It wasn’t supposed to end like this, but the Indianapolis Colts will wrap up their 2025 season on Sunday against the Houston Texans. The year began with real optimism after the Colts signed Daniel Jones to a one-year deal. Early returns suggested the postseason drought might finally be over, and for a stretch, Indy even looked like a legitimate Super Bowl dark horse.

Then Week 14 changed everything. Jones went down, the momentum disappeared, and the Colts never quite found their footing again. Still, there’s finally a bit of positive news. According to NFL Network’s Jane Slater, Jones shared an encouraging update on his recovery, saying his “rehab is going well.” It doesn’t fix how the season unraveled, but for a team already looking ahead, it’s at least a step in the right direction.

And the optimism wasn’t misplaced earlier in the year. With Jones running the offense, the Colts were flying high in the AFC, opening the season tied for the best record in the league at 7–2. Feeling like a contender, Indy pushed its chips in, trading two first-round picks to the New York Jets to acquire two-time All-Pro cornerback Sauce Gardner.

But everything shifted in the Week 14 matchup against the Jacksonville Jaguars. On a third-and-eight dropback, Jones planted to throw and collapsed immediately after releasing the ball. No contact. No hit. He grabbed the back of his right lower leg, and the diagnosis soon followed. A season-ending torn Achilles. Jones underwent surgery and is expected to miss six to eight months.

That timeline leaves the door open for a return around training camp ahead of the 2026 season. Which naturally raises the bigger question: will Jones still be in Indianapolis? Based on production alone, the case is strong. He threw for 3,101 yards in 13 games (just 104 shy of his career high), while adding 19 touchdowns against eight interceptions. On paper, that’s quarterback play the Colts can work with.

But the real variable is cost. The franchise tag is projected to land in the $45–46 million range. And whether Indy wants to go that route or pursue a longer-term extension remains unclear. What is clear, though, is this: Jones’ rehab is progressing well. He’s headed for free agency after playing on a one-year deal. And there will be interest once he’s healthy. Whether that next chapter is still in Indianapolis or somewhere else remains to be seen.

Meanwhile, amidst Jones’ uncertainty, the Colts now seem to have a final update on Philip Rivers‘ future in Indy.

Philip Rivers is retiring, again

No one, not even Philip Rivers, expected that he’d return to the NFL after walking away in 2020. But one unexpected call changed that. When the Colts’ leadership reached out, Rivers found himself back in a familiar building, once again running the offense for one of his former teams. Looking back, Rivers admitted the whole situation caught him off guard.

“It was just one of those ‘you can’t make this up’ kind of deals,” Rivers said recently on The Jack Doyle Podcast. “And I did feel like I had a little ball left in me when I decided to step away after the 2020 season, but it was the right time. And I look back and I still believe that to be true…I was at peace. It was done. And this comes out of nowhere, and Shane (Steichen) and Chris (Ballard) are like ‘Hey, think you can do it?’ And I’m like, ‘What a minute, are we serious right now?'”

From there, Rivers was signed to the practice squad and, within hours, was preparing to start after Daniel Jones went down with an injury. The comeback, though, didn’t produce the storybook ending. Rivers went 0–3 as a starter, and with the Colts slipping out of the playoff race, the experiment quickly reached its conclusion. Soon after, Rivers made his retirement official. Again. This time on the Up & Adams Show with Kay Adams.

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“So now what? You can still chuck it so I don’t want to hear this ‘I’m done’ because you can still chuck it. I saw it happen,” Adams countered. Rivers, meanwhile, made it clear that he’s done with the NFL now, stating, “No, I am, I am.”

With that, Rivers closes the book on a remarkable career, finishing with 63,984 passing yards and 425 touchdowns. Those are both top-10 marks in NFL history. And while this truly appears to be the end of his playing days, it wouldn’t be surprising if his next chapter still keeps him around the league. Just with a headset instead of a helmet.