After the Indianapolis Colts lost back-to-back games with veteran Joe Flacco serving as their starting quarterback, head coach Shane Steichen surprisingly announced on Wednesday he’s going back to second-year pro Anthony Richardson as his QB1 for this coming Sunday’s game at the 3-7 New York Jets.
Steichen later explained why Richardson is getting the nod with the Colts at 4-6 and still in the playoff hunt.
“The classrooms, the walkthroughs, the practice, the weight room, all those little things just got to be at a higher standard,” Steichen said about where he felt Richardson needed to improve, as Sports Illustrated’s Liam McKeone shared. “That’s what was talked about and that’s where we went with it. That was discussed with [Richardson] two weeks ago. Those were the conversations that took place. Over the last two weeks, he’s made strides in those areas. Big-time strides. Becoming a pro’s pro.”
That last line is noteworthy, as Richardson hasn’t played since he admitted that he temporarily took himself out of what became Indianapolis’ Week 8 loss to the Houston Texans because he was “tired.” Regardless of what Steichen previously said about that controversy, numerous outsiders are convinced he benched Richardson to avoid losing other members of the locker room.
Logic suggests Flacco lost the job more so than Richardson won it back. Flacco committed four turnovers and had an interception returned for a touchdown in Indianapolis’ 30-20 defeat against the Buffalo Bills this past Sunday.
Meanwhile, ESPN stats show that Richardson would be ranked 31st in the NFL with a 37.6 adjusted QBR for the season if he was among qualified players. Over his first six games of the campaign, he completed just 44.4% of 133 pass attempts for 958 yards with four touchdowns and seven interceptions. He also rushed for 242 yards and a score across those contests.
“Is he a finished product? No. He’s not,” Steichen added. “It’s my job to help him get there along with the rest of the coaching staff. We’ve never lost faith or belief in him or his abilities. He’s shown strides. He really has. That being said, he will be our starter.”
Following Steichen’s update, DraftKings Sportsbook listed the Colts as 3.5-point underdogs for this Sunday’s matchup at MetLife Stadium.
