Heir to the Throne

The Colts were supposed to be dead in the water after Andrew Luck retired. Luck was a once in a generation talent, the person who was supposed to take the reins of Peyton Manning as the next great Colts quarterback. And for seven seasons, he did just that. But injuries proved to be too much for him and he made the difficult decision to retire. He finished his career as a four-time Pro Bowler with 23,671 yards passing, 185 total touchdowns and a 4-4 record in the playoffs. While he didn’t win a Super Bowl, he is still regarded as one of the three best quarterbacks in the history of the Indianapolis Colts.

Luck retiring left the Colts up a stream with no paddle… or so they thought.

Enter Jacoby Brissett, the former New England Patriots backup and heir to the Colts throne.

When Brissett was drafted by the Patriots, they didn’t have overly huge expectations for him. He was a third-round pick in 2016 and designed to be a pick a backup to a backup. The Patriots had already drafted a promising quarterback in Jimmy Garoppolo two years prior. In a perfect situation, Brissett would’ve never touched the field. But during his rookie season, starting quarterback Tom Brady was suspended and backup Garoppolo was injured, thrusting Brissett into the spotlight, allowing him to show his potential for the first time. In his first career start he completed 11-of-19 passes for 103 yards and carried the ball eight times for 48 yards (including a 27-yard touchdown run) in a 27–0 victory over the Texans.

Brissett was eventually traded to the Colts at the start of the 2017 season and that’s when his career truly took off. While he struggled at first with the Colts (they went 4-11 with him as a starter) it is understandable. He was traded seven days before the season started to a completely new offensive system without spending a single day in the offseason with them. But this season, he has reached his potential, leading Indianapolis to a 5-2 record and having them look like playoff bound heavyweights.

If you followed Brissett in college, this really shouldn’t be surprising. The moment I knew that Jacoby Brissett was going to be successful was September 27, 2014, when NC State played against Jameis Winston and the Florida State Seminoles. While they eventually lost, Brissett looked like a superhero on the field, shrugging off would-be tacklers and bouncing off hits to throw for touchdown after touchdown. He was a relatively unknown quarterback going head-to-head with the best team in the nation and not folding under pressure.

Jacoby Brissett was a hidden gem for the Colts and now he’s out to show the league what he’s all about. If they stay healthy the Colts will be a playoff team, so don’t worry Colts fans. Even though Andrew Luck retired, you still have another reason to have hope. There’s a new ruler in Indianapolis.