Indianapolis Colts quarterback Daniel Jones explained why he's so confident that he'll be ready to start the season opener following last year's Achilles injury.
INDIANAPOLIS — The Indianapolis Colts' entire offseason plan this year hinged on recapturing the magic that they harnessed in the first half of last season when they got off to an 8-2 start.
Going into their bye week, they had the best record in the NFL, and quarterback Daniel Jones proved to be a worthy offseason gamble, as he'd been playing the best football of his career.
However, upon returning from the bye week, the team discovered Jones had a fractured left fibula. He played through it for the next couple of games, but his mobility was greatly compromised. In the third game, Jones' right Achilles gave out, causing a season-ending injury.
Jones had surgery later the same week, performed by Dr. Martin O'Malley in New York, who also performed the Achilles surgeries for NBA stars Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics and Tyrese Haliburton of the Indiana Pacers. The recovery often takes about a year, although many athletes can return sooner.
The Colts showed a major sign of faith in Jones, re-signing him this offseason to a two-year, $88 million deal that can go up to $100 million.
Now more than five months removed from his surgery, Jones is participating in organized team activities on the field, although he has yet to progress to live team drills in a 7-on-7 or 11-on-11 setting.
One of the biggest questions facing the Colts this year is whether Jones will be ready for the team's Sept. 13 season opener at Lucas Oil Stadium against the Baltimore Ravens.
If you ask Jones, he says, “Absolutely.”
Jones spoke to reporters during OTAs on Wednesday, and when asked if Week 1 has ever been in doubt for him, he responded, “No. No it hadn’t.”
“Yeah, I mean, I understand the process," Jones said when asked why he was so confident he'll return in time for the opener. "I think you’ve got to hit all your marks, and I understand that. I think I have a lot of trust and faith in doctors and the trainers we have here, our PT staff. And a lot of trust in myself to do the work and put myself in the position to play. And that’s certainly been my goal all along.”
While Week 1 is within Jones' trajectory, he's not putting the cart before the horse, so to speak, acknowledging that there are still checkpoints to hit along the way.
“There’s definitely still work to be done and progress to be made," Jones said. "So, I think it’s just continuing to get stronger, continuing to run faster, cut harder, and progress kind of according to the program, but it’s been good. I think we’ve hit all of our marks so far, and we’ll continue to do that.
“I think you’ve got to be realistic and understand the body’s got to heal. There’s a process to it. And you try to focus on kind of what the next goal is and understand what the long-term goal is, but the more immediate short-term next milestone that you’re trying to accomplish. I think that’s been the most helpful mindset to me.”
