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- A new report once again claims Carson Wentz got traded due to a lack of leadership and being difficult to coach.
- It also explains why the Colts jettisoned Wentz just one year after trading a first and third round pick to acquire him.
- Read more news about the NFL here.
When the Washington Reds…err…Football T…Commanders traded two third-round picks (one of which can become a second round pick) to the Indianapolis Colts for quarterback Carson Wentz two thoughts went through fans minds.
One, why? And two, the Colts were really done with Carson Wentz just one year after trading a first and third round pick to the Philadelphia Eagles to acquire him?
After all, it’s not like Wentz had a bad season with the Colts. A 94.6 QB rating with 27 touchdown passes to only 7 interceptions is pretty darn good.
So what made the Colts give up so soon?
Basically, according to a new report, it was the same reasons why the Philadelphia Eagles sent him packing to Indy just five seasons after taking him with the second overall pick in the 2016 NFL Draft: character.
Related: Landon Collins Says Commanders Can’t Pay As Much For Top Talent After Carson Wentz Trade
Zak Keefer of The Athletic reports…
As for the Colts, the issues with Wentz stretched back to before the season began, one source said, and over the course of the year, some grew frustrated at what they deemed a lack of leadership, a resistance to hard coaching and a reckless style of play, which had a role in several close losses this year.
But this wasn’t just a football move. Wentz’s play, inconsistent as it was to close the year, wasn’t the deciding factor. Colts brass simply didn’t trust him to be the franchise quarterback moving forward, and they weren’t willing to bring him back in 2022 and hope for better. Thus, the decision was made swiftly after the Week 18 debacle in Jacksonville: Wentz wouldn’t return for a second season in Indianapolis.
Carson Wentz has now been traded twice by teams that thought he was their future at quarterback
The report even goes so far as to intimate that Wentz’s backup Jacoby Brissett was more respected in the Colts locker room.
According to one source, the Colts’ divorce with Wentz this offseason was only a matter of time. All that needed to be decided was whether the team would trade or cut him.
And the fact that the Colts were willing to move on from him without a viable Plan B in place — not to mention a thin free-agent class and no first-round draft choice — is especially telling. That’s how determined the Colts were in their decision.
Right now, the Colts only have Sam Ehlinger and James Morgan on their roster at quarterback, neither of which has thrown a pass in the NFL.
Related: Colts Coach Frank Reich Literally Apologized To Team Ownership For Trusting Carson Wentz
If all of this sounds a bit familiar, it should.
Back in 2019, several anonymous Eagles players reportedly said Wentz is a bully, selfish, uncompromising, egotistical, plays favorites, doesn’t like to be questioned, doesn’t practice what he preaches, doesn’t take accountability, and is not a team guy.
Looking back, it’s much easier now to understand why the Eagles drafted Jalen Hurts in the second round heading into the 2020 NFL season, a move that appeared to make little sense at the time. They knew what the Colts know now, and perhaps the Commanders are soon to find out: Carson Wentz wasn’t the answer.