Anthony Richardson and the Indianapolis Colts are entering a 2024 NFL campaign full of hope after the team went 9-8 last season, largely without Richardson.
The second-year quarterback had a brutal run of injuries during his rookie year, suffering a concussion in Week 2 and then getting knocked out for the season with a shoulder injury in Week 5.
Gardner Minshew filled in under center and nearly led the Colts to the playoffs, with Indianapolis falling to the Houston Texans in a winner-take-all game for the AFC South division title in Week 18.
Richardson underwent surgery and is back for Indianapolis in 2024, but Bleacher Report’s Alex Ballentine is not too confident that the signal-caller’s sophomore campaign will go swimmingly.
Ballentine notes that Richardson is still a very raw product and that not really having a rookie season could end up inhibiting his development this year. He also mentions that Indy has an absolutely brutal schedule early on, featuring the Texans and Green Bay Packers to start the campaign.
The Colts will then face the Chicago Bears, Pittsburgh Steelers and Jacksonville Jaguars.
That certainly isn’t an easy stretch of games for Indianapolis, especially considering that Richardson is still trying to get his feet wet.
Anthony Richardson is a rare talent, but the Colts need to be careful
Indianapolis selected Richardson with the fourth overall pick of the 2023 NFL Draft for a reason.
The University of Florida product possesses incredible dual-threat abilities and is built similarly to former Carolina Panthers star Cam Newton.
However, Richardson’s reckless style of play may result in the young quarterback being a rather constant injury risk, as we saw last season.
Richardson flashed incredible potential when he was on the field in 2023, but there is no question that he may have to alter his play style in order to better protect himself moving forward.
The Colts themselves may want to apply some pressure to the 22-year-old in that regard in order to protect their sparkling investment.
On the bright side, Indianapolis has surrounded Richardson with an underrated group of wide receivers led by Michael Pittman Jr., who the club just re-signed in free agency. Indy also selected University of Texas standout Adonai Mitchell in the second round of the NFL Draft.
We’ll see how Anthony Richardson manages in what is hopefully his first full season in 2024.
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