Matt Ryan is out as the Colts quarterback just seven games into his Indianapolis career. Barring injury to new starter Sam Ehlinger or veteran backup Nick Foles, it’s likely Ryan has also played his last snap in blue. Trying but failing to get off their annual QB carousel, the Colts would risk owing up to $17 million of Ryan’s remaining contract by returning him to the field — he has injury guarantees built into his deal — but could save anywhere from $18M to $29M by releasing or trading him in 2023.
So what happens next for the longtime Falcons QB? In all likelihood, nothing. Ehlinger will start, allowing coach Frank Reich to experiment with a more mobile signal-caller with his own job potentially on the line. Foles will be the No. 2. And Ryan will man the sidelines, preserved for the scenario in which Indy accidentally stumbles into the late-season playoff picture and, due to injury or performance, he gets a shot at winter redemption. Regardless, odds are he’ll be ushered out after the season, either via trade, outright release or a mutual parting of ways via retirement.
On the off chance Ryan and/or the Colts are unwilling to wait, and prefer an immediate split a la Donovan McNabb with the Vikings back in 2011, here’s a look at three teams that might be interested:
Bill Belichick is all but courting QB drama at this point, refusing to declare either Mac Jones or rookie Bailey Zappe his starter a day after using both in an ugly home loss to the Bears. Jones is only a year removed from entering as a No. 15 overall draft pick, and Zappe has flashed energy as his fill-in, but neither youngster looks overly comfortable entering the second half of 2022. If Belichick is desperate to salvage the season in a tough AFC East, perhaps he’d welcome the one-time star he once edged in the Super Bowl. No one, after all, likes to resurrect veteran castoffs quite like him. Ryan, meanwhile, has the Boston College background, wouldn’t impede on the long-term future of Jones or Zappe, and could conceivably lean on their ground game.
Kyle Shanahan had no issue touting two “starters” at QB when he welcomed back Jimmy Garoppolo while Trey Lance prepared to “take over” under center, so why not three? With Lance now out until 2023, the 49ers’ only insurance behind the injury-prone Garoppolo is rookie Brock Purdy. Ryan, meanwhile, spent two of his best years under Shanahan in Atlanta. If San…
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