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Chris Ballard and the Indianapolis Colts quarterback saga(s)

By Russell S. Baxter

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - MAR 01: Chris Ballard, general manager of the Indianapolis Colts speaks to reporters during the NFL Draft Combine at the Indiana Convention Center on March 1, 2022 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, IN - MAR 01: Chris Ballard, general manager of the Indianapolis Colts speaks to reporters during the NFL Draft Combine at the Indiana Convention Center on March 1, 2022 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images) /
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For the sixth time in as many years, the Indianapolis Colts will have a different starting quarterback come Week 1 of the 2022 NFL season.

By now, it’s been pretty well documented when it comes to the Indianapolis Colts and their ever-changing starting quarterback picture. And current general manager Chris Ballard has swung a trade for the second consecutive offseason to remedy this situation.

In the latest move, the franchise gave up a third-round draft choice in April for 14-year veteran Matt Ryan (trade and financial terms via Spotrac). The talented performer ranks eighth in NFL history in passing yards (59,735) and eighth in league annals in touchdown tosses (367). And it follows a recent pattern by Ballard in terms of quarterbacks who were selected high in their respective drafts.

Ryan was the third overall pick in 2008 by the Atlanta Falcons. A year ago, the Colts acquired Carson Wentz from the Philadelphia Eagles. That organization made the talented but inconsistent performer the second overall selection in the 2016 NFL Draft.

And the year before that, resilient Philip Rivers left the Chargers in free agency and signed with Indianapolis. You may recall that he was the fourth overall pick by the New York Giants in 2004 and he and Eli Manning’s rights were swapped the same day.

All told, when Ryan takes the field on the opening weekend of the 2022 season, it will mark the sixth time in as many years under Ballard that the Colts will start a different quarterback in Week 1. In 2017, it was Scott Tolzien in the first game and Jacoby Brissett the rest of the way.

A year later, Andrew Luck was back and healthy. He started all year, helped the team overcome a 1-5 start and not only led the team to a wild card berth but won a wild card game at Houston. But the first overall pick in the 2012 draft opted for retirement (via Tadd Haislop of the Sporting News) in the summer and 2019 and Brissett became the Week 1 starter for Frank Reich’s club.

That’s an awful lot of turnover at a crucial position for a solid franchise and one of the top general managers in the league. For the Colts, there’s certainly hope that Ryan is longer than a one-year answer.

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