Former Duke QB Daniel Jones was in the midst of a resurgent season with the Indianapolis Colts after he was released during the 2024 season by the New York Giants, who took the Blue Devils product with the sixth overall pick in the 2019 draft. That was until he tore his Achilles during a December road game against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Up until that point, Jones was in the MVP conversation, leading the Colts to one of the best records in the AFC with a QBR that ranked 8th in the NFL. Jones was on target to sign a massive contract extension with the Colts, likely similar or even better than what Sam Darnold landed with the Seattle Seahawks.
But Jones's unfortunate injury cast a dark cloud over his future with the Colts.
The good news is that Jones is still going to get paid - just not as much - or in the same way - as he might've expected.
On Tuesday, the Colts elected to use the transition tag on Jones. You've probably heard of the franchise tag, but you could be forgiven for not knowing what the transition tag is because this is the first time it has been used on a quarterback in 30 years.
That tag comes with a $37.8 million payday for Jones for the 2026 season, but there is a catch, more so for the Colts than for the former Duke star. Unlike the franchise tag, the transition tag isn't exclusive, meaning that Jones can negotiate with other teams and sign offer sheets. The Colts would then be given the opportunity to match, kind of like how restricted free agency works in the NBA.
Jones becomes the first quarterback in the NFL to receive the transition tag since the Falcons placed it on Jeff George in 1996.
Another tag: The Colts are placing the transition tag on QB Daniel Jones, per sources. The transition tag is $37.833M, more than $6M cheaper than the QB franchise tag, but gives Jones the opportunity to sign an offer sheet with another team that Indianapolis would then have the… pic.twitter.com/eLmqLB5ZgH
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 3, 2026
The Colts are using the $37.8 million transition tag on Daniel Jones
In terms of average annual value, the $37.8 million would make Jones the 17th highest-paid quarterback in the NFL. It's probably not much less on a per-season basis, however, than he likely would have received on the open market.
Coming off a devastating injury, it's probably the best scenario he could have hoped for. This gives Jones and his agent the opportunity to negotiate with other teams, possibly landing an even bigger contract.
And in the worst case, he's locked in for a $37.8 million payday while he heads into the 2026 season hoping to show the Colts - and the rest of the league - that he can consistently perform at the level he was last season before the injury.