Colts’ Season Turns on One Painful Moment Against Jaguars
So, let’s talk about this Colts–Jaguars game, because the story coming out of it is less about the final score and more about the moment everything seemed to shift for Indianapolis. What should have been another tough but manageable divisional matchup turned into a turning point — and not in a good way.
Midway through the action, Daniel Jones — who had been one of the most inspiring comeback stories of the entire NFL season — went down with what was quickly feared to be an Achilles injury. The moment he sat on the turf and slammed his helmet, it was obvious he already understood the consequences. The Colts likely did too. His exit didn’t just hurt the team on the field; it changed the entire landscape of the AFC South and maybe even the AFC playoff picture.
Before that injury, Jones had been having a remarkable season. Remember, this was the quarterback cut by the Giants in 2024, the guy many had dismissed as a failed experiment. But with the Colts, he seemed reborn — poised, confident, productive. Indianapolis started 7-1 with him under center, and even though they’d recently hit a rough patch, they still looked solidly in playoff contention.
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But after he left Sunday’s game, everything unraveled. The Jaguars rolled to a 36-19 win, overtaking the Colts in the division race. And with Anthony Richardson already out because of a strange pregame orbital bone fracture, the offense was left in the hands of sixth-round rookie Riley Leonard, who had never completed an NFL pass before stepping in. It was a tough ask, and it showed.
Now the potential fallout is massive. Jones is on a one-year contract, and he had set himself up perfectly for either a major extension or a lucrative franchise tag. Playing through a fractured fibula earlier in the year showed his toughness and probably boosted his value. But an Achilles injury late in the season? That’s the kind of setback that can cost a player an entire year — and introduce a lot of uncertainty into free agency.
The ripple effects don’t stop with him. The Colts traded two first-round picks for Sauce Gardner because they genuinely believed they had their quarterback situation locked down for years. One play may have undone all of that planning. And by the way, the Jets now probably get a much more valuable pick from Indy next year.
With the Colts unlikely to keep pace, the AFC South suddenly looks like a two-team race between the Jaguars and Texans. A wild-card spot might open up that wasn’t expected — and yes, that could benefit a team like the struggling but still dangerous Chiefs.
And then there’s the question nobody in Indianapolis wants to talk about: what happens if the Colts go from 7-1 to missing the playoffs entirely? Head coach Shane Steichen probably gets the benefit of the doubt due to the injuries, but the pressure won’t go away quietly.
Jones had been crafting a redemption story for the ages — dismissed as a bust, revived as a leader, and powering a resurgent Colts team. All of that changed with one misstep, and now the entire organization is left holding its breath, wondering what comes next.
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