What do the Indianapolis Colts do next after the Carson Wentz injury?

(Marc Lebryk-USA TODAY Sports)

The Colts do have two younger quarterbacks on the roster, first of which is second-year passer Jacob Eason. Eason generated a bit of first-round buzz late in his draft process, thanks to his combination of size and arm talent, but ultimately fell to the Colts in the fourth round.

Eason began his college career at the University of Georgia and after enrolling early in 2016, he secured the starting job after taking over for senior Greyson Lambert. He entered the 2017 entrenched as the team’s QB1, but a knee injury in the season opener sidelined Eason, opening the door for Jake Fromm. Eason would ultimately transfer to Washington, and in his final college season he completed 64.2% of his passes for 3,132 yards, 23 touchdowns and eight interceptions.

Here are a few breakdowns of Eason’s game:

Eason has talent, and despite not playing a snap last season he is in the driver’s season for the starting spot at the moment according to Reich:

“The job is Jacob’s right now … and he’s gotta earn it. But he’s in the driver’s seat.” — Frank Reich on Jacob Eason with Carson Wentz out the next several weeks

— Zak Keefer (@zkeefer) August 2, 2021

One option here is for the Colts to take more of a “wait and see” approach over the next few weeks. See how Eason handles the starting role while also tracking Wentz’s recovery, and if the timetable looks more on the lower end of the spectrum, the Colts could decide to roll with the second-year QB.

What might complicate that decision, however, is what the schedule gods laid in front of Indianapolis. Even if Wentz just misses the first five games, who do the Colts play those first five weeks? The Seahawks, the Rams, the Titans, the Dolphins and the Ravens. Four playoff teams from a season ago and a fifth team with high aspirations…