Anthony Richardson has been one of the most polarizing players in the football world over the past few years. Though he only started 13 games in college, the Indianapolis Colts selected Richardson fourth overall in the 2023 NFL draft due to his one-of-a-kind traits.
At six-foot-four and 244 pounds, Richardson ran a blazing 4.44 40-yard dash, hit 40.5” on the vertical jump, and had a near 11-foot broad jump, numbers that would be wildly impressive for a 160-pound wide receiver. For a 244-pound quarterback, it’s virtually unheard of.
Richardson’s impressive combination of speed, size, and arm strength are the kind of things most NFL teams dream of, but his overwhelmingly unimpressive start to his career has led fans to question whether the Colts should consider selling high on Richardson, especially after landing former New York Giants QB Daniel Jones in free agency.
The case to give Richardson one more year
Though Richardson has displayed concerning accuracy issues and struggles with seeing the field throughout his career, the games where he puts it all together are a thing of beauty.
One example of this is his performance against the New York Jets in Week 11 of the 2024 season, where Richardson threw for 272 yards and a touchdown and tacked on another two scores on the ground. This was Richardson’s first game back as a starter for the Colts after being injured, and he used his reentry to the lineup to show why the Colts should keep him under center.
Though Richardson still struggled at times to make the right decision, this throw to Alec Pierce was just one example of the high-level arm talent that led to the Colts selecting Richardson with the fourth overall pick.
Though Richardson had rough stretches of games last season, this was one example of what his potential is as a starter.
Injuries plagued Richardson all year, with an oblique strain sidelining him for two games early in the season and a back injury ending his year in disappointing fashion. Considering the importance of the obliques and back in throwing a football, one could surmise that these injuries played a role in Richardson’s accuracy issues this season.
The Colts may be telling themselves that if Richardson could be fully healthy this upcoming season, he’ll be able to consistently showcase the level of play that they hoped for when they drafted him.
The case for the Colts to get out early
Unfortunately, the discussion surrounding Richardson’s health can be interpreted in two different ways. Early in his rookie season, Richardson experienced an injury to his throwing shoulder that ended his season. This past season, Richardson had two more injuries that caused him to miss games. Overall, Richardson has played in 19 of 34 possible games in his career.
Richardson’s inability to stay healthy throughout both his collegiate and NFL career is extremely concerning, and that doesn’t factor in some of the processing and accuracy issues Richardson has had even while healthy. The combination of these factors may have Colts brass wondering if it would be better to collect whatever capital they can get for Richardson and see if they can revive the career of their recent free-agency acquisition, Daniel Jones. The Minnesota Vikings’ success in the same pursuit with Sam Darnold this past year may give them more security in such a decision.
There isn’t much financial incentive for the Colts to trade Richardson, however, as he is only entering the third year of his rookie contract. Richardson is taking up $9.3 million in cap space in 2025 and $10.8 million in 2026, meaning his burden on the team’s financial flexibility is relatively insignificant.
It seems more advantageous for the Colts to hold their horses (pun intended) and see what Richardson can do this upcoming season. If he doesn’t pan out, they can try to find someone to right the ship in next year’s draft.
