The former No. 6 overall pick in the 2019 NFL Draft by the New York Giants, Jones will be the Indianapolis Colts’ starting quarterback to open the 2025 NFL season. Jones was competing with Anthony Richardson, the Colts’ top pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, for the starting job in training camp.
It’s been an uneven road to this opportunity for Jones. New York benched him mid-season last year amid a five-game losing streak before releasing him Nov. 22. New York closed the season out by starting Drew Lock and Tommy DeVito. That duo went a combined 1-6 to close the season; the lone win came in a 45-33 shootout over the Colts in Week 17.
The Minnesota Vikings came calling for Jones’ services and signed him off waivers for the rest of the season at $375,000. He spent time on the practice squad and was behind starter Sam Darnold and backup Nick Mullens by the start of the playoffs. When free agency opened, the Colts signed Jones to a one-year, $14 million deal.
Now that he’s the starter, Minnesota could be the team that benefits from it instead of New York. Here’s why.
How Daniel Jones starting helps Vikings
Because Jones was most recently on the Vikings’ roster ahead of free agency, they are entitled to a compensatory draft pick in the 2026 NFL Draft regardless of how many snaps he takes as the Colts’ starter.
Jones being named the starter means he will likely take more snaps than if he started the season as the backup. The more snaps he plays, the earlier the compensatory pick will be.
It’s hard to predict with perfect accuracy which round the compensatory pick will fall in but OverTheCap has a formula and projections for each team based on contract value, free agents added versus free agents lost and playing time. OverTheCap predicts the Vikings will get a Round 4 compensatory pick for Jones signing in Indianapolis. Jones earning the starting job all but secures that.
That’ll be the second compensatory pick the Vikings will receive for losing a free agent quarterback this offseason. They’re projected to receive a Round 3 pick for Darnold signing with Seattle.