Listen Live

Gardner Minshew Signs With The Indianapolis Colts From The Eagles

INDIANAPOLISThe Colts are dipping into some Shane Steichen familiarity for their veteran quarterback move.

And we will see how much playing time the Colts will put on the plate of Gardner Minshew in 2023.

Minshew, 26, agreed to a 1-year deal reportedly in the range north of $3 million (and could rise to the $5 million range, depending on 2023 playing time) on Thursday, per NFL Network.

In his 4 NFL seasons, Minshew has made 24 career starts (8-16 as a starter), tossing 44 touchdowns and 16 interceptions with a completion percentage of 62.8. He has a career quarterback rating of 93.1, which is a very respectable number.

A 6th round pick out of Washington State in 2019, Minshew played for the Jaguars from 2019-21 and was with Steichen and the Eagles last season.

It remains to be seen if the Colts view Minshew as the veteran backup to their rookie QB draft pick coming next month, or if he’ll be the bridge starter while that first-year signal caller watches this fall.

Where Minshew could help the rookie, specifically, is having such a big role in his first year in the league.

In 2019, Minshew replaced an injured Nick Foles in Week 1 and ended up starting 12 games as a rookie. Of course, Minshew won’t be able to directly relate to the inevitable fanfare and hype that comes with the Colts high QB draft pick, as he didn’t hear his name called in the draft until Day 3.

It would seem Minshew checks the box of a low maintenance backup bringing a good amount of playing/starting experience.

After starting those 12 games as a rookie, Minshew was the opening day starter for the Jags in 2020. He was benched though after 7 starts.

The Eagles, with Steichen as their offensive coordinator and play caller, needed Minshew to start two games late last season.

Steichen has praised the intelligence and competitive spirit Minshew brings to the QB position. Minshew played for Steichen and the Eagles each of the last two seasons. The Eagles had Minshew started 2 games in each season, with Steichen calling plays for him in all 4 of those games.

For now, Minshew joins Nick Foles and Sam Ehlinger as the only quarterbacks on the Colts roster, with the expectation Foles will be cut and save the Colts $2.1 million.

Leave a Reply