INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — The Indianapolis Colts came out of a much-needed bye last week, hoping to be as healthy as possible following consecutive physical contests in the two games prior.

Quarterback Daniel Jones had been sacked 12 times against the Pittsburgh Steelers and Atlanta Falcons, facing nearly constant duress. Jones has been healthy throughout the season despite taking some big hits as both a passer and a runner, and he even entered last Wednesday's practice with a clean bill of health.

However, Jones was listed as a limited participant on the injury report on Thursday with a calf injury, which was later clarified as a fibula injury. He went off to the side during positional drills to speak with a trainer about his lower leg for a few minutes before jogging back over to the group. That was the extent of what he missed on Thursday.

The Colts cleared Jones on Friday, and he didn't carry any designations into Sunday's road game against the Kansas City Chiefs.

Head coach Shane Steichen, the offensive playcaller, insisted to reporters on Monday that Jones' injury didn't factor into his decision-making throughout the 23-20 overtime loss.

“Yeah, I'm not going to get into the specifics, but he's out there, he's playing, he's practicing, and he's good to go," Steichen said. “Yeah, there are no limitations with him right now. So, we go through our weekly game plan process, and we go from there.”

Throughout the game, Jones was again consistently pressured. Chiefs coordinator Steve Spagnuolo dialed up blitzes on 15 of Jones' 33 dropbacks, according to Pro Football Focus, and Jones was pressured a total of 11 times during the game, being hit a half-dozen times.

To the naked eye, it appeared noticeable that Jones wasn't moving with his usual swiftness, and the Colts weren't intentional about any runs for him, even on short yardage.

The Colts faced third or fourth-and-short six times throughout the games, and while Jones did calmly saunter for a first down on one of those as he scrambled, the Colts did not call any quarterback sneaks with Jones, as they so often do.

The Colts' next matchup is this Sunday at home against the Houston Texans. The team will hold their usual Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday practices, so it is worth keeping an eye on Jones' participation level.

Jake Arthur has been covering the Indianapolis Colts for over a dozen years and is a member of the PFWA. He's one half of the Locked On Colts podcast and has worked for the Colts' official website, On SI, and more. You can follow him on X @JakeArthurNFL. 

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