The Indianapolis Colts really hate the day they ever traded for Carson Wentz and have not been shy about stating so.
Indianapolis Colts general manager Chris Ballard stated this week that the franchise was likely to move on from quarterback Carson Wentz regardless of how the 2021 NFL season played out. The Colts’ collapse at the end of last season to miss the playoffs was often cited as a reason for Wentz’s trade to the Washington Commanders, but Ballard told Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk that his time with the team would come to an end no matter what happened.
“I don’t know. I think we would have still had some hard discussions,” he said when Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk asked if the Colts would have stuck with Wentz for another year had he won in Week 18. “Just the way we played down the stretch, we knew we needed to make some improvements in that area. The one thing I think Jim and I and Frank are all pretty good at is when we know something’s not a good fit, don’t just try to justify it. Let’s move forward.
“… I think even if we would have ended up in the playoffs we would have had some hard discussions going forward.”
Jim Irsay was reportedly the driving force behind talks about Wentz’s future with the team following the season. Indianapolis Colts coach Frank Reich reportedly apologized to owner Jim Irsay following the 2021 season after last year’s Carson Wentz did not pan out the way he had hoped.
Reich and Wentz spent two years together in Philadelphia.
Wentz was a serviceable starter for the Colts in 2021, but he missed practice time on multiple occasions due to injury and COVID-19, before struggling to lift the team in its final games, with a playoff spot on the line. He threw for 333 yards, two touchdowns and one interception while losing one fumble as Indy suffered back-to-back losses.
