The former No. 6 overall pick of the 2019 NFL Draft has a new home: The Colts have signed Daniel Jones to a one-year deal worth up to $17.7 million.

What does this mean for Jones and the current QB1 on the Colts depth chart, Anthony Richardson? Ian Hartitz dives in:

Daniel Jones To Sign With Indianapolis Colts

The money is on par with what fellow backup-plus Gardner Minshew ($12.5 million per year) got in Las Vegas. This means that Jones should have something close to a clean chance to win the job away from rising third-year talent Anthony Richardson.

After all, Colts GM Chris Ballard has been very open about holding an open competition for the QB job in 2025. From late February…

“It’s got to be the right guy to create real competition, but we want to create real competition. … I think it’s good for the team. I think it’s good for Anthony. … I know we all want a finished product now. … We all do, but as he continues to progress through his young career, us adding competition will help everybody. … It’s got to be somebody that can really challenge from a production standpoint."

And maybe Jones can do just that … if he can somehow rekindle peak form.

His first year with Brian Daboll produced Jones' best season and a playoff win. Year two was rough, but only consisted of six games inside of a rather lackluster offense. The latter variable wasn't exactly fully solved in 2024, but let's face it: Jones has been one of the NFL's worst QBs more years than not since entering the league.

While Jones is certainly more accurate than Richardson–that bar couldn't be any lower–his per-dropback efficiency hasn't been anything to call home about. The Colts' QB battle is now between the bottom-two QBs in passer rating over the past two years. Not great!

Jones and Richardson among 44 qualified QBs in 2023-24:

  • EPA per dropback: Jones (-0.087, 39th), Richardson (-0.024, 30th)
  • Completion percentage over expected: Jones (+1.1%, 20th), Richardson (-10.1%, 44th)
  • Yards per attempt: Jones (5.9, 42nd), Richardson (6.9, 29th)
  • Passer rating: Jones (76.6, 43rd), Richardson (67.8, 44th)

That said, Jones wouldn't be the first talented QB failed by a less-than-stellar organization (at least in recent years).

The man was picked sixth overall back in the day for a reason and theoretically has the ability to stress defenses both horizontally and vertically. Shane Steichen has largely gotten the most out of guys like Carson Wentz (27 TDs!), Gardner Minshew (7-6 as a starter!), and Joe Flacco (265 pass yards per game!) in recent years.

Who's to say Jones won't be his latest reclamation project?

Fantasy Football Impact on Jones, Anthony Richardson, and More

This is quietly a pretty solid offensive environment. PFF's reigning 12th-ranked offensive line is complemented by a good-not-great Green Bay-esque WR core featuring Michael Pittman, Josh Downs, Alec Pierce, and Adonai Mitchell. Add it all together, and this has been the league's 14th-ranked supporting cast in back-to-back seasons.

Of course, both Jones and Richardson have been at their best when using their legs over the years.

QB most fantasy points per game from purely rushing 2022-24:

In terms of singular QB upside, fantasy managers should be rooting for Richardson to win the job, but as we learned last year, it's far from a given that he'll have anything close to a long leash. A similar sentiment is true for Jones if he wins the job—both QBs could simply be a rough couple of quarters away from being yanked.

Richardson should be considered the favorite—the Colts have MUCH more to gain by the former No. 4 overall pick figuring it out—but the potential for demotion will make him more of a late-round dart throw than a building block for fantasy lineups. Consider him more of a low-end wildcard QB2 at the moment alongside guys like Bryce Young and Cam Ward, while Jones is more of a speculative QB3 type who will only be drafted in two-QB/superflex formats.

Additionally, the reality that neither QB is, you know, good at throwing the football doesn't help any of the WRs involved. Pittman and Downs should still be considered the favorites to lead the way in targets, but Pierce actually led the way in yards last year, and Mitchell might be good enough to force a four-way rotation of sorts. Add it all together, and none profile as anything more than WR4-5 types who won't have the sort of weekly volume to overly trust in fantasy land.