Indianapolis Colts quarterback Carson Wentz had a bounce-back campaign in 2021 where he passed for 27 TDs, over 3,500 yards while throwing only 7 INTs. But after a late-season collapse that saw the Colts drop their last two games to the Raiders and Jaguars, causing them to miss the postseason, some are already rethinking Wentz’ role with the team past this season. One of those people may have the only opinion that really matters, and that’s Colts owner Jim Irsay. On Tuesday, Irsay posted a tweet that seemed to call out Wentz and the offense.
In the post, Irsay calls out the entire team honestly, but after those last two games, it’s clear that Wentz could be the one on the hot seat. Irsay did hand over a first-round pick in obtaining Wentz’s services from the Eagles. This was all supposed to work out so perfectly since Wentz had his greatest success with Frank Reich as his offensive coordinator in Philly. But in year one, he couldn’t even drag the Colts into the playoffs when they only needed to win one of their final two games to secure a spot.
In Indy’s Week 17 loss to Las Vegas, Wentz completed less than 60 percent of his passes while passing for 148 yards and a TD. In Week 18, the Colts played Jacksonville with everything on the line, and Wentz mustered up 185 yards passing, another completion percentage under 60, a TD, and an INT. The Colts fell to the Jaguars, 26-11. As out there as Irsay may be, he may not be wrong about questioning the team and, more importantly, his QB. This is what he traded a first-round pick for. A 9-8 record and no postseason to show for it. Aside from his performance on the field, Wentz is also unvaccinated, which led to him missing time from the team this season. In the professional sports world that makes him unreliable.
The Colts offense did end the season ranked ninth in points per game, averaging 26.5, but it’s obvious Irsay expects more. It sounds like Irsay wants 30-plus points even when things don’t seem to be firing on all cylinders like the Chiefs or Buccaneers. Kansas City scored 30-plus in 9 games, and Tampa Bay did it in 10. The Colts had just 7 of these games. The difference is those teams have elite QBs. Indianapolis traded for Wentz, who wasn’t elite before they got him and still isn’t now. In the NFL, draft capital is king. You’ve already given up your 2022 first-round pick for Wentz. To cut bait so quickly would seem foolish.
Maybe the tweet was meant to be a wake-up call more than anything. Either way, Wentz better wake up before he finds himself in a backup role again. Wentz was replaced in Philly, and from Irsay’s tone, it sounds like it could happen again in Indy.