Colts Jim Bob Cooter on QBs Daniel Jones and Anthony Richardson
Colts offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter on QBs Daniel Jones and Anthony Richardson
Daniel Jones has struggled with the deep ball in his career, can the Colts fix it?Former Notre Dame QB Riley Leonard is getting more work with Anthony Richardson’s injuiryCan tight end Will Mallory carve out a bigger role this season?
INDIANAPOLIS — The deep ball is the biggest question for new Colts quarterback Daniel Jones.
A tireless worker with an accurate arm and plenty of mobility, Jones faltered in New York because of an inability to produce big plays. The former first-rounder never averaged more than seven yards per attempt in a season with the Giants despite completing a lot of passes. Fifty-six quarterbacks have thrown at least 100 passes since Jones entered the NFL in 2019, only 10.4% of his completions were for 20-plus yards, the second-lowest rate according to stathead.com.
Indianapolis believes it can get more out of Jones as a deep ball thrower, and Wednesday’s practice was a sign of the inconsistency.
Alec Pierce beat rookie cornerback Justin Walley deep on the first 11-on-11 ball of the day, and Jones made the right read, firing long for the NFL’s best deep threat last year, only to underthrow Pierce and give Walley time to recover and make the play.
But it wasn’t the only deep throw Jones made in the practice.
During the 7-on-7 period that followed, Jones got the same situation with Ashton Dulin on the sideline and laid in a good throw that hit Dulin in the hands, only to have the veteran wide receiver drop the ball.
Indianapolis ended the practice by putting its top two offenses through a two-minute drill.
Needing a chunk play, Jones tried to give rookie tight end Tyler Warren a chance at a 50-50 ball down the sideline, but the pass was overthrown. On the very next play, Jones came up with the throw he needed, hitting Josh Downs for 30-plus yards to get the drive moving.
Jones completed 5 of 8 passes on the drive, hitting Jonathan Taylor and Michael Pittman Jr. twice, the final throw a touchdown pass to Pittman on 3rd-and-goal. A play later, Jones bought time in the pocket — the Colts defensive line didn’t do a real rush because of offseason contact restrictions — and found a wide-open Downs for the two-point conversion.
The two passes to Taylor, and an earlier completion to Tyler Goodson, revealed something else about Jones.
When he wants to go to the running back, the ball often comes out of his hand quickly, getting the ball to the back’s hands when he’s open, rather than waiting until the last second. It’s a sign that Jones is making a good read.
Rookie Riley
The Colts drafted Notre Dame quarterback Riley Leonard in the sixth round this offseason to essentially replace Sam Ehlinger, who spent the past two seasons in Indianapolis as a developmental backup and emergency quarterback.
Richardson’s injury has now given Leonard a chance to take more snaps with the second team.
The results have been mixed so far. Leonard completed 7 of 12 passes in Wednesday’s practice, including 6 of 9 in the second team’s two-minute drill, a series he capped by finding second-year wide receiver Anthony Gould at the back of the end zone for a touchdown, although he wasn’t able to finish it off with a two-point conversion.
But the rookie also threw an interception for the second consecutive day. Leonard underthrew a crosser over the middle that veteran linebacker Jacob Phillips dove to intercept. Underthrows have been an issue for Leonard through the first two days of minicamp.
Making the most of opportunity
Will Mallory found himself blocked on the depth chart for most of the 2024 season.
Indianapolis handed most of its snaps at the F tight end position — the receiving role — to veteran Kylen Granson, leaving just 93 offensive snaps for Mallory, the former fifth-round pick who caught 18 passes for 207 yards as a rookie. Mallory caught just four passes in 2024, and the pick of Warren seemed to put another receiving tight end on the backburner.
But the grandson of former Indiana coach Bill Mallory could still carve out a place for himself as the “F,” since Warren is a classic “Y” tight end, capable of handling blocking duties in addition to his role as a receiver.
Mallory has been a frequent target of both quarterbacks during the team’s offseason workouts, and Leonard hit him three times in four plays to start the second unit’s two-minute drill on Sunday. Mallory has a knack for finding holes to sit in coverage, although he doesn’t have Warren’s ability to run after the catch.
Quick hitters
Rookie safety Hunter Wohler found a way to turn heads again. One day after laying a huge hit, Wohler made a key stop to keep Laquon Treadwell from scoring, then broke up Leonard’s two-point conversion attempt in the end zone. … Middle linebacker Segun Olubi made a play in coverage in red zone for the second consecutive day. Facing a second-and-goal, Olubi ran down Salvon Ahmed in the flat and broke up a throw from Leonard. … Second-year wide receiver Anthony Gould is taking the lion’s share of the snaps at both punt and kick returner.