Latest news with #IndianapolisColts
Newsweek
3 hours ago
- Sport
- Newsweek
Ex-Giants QB Projected To Land Major Honor in 2025 Season
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Heading into the 2025 season, one player with a lot to prove is Daniels Jones. As he gears up for the next chapter of his career, the former New York Giants quarterback is projected to take home a notable honor. Despite recently signing him to a sizable contract, the Giants decided to end their experiment with Jones last season. After posting a 2-8 record through his first 10 starts, the front office felt they had no choice but to waive the No. 6 overall pick. Jones' time in New York came to an end with a 24-44-1 record across 70 starts. Since the Giants moved on from Jones, he's managed to land on his feet. He finished out the 2024 campaign with the Minnesota Vikings, though he never saw the field. Upon hitting the free agent market, he opted to sign a one-year deal with the Indianapolis Colts. Daniel Jones #17 of the Indianapolis Colts throws a pass during the Indianapolis Colts OTAs at Indiana Farm Bureau Football Center on May 28, 2025 in Indianapolis, Indiana. Daniel Jones #17 of the Indianapolis Colts throws a pass during the Indianapolis Colts OTAs at Indiana Farm Bureau Football Center on May 28, 2025 in Indianapolis, more: Ex-Giants QB Praised After Strong First Impression With New Team Landing with the Colts gives Jones a window of opportunity to get his career back on track. Anthony Richardson has struggled to stay healthy, which means the two will likely battle for the starting spot in training camp. Still months away from the 2025 season getting underway, one analyst thinks Jones is going to bounce back in a big way in 2025. In a recent column for Jeffri Chadiha listed an array of bold predictions for the upcoming season. Among the most bold takes was that Jones was going to be the next recipient of the Comeback Player of the Year award. "Steichen easily could be the man to take Jones to another level," Chadiha wrote, via "Especially when considering the Colts have better skill players and offensive line play than Jones ever enjoyed in New York. Nobody saw Darnold taking off when he arrived in Minnesota. Jones could do similar things in Indy if he stays healthy." Read more: Giants QB Reveals Shocking Bonding Activity With Rookie Jaxson Dart Given his current situation, Jones is a prime candidate for CPOY this season. As a former top-ten pick who struggled early in his career, he now gets to embrace a change of scenery. Being in a new system with different offensive weapons around him could help unlock Jones' potential. Him having any sort of productive campaign with the Colts should have him in the mix for the award. If Jones wants any chance at making this prediction a reality, he has to take care of business in camp and the starting spot from Richardson. For more New York Giants and NFL news, head over to Newsweek Sports.
USA Today
21 hours ago
- Sport
- USA Today
2025 Indianapolis Colts roster preview: CB JuJu Brents
Let's take a closer look at this Indianapolis Colts team as we go player-by-player through the roster. Up next is CB JuJu Brents. With offseason programs now behind us, we will be getting a jump start on our training camp preview by going player-by-player through the Indianapolis Colts' 91-man roster. Going alphabetically, up next is cornerback JuJu Brents. JuJu Brents' profile 2024 Snap count totals 2024 PFF grades 2024 Season Review After appearing in only nine regular season games during his rookie season in 2023, Brents, unfortunately, dealt with another injury for much of the 2024 season. An MCL injury that Brents sustained in the Colts' season opener last year against Houston landed him on injured reserve until Week 18, Indianapolis' regular season finale against Jacksonville. A groin injury in that game would then limit Brents to only six defensive snaps. Looking ahead to the 2025 season Brents, along with Jaylon Jones, Justin Walley, and potentially others, will be competing for the starting outside cornerback position opposite of Charvarius Ward. While there will be a starter on paper, I do think that we could see some mixing and matching here from Lou Anarumo, depending upon who the opponent is and what the matchup dictates. This is going to be a more aggressive Colts' defense in this new scheme, and it's a play style that Brents believes suits his skill set quite well. However, the big thing for Brents, as Shane Steichen said, is staying healthy and on the football field. Although he is now entering his third NFL season, due to injuries, he's still a relatively inexperienced player in terms of in-game reps. So when it comes to earning playing time in this new-look defense, being on the practice field is vital. "He's been good," Steichen said of Brents this offseason. "Sticky in coverage. Obviously, has been battling injuries through his career, so hopefully this is a clear slate for him, going into this season, into this training camp, and staying healthy is going to be the biggest thing for him."
