The Indianapolis Colts have a major decision to make around Daniel Jones this offseason. Jones, an offseason pickup by the team last season, was playing at a high level to start the year. At one point, the Colts were 8-1 and were leading the AFC. However, a torn Achilles ended Jones' Cinderella season, and with it, the team's playoff hopes.
Now, the team must decide on what to do with Jones. The franchise tag is an option for the Colts, but there are other candidates for the tag, including wide receiver Alec Pierce. Stephen Holder's latest report will shed some insight on what the team will do this offseason and who they will give the franchise tag to.
“The free-agent market for WR Alec Pierce is bigger than that of QB Daniel Jones,” Holder reports. “Jones will earn more (QB vs WR) but there are more outside teams interested in Pierce. This needs to be a consideration in how they navigate the franchise tag.”
The deadline for teams to use their franchise tag is on March 3. The franchise tag allows a team to sign a player of their choosing to a one-year deal to keep them from leaving. The value of this contract is usually the average of the top-five contracts at the player's position or a rate slightly higher than their previous contract. That will factor into the Colts' decision.
Given this information, the best thing for the Colts to do in this situation is to use their franchise tag on Pierce instead of Jones. Pierce has proven to be one of the best deep-ball threats in the league, unlocking a whole new dimension to the offense. Replacing him would be tough, and teams would want to sign him away from Indianapolis. As for Jones, the market for quarterbacks will be a bit thin this season, and it's doubly true for an injured quarterback coming off an Achilles tear.
Jones is no stranger to the franchise tag. Before joining the Colts, the quarterback was given the franchise tag by the New York Giants after a breakout season. We'll see if Indianapolis makes that same move this offseason.
