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INDIANAPOLIS – It’s a decision the Colts didn’t think they would have to make for (at least) another decade.
But the abrupt shockwaves sent from Andrew Luck has the Colts having to re-evaluate their grand plans at the quarterback position moving forward.
One thing we definitely know for 2019: Jacoby Brissett is their starter.
That’s a guarantee.
The Colts love Brissett, and the former third-round pick has been the starting quarterback for every single 11-on-11 practice session the Colts have had this offseason.
Coming into this week, Brissett had taken 1,200 first-team reps, over the course of 32 off-season practices.
That’s a ton of starting practice work for a backup quarterback.
“He just goes and does his job,” Anthony Castonzo says of the 6-4, 238-pound Brissett. “He likes to have a little bit of fun too, which is always good out on the field. He’s confident, which is kind of the number one thing you look for in a leader. I think he’s going to do a great job.”
With Brissett the new QB1 in town—and his future hold on that spot will be critiqued and analyzed during this final year of his rookie contract—there’s now uncertainty on how the Colts should handle their now open backup position.
Currently, Phillip Walker and Chad Kelly are the other two quarterbacks on the 90-man roster.
When roster cuts occur this Saturday, Kelly will head to the NFL’s suspension list for two weeks, removing him from immediate backup consideration, and taking him off of any potential 53-man roster.
In Week Three of the regular season, once Kelly returns, he could be activated to the 53-man roster, and possibly be Brissett’s backup, a spot that he had in Denver to start last year.
Of Walker and Kelly, the latter has unquestionably been the most impressive this preseason. In three preseason games, Kelly is 41-of-57 for 445 yards, 2 TDs and 1 INT. His passer rating of 98.9 is 50 points higher than Walker.
When asked if Kelly has shown enough to be a backup again this season, Frank Reich offered this:
“Chad has played well. He has carried himself well. He has done everything right,” Reich said on Monday.
“That will be an evaluation that Chris and I will make at the right time, but he has done well.”
Even if the Colts want Kelly to be their eventual backup, they still need to make a decision on Walker serving that role for Weeks 1 and 2 of the season.
Walker, who has never been active on game day in his 3-year NFL career, has been shaky this preseason (24-of-48 for 259 yards, 0 TDs, 2 INTs).
“Phil has been here for a while, so we have a lot of belief and confidence in Phillip,” Reich said on Monday. “He knows our offense. He knows this locker room.”
But when Reich was asked about Walker possibly being the backup to start the season, the head coach also noted those are decisions that have yet to be decided.
-Would the Colts want to scour the waiver wire to find a more experienced quarterback to serve behind Brissett in Weeks 1 and 2, and possibly for the entire 2019 campaign?
-Do they feel it’s necessary to cough up a draft pick for that backup insurance policy?
-Or do they think Walker can handle those duties, before moving on to Kelly when his suspension ends?
“Those are all really good things to consider, that we are considering very strongly,” Reich says.
“Those are going to be the decisions that we have to make in the next week to 10 days.”