USA Today
a day ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Indianapolis Colts position review after minicamp: Laiatu Latu and the defensive ends
With offseason programs now behind us, let's take a position-by-position look at where things stand for the Indianapolis Colts. Next up are the defensive ends. With offseason programs now behind us, let's take a position-by-position look at where things stand for the Indianapolis Colts. Next up are the defensive ends. If you missed our other positional reviews, you can find them below. A Year 2 leap incoming for Laiatu Latu? A big part of the equation when it comes to the Colts generating more pressure on the quarterback this season is Laiatu Latu making that Year 2 leap that so many successful NFL players have made. On the surface, Latu's production from his rookie season isn't going to leap off the page. His 38 pressures--which were the second-most on the Colts--ranked 50th compared to the rest of the defensive ends around the NFL. However, perhaps a more accurate portrayal of what's to come for Latu is that he ranked 27th in PFF's pass rush win rate metric. When there is consistency from a player when it comes to winning their one-on-one matchups, oftentimes the production will follow. For Latu, a point of emphasis for him this offseason is on shaving off those "milliseconds" as a pass rusher, which will lead to more pressures and sacks. "This year, I really want to shave off those milliseconds of where I'm getting to the QB because I felt that," Latu said on Tuesday, via Locked on Colts. "Like a lot of times, my head and my hands I was right there. So really just shaving off those milliseconds and knowing when I can fall back inside, and when they're working off power. So there's a lot of stuff I've been getting better at." The Colts' defensive ends could really benefit from this new defense Helping Latu and the rest of the Colts' defensive front generate more pressure and sacks this season will be Lou Anarumo's defensive scheme. Last season, the Indianapolis defense ranked in the bottom third of the NFL in both pressures and sacks. However, making things quite difficult on the Colts' defensive line was that the secondary was often picked apart in the quick game by opposing quarterbacks. This made getting home consistently much more difficult because of how quickly the ball was out of the quarterback's hands. With Anarumo's more aggressive and disguise-heavy scheme, those quick game outlets shouldn't be as readily available, and the variety of looks that the secondary shows can help keep quarterbacks off balance, allowing the front time to create pressure. We should see more movement up front as well, which can help create more advantageous matchups to exploit. JT Tuimoloau brings an all-around skill set to the Colts' defensive end position During his last season at Ohio State, Tuimoloau was a three-down presence on the Buckeyes' defense, able to make an impact in both the running and passing games. Among all defensive ends during the 2024 season, Tuimolau ranked 14th in total pressures, and he was sixth in PFF's run defense grade. Tuimoloau has been compared to former Bengals' defensive end Sam Hubbard, who put together some very productive seasons under Anarumo. "I'm an all-around player," Tuimoloau said during rookie minicamp. "Big credit to coach (Jim) Knowles, he came in and challenged us to drop, to be man-on-man on certain plays, to stick to redirect, all the above. That was just a way to showcase who I was as a player. I feel like there wasn't nothing I was limited in doing. He trusted me with everything." Along with his ability to impact the run and passing games, Tuimoloau adds some versatility as well, and can line up inside during obvious passing situations if needed. That ability to play from multiple gaps is an important element in Anarumo's defense. What Tuimoloau's workload will look like early on in Year 1 remains to be seen. But he could provide help at defensive end on early, more run-centric downs, and then potentially move inside at times to rush the passer on long down-and-distance situations. What can we expect from Samson Ebukam as he returns from injury? An Achilles injury sidelined Ebukam for all of the 2024 season. In 2023 with the Colts, Ebukam tallied 48 pressures, according to PFF, and 9.5 sacks, which led the team. As GM Chris Ballard described, his presence was very much missed last season. "We missed his physicality," Ballard said earlier this offseason. "Undeniably, we missed what Samson brought a year ago." However, when it comes to Achilles injuries, not only does it take time to return to the field, but even when players are fully back, it takes some additional time to then return to their previous form. And for Ebukam, he is now 30 years old, which only adds to the unknown around what to expect this season. "It's a concern, absolutely," Ballard said of Ebukam coming off the Achilles' injury, "But when you know who the kid is and what he stands for and the effort he puts into everything, I'm willing to make that bet." How does the Colts' defensive end rotation shake out? I think right now, we can safely say that Latu and Kwity will be at the top of this defensive end rotation. But at a position that is heavily rotated with four or sometimes even five players seeing regular snaps, how things shake out behind them, in terms of playing time, remains to be seen. While Tuimoloau has shown in college that he can play all three downs, does he start out with that type of workload in the early going of his rookie season? As mentioned, we don't necessarily know what to expect from Ebukam as he returns from injury, and the Colts also have Tyquan Lewis, along with Isaiah Land, still on the roster--and numbers-wise, one of them might end up being left off.
