Daniel Jones is the Indianapolis Colts’ new starting quarterback, the team announced Tuesday.
Jones will start Week 1 at home against the Miami Dolphins, and the team’s plan is for him to remain QB1 for the entire season.
“He’s the starting quarterback for the season,” Colts coach Shane Steichen said Tuesday. “I don’t want to have a short leash on that.”
Daniel Jones has been named our starting QB.
— Indianapolis Colts (@Colts) August 19, 2025
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’t giving up on the 23-year-old Richardson. Steichen doubled down on that sentiment Tuesday, saying that Richardson has plenty of room to grow.
Meanwhile, Jones’ 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 jump-start his career. The 28-year-old ultimately chose Indy, signing a one-year, $14 million deal, and he will now get his shot at redemption.
I asked Shane Steichen if Daniel Jones, who’s on a one-year deal, is the #Colts’ QB of the future or just the QB for right now:
“Well, I think, let’s see how the season goes. If he plays really well for us, then there’s a conversation (to have) after the season.” pic.twitter.com/wfaelQvBOd
— James Boyd (@RomeovilleKid) August 19, 2025
Although Jones won the starting job, he still has a long way to go before he can be viewed as the team’s long-term answer at quarterback. He’s 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. Steichen, who’s emphasized all offseason that the team needs “consistency” at the position, chose Jones’ efficient yet conservative style over the more volatile but explosive Richardson.
“You guys heard me talk about the consistency, and that’s really what I was looking for,” Steichen said Tuesday. “Really 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.”
Richardson has a 50.6 career completion percentage compared to Jones’ mark of 61.4 percent. Richardson’s 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.
“Consistent decision-making and throwing the ball accurately, I think that’s a huge part of playing the (quarterback) position,” Jones said after the Colts’ second preseason game. “That’s something I’ve tried to do.”
Daniel Jones
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Completion percentage, however, probably isn’t the only number the Colts evaluated when choosing their starter. For example, one of the biggest knocks on Jones is that he rarely takes deep shots. His intended air yards per pass attempt, a metric used to track a QB’s 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’ favor.
Aside from Jones’ consistency, Richardson’s 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’s first two seasons, he’s missed 17 games due to injury, and he’s never played more than four games consecutively. He was shut down in May due to a shoulder issue and missed most of OTAs. He also dislocated his right pinkie finger in the Colts’ preseason opener after misdiagnosing a blitz look that allowed Baltimore Ravens linebacker David Ojabo to clobber him on a sack he never saw coming.
Richardson is 8-7 as a starter through his first two years. He’s thrown 11 touchdowns against 13 interceptions. Jones, on the other hand, is 24-44-1 as a starter in his first six years. He’s thrown 70 touchdowns against 47 picks.
When asked about Jones’ lackluster record as a starter, 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 and a wild-card round win over the Vikings.
“I think he’s proven he’s played good football in that 2022 season,” Steichen said “He 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’s proven he can do it. I know he’s had his ups and down, but everyone’s journey is different, and I feel confident in his abilities.”
Neither quarterback did enough during the preseason to run away with the job, which perhaps made it a tough call for Steichen. But now that Jones is in the saddle, it’s worth noting how pivotal this decision is.
The Colts haven’t made the playoffs since 2020. They haven’t won a playoff game since 2018. They haven’t 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 might not be the only person leaving Indianapolis next year. Steichen and Ballard could potentially join him.
(Photo: Michael Hickey / Getty Images)