Daniel Jones, to begin his Colts career, has faced two defenses to begin the 2025 season that were blitz-heavy groups in 2024. But the strategy for the Miami Dolphins and Denver Broncos in Weeks 1 and 2 was clear: Try to shut down the Colts' passing offense by blitzing Jones over and over and over again.
It didn't work.
Jones was blitzed on 50 dropbacks in Weeks 1 and 2, per Pro Football Focus, the second-most blitzes a quarterback has faced in the first two weeks of a season since 2010 (Washington's Robert Griffin III was blitzed 53 times to open the 2013 season). And Jones handled those pressure packages well, completing 32 of 47 pass attempts for 455 yards (9.7 yards/attempt) with 25 first downs and a passer rating of 106.3, via PFF.
No quarterback since 2010, per PFF's tracking, has thrown for more yards than Jones against the blitz in the first two weeks of a season, per PFF.
The Colts certainly prepared Jones to face funky pressure looks throughout training camp – during which he went against Lou Anarumo's defense in practice – but games are, to say the least, different than practice, where there's zero threat of being hit, or even having a pass rusher too close to you.
"In this league, we really protect our quarterbacks during practice," offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter said. "The red jersey, it's non-contact, it's defensive linemen staying away from the quarterback. That's every sort of team in this league, every offense in this league that I know of wants to keep those guys as healthy as we can as we go through that process.
"But it does change a little bit when you are going to get sacked, you are going to get hit, you are going to get sort of rolled around. You are going to sort of maybe make a guy miss and go make a play. That's when, some of that live-action quarterbacking becomes real."
Both Jones' first and last throws of Week 2 were emblematic of the way he's played against the blitz – and with the very real threat of taking a hit.
On his first dropback against the Broncos, Denver sent five pass rushers on a second-and-six play. Defensive tackle D.J. Jones dove at Jones' ankles, forcing the quarterback to slide to his left – where defensive tackle Zach Allen had looped around and was closing in on the pocket. Jones stepped into his throw and delivered a downfield strike to wide receiver Josh Downs; Jones was brought to the ground by Allen shortly after the throw, which generated a gain of 19 yards.
"That was some throw," Cooter said. "That was some impressive throw, man. That's a hard one to rep. You guys watch (quarterbacks) coach Cam Turner's drills over there every day in practice. I'm not sure we could whack him with a bag hard enough to get a real rep of that throw. It's something that I think is great to see. Obviously, one heck of a play."
Jones' final throw came on a third-and-six at midfield with under two minutes to go – all but a gotta-have-it play with the Colts trailing by two. The Broncos sent a six-man pressure, with running back Jonathan Taylor staying home to pick up a blitzer in pass protection, but edge rusher Nik Bonitto quickly generated pressure to Jones' blind side. Jones felt it, took a few steps to his right, and delivered an on-target throw to wide receiver Alec Pierce on a crossing route – he was also hit milliseconds after releasing the ball on this play – to pick up seven yards and a critical first down.
Jones again was able to beat a blitz and throw while under duress. Head coach Shane Steichen pointed to the work Jones puts in during the week as key in making those difficult plays on Sundays.
"I think understanding what's going on on defense, understanding where the pressures are coming from, knowing the timing of when you got to get the ball out," Steichen said. "Knowing how you're picked up, whether you're going to be hot or not. I think that's a huge part of it, and that's the game within the game. That's studying it and understanding what's going on on the other side of the field so you can play on rhythm and play on time. And I think our line's done a hell of a job protecting for him these last two weeks."
All these plays Jones has made against blitzes and while under pressure likely will increase his confidence in his teammates – the Colts' offensive line, plus Taylor, have done a good job picking up blitzes – while coaches and teammates' confidence in Jones has been boosted through seeing him handle those blitzes so well.
And there's another aspect to all this, too: Jones' toughness has roundly impressed the Colts. He's willing to hang in and take a shot to make the right throw in the right moment.
That's another thing that's practically impossible to see in practice. But the Colts have, now, seen it in back-to-back games.
"He's a tough player," Steichen said. "I think on the one where they had the helmet-to-helmet on him last week, he popped his lip and was bleeding on the sideline, but didn't even phase him. He was just like, 'Here we go.' I think he's tough. He stands in there, delivers the ball with accuracy. He's been doing a hell of a job for us."