Time of India
a day ago
- Sport
- Time of India
'DJ taking us to the playoffs': Indianapolis Colts' QB Daniel Jones will be trained by Jalen Hurts' offensive head coach
(Image via Getty: Daniel Jones) Jalen Hurts became an unstoppable force in his pursuit of the Super Bowl LIX title. Imagine the same kind of energy entering a different NFL player? Now add to that an open quarterback competition(with Anthony Richardson) - wouldn't it all be too good a story to tell? Too good a player to be? Oh, wait. Add Jalen Hurts' creative offensive head coach, Shane Steichen, to it. And it becomes, 'DJ taking us to the playoffs!' as rightly written by one fan. 28-year-old Indianapolis Colts' newest quarterback, Daniel Jones, is going to take the late Jim Asray's team to the playoffs. But some fans don't believe Daniel Jones can take the Indianapolis Colts to the playoffs - they say Jones shines in the offseason but crumbles during the regular season. Everybody looks like a superstar before real games are played, commented one fan for Indianapolis Colts' newest quarterback Daniel Jones An X account shared a video of Daniel Jones' classic QB throw with the caption: 'Daniel Jones leaves and instantly starts throwing nice deep balls I'm done.' Fans commented on that X post with in-chorus reactions: Yeah bro its practice hero season for him. He'll be trash or on a stretcher before September. He aint throwing Darts though Never had an issue with him throwing balls in SPRING PRACTICE like MOST QBs. Its when football actually turns into football thats his bugaboo He does this every offseason. Why we had false hope every year He always looked alright in practice but game time with pass rush he crumbled under the pressure He does this ts every year in camp The problem was never when he was in shorts He always looks solid in practice lol He always did in the off-season program and practice. Games came and he hid in his shell Everybody looks like a superstar before real games are played ! He fooled us 6 seasons in a row think I'm gonna fall for that now lmao He did this with the Giants too. The second it matters he crumbles My dude. Its practice. Danny Jones is the best minicamp qb ever That's cuz it's practice. He did that sh*t for us. Watch if he gets into actual live game action He threw nice deep balls during practice. Also, prior years before the injuries he also threw good deep balls Always threw a nice ball, in practice. his problem is processing under real game speed Always a good 'in shorts' QB Daniel Jones may shine in Indianapolis because their offensive line is better than the one he got in New York On June 19, Jeffri Chadiha of boldly predicted that Daniel Jones would win the Comeback Player of the Year. His reasons? A chance to compete for the starting quarterback position with a third-year veteran, Anthony Richardson. Richardson has been inconsistent ever since he was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts. Jones played with quarterback Sam Darnold in the Minnesota Vikings. Creative offensive head coach Shane Steichen, who turned the raw talent of Jalen Hurts into an MVP-caliber quarterback in Philadelphia, would coach Jones in Indianapolis. Steichen could maximize Jones' talent in Indianapolis because he has a better offensive line there as compared to the one he had in New York. Also Read: 16 former NFL players who came out as gay and bisexual in the past 61 years | NFL News - Times of India Game On Season 1 kicks off with Sakshi Malik's inspiring story. Watch Episode 1 here
Yahoo
a day ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Jim Bob Cooter weighs in on progress this offseason from Indianapolis Colts WR AD Mitchell
By all accounts, Indianapolis Colts' second-year wide receiver AD Mitchell has had a very strong showing throughout the team's offseason programs. "AD's had an exciting start to the offseason," said offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter. "He's really been playing good football out there. Getting open, making catches." Advertisement Even through the ups and downs that Mitchell experienced as a rookie, what also stood out was his ability to get open and create separation, particularly against man coverage. With Mitchell's combination of speed and route-running abilities, he can be a very difficult matchup. However, overshadowing that playmaking potential in Year 1 were the miscues. Dropped passes, wrong or mistimed routes, and not being on the same page with the quarterback were all too prevalent. This resulted in Mitchell catching just 45% of his 51 targets and a lack of playing time and opportunities as well. There were some weeks where, by snap count, he was the fifth wideout on the Colts' depth chart. So the big thing for Mitchell as he enters Year 2 is finding that consistency. Advertisement "It's a consistency thing," Cooter added. "Like Shane's talked about with our offense, with our team, with a lot of our guys. Attacking each day with consistency, going out there if you're AD Mitchell and you have some really good ability to go get open and make great catches, well, that's going to be the expectation, day in and day out." Year 2 is often when we see NFL players make the biggest developmental jump. For one, there is the comfort and confidence that comes with having an NFL season under their belt, but they also have a full offseason to work on their craft, rather than focusing on the pre-draft process. Even in a crowded Colts' receiver room that also includes Michael Pittman, Josh Downs, and Alec Pierce, if Mitchell can take a step forward this season and find that consistency, more opportunities will come--in snaps, targets, and in the type of routes he's asked to run--because his skill set, and how he can stress various levels of the field, can add another element to this Colts' passing game. "He's done a really nice job," Cooter added. "He's had a great attitude attacking this spring. He's had some opportunities in practice, and he's made the most of those things, and those will keep coming." This article originally appeared on Colts Wire: Colts WR AD Mitchell with 'exciting start' to offseason programs
