Indianapolis Colts head coach Shane Steichen revealed on Thursday that quarterback Anthony Richardson is dealing with new soreness in his throwing shoulder, the same arm that required AC joint surgery in his rookie season.
Richardson felt pain in his shoulder while throwing at OTAs last week and will be out for next week's minicamp. Steichen said he expects Richardson to be back by training camp in July/August.
NFL Insider Jeremy Fowler (ESPN) shared new details on Richardson's injury just a day after it was announced.
"It's the AC joint that he suffered an injury on in 2023, I'm told there's some inflammation from that," Fowler said on SportsCenter. "Richardson went really hard this offseason, and in OTAs, he was throwing a lot, sometimes hundreds of footballs a day. He felt some soreness, some inflammation; he reported [the injury] to Dr. Neal ElAttrache, who did the surgery two years ago. They looked at the scans, I'm told that structurally, this is okay. It's just an inflammation and rest/soreness type of issue. He fully expects to be ready to go for training camp. But, it is an issue, make no mistake. Especially with Daniel Jones, they're paying him some decent coin to potentially be the starter."
Reporting on Aaron Rodgers and Anthony Richardson on @SportsCenter with @MattBarrie pic.twitter.com/72jzn2RQTQ
— Jeremy Fowler (@JFowlerESPN) June 6, 2025
Richardson is prepared to let his arm rest for the next two months, but it is concerning that his shoulder is aggravated before the season has ramped up into full gear. Jones will take the first-team reps while Richardson rehabilitates, so coaches will get a good look at what he has to offer.
Richardson's list of injuries is only getting longer after two years in the league. He's started only 15 games of a possible 34. In those 15 starts, he left three of them early due to injury. Though it was hoped he would be healthy for this season, that might not be the case.
Barring any setbacks, Richardson will get the opportunity to defend his starting job in training camp this summer. If the issue persists, it's likely Jones will take the starting role.
Jones signed a one-year, $14 million contract at the start of free agency to compete with Richardson. In 10 starts for the New York Giants last season, Jones threw for just over 2,000 yards, eight touchdowns, and seven interceptions.
The Colts need a reliable option if they want to return to the postseason, which they've missed for the past four years. If Indianapolis can't get it done, it's expected that Chris Ballard and Shane Steichen might lose their jobs before 2026.
Steichen's 17-17 record through two years isn't discouraging considering the long list of issues he's dealt with, but the performances haven't always been inspiring. The Colts either need playoff football or valuable draft capital to escape the middle ground they've been stuck in for years.
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