Daniel Jones signed with the Indianapolis Colts in March 2025 after spending the end of the 2024 season with the Minnesota Vikings. In his first season as the Colts' starting quarterback, Jones looked like he had improved drastically since the New York Giants cut him in 2024.
He led Indianapolis to an 8-2 record before suffering a fractured fibula on Nov. 23 in an overtime loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. Two weeks later, he tore his Achilles, ending his season. The Colts lost seven games to close the season and missed the playoffs.
Jones hasn't returned to his pre-injury form, completing only 59.6% of his passes for 1,398 yards, four touchdowns, and seven interceptions. In Sunday's loss to the Vikings, he completed only 13-of-22 passes for 108 yards and threw a game-sealing interception with 1:08 to play.
Although the loss dropped Indianapolis to 2-5 one week after the team fired GM Chris Ballard, head coach Shane Steichen told reporters following the loss to Minnesota that Jones will be the Colts' starting quarterback moving forward.
"No, I have not thought about a quarterback change," Steichen said in his postgame press conference. "I have a ton of faith in Daniel. The game plan today was to go in and run the football, and obviously, at the end, he had the interception, and that happens in football."
One year ago, it looked like the Vikings made a mistake by not retaining Jones. After signing him to a two-year, $88 million extension this past March, Indianapolis may be regretting its decision.
This article originally appeared on Vikings Wire: Former Vikings QB won't be benched despite Week 7 performance