Colts Among Betting Favorites for Promising Young Quarterback

The Indianapolis Colts have been included among the betting favorites for a promising young NFL quarterback next offseason.

Until the Indianapolis Colts officially move on from Matt Ryan and then declare a new starting quarterback in the offseason, speculation will be rampant about what they plan to do at the position moving forward.

The Colts are now on their third starting quarterback of the season, and the seventh since Andrew Luck abruptly retired in 2019. To say the least, what once was a rock-solid position for the team has been in flux for quite some time now.

With a tumultuous season — featuring plenty of big decisions made — nearly over, one of the next tectonic moves for the team will be to figure out whether their (hopefully) quarterback of the future will come from the 2023 NFL Draft class or be acquired from another NFL team.

While many fans want to see the Colts go out on a limb and make sure they find their young guy in the draft, sports bettors like the Colts' chances of trading for a new quarterback.

Recently, Bookies.com gave the Colts the second-best odds (+350, 22.2%) of acquiring Green Bay Packers backup quarterback Jordan Love in the offseason, falling just behind him staying in Green Bay or going to the New Orleans Saints.

"...In two seasons, he's (Love) had only one start and eight spot appearances," Bookies.com said. "It sounds like Love is about done waiting for his opportunity, which may or may not come in Green Bay with Aaron Rodgers signed through 2024. While Love hasn’t had the opportunity to prove himself as a starting QB yet, he was picked in the first round for a reason."

Love (6'4", 219, 24 years old) was a popular projected pick for the Colts in 2020 when the Packers ultimately traded up and selected him with the 26th overall pick. There were rumors that the Colts were interested at the time but it was later revealed they did not try and trade up to get him, instead staying put at the 34th slot and selecting wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr.

The Colts were recently also listed as the favorites to acquire Packers QB Aaron Rodgers — who Love has been developing behind for three years — but a trade for Love seems more likely given the financial and draft compensation required to make such a deal.

Buzz about Love's future is at an all-time high currently, as he's performed well in three games this season, completing 12-of-18 passes (66.7%) for 186 yards (10.3 YPA), 1 touchdown, no interceptions, and a passer rating of 119.2.

It's just enough of a sample size to show that he's grown as a player, but not enough to see if there are still any major warts to his game.

Love was considered a raw prospect who had a highly talented arm coming out of Utah State but after developing behind one of the greatest quarterbacks in NFL history since then, it's logical that other teams may feel it's finally time to take a shot on him.

Will it be the Colts? They traded for Ryan this offseason, but he along with the rest of the team has had a season to forget. It's been the worst, least productive season of Ryan's 15 years, which has seen him benched twice. At 38 years old next year with a cap hit of $35.2 million, it seems like a foregone conclusion that he will not be the team's quarterback any longer.

Will the Colts, for a third offseason in a row, trade for a veteran quarterback, such as Love? Probably not. The retread route has not treated them kindly.

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