Former Vikings QB Just Lit Up the Field
Daniel Jones chose the Indianapolis Colts over the Minnesota Vikings back in March — and it seems he nailed the decision-making process.
A former Vikings QB delivered a marvelous showing that turned heads across the league. Relive his breakout performance and why fans are stoked.
The latest quarterback in need of Kevin O’Connell’s reformation balled out against the Miami Dolphins on Sunday, leading his new squad to a 33-8 victory at home.
Ex-Vikings QB Daniel Jones Delivers Jaw-Dropping Performance by His Standards
Jones did the thing on Sunday against the Dolphins.
Daniel Jones Cooks for Colts in Week 1
For starters, the Colts thoroughly stomped the Dolphins. The game was laughable. Every few years or so, the Vikings fire up a game where absolutely everything goes wrong. That’s what Miami endured in Week 1.
Jones, on the other hand, thrived. He completed 22 of 29 passes for 272 yards and 3 total touchdowns (1 passing, 2 rushing). The former New York Giant also kicked in 26 rushing yards en route to a stellar 87.6 QBR mark from ESPN.
The man was nothing short of remarkable, especially considering the Colts’ wayward lineup of quarterbacks since Andrew Luck walked away six years ago.
The Man Chose the Right Path, if Only for a Week
Jones could’ve returned to the Vikings in 2025 and battled J.J. McCarthy for a starter’s job throughout the summer. However, faced with the premonition or knowledge that Minnesota would roll with McCarthy, almost no matter what, Jones picked Indianapolis via free agency. His efforts were rewarded on Sunday.
Had Jones chosen Minnesota, well, Kevin O’Connell and friends would’ve employed one of the league’s top backup quarterbacks, as nothing would’ve got in the way of McCarthy’s ascension to QB1 this summer.
It’s a hat off to Jones, who picked the perfect employer, at least for a week.
QB Battle Feels like a Faint Memory
Not long ago, Jones locked in for a quarterback battle with Anthony Richardson, whom Indianapolis drafted in Round 1 two years ago — the same night that Minnesota picked wide receiver Jordan Addison.
The Colts had a vested interest in Richardson winning the QB competition this summer — a team always wants its draft plan to pan out in the long run — but Jones did enough to keep Richardson on the bench.
Now, after utterly spanking the lowly Dolphins, Jones vs. Richardson feels like it happened eons ago. Jones re-earned the QB1 job on Sunday, and it would take multiple clumsy performances for Richardson to get a crack at the starting lineup.
Dolphins = Hideous
Meanwhile, Miami looked truly moronic. Every time the offense touched the football, something silly happened, a comedy-of-errors performance in Week 1, when head coach Mike McDaniel was already on the hot seat, according to NFL punditry.
Players argued on the sidelines, Tua Tagovailoa played like Spergon Wynn, and Tyreek Hill could be seen visibly disgruntled off the field, several months removed from his flippant trade request.
Miami has crumbled, and a fix doesn’t feel imminent. That team may be cooked.
National Media on Jones
The Athletic‘s Mike Sando opined on Jones’ outing in Week 1.
He wrote, “I wondered whether dropping the charade that Anthony Richardson was prepared to lead the Colts might free Indianapolis’ other offensive players from the obligation to propagate it, giving the team an emotional boost. Never was there any reason to think Jones would lead Indy to points on every drive during a game, which neither Manning nor Luck ever accomplished.”
“Only once in 227 total Colts starts did Manning lead Indy to points on its first seven drives of a game, during a wild-card playoff game against Denver after the 2003 season. Luck led six scoring drives to open a game in 2014. What happened Sunday is obviously not sustainable for Jones and the Colts, but there’s no question they can become more consistent with this quarterback in the lineup instead of Richardson.”
The Colts host the Denver Broncos on Sunday, a significantly trickier test for Jones.
Sando added, “Steichen was dialing it up Sunday, finding creative ways to get the ball to his rookie first-round tight end, Tyler Warren, and getting Michael Pittman wide open for Indy’s first touchdown. One example: Steichen used three tight ends to keep Miami in base defense during the first drive, then called a dropback pass from the shotgun formation, with one tight end (Drew Ogletree) helping free another (Warren) for a 21-yard gain.”
“Jones’ limitations aren’t going away, but his can be schemed around, which was less the case with Richardson.”
Jones’ performance Sunday ranked ninth among 30 qualifying passers in Week 1 per EPA+CPOE.
They’re already calling him Indiana Jones.
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