The last few weeks haven’t been great for the Indianapolis Colts after starting the season on a massive high.
Indy lost four of their last five games, with three of them coming from one score or less. Daniel Jones tore his achilles and will be out for the remainder of the season. Backup quarterback Riley Leonard is dealing with a knee injury with his future in the air. Starting cornerbacks Charvarius Ward and Sauce Gardner are both dealing with injuries which could potentially sideline them for multiple weekends.
The 2025 season started off good for the Colts, but took a massive left turn. There is still some time for Indianapolis to salvage their way into the playoffs, but it is looking slimmer as each week passes.
Indy has to start preparing for the future of the organization with the year now in jeopardy of not finishing how the team was hoping for after a good start to the season.
Indianapolis Colts Making Trade Moves in 2026 NFL Draft?
GettyFernando Mendoza could be an option for the Colts in the 2026 NFL Draft.
Indianapolis started the season 7-1 before a hard November. The Colts had to rely on the free agency market to get a hopeful starting quarterback after their first 3 QBs suffered injuries.
Daniel Jones is dealing with an Achilles tear and was placed on IR. Anthony Richardson suffered a broken orbital fracture and is on IR. Riley Leonard has a knee injury that could sideline him in Week 15.
FanSided’s Austen Bundy believes that the Colts should start making some calls to acquire the first overall pick of the 2026 NFL Draft to help the team in the future.
“From the top of the AFC South Division to signing retired QB Philip Rivers to the practice squad, Indianapolis has seen its season make a complete 180 and its front office will have to do the same with its offseason priorities,” Bundy wrote. “Indianapolis gave its 2026 first-round pick to the New York Jets when it acquired Sauce Gardner ahead of the deadline.”
“It may take dealing next year’s first and a handful of other picks to entice New York [Giants] or Las Vegas [Raiders] to part with such a valuable selection. But with a rookie QB talent like Fernando Mendoza (Indiana connection) projected to go first overall, the Colts should be thinking about the long-term rather than attempting to piecemeal its way back to playoff contention.”
The Colts do not have much draft capital to make, but if they could pull off some magic to acquire the first overall (or a top 3), they should go all in to make sure things go forward.
If Mendoza or any other QB in the draft were to make their way to the Colts, they would be the fifth full-time starting quarterback.
Future Of Daniel Jones
GettyDaniel Jones has suffered his second leg injury of the season
After struggling to find a proper replacement for Andrew Luck who retired back in 2019, the Indianapolis Colts have found it with Daniel Jones.
The former NY Giants quarterback was on track to have his best season in the NFL, but will fall short due to his achilles tear. On the season, Jones threw for 3,101 yards and 19 touchdowns.
The quarterback is currently on a one-year, $14 million deal, which seemed to be a cheap with how he has been playing. The Colts were most likely going to extend the quarterback for beyond the 2025 season. The former Duke Blue Devil would at least make a minimum of $40.24 million if Indy placed the franchise tag on Jones.
The timing of Jones injury will play a big factor if the Colts would keep the player and there is uncertainty if he could return for the majority of the 2026 season.
If he returns to Indy or not, Jones proved that he could be a franchise quarterback around the league and should have no difficulty finding a new home after he returns to 100%.
Like Heavy Sports’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on Heavy Sports
The post Colts Urged To Make This Move Ahead Of 2026 Season appeared first on Heavy Sports.