Sturdiness of Anthony Richardson’s shoulder tops our training camp ‘Watch list’

INDIANAPOLIS – Things start getting real Wednesday.

That’s when the running-it-back Indianapolis Colts reconvene at Westfield’s Grand Park Sports Campus for the start of training camp.

We’ll call that the start of real football.

After an easing-in period, pads will be pulled on and contact allowed. The first practice is July 25 at 10 a.m., which is when 90 players start vying for 53 spots on the regular-season roster.

We’re not diminishing the importance of the 10-week offseason program that included a rookie minicamp, OTAs and a veteran minicamp.

But training camp is the next necessary step in preparation for the Sept. 8 season opener against the Houston Texans at Lucas Oil Stadium.

That in mind, here are what we’ll call Coming Attractions. These are five areas we’ll be paying special attention to as camp unfolds.

1) Anthony Richardson

More specifically, this is about Richardson’s right shoulder.

The future of the franchise underwent surgery on Oct. 24 to repair a sprained AC joint in his right (throwing) shoulder and was a full participant in the offseason work until he wasn’t. On the final day of vet minicamp, Richardson was held out of throwing drills after experiencing soreness in his shoulder. The last we saw of him, he was going through his normal throwing motions but only tossing a few casual passes with his left arm.

Everyone involved downplayed the situation. Shane Steichen insisted if the Colts had a game the following Sunday, Richardson would have started. Holding him out was precautionary.

Richardson admitted he pushed the limits of his rehab, had experienced occasional soreness through the process and was surprised he only missed the one day.

“Everything’s been smooth sailing so far and luckily, it was the last day,’’ he said. “So, we’re not too worried about it and we’re just trying to keep it going.’’

Richardson subsequently posted a video of throwing with velocity.

There apparently won’t be any restrictions when camp opens.

“He’ll be full go,’’ general manager Chris Ballard said during an appearance last month on the “GM Shuffle’’ podcast.

Our level of concern is in the 2 range. It would be naïve to have zero anxiety considering Richardson’s importance to the team, the fact he had surgery on his right shoulder nine months ago and the team’s injury history with franchise quarterbacks (Peyton Manning, Andrew Luck).

The only thing that will ease our concern is Richardson being on the practice field every day and taking the vast majority of reps with the starting offense. Training camp isn’t the physically demanding venture it was even 10 years ago.

The Colts are scheduled for 12 practices at Grand Park – Aug. 14-15 are joint work with the Arizona Cardinals – along with an Aug. 20 shared practice against the Bengals in Cincinnati before breaking camp.

Players are scheduled for just four days of full-go work on consecutive days, although camp involves frequent walkthrough sessions.

If the team feels the necessity to give Richardson an occasional day off considering the relatively light work schedule, then our anxiety level will rise.

2) Safety

We’ve made our position clear: a veteran safety should have been signed during the offseason. Perhaps Justin Simmons, Eddie Jackson or Quandre Diggs. At this point – and it still could happen – it would come in the form of a one-year deal for minimum money. The Tennessee Titans recently signed Jamal Adams, a three-time Pro Bowl selection who’s been limited to 22 games over the past three seasons because of injuries, to a one-year, $1.125 million contract.

Our preoccupation with adding a veteran presence is rooted in our belief safety is the Colts’ weakest position.

Re-signing Julian Blackmon was imperative, and he should be motivated by the one-year, $3.7 million “prove it’’ deal. The 2020 third-round pick emerged as a playmaker last season with a team-high four interceptions even though he missed the final two games with a shoulder injury.

At issue is whether Nick Cross or Rodney Thomas II is capable of securing the free-safety spot. And proven depth is lacking. Ronnie Harrison Jr. offers safety/linebacker versatility but three of the other four reserves have yet to play a game. Trevor Denbow was on the field for six defensive snaps last season.

3) Cornerback

There’s a lot of promise, but that means there’s a lot to prove. We’re not talking about Kenny Moore II, who earned a second lucrative contract (three years, $30 million) with a bounce-back 2023. He remains a defensive cornerstone.

We’re talking about JuJu Brents, Jaylon Jones, Dallis Flowers, Darrell Baker Jr. and the rest of the group.

Brents is viewed as a starting outside corner of the future and the 6-3, 198-pounder showed flashes as a rookie with one interception and six passes defended. But injuries greatly cut into his practice time and limited him to nine games and eight starts.

Jones was forced to carry a heavy load as a rookie and showed steady improvement in what was a trial-by-fire season. Flowers could push for reps on the outside, but he’s coming back from a torn Achilles suffered in week 4 last season.

4) Running back

We have zero problem with Jonathan Taylor. The possibilities with the 2021 NFL rushing champion working out of the same backfield as Richardson are endless. We don’t expect Taylor to approach his franchise-record 1,811 yards in ’21, but he should return to the game-breaking threat that averaged 5.0 and 5.5 yards per carry in his first two seasons.

The issue: who’s the backup? Zack Moss was one of last season’s pleasant surprises. While Taylor was dealing with his prolonged rehab from offseason ankle surgery and contentious extension negotiations that forced him to miss the first four games, he stepped in and gave the run game life. Moss finished with a career-high and team-best 794 yards in 14 games.

In March, Moss relocated to Cincinnati with a two-year, $8 million free-agent deal. That left the Colts without a proven No. 2 at the position. The top candidates are familiar names: Trey Sermon, who rushed for 160 yards last season, and Tyler Goodson, who contributed 87 yards. Evan Hull, a 2023 fifth-round pick, suffered a season-ending knee injury in the season opener.

The Colts undoubtedly want to maximize Taylor’s skills, but will be intent on not overworking him. Who’ll be up to the task of stepping in when necessary?

Sermon has rushed for more than 32 yards just twice and handled more than 10 carries four times in 25 career games. Goodson’s only game of consequence last season: 11 carries for 69 yards against the Steelers.

5) Wide receiver

The room is set with Michael Pittman Jr., Alec Pierce, Josh Downs, rookie Adonai Mitchell, Ashton Dulin and perhaps Anthony Gould. It’s a good, not a great room.

To be decided is whether there’s another level to Pittman’s game after signing a three-year, $70 million extension, Pierce can emerge following two lackluster seasons and Mitchell can take serious reps from Pierce as Richardson’s deep threat.

Pittman has 296 receptions over the past three seasons and topped the 1,000-yard mark twice, but has averaged just 9.99 yards per catch the past two years. That’s not good enough for a No. 1 wideout. He believes there’s more to come after transitioning from Matt Ryan and Gardner Minshew II to Richardson.

One of the top battles in camp figures to be Pierce vs. Mitchell. The Colts invested the 52 ^nd overall pick in the April draft in Mitchell, a 6-2, 205-pound speedster who averaged 15.4 yards with 11 touchdowns for Texas last season. Are they growing impatient waiting for Pierce, a second-round pick in 2022 with deep speed, to emerge?

Similar to Pittman, Pierce’s deep-threat presence has been sabotaged by quarterbacks unable or unwilling to throw deep. That shouldn’t be the case with Richardson, or backup Joe Flacco for that matter.

You can follow Mike Chappell on Twitter at @mchappell51 .

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