Texas Football: Eason thinks Sam Ehlinger will be ‘great’ for Colts QB room

There aren’t many quarterback rooms around the NFL landscape this offseason that changed more than it did with head coach Frank Reich and the Indianapolis Colts in the AFC South. Following the retirement of potential future Hall-of-Fame quarterback Philip Rivers and the departure of backup Jacoby Brissett, the Colts had to add some key players at the position this offseason such as former Texas football star Sam Ehlinger and the former Philadelphia Eagle Carson Wentz.

One of the constants remaining in the Colts’ quarterback room from last season is the former Georgia Bulldogs and Washington Huskies signal caller Jacob Eason. This former top-ranked quarterback prospect in the nation and sizable 6-foot-6 and 235-pound Colts backup was their fourth-round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft.

This is a key offseason for Eason, who is trying to solidify his spot as the Colts’ backup quarterback ahead of next season. He’s currently trying to do just that as the Colts take part in OTA’s this week.

The former Husky and Bulldog Eason opened up on the new-looking Colts quarterback room in OTA’s this week, with some interesting notes on the new additions. He did mention that he thinks the group of quarterbacks joining the Colts this year is “great” for the team after losing some big pieces like Rivers and Brissett.

How former Texas football QB Sam Ehlinger can fit with the Colts alongside Jacob Eason?

This is good to hear from a quarterback in Eason’s spot this is vying for a solidified spot in this QB room in the coming months.

Eason was solid for the Huskies back during the 2019 campaign. He also had flashes of brilliance at Georgia before the Dawgs saw the rise of their former star quarterback Jake Fromm in the late 2010s. That caused Eason to transfer to Washington, where he played one year to round out his college career.

Meanwhile, Ehlinger will also be challenging to eventually solidify a backup role with the Colts. He was their sixth-round pick in the 2021 NFL Draft (218th overall). And Ehlinger was the first Longhorns quarterback to actually be drafted into the NFL since Colt McCoy was picked up by the Cleveland Browns back in 2010.

Ehlinger put up some big numbers during his four years playing for Texas. He compiled nearly 11,500 passing yards, 94 passing touchdowns, 27 interceptions (good for a 145.0 career passer efficiency rating). Ehlinger also added more than 1,900 rushing yards in his career at Texas and 33 rushing scores.

Five former Longhorns were picked up in the 2021 draft, the most of any FBS school in the state of Texas. The first former Longhorns off the board in the 2021 draft was offensive tackle Samuel Cosmi, who was picked up by the Washington Football Team 51st overall in the second round.