Things are getting ugly for the Indianapolis Colts, and Sunday’s 42-7 Week 8 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars drew in another victim: Colts starting quarterback and former New York Giants 1st-round pick Daniel Jones.
Jones was benched in the fourth quarter by head coach Shane Steichen, who would not commit to a starting quarterback moving forward.
“Colts HC Shane Steichen said he’s evaluating everything, including whether Daniel Jones remains the starting QB,” The Athletic’s James Boyd wrote on his official X account on Sunday. “Anthony Richardson Sr. was subbed in during the fourth quarter.”
Jones was 19-of-28 passing for 144 yards, 1 touchdown, and 2 interceptions in the loss to the Jaguars before he was pulled for Richardson, the No. 4 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, but lost his starting job after two seasons.
The Giants selected Jones with the No. 6 overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft and released him 10 games into the 2024 regular season.
The Colts traded away two of their best players over the last week — offensive guard Quenton Nelson and defensive tackle DeForest Buckner — and are now 2-6 after the loss to the Jaguars.
Daniel Jones: Lots of Money, Little Production
Jones’ benching on Sunday quickly turned into talk of the insane amount of money he’s made as a below-average quarterback throughout his career — including a 2-year, $88 million contract extension he signed with the Colts on March 11.
The latest contract came after Jones tore his Achilles tendon midway through the 2025 regular season.
The Giants signed Jones to a 4-year, $160 million contract extension in March 2023.
“Daniel Jones has made $166.9 MILLION in his NFL career,” Empire Sports Media’s Alex Wilson wrote on his official X account on Sunday. “He has 34 wins. That’s $4.9 MILLION PER WIN. Run it back: 89 career starts, 34-54-1 as a starter, 93 TD passes, so roughly $1.8M per touchdown. Year 1 of his new Colts deal pays him $50M… and Indy is 2-5 with him throwing 4 TD and 7 INT. The Giants handed him $160M off ONE playoff win. Minnesota had him on practice squad money. Then Indy ran it back for $88M while he was rehabbing an Achilles. Bro is the most efficient businessman in the NFL and one of the least efficient QBs in it.”
Giants Ended Relationship With Jones in 2024
The Giants released Jones in 2024 after he went 24-44-1 as a starter over 6 seasons.
The Ringer’s Tom Pelissero did a deft job of explaining Jones’ contract situation after he was released — a minefield considering he signed a 4-year, $160 million contract extension in March 2023.
Jones spent the rest of the 2024 season with the Minnesota Vikings and signed a 1-year, $14 million contract with the Colts for the 2025 season.
“There’s no adjustment to Daniel Jones’ contract as part of his release,” Pelissero wrote on X in 2024. “Like all veterans after the trade deadline, Jones is subject to waivers, so any team claiming him would be responsible for the remaining ($11.83 million) he’s guaranteed in 2024, making a claim highly unlikely. Releasing him now means the Giants will take the full $22.21 million dead cap hit in 2025. Jones would’ve counted $41.605M against the cap if he were on the roster, so they save $19.395M in 2025 cap space (plus $30.5M cash) and Jones is off the books in 2026.”
Ex-Giants QB & 1st-Round Pick Benched in Ugly Loss to Jaguars