half of all the quarterbacks in the league this year. Jones is playing at a pace that will surpass his previous best season in 2022, a season in which Jones led the Giants to the playoffs and a playoff win. Again, if Jones is putting up numbers that would project him to a career season, are the reactions after one game fair?

Team Success

Not only is Jones’ play leading to his own individual success, but the success of the team as a whole. With Jones at the helm, the Colts are first in points per game (32.2), third in total yards per game (383.3), and fifth in passing yards per game (268.1). It is also important to mention that the Colts currently are first in the AFC South and hold the number one seed in the AFC. The Colts’ offense is having a historic season halfway through the year. There is no doubt that without Jones under center, these numbers would likely be different.

The Colts and Daniel Jones did not have their best day against the Steelers. It is hard to win football games in the NFL when you commit 6 turnovers. However, there was no quit in Jones or the Colts. Jones still threw for 342 yards and had 2 touchdowns in a game deemed as “the beginning of the end” for Daniel Jones as a Colt. He has proven that he can beat good teams this year. Stats are showing that Jones is in the upper half of quarterbacks this year. The team is benefiting from his play and is putting together a solid season.

With all of this in mind, the overreactions people are having with Daniel Jones after one bad Sunday in Pittsburgh can be put to bed.