Revisiting Jeff George's Indianapolis Colts career
Jeff George was the ultimate journeyman quarterback, playing for five different teams during his 12-year NFL career.
However, that wasn't what was initially expected. He was expected to morph into an elite, franchise quarterback who would star for the Indianapolis Colts for a decade and a half. That obviously didn’t happen.
Indianapolis finished the 1989 season with a 8-8 record and desperately needed a top-notch quarterback. They wound up trading up for the No. 1 overall pick in the 1990 NFL Draft, which was owned by the Atlanta Falcons. In the deal, the Colts sent Pro Bowl offensive tackle Chris Hinton, wide receiver Andre Rison, a 1991 first-round pick, and a 1990 fifth-round pick to Atlanta.
#OTD in 1990 the Indianapolis Colts made Jeff George the top overall pick in the NFL Draft. https://t.co/3wAxSRKwv0
With the top pick, the Colts drafted Jeff George, who had completed a solid collegiate career with the Purdue Boilermakers and Illinios Fighting Illini.
Many Colts fans knew all about George, seeing that he's an Indianapolis native and had starred for Warren Central High School, located on the city's far east side.
George possessed a rocket arm and great accuracy. It wasn't surprising at all that the Colts traded up to get him.
As a rookie, Jeff George started 12 games, throwing for 2,152 yards, 16 touchdowns, and 13 interceptions. Indianapolis posted a 5-7 record with him as the starter.
The Colts finished the next season with the league's worst record (1-15) as George produced 2,910 yards, 10 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions while starting all 16 games.
1993: Colts Week- Trailing 13-0 in 2Q, Indy started to claw back. Jeff George had one of the strongest arms in the NFL & hit Hester for a 58 yard catch. #NYGiants defense got a big tackle from David Tate on Reggie Langhorn & forced a FG which made the score 13-3 #TogetherBlue https://t.co/u0KlLJIUqR
George played two more seasons with the team before being traded ironically to the Falcons in 1994. He clashed with teammates and coaches throughout his time in Indy. During his short, four-year stint as a Colt, he threw 46 interceptions to 41 touchdowns and lost 35 of his 49 starts.
Besides the Falcons, Jeff George later played for the Oakland Raiders, Minnesota Vikings, Washington, and Seattle Seahawks. He signed with the Chicago Bears in 2004, but never played a game for the team.
Jeff George failed to become the Indianapolis Colts' first Peyton Manning/Andrew Luck
The last two times the Colts have taken a quarterback with the top pick in the draft were in 1998 (Peyton Manning) and 2012 (Andrew Luck). Manning emerged as one of the greatest QB's ever seen and became a first-ballot Hall of Famer. Luck certainly could've been a Hall of Famer if he hadn't retired abruptly in 2019.
Manning and Luck were both stars during their tenures with the team, and it's sad that Jeff George never did the same. He had talent and amazing arm strength, but he lacked the intangibles needed to excel as a larger-than-life megastar signal-caller.