New Colts QB Wentz will miss 5-12 weeks
Carson Wentz’s Colts debut has been delayed.
The quarterback, going into his sixth season in the NFL, had surgery to remove a broken bone in his foot on Monday, according to head coach Frank Reich. He’s expected to miss 5-12 weeks recovering and ramping back up.
Wentz felt a “twinge” in his foot during Thursday’s camp, according to offensive coordinator Marcus Brady. He was left out of practices the following days to evaluate what he was feeling. Doctors estimated he may have re-aggravated an injury he sustained in highschool, a broken bone that loosened over time to now physically affect him.
The team is hopeful they got to Wentz’s issue early and that he’ll be back soon enough.
“Obviously we’re optimistic and hopeful that we can be on the front end of that,” Reich said.
His recovery timetable is incredibly variable, though. He could be back in time for the Colts first game of the season in Indianapolis against the Seattle Seahawks. Otherwise, he could be back for their Halloween game against the Tennessee Titans. It seems more likely he’ll miss the start of the season though.
For now, Reich plans to run with backup QB Jacob Eason. The Colts also have QB’s Sam Ehlinger, Brett Hundley and Jalen Morton on their roster. But the team has confidence in Eason’s ability to improve in camp to get them through Week 8 of the season if need be.
Wentz spent his last five seasons in the league as a Philadelphia Eagle. Though Wentz was on the Eagles Super Bowl winning team in 2017-18 season, he was injured. Backup QB Nick Foles stepped in for the Eagles three playoff games to win it all for the Philly team. Wentz returned the following season and helped the Eagles to another playoff appearance in the 2019-2020 season, which was cut short after a Wild Card loss to the Seahawks.
Foles, who now plays for the Chicago Bears, was asked on Monday whether he’d be interested in stepping in for Wentz once more.
He said: “Listen, Frank Reich is one of my favorite, if not my favorite, coaches of all time. He understands me as a playe. He understands me as a person. But you know, I haven’t had any talks with them. I’m a Chicago Bear right now. But he knows me, he understands.”