The future of the Indianapolis Colts offense will be on the arm of Anthony Richardson. The Colts are hoping that the No. 4 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft will follow in the footsteps of Peyton Manning and Andrew Luck before him as franchise quarterbacks to lead the team.
Eventually, that could certainly be the case. Richardson has all of the tools to become a top-tier player in the NFL. But, first, there are some things that he needs to accomplish, namely beating out Gardner Minshew for the starting spot.
At this point, it is anyone’s guess who will be the Colts’ starter in Week 1. Minshew has a leg up in the competition because he knows Shane Steichen’s offense from spending the last two seasons working under him as the Philadelphia Eagles offensive coordinator.
Alas, Richardson is going to do everything he can to put himself in a position to be the starter in Week 1. Steichen was very impressed by what the Florida product displayed during minicamp and has liked what he has seen thus far.
“Obviously, we’ll get pads on in training camp to get the real rush, the real feel and all that stuff. But pleased with where he is at, grasping the offense,” Steichen said in his Wednesday press conference. “It’s a day-by-day process with any player whether it’s quarterback, receiver, tight ends, running backs, DBs — all those different things. But pleased with where he’s at. We’ve got to keep working and we’ll go from there.”
Throughout the draft process, Richardson was regarded as a prospect oozing with potential but was raw. It would take some patience and good coaching to develop him and the Colts have a perfect coach to do that in Steichen, who worked wonders with Jalen Hurts.
While there is still plenty of room for growth when it comes to Richardson, he has handled himself well. Steichen created some off-script situations for him to work through near the end of the minicamp and he believes Richardson responded well to those challenges.
“It was unscripted periods and call-it periods, and going from there — stuff that might’ve not been scripted over the last two weeks showed up today in the call-it period,” Steichen said. “It’s good — stress the mind on everybody and see where everyone is at.”
Testing him during practice now will benefit him in the long run. Getting reps on the field is important, but Richardson is doing his homework off the field as well. He is going above and beyond when it comes to preparation, taking notes every chance that he gets.
When the Colts start training camp in July, the quarterback battle between Richardson and Minshew will be one that many people keep their eyes on. Regardless of who wins that battle, the team will be in a better position heading into the 2023 season at the quarterback spot than they have been in years.
