National Football League

The Indianapolis Colts are thrilled to have Carson Wentz – but should they be?

Updated Mar. 19, 2021 10:41 a.m. ET

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It seems like it was eons ago that the Indianapolis Colts stunned the NFL world by acquiring quarterback Carson Wentz from the Philadelphia Eagles.

On Wednesday it became official, putting the move right back into the spotlight.

The Colts are extremely excited about the deal. They think they have the foundation of a great team, and given that they’re coming off an 11-5 season, they might be right.

With Philip Rivers heading into retirement, the team needed a quarterback. In Wentz, they believe they landed themselves a good one.

Colts CEO Jim Irsay went as far as to claim that the Colts were heading into a "golden era." He views Wentz, 28, as a rare talent and a great long-term answer for his team.

"I believe it with all my heart and soul. There's good reason to believe it," he said. "You talk to people around the league and people that know, they're going to agree with what I'm saying when they look at Chris Ballard and Frank Reich and the expectations going into this decade that we have for both of them leading the team."

Reich was also bullish, saying Wentz "will bring great leadership to our locker room and will be an asset for the Colts, both on the field and in the community."

But when you examine the evidence, it might not be as clear-cut as Irsay and Reich say. On "Speak for Yourself," Marcellus Wiley and Emmanuel Acho saw the announcement as a perfect opportunity to discuss the question: Should the Colts be thrilled to have Wentz?

On one side, you have Acho, who is a big fan of the move. He made the argument that Wentz is one year removed from being a top-five quarterback in the NFL.

"If Carson would’ve got hurt this past year, we wouldn’t have seen him, and the last we would’ve seen was Carson Wentz of 2019. We would be thrilled," he said. "A 4,000-yard season, no 500-yard receivers. He took this team to the playoffs with no 500-yard receivers. … I’m thrilled about having a top-five quarterback one year removed, and if you’re not, you’ve gotta be biased."

Of course, the tricky part of that argument is that Wentz did play a lot in 2020, and he was not very good. Wentz started 12 games last season and completed only 57.4% of his passes for a career-worst 2,620 yards. He threw only one more touchdown pass (16) than he did interceptions (15), and his passer rating was also a career low, at 72.8.

Wiley was quick to point that out, saying the Colts should not be thrilled to get a quarterback with such spotty history. He's also skeptical of those who assume Wentz will shine under Colts coach Reich, even though the two had a productive relationship while with the Eagles.

"Do you know that going back to your ex is a failure sport?" Wiley said. "It’s a failure sport. It doesn’t work. Do you know why? Because you walk in thinking that 90 percent of the work is already done."

People change over time, Wiley said, and Wentz is clearly a different player and no longer the MVP candidate he was a few years ago with Reich.

"Let’s show Frank Reich how much Carson Wentz changed," Wiley said before pointing to a graphic that showed all the categories in which Wentz put up career-low performances in 2020. "When he had [Wentz], MVP candidate. Now, this is who is showing up in that building."

In reality, both Acho and Wiley are correct.

Wentz was once an MVP candidate who proved capable of leading a championship-caliber team, and he topped the 4,000-yard mark just more than a year ago.

On the other hand, he has dealt with injuries, and his most recent season was not a successful one by any standard.

The Colts believe they are getting the earlier version of Wentz. They’re thrilled, and at the moment, that’s all that matters.

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