{"id":158749,"date":"2025-08-19T15:52:10","date_gmt":"2025-08-19T15:52:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/158749\/"},"modified":"2025-08-19T15:52:10","modified_gmt":"2025-08-19T15:52:10","slug":"colts-name-daniel-jones-week-1-starter-anthony-richardson-heads-to-bench","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/158749\/","title":{"rendered":"Colts name Daniel Jones Week 1 starter; Anthony Richardson heads to bench"},"content":{"rendered":"

Daniel Jones is the Indianapolis Colts\u2019 new starting quarterback, the team announced Tuesday.<\/p>\n

Jones will start Week 1 at home against the Miami Dolphins, and the team\u2019s plan is for him to remain QB1 for the entire season.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s the starting quarterback for the season,\u201d Colts coach Shane Steichen said Tuesday. \u201cI don\u2019t want to have a short leash on that.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

Daniel Jones has been named our starting QB.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Indianapolis Colts (@Colts) August 19, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The decision comes after Jones and Anthony Richardson, the quarterback Steichen advocated the Colts select No. 4 in 2023, had engaged in a position battle throughout the spring and summer. The Colts have been adamant since signing Jones in free agency that no matter what happened in the QB competition, they weren\u2019t giving up on the 23-year-old Richardson. Steichen doubled down on that sentiment Tuesday, saying that Richardson has plenty of room to grow.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, Jones\u2019 victory comes after a tumultuous 2024 campaign. The No. 6 pick in the 2019 draft was released by the New York Giants in November after a 2-8 start to the season. He latched on with the Minnesota Vikings to finish the year but entered free agency looking for a chance to jumpstart his career. The 28-year-old ultimately chose Indy, singing a one-year, $14 million deal, and he will now get his shot at redemption.<\/p>\n

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I asked Shane Steichen if Daniel Jones, who\u2019s on a one-year deal, is the #Colts<\/a>\u2019 QB of the future or just the QB for right now:<\/p>\n

\u201cWell, I think, let\u2019s see how the season goes. If he plays really well for us, then there\u2019s a conversation (to have) after the season.\u201d pic.twitter.com\/wfaelQvBOd<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 James Boyd (@RomeovilleKid) August 19, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Although Jones won the starting job over Richardson, Jones still has a long way to go before he can be viewed as the team\u2019s long-term answer at quarterback. He\u2019s in Indy on a one-year deal, so if things go south this year, the Colts could easily turn back to Richardson, or start over completely at QB, and let Jones walk in free agency. However, Steichen, who\u2019s emphasized all offseason that the team needs \u201cconsistency\u201d at QB, chose Jones\u2019 efficient yet conservative style over the more volatile but explosive Richardson.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou guys heard me talk about the consistency, and that\u2019s really what I was looking for,\u201d Steichen said Tuesday. \u201cReally the operation at the line of scrimmage, the checks, the protections, the ball placement, the completion percentage, all of that played a factor in (the decision). I think Daniel did a great job (being consistent), and I think AR has made strides in that area, but I do feel he needs to continue to develop in those areas.\u201d<\/p>\n

Richardson has a 50.6 career completion percentage compared to Jones\u2019 mark of 61.4 percent. Richardson\u2019s 47.7 completion percentage last year was the lowest mark in the NFL and the third-lowest mark of any quarterback in the last 20 years with at least 200 pass attempts in a single season, per Statmuse.<\/p>\n

\u201cConsistent decision-making and throwing the ball accurately, I think that\u2019s a huge part of playing the (quarterback) position,\u201d Jones said after the Colts\u2019 second preseason game. \u201cThat\u2019s something I\u2019ve tried to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Daniel Jones<\/p>\n

\"Logo<\/p>\n

Colts<\/p>\n

\n \u25c2 Worse
\n Better \u25b8\n <\/p>\n

Completion percentage, however, probably isn\u2019t the only number the Colts evaluated when choosing their starting QB. For example, one of the biggest knocks on Jones is that he rarely takes deep shots. His intended air yards per pass attempt, which is essentially a metric used to track a QB\u2019s willingness to push the ball downfield, sits at just 7.3 yards for his career. Richardson, meanwhile, averages 11.1 intended air yards per pass attempt. In other words, Richardson is more likely to produce an explosive play, but his struggles with routine throws have hindered him in the past and may be what ultimately tipped the scales in Jones\u2019 favor.<\/p>\n

Aside from Jones\u2019 consistency, Richardson\u2019s inability to stay healthy was the top reason the team decided to pursue another starting-caliber passer, Colts general manager Chris Ballard said during his season-ending news conference in January. Through Richardson\u2019s first two seasons, he\u2019s missed 17 games due to injury, and he\u2019s never played more than four games consecutively. The 23-year-old was shut down in May due to a shoulder issue and missed most of OTAs. He also dislocated his right pinkie finger<\/a> in the Colts\u2019 preseason opener after misdiagnosing a blitz look<\/a> that allowed Baltimore Ravens linebacker David Ojabo to clobber him on a sack he never saw coming.<\/p>\n

Richardson is 8-7 as a starter through his first two years. He\u2019s thrown 11 touchdowns against 13 interceptions. Jones, on the other hand, is 24-44-1 as a starter in his first six years. He\u2019s thrown 70 touchdowns against 47 picks.<\/p>\n

When asked about Jones\u2019 lackluster record as a starter<\/a>, Steichen chose to highlight his standout 2022 season, when he went 9-6-1 as a starter and helped lead the Giants to a playoff berth that included a wild-card round win over the Vikings.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think he\u2019s proven he\u2019s played good football in that 2022 season,\u201d Steichen said \u201cHe had a hell of a year that year; he had, I think, the highest completion rate (67.2) in Giants franchise history that season. He\u2019s proven he can do it. I know he\u2019s had his ups and down, but everyone\u2019s journey is different, and I feel confident in his abilities.\u201d<\/p>\n

Neither quarterback did enough during the preseason to run away with the QB competition, which perhaps made it a tough call for Steichen. But now that Jones is in the saddle, it\u2019s worth noting how pivotal this decision is, beyond the position battle itself.<\/p>\n

The Colts haven\u2019t made the playoffs since 2020. They haven\u2019t won a playoff game since 2018. They haven\u2019t won the division since 2014. If Jones can have a resurgent campaign in a new city, like Baker Mayfield and Sam Darnold, the Colts will have a chance to end a few of those droughts. If Jones is the same player who was benched less than a year ago in New York, then he won\u2019t be the only person leaving Indianapolis next year. Steichen and Ballard could potentially join him.<\/p>\n

(Photo: Michael Hickey \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n