QB Search: Who Will Be Under Center Week 1 for the Indianapolis Colts?

The Indianapolis Colts made a risky trade in the 2021 offseason by acquiring Carson Wentz. According to reports, they may be looking to move on from the former Philadelphia Eagles quarterback after only one season at the helm. Let’s see what’s up next for the Indianapolis Colts if they decide to embark on another quarterback search.

Nearly 12 months ago, the Indianapolis Colts invested heavily in a quarterback from Philadelphia that was coming off the worst season of his career. Carson Wentz was acquired for the 70th pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, as well as the 16th pick in the upcoming 2022 NFL Draft.

It stings more when you factor in that the Eagles not only own the Colts first-round pick, but they are also coming off of a playoff berth. Picking Jalen Hurts over Carson Wentz proved to be the correct decision, as the Eagles gained picks and still had a more successful season than Indy. Granted, the NFC has an easier path to the playoffs but it is true nonetheless.

According to a report from ESPN’s Chris Mortensen, the Colts are expected to release or trade Wentz by March 18th. This date is important because that is when Wentz will have his 2022 contract fully guaranteed. By trading their starting quarterback, the Colts would not be on the hook for any remaining money on the contract. If Indy instead decides to release Wentz, they will incur 15 million dollars in dead cap. Effectively, the Colts would be paying him 15 million dollars to *not* play for the team. Ouch.

It was shaky from the start for Wentz in Indianapolis. He re-aggravated a foot injury in the offseason, severely cutting into his practice reps. Largely due to this, week one was brutal. The Seahawks came into Lucas Oil Stadium and embarrassed the Colts on their own turf. After dropping that first game, the Colts fought tough in week two against the eventual Super Bowl Champion Los Angeles Rams.

Unfortunately for Wentz, he sprained both ankles on the same play late in the fourth quarter of the game. He was unable to take the field for the final drive, leaving Jacob Eason to try and attempt a game-winning two minute drill. This — as you can imagine — did not go well, resulting in a devastating loss to bring their record to 0-2. The Colts then hobbled into Nashville and lost yet again, with Wentz being handicapped by his injuries.

The fourth week of the season is when things started to turn around for both Wentz and the team. The Colts went on to win nine of their next 12 games, while also holding a double-digit lead in each of their three losses. To say they dominated during that stretch would be an understatement. Frank Reich began leaning on NFL’s leading rusher Jonathan Taylor and to Wentz’s credit, he did a great job managing the games. Save a few bone-headed errors, Wentz did well taking care of the football during this span.

Indianapolis was sitting with a 9-6 record and entered week 17 with a 98.4% chance of making the playoffs. The Colts merely needed one win to clinch, with a home game versus the Raiders and a game in Jacksonville as the lone games remaining on the schedule. Miraculously, the Colts found a way to lose both games and failed to qualify for the playoffs for the third time in four seasons.

It wasn’t just the fact that they lost, it is *how* they lost. Late in the Raiders game, Wentz missed an easy throw that could have essentially put the game away. A throw that any NFL quarterback should be able to make with their eyes closed. Then the following week, the team was flat out dominated by divisional foe Jacksonville. The Jaguars have four combined wins in the last two seasons, and half of them have come versus the heavily-favored Colts.

The Indianapolis Colts went from a team that nobody wanted to see in the playoffs to a team that literally no one saw in the playoffs. There is plenty of blame to go around, but as is the nature of the position, a lot of it falls at the feet of Carson Wentz. It could not have been a more disastrous ending to a once optimistic season. On top of it all, Wentz did not receive much support from the coaching staff or front office during exit interviews. This led to many Colts fans and media members wondering what the future held for the quarterback position in Indy.

What avenue will the Indianapolis Colts take at quarterback?

On Super Bowl Sunday, that curiosity was reignited by the report describing the future for Wentz as a Colt as “bleak”. It is important to note that the report has not been confirmed by anyone in the franchise, but Jim Irsay has subtlety been dropping hints about going “all in”. There is definitely some fire underneath all this smoke. On a monetary side, it would be a bold move for the Colts to release Carson Wentz. A trade is tough to envision without adding an asset to do it, but there are a number of teams out there with a hole at quarterback so you never know.

Thanks to the trade last offseason, Indianapolis is limited in what they can do in the draft and on the trade market. There are four different paths that the Indianapolis Colts could take to find their week one starter, those paths include: in-house options, trade options, free agent options, and draft options. I will show the available players for each category and pick the most likely option from each to highlight. Let’s start off by taking a look at the options currently under contract.