The Indianapolis Colts just traded away Carson Wentz. However, the team made a grave mistake in doing so with a roster that is ready to win now.
Not to toot my own horn, but back in December of 2020, I predicted that the Colts would end up with Carson Wentz.
The match between Wentz and Frank Reich dating back to their days in Philadelphia made a lot of sense.
In Wentz’s lone season in Indy, he threw for 27 touchdowns and 7 interceptions. The Colts went 9-8 and missed the playoffs, losing their final two games.
I partly understand the reasoning for trading Wentz, but now Indy is left with no current quarterback solution with a roster that is ready to win now.
As a Broncos fan, I can understand their pain. We had to endure six years of quarterback woes, and Indy fans get to endure quarterbacks who seemingly only play one year for the team.
With Wentz’s contract off of their books, the Colts currently lead the NFL with $69 million in cap space.
While this may seem just dandy, the Indianapolis Colts have now put themselves at a huge disadvantage.
Who in the heck are they going to replace Carson Wentz with? Starting with the NFL draft, we have a class that is seen as largely very weak among the quarterback prospects. It is highly unlikely that the Colts could draft and immediately start one of the “top” QB prospects.
They could turn to the free agent quarterback market to try and find a solution, but who would provide a reasonable upgrade from Wentz?
Neither Marcus Mariota nor Mitchell Trubisky are as good as Wentz. Andy Dalton is past his prime, and Jameis Winston is too inconsistent.
I think it’s safe to say that none of the four mentioned players, who are the top free agents at their position, would provide a reasonable upgrade over Wentz and allow them to compete.
You also have Teddy Bridgewater, who isn’t good. He can manage 20th ranked offense but isn’t nearly as good as Carson Wentz.
Could the Colts turn to the trade market? Well, Aaron Rodgers returned to Green Bay, Russell Wilson is now a Denver Bronco, the Houston Texans won’t trade Deshaun Watson in their division, and Gardner Minshew, if he is moved, is not an upgrade over Wentz?
Who is left for them to consider? Jimmy Garoppolo. Apparently, Indy is interested in Jimmy G’s services.
However, what does Garoppolo provide that Wentz cannot? Jimmy G. gets hurt way more, has only played one full season to Wentz’s three, is not nearly as good as a passer, and could not get it done in San Francisco, where everything on offense is set up nearly perfectly for a quarterback.
Ask yourself honestly, if Carson Wentz did not move the needle enough in the eyes of the Colts’ front office, how would Jimmy Garoppolo move the needle anymore? He is, by all accounts, an inferior quarterback.
While Wentz is sometimes too passive, Jimmy G. is often good for 1 or 2 extremely boneheaded mistakes per game.
They are, in many cases, polar opposite quarterbacks, and I think the Colts are trying to convince themselves that trying the other side of the same coin is going to work.
It does feel like Jimmy Garoppolo will eventually be the Indianapolis Colts’ week 1 starter.
I do think Indianapolis will try and draft a quarterback reasonably high in the 2022 NFL Draft, however, they could have just kept Carson Wentz, who is a better option than most everyone else out there, and have done the same thing.
Now, they have no quarterback and little chance at being competitive in 2022.