The Colts Quarterback Battle that never was…
In July 2019 I attended Colts Training Camp in Carmel, Indiana which was beautiful by the way. What I was hoping to see was Andrew Luck get ready to lead my beloved Indianapolis Colts to a playoff appearance and put up MVP numbers. What i got to wacth instead was Jacoby Brissett leading the first team while a mix of Chad Kelly and Phillip “P.J.” Walker battle over reps with the second and third teams. I thought to myself, great we have a guy who’s primary photo on Google is a mugshot and a 5’11” qb from Temple competing for the third roster spot. Of course at this time i did not know that Andrew Luck had a surprise in store for all of us fans in just a few weeks.
When Andrew Luck did retire I was crushed, at first i actually thought it was a prank from my friends because i was borderline blackout drunk. My phone was blowing up with texts from my friends and i received several calls, i thought it was a coordinated effort. With no ESPN message to verify, I turned on the pre-season game and what do I see? Adam Schefter crushing my dreams for the 2019-2020 NFL season as well as my hopes for the Colts to complete at the top of the AFC for the next 8-10 years with Luck. Dreams dashed, i had some idea that Jacoby Brissett would be named the starter and we would be OK. Hell he was thrown into the fire all of 2017 with no real warning and did pretty well after another Andrew Luck injury. At least this season he has owned the whole pre-season and had time to get ready, right?
Now the roster is set, the Colts opt to bring in Brian Hoyer as an experienced back up and Chad Kelly to hold down the 3rd roster spot. The nephew of Jim Kelly has talent, but has been in and out of trouble since his Ole Miss days. PJ Walker was seemingly an after thought. He had been signed and cut by the colts several time since being signed as an UDFA in 2017. I can’t help but think he was overlooked, not a height joke. (I’m only 5’9″ on a good day) He never had a real chance to crack the roster.
Flash forward to NFL Week 7, the Colts are 5-2 and Jacoby is performing nicely and all the talking head are over reacting. “Jacoby Brissett is playing like an MVP!” Only to be followed by going 2-7 to finish the season with Brissett posting average numbers at best. His final numbers being – 61% completions/2942 YDS/18 TDs/6 INTs, not exaclty lighting the world on fire. The future of the Colts quarterback room does not look super bright…
PJ Walker however has been absolutely electric so far in the XFL. He has led the Houston Roughnecks to a 3-0 start and is making plays all over the field like this one:
Walker so far this year: 63% completions/755 YDS/10 TDs/1 INT with 87 YDS rushing and an additional TD.
Listen, I may be doing the exact same thing we did with Jacoby Brissett through the first 7 NFL games but he is such a play maker. The issue with Brissett was his conservative nature and lack of pushing the ball down the field. This is not an Issue for PJ Walker.
I think the Colts may have missed their shot at a guy who can at least be a dynamic play maker. Why not a Taysom Hill type package role for Walker? Hell he may have a bigger arm than Brissett and he is certainly more mobile. I mean who could have seen this coming? Clearly Matt Rhule saw this play out in front of him at Temple. If the Season ended today, PJ Walker would be the XFL MVP and deservedly so. Speaking of Matt Rhule, who coached Walker at Temple, he was just hired as the Carolina Panthers Head Coach.
Walker College stats are alright for playing at Temple of all places., but again no one saw this coming. Walkers Temple stats: 57% completions/10,668 YDS/74 TDs/44 INT with 771 YDS rushing and an additional 9 TD.
It would absolutely not surprise me if Carolina swoops in and signs Walker as soon as the XFL season is over. Assuming he has a good relationship with Matt Rhule. Also, who knows what is going on with Cam Newton, injured, highly paid, kind of a head case? Walker would at least be an interesting competitor in camp.
So look for PJ Walker to get scooped up by someone as soon as he is available, my guess is the Carolina Panthers.
Who Cares Sports 