The Indianapolis Colts are committed to veteran quarterback Philip Rivers leading the offense, but rookie Jacob Eason is doing what he can with the limited work he’s seeing.
During what will be a redshirt year for the fourth-round pick, Eason doesn’t get many looks during practice. Rivers is running the starting offense while Jacoby Brissett gets most of the looks on the scout team each week.
But head coach Frank Reich has noticed Eason and the latter’s opportunity to learn from the rest of the quarterback room.
“Philip (Rivers) does a really good job with Jacoby and Jacob. They have a lot of side meetings. This is the part as a player – I can just tell you as a former player, this is where the gold is at for Jacob. He is in there early with Philip and Jacoby, and they are watching the third-down tape by themselves, drawing up the plays, talking it through the three of them,” Reich said Monday to the media.
Even though Eason won’t be getting much work during practice, this is an area where he can learn the most. Being in the room with a 17-year veteran and with Brissett, who has two starting seasons under his belt.
“Jacob is going to learn a lot from being in our offensive unit meetings and he is going to learn a lot being out at practice and getting work,” Reich said. “But the most mental development – this is at least with my experience as well – was being in the quarterback room with just the quarterbacks hearing the thought process from a player’s perspective all the time. ”
Though Eason hasn’t been seeing much work on the scout team as he sits third on the depth chart behind Rivers and Brissett, Reich did mention that the rookie will see some more opportunities to work with the scout team as the season progresses.
Reich also has taken notice of the work that Eason does behind the scenes with quarterbacks coach Marcus Brady.
“As the year goes on, he’ll start to get some scout team reps. Jacoby (Brissett) takes most of those because he’s the second priority, in getting him ready. Jacob (Eason) does a good job of getting engaged,” Reich said. “Then after practice, he’s doing a great job of working hard. He stays after every practice and throws. Sometimes I go down there with him and watch him and kind of work through it a little bit with him, but mostly it’s Marcus (Brady). He’s doing a great job.”
The Colts have been pleased with what they’ve seen from Eason behind the scenes and even though won’t see the field in 2020 barring any injuries, it seems he’s making solid progress in the eyes of his head coach.
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