The Indianapolis Colts changed the trajectory of their franchise when they selected Florida quarterback Anthony Richardson at No. 4 in the 2023 NFL Draft. They have been seeking a franchise quarterback for years and could finally have one in Richardson.
Richardson has unworldly athleticism for a quarterback. His 99 athleticism score during the NFL Combine makes him only the second player since 2003 to achieve that score; Robert Griffin III is the only player to do so. What makes it even more impressive is that Richardson is two inches taller and nearly 20 pounds heavier than Griffin as he is truly an anomaly.
When someone creates a player in the Madden video game, Richardson is what they come out as. He isn’t going to be handed anything, as he will have to earn his starting spot on this team. However, the Florida product is doing all the right things to ensure he takes over that spot as soon as possible.
Head coach Shane Steichen recently revealed his first thoughts on Richardson and they are all positive. He loves the approach that Richardson is bringing to being a pro, getting off on the right foot with his new team.
“He’s come in every day attacking this thing like a pro,” Steichen said over the weekend, via JJ Stankewitz of the team’s website. “And we just got to continue to be consistent with it every single day.”
Rookie minicamp isn’t too intensive as it is focused mostly on the coaches and players getting to know one another. But Richardson’s demeanor and presence stood out among his peers according to Steichen.
“He’s got a great presence,” Steichen said. “He’s got a great bounce in his step, he’s always smiling, got great energy, enthusiastic. I think when you have that, I think players around him will feed off him.”
It didn’t take long for Richardson to get to work as he and fellow rookie, wide receiver Josh Downs, were running routes in the parking lot. That kind of work ethic is going to serve Richardson well as he is oozing with potential but has some work to do developing it.
The more work that he puts in now, the sooner he will also take over the starting quarterback job. Right now his main competition looks to be Gardner Minshew, who has a leg up after playing under Steichen the last two seasons when he was the offensive coordinator with the Philadelphia Eagles.
While Minshew has more experience in the NFL and running Steichen’s offense, it is only a matter of time until we see Richardson under center in Indianapolis.
