Will the Colts’ Quarterback Curse Ever End?

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Daniel Jones sustained an Achilles injury in Week 14. The Colts lost the game 36-19 to the Jacksonville Jaguars.

With Jones out for the year, the 8-5 Colts will likely miss the playoffs. The team hasn’t reached the postseason since the 2020 campaign. Perhaps lacking a franchise quarterback is the main reason for the drought.

In the NFL, it’s extremely difficult to win without an elite signal-caller under center. Colts fans are now wondering if their team will ever find one.

Daniel Jones Injury: Will the Colts’ Quarterback Curse Ever End?

They Still Haven’t Replaced Andrew Luck

From 1998-2011, the Colts had Peyton Manning, one of the greatest quarterbacks in NFL history. “The Sheriff “ led Indianapolis to two Super Bowl appearances (winning one).

The Colts would land another superstar quarterback in 2012 when they replaced Manning with No. 1 overall pick Andrew Luck. Luck led the team to an 11-5 record in each of his first three seasons. The Colts made the playoffs all three years, including a trip to the AFC Championship Game.

During Luck’s career in Indy, he made four Pro Bowls and was the NFL’s passing touchdowns leader in 2014. The former Stanford star retired abruptly, though, right before the 2019 season.

The Colts have failed to replace Luck. They signed eight-time Pro Bowler Philip Rivers in 2020. But while he took the team to the playoffs, he only played one season in Indy before retiring.

The Colts later brought in veterans like Carson Wentz and Matt Ryan. Neither player panned out as they each lasted one year in the Hoosier State.

In Ryan’s lone season (2022), the Colts finished with an awful 4-12-1 record. That led to the team landing the fourth overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft. Indianapolis used the pick to select Anthony Richardson.

Richardson was supposed to become a franchise quarterback, but that still hasn’t happened. Instead, his career has been mostly about injuries and inaccurate passing.

Daniel Jones beat out Richardson for the starting job this season. Jones looked like the answer early on, leading the Colts to a 7-1 record. However, he then began to struggle and the injury bug got in the way.

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