Daniel Jones takes a massive step forward in his injury recovery as he enters his first offseason as the Colts’ starting QB
One of the biggest storylines to watch this offseason for the Indianapolis Colts will be the recovery of QB Daniel Jones, who suffered a torn Achilles in 2025. And the team had some good news to share on that front.
The Indianapolis Colts are only going to go as far as their quarterback takes them in 2026. Daniel Jones looked primed to end the team’s playoff drought and lead them to the postseason. Sadly, that came to an abrupt end after he tore his right Achilles tendon.
That didn’t force the Colts to turn away from him as their quarterback, though. They handed Jones a big deal to keep him under center, and now all eyes are on his injury recovery to see if he will be ready for Week one of the regular season.
Head coach Shane Steichen had a big update to give on Jones’ recovery. And it’s one that should have Colts fans excited.
Daniel Jones is back throwing ahead of OTAs and training camp
During general manager Chris Ballard’s pre-draft press conference, he had some bad injury news to share. That being wide receiver Alec Pierce undergoing ankle surgery, which will hold him out of OTAs.
The hope is he will be ready by training camp, but now the Colts will be without their top wide receiver, along with QB1 Jones. Steichen’s update on Jones was promising, though, with the quarterback officially back to throwing and even performing drop-backs. This is a significant step forward in his recovery.
This is Jones’ first full offseason as the Colts’ starting quarterback. Last year, he had to compete with Anthony Richardson in training camp for the job. So it will be pivotal that he gets back as quickly as possible so he can get all those reps and get the team’s offense ready to hit the road running in 2026.
Achilles tendon injuries are tricky and take some time to get back to 100%. The Colts will not be looking to rush Jones back on the field. But the reality is, they need him to be ready for Week one. Right now, second-year quarterback Riley Leonard is set to take all of the first-team snaps at quarterback throughout OTAs and possibly even the start of training camp. A big opportunity for the young quarterback, but the Colts would love to see Jones retake those reps sooner rather than later.
