This year may be a difficult season for the Indianapolis Colts, but their future is bright. They have high hopes for quarterback Anthony Richardson, the No. 4 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.
Richardson skyrocketed up draft boards during the pre-draft process with some eye-popping numbers during workouts. There has quite literally never been a player like him, as he possesses a combination of size, speed and athleticism normally only seen in the virtual world.
So, it should be no surprise that is what Colts’ wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. compared Richardson so. Pittman compared his new quarterback to a ‘create a player’ on the Madden video game, and it would be hard to argue against that. He added that Richardson is “big, fast and strong.”
“If you could create just a Madden quarterback, that’s like basically him. He’s got 99 speed, 99 strength, 99 arm. So, he’s just got everything.”
Only one other quarterback, Robert Griffin III, received a 99 athleticism grade during the NFL Combine like Richardson did. Possessing the size of Cam Newton and athleticism of Lamar Jackson, the Florida product is something straight out of a video game.
The Colts know that they will have to exhibit some patience with him, as he is still a raw player. His college stats certainly don’t scream No. 4 overall pick as he completed only 54.7 percent of his passes for 3,105 yards with 24 touchdowns and 15 interceptions.
While there is plenty of work to do in the passing game, Richardson can be deployed as a situational weapon right off the bat. His rushing ability is something that the Colts should not allow to go to waste even if he isn’t the starting quarterback.
In 22 games with the Gators, Richardson rushed for 1,116 yards and 12 touchdowns. Head coach Shane Steichen will certainly scheme up packages for him in the early going while hoping to develop him in the same way that he helped Jalen Hurts with the Philadelphia Eagles.
