Daniel Jones is not regarded as an elite quarterback in the NFL. Having said that, he had an elite performance in his Indianapolis Colts debut against the Miami Dolphins. As surreal as it sounds, his performance was so clinical, he did something no other QB has done this century.
According to Scott Hanson on NFL Red Zone, “No QB this century has scored on every possession… until Daniel Jones today against the Dolphins.” That’s right, not Tom Brady, not Drew Brees, Peyton Manning, Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson… Only Daniel Jones has been able to score on every single possession played during a game since 2000.
The Colts will happily take that as it meant they won their Week 1 matchup vs. the Dolphins. Even if they did it with Jones playing a key part on it, the team must be very happy with head coach Shane Steichen’s playcalling. It was clinically designed and very well executed.
Jones defied the odds with this performance
First things first, achieving what Jones just managed to do is insanely hard. Hence, he is the only one to do it. However, if someone was going to make this, you’d assume is one of the top-tier quarterbacks in the NFL. Say Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, Joe Burrow or Lamar Jackson did this, it would be highly impressive, but it would be like “yes, he is that good.” Jones, on the other side, was cut by the team that drafted him, spent time as a backup and had to battle to get this starting job.
It was as unpredictable as it could get. This could really be a turn for the best in Jones’ career. It’s not like he will be able to replicate this on a weekly basis, especially since not all defenses are as bad as Miami’s, but this will give him confidence for the challenges ahead.
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Tua Tagovailoa breaks silence after poor outing in Dolphins’ ugly loss to Daniel Jones’ Colts
The Colts need to be happy with their QB1 selection
It’s not easy for an NFL franchise to bench a first-round QB you selected to put a backup in his place. Especially when Anthony Richardson brings so much mobility and athleticism to the table. Jones is clearly not as athletic as Richardson, but he is fast and agile. He can move and his two rushing touchdowns are proof of that.
As for the passing aspect, Jones won’t lead the NFL in passing accuracy anytime soon, but he is a big upgrade on the 47.7% Richardson averaged last year. Hence, having Jones under center was the right choice to make and the Colts should be very pleased with that. At least for now.
