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It’s usually not a good sign if every time the media gets a chance to ask a team’s head coach questions, they ask if a change is coming at quarterback — the most important position in sports.
That’s where Indianapolis Colts coach Shane Steichen finds himself lately, though. Daniel Jones, and the entire Colts roster, is struggling. Calls for Anthony Richardson to take over as the starter have increased.
It’s such an obvious narrative at this point that reporters asked Steichen on Sunday whether Jones would remain the starter, Steichen gave a clear answer, and then he was still asked about it on Monday again.
At this point, the Colts could capitulate just because of the frequency of the questions, but they’re standing firm.
Colts Make Daniel Jones Start vs. Bench Decision
The Colts, yet again, are keeping Jones the starter.
Just like Steichen said on Sunday, he said it again on Monday that Jones is remaining the QB1 in Indianapolis.
Colts HC Shane Steichen: Daniel Jones is our starting quarterback.
— Mike Chappell (@mchappell51) October 26, 2026
There are probably a couple factors contributing to this continued choice, but it remains interesting that the Colts don’t seem that interested in trying something new despite a rough 2-5 start to the season.
Daniel Jones’ Contract
Jones’ contract likely plays a big role in him maintaining his job at the moment.
In the offseason, the Colts signed Jones to a two-year deal worth $88 million in total value. That was despite him coming off a torn Achilles.
They made a big commitment to Jones, based almost entirely on his 8-2 start to the season last year when the offense was humming before Jones began to get hurt.
So far, the investment looks poor, but the Colts only have so many ways they can back out now.
Anthony Richardson Contract
The other factor here is that Richardson will be a free agent after the season. It doesn’t do the Colts much good to bench Jones for Richardson. They know they’re already paying Jones and would have a tough time extending Richardson if that somehow became a possibility.
Jones had to beat out Richardson in the summer of 2025 for the starting job, and Richardson hasn’t started a game since then due to injury and an inability to overtake Jones.
At this point, the Colts seem content to let Richardson float away (or maybe they’ll try to trade him), but they haven’t made him a threat to Jones’ job at any point.
Enter Heavy's 2026 Pro Football Pick'em contest
Billy Heyen Billy Heyen is a Heavy contributor with focus on the NFL and MLB. He is a 2019 graduate of Syracuse University who spent his senior year following Jim Boeheim's basketball team around the country. His reporting work has also included extensive work for The Sporting News, the Sandusky Register and Rochester's Democrat & Chronicle. Adventures in sports writing have also led to in-person coverage of the Buffalo Sabres, Cleveland Guardians, U.S. men's national soccer team and a variety of minor league baseball stories. More about Billy Heyen
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