The Indianapolis Colts are still reeling a bit following Sunday’s loss to their AFC South division rival Houston Texans. The loss left them at 4-4 and a full two games behind the Texans, and while that’s nowhere near an insurmountable mountain to climb, the team is dealing with a more pressing issue.
One that involves 2023 No. 3 overall pick Anthony Richardson the team’s starting and franchise quarterback.
Richardson, the athletic specimen who stands 6-foot-4 and 245 pounds has shown flashes early in his career, but overall, he’s struggled to stay healthy and as a passer. Prior to Sunday the one area that Richardson continually showed up was with his leadership. But after the move he pulled in the loss that’s become a question mark in NapTown as well.
Richardson Taps Out For A Play
As the team returned to the facility on Tuesday, Colts coaches decided to bench the struggling Richardson opting to turn the reins over to former Super Bowl MVP Joe Flacco. The move comes after Richardson took a play off against the Texans claiming, “I was tired. I ain’t gonna lie.”
Following Sunday’s game Richardson asked why he needed to take a play off following him running around prior to being sacked, and his answer, while honest, is something no coach or teammates wanna hear.
“That was a lot of running around right there I did, and I didn’t think I was gonna be able to go the next play,” Richardson said. “So I just told coach Steichen I needed a break right there.”
Can you say “yikes”? That is never what any player should be saying, especially the quarterback. He would’ve been better off asking coach Steichen to take a timeout to allow him to get a breather, but to just remove yourself for a play is unacceptable.
Richardson Has Struggled
Colts brass look at the benching as an opportunity for Richardson to mature and grow. Although that’s hard to do from the sidlelines.
They’re looking at it as a more of a reset with their 2023 first round pick, but his play also might warrant his benching. In Sunday’s loss he was an abysmal 10 of 32 for 175 yards passing. This season in six starts he’s completing a paltry 44 percent of his passes for 958 yards, four touchdowns and seven interceptions.
As opposed to Flacco, the 39-year-old former Super Sunday MVP who’ll be replacing him, who’s passed for 716 yards, seven touchdowns and one interception across playing time in three different games because of Richardson’s injuries.
At .500 and in the thick of the AFC playoff race, the Colts likely view Flacco as the more trustworthy option for this current team.
39-Year-Old Joe Flacco Isn’t Leading Colts To Super Bowl
This is the thing: The Cots aren’t going anywhere with Joe Flacco either. Damaging your future quarterback to try and sneak into a Wild Card in the playoffs is the definition of instant gratification with 0 foresight.
Flacco is a veteran QB with experience who should be mentoring Richardson. Sometimes teams have to take a few steps back to go forward. The NY Giants did it back in the day when they benched a 5-2 QB in Kurt Warner to throw rookie Eli Manning into the mix. The rest of the season was a wash as far as the playoffs were concerned but in the long-term it was the right move because over the next two decades Eli became a legendary QB with two Super Bowl victories.
Then again, Flacco saved Cleveland’s season last year in Deshaun Watson’s absence, so the Colts are hoping he can do the same.
ESPN Crew Not Buying Anthony Richardson Benching: Colts Not Winning Anything
Analyst Domonique Foxworth was not feeling the move to bench Richardson for old man Flacco.
“Based on the film and what we know about Anthony Richardson, he hasn’t played bad enough to be benched, ” the ESPN ‘Get Up’ panelist said on Wednesday.
“Especially considering the fact that he was a rookie quarterback that we all knew was going to be a project. Hopefully they have a long-term plan to get him back on the field real soon.”
When the Colts named Richardson QB1 in his starting season after claiming it would take time for his raw skills to develop, even he was surprised, but willing to give it a crack. The Colts aren’t one of the elite teams in the league. They also have plenty of holes on offense.
Related: “Honestly, I Was Shocked” | Colts Surprisingly Name Rookie Anthony Richardson QB1
What do you expect from an organization that is forever average and hired Jeff Saturday out of the booth with no head coaching experience last season?
If I’m Anthony Richardson I would be hesitant to put my body on the line when I wasn’t 100 percent right too.
