Chris Ballard: Colts Must 'Find out More' on Jacoby Brissett After Rocky 2019

The Indianapolis Colts are taking the two-year contract quarterback Jacoby Brissett signed last September literally.

Colts general manager Chris Ballard addressed Brissett's future with the team during a press conference at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis on Tuesday (h/t ProFootballTalk's Josh Alper):  

"We did a 2-year deal with Jacoby to find out. We like Jacoby Brissett. Love what he stands for. It was almost a tale of two seasons where we're 5-2, he's playing good football. He had the injury and we had injuries as a team and we kind of slid down. We did the short term deal to see what we had. To say we're going to create competition, we're going to create competition at any spot. That's going to be a year-to-year thing."

Ballard's comments came after owner Jim Irsay told Andrew Walker of the team's official website on Sunday that "all options are on the table" regarding the quarterback position. Ballard had also told reporters on Jan. 2 that "the jury is still out" on Brissett.

Indy signed Brissett to a two-year, $30 million deal days after Andrew Luck abruptly announced his retirement on Aug. 24, 2019.

The 27-year-old finished the 2019 regular season with 2,942 yards, 18 touchdowns and six interceptions on a 60.9 completion percentage. Those numbers were aided by a hot September, as Brissett threw for 911 yards, 10 touchdowns and two picks on 65.2 percent completion.

Brissett suffered a knee injury in Week 9 against the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Colts went 2-6 after that to finish the year 7-9. 

Jim Ayello of the Indianapolis Star wrote on Dec. 26 that Brissett's accuracy had dipped from 64.8 percent through his first eight games to 57.5 percent over the last six outings to that point. 

"I've seen a little bit in the last two steps of his drop has been a little bit different since the knee injury, which messes up timing a little bit," Colts offensive coordinator Nick Sirianni added, per Ayello. "It has to do with his knee. I know exactly what he will say, but I have definitely noticed the last two steps that have been a little bit affected."

The Colts own the No. 13 pick in April's 2020 NFL draft. Should they decide to address the quarterback position in the first round, they have been linked to Utah State's Jordan Love.