Anthony Richardson is regressing, and the Colts want to seek out new options

It’s 2nd and 23 late within the third quarter of the divisional tilt between the Indianapolis Colts and Houston Texans, with Houston holding a 10-point lead. Second-year sign caller Anthony Richardson takes off below stress, fights off a sack try earlier than finally being introduced down by one other Texans defender for no achieve.

Then, Richardson … subs himself out? As a result of he was drained?

It’s a brutal second of honesty and bluntness from a quarterback who put up certainly one of his worst performances of his younger profession. Richardson went 10-32 for 175 yards, threw a landing and a choose, was sacked 4 occasions and solely had six carries within the Colts’ 23-20 loss on Sunday. It was a loss that made Colts followers and normal NFL followers re-examine what precisely we’ve got in Richardson at this level in his profession. For a staff with playoff aspirations such because the Colts, the loss pushed them to 4-4 with video games towards the Minnesota Vikings, Buffalo Payments, Denver Broncos and Detroit Lions left on the schedule. Every of these groups with formidable defenses that might make life depressing for the younger sign caller.

Nevertheless, earlier than we transfer ahead we’ve got to ask: what’s gone incorrect in Richardson’s second yr? Why hasn’t all of it clicked but?

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Let me begin off by saying this: at this level in his profession, Richardson has solely performed in 10 NFL video games and completed solely eight of them because of damage. Since his second yr in school on the College of Florida, Richardson has solely began 23 video games since leaving highschool. That is nonetheless a passer who wants reps and time to determine among the finer factors of taking part in quarterback.

The factor that was essentially the most tantalizing about Richardson popping out of faculty was his course of, as odd as it might sound for a man with restricted begins. It seemed like he knew the place the ball was presupposed to go and his head was in the best place. The footwork made the outcomes not all the time look fairly, however you could possibly at the least see the imaginative and prescient. In restricted reps throughout his rookie yr, you could possibly see the imaginative and prescient and concept of what he may very well be as a passer. Ripping passes down the seam to fit receivers, the highly effective and explosive working type—it was all there, and one other yr of simply getting reps would support within the progress that he would make.

Nevertheless, eight video games into the 2024 season, the issue has turn out to be clear: the outcomes not all the time including up have messed with Richardson’s course of, and that’s the place we enter the hazard zone. Richardson doesn’t have almost as a lot religion in what he’s seeing in comparison with the place he was final yr and it’s bringing down the offense as an entire. Richardson is thirtieth amongst all qualifying quarterbacks in Success Charge, placing him solely in entrance of Spencer Rattler and Deshaun Watson. This implies the offense is barely discovering any profitable performs when Richardson is dropping again to cross, and when you tack on an NFL-leading 13.1 Common Depth of Goal and an NFL-worst -14.6 Completion Proportion over Anticipated, you get a reasonably simple image of what’s going incorrect in Indy’s passing offense: Richardson is taking all of those throws downfield, however can also be not hitting on these as usually as you’d like. This can be a drawback as a result of you’ll be able to offset among the inefficiencies within the brief recreation as a passer by being the most effective deep ball passers within the league, however neither are actually hitting for the Colts this yr.

A part of why I feel that’s occurring is as a result of Richardson isn’t trusting his course of. As I stated earlier, in his first begins and even early on this season you could possibly see the why behind the passes he threw, or at the least among the steps he took in his head behind them. The thought of seeing him go from 1 to 2 to three gave some hope within the concept of what he may turn out to be as a passer. Nevertheless, on Sunday it was certainly one of his worst video games as a processor as a result of he simply seemed so uncertain of himself.

On this play, a 3rd and lengthy, he is aware of he’s received vast receiver AD Mitchell on a deep curl route on the prime of the display screen. The Texans are in single excessive protection, and Richardson can choose a facet he desires to assault. He will get his eyes to Mitchell, goes to throw the ball, then…hesitates. The anticipation he used to flash isn’t there, so he double clutches, giving the stress time to get there and he finally ends up throwing it brief.

These points popped up rather a lot for Richardson on Sunday, the place you’ll be able to see the wheels firing for Richardson, however when it’s time to throw he simply hesitates, ready for the man to be open as an alternative of throwing him open. It’s an alarming trait, one which’s actually holding he and the Colts’ offense again.

Now, on Sunday there was quite a lot of dangerous from everybody within the talent place group. There have been at the least six drops over the course of the sport, together with a Tyler Goodson drop on certainly one of Richardson’s greatest throws of the day, and an early one to Mitchell the place he can’t get his ft inbounds. Only a dangerous day for Murphy’s Regulation to enter impact.

I feel the drops and simply inaccurate play for Richardson have taken an impact on his confidence. You possibly can see him tensing up earlier than throwing, not taking part in with any anticipation. The crimson flags are displaying up in bunches, and the hazard zone is getting nearer.

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So, what can Colts’ head coach Shane Steichen do to assist Richardson regain a few of his confidence as a passer and get sustainable play from his QB? Effectively, I feel he has to borrow extra from his time in Philadelphia and actually unleash Richardson as a runner.

I do know Richardson has handled some accidents, however solely having six carries in a recreation is a giant drawback. One of the best variations of the Colts are the place Richardson possibly drops again 20-25 occasions in a recreation—not him throwing the ball 32 occasions. It’s why you constructed a strong run recreation, it’s why you paid Jonathan Taylor all that cash. Lean into his skill on the bottom, do extra designed QB runs for him to get Richardson within the movement of a recreation. Hurts and Richardson are each on the larger facet as QBs (Richardson is way sooner, nevertheless), and utilizing them as a plus one within the run recreation ought to assist the offense create some matchup and numbers issues on the perimeter.

Which brings up the subsequent potential resolution: the very best factor about Hurts within the Eagles’ offense is that it didn’t ask him to make any complicated reads. One of the best model of Hurts must transfer possibly one defender or throw the ball downfield to WRs AJ Brown and Devonta Smith. Whereas the Colts don’t have those self same caliber of receivers, getting Richardson to maintain taking these pictures downfield whereas maximizing his skill as a runner ought to assist put the offense in a bind. After all, it’s reliant on Richardson’s well being, however the Colts drafted him due to his plus one skill as a runner, they usually can’t neuter that a part of their offense, due to how a lot his legs play a task of their success.

The Colts are at a significant inflection level of their franchise. The QB who was supposed the be the franchise hasn’t performed nicely, and persistence is carrying skinny. I nonetheless suppose Richardson generally is a good NFL QB, but when the scar tissue we noticed on Sunday continues into the top of the season, exhausting questions should be requested.