Throughout the draft process, the Indianapolis Colts were looking at the quarterback prospects hoping to find a player who can eventually take over under center. Even after selecting Jacob Eason in the fourth round, they are keeping expectations low.
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The Washington product comes to the Colts with elite size and an elite arm but several areas that need work. It’s exciting for the fanbase as this is the first time the Colts have selected a quarterback in the draft since Andrew Luck in 2012.
Though Eason has a high ceiling if he ever reaches it, general manager Chris Ballard wants to pump the breaks on any narrative that the former is the savior in the quarterback room.
“Well, he’s got talent, but there is a long way to go. He still hasn’t even put on a Colts uniform. Like any of them, they’ve got to earn it. Right now he is competing with Chad Kelly,” Ballard said Saturday after the draft. “Let’s slow our roll a little bit in terms of tagging this guy as the next messiah walking into town. He was a fourth-round pick. We didn’t move up to the first pick of the draft.”
Ballard said after the draft they had a fourth-round value on Eason. It would explain why they didn’t take him on Day 2, which is where most had him projected to go during the pre-draft process.
The Colts believed that Eason had the best arm talent in the class but admitted there are many areas he needs to work on as he sits behind Philip Rivers and Jacoby Brissett.
“Yeah, I think his arm talent was probably the best in the draft as far as quarterbacks go. What I liked about his arm talent is he can throw it on a rope, he can throw it long, he can throw with touch, he can change the speed on the ball and he can deliver from different arm angles,” said Frank Reich to reporters. “The accuracy was fine, he needs to get better. His footwork needs to get better. Reading through his progressions needs to get better. There are a lot of things that need work, but physically he has a lot of the tools.”
The Colts will be rolling with Rivers as the starter for 2020 while Brissett fills in the backup role. Eason will be competing with Chad Kelly for the QB3 role and while he has plenty of upside, there is still a long way to go.
But tapping into that upside is the job for the Colts now. None of the pre-draft stuff really matters and even though the Colts are keeping expectations low, it will be their job to develop Eason to be more than a backup.