“We’re so impatient nowadays. We have zero patience with players, especially at the quarterback position. If they’re not a superstar right away, they’re a failure, which I disagree with. I mean, they’ve gotta work through their struggles, and they have to fail, and they have to get up, and they have to get better from it.” Chris Ballard said this, not back when Anthony Richardson was drafted, but earlier this offseason. In fact, day one of Anthony Richardson being a Colt, Ballard and the staff preached being patient and knowing there would be lows while the inexperienced quarterback developed. On that draft night back in 2023, Ballard said, “Let’s not crown him yet. He’s a young player, he’s got work to do, but we like his talent. We like what he can be. We drafted him for what we think he can really be in the future.” Well, that future has seemingly come and gone in the couple of years since then. On Tuesday, head coach Shane Steichen announced that Daniel Jones will be the starter not only for week 1, but for the whole season.
A couple of months ago, I wrote about the quarterback competition and the highs, lows, and injuries of Anthony Richardson. I mentioned in that article about how I felt the staff should still be starting Anthony Richardson, but also understanding why they went out and paid a lot of money for an at-the-time backup quarterback. The reality is, outside of a couple of games in two years, Anthony Richardson hasn’t been good. The issue isn’t that he wasn’t good; it’s that this staff should have known that he wasn’t going to be good. The reason an NFL franchise drafted Richardson in the top 5, despite his limited playing time and bad completion percentage, is that there is the hope he could become a Cam Newton or Josh Allen-esque game-wrecking player. And the comparisons to Josh Allen were very valid, as Allen really struggled his first couple of seasons in the league. But due to Ballard already gaining an extra couple of years by drafting Richardson, and Steichen likely being tied to him, they didn’t take the time to ride the lows in hopes of finding those highs by the end of his rookie contract.
As most of the online community is saying already, the Colts really let down Anthony Richardson and their promise to develop him. This is his second time getting benched in his short career, and in my opinion, likely his last in Indianapolis. Granted, Richardson did not help himself in this process. He threw his body into unnecessary situations a couple of times, which gave him a greater risk of injury, the tap out, and what happened behind the scenes also led to the little growth we have seen so far in his two seasons. To me, though, this move to Daniel Jones isn’t about Richardson never becoming good; it’s about raising the floor of the offense for an extra couple of wins to try to save Ballard and Steichen’s jobs. I know that’s not the answer most fans want to hear, but why is their young quarterback being benched for Jones, who hasn’t been good as a starter himself, but it seems like it’s the truth. This staff is on the hot seat, especially with the team being under new ownership. The time to win has moved up and is now. In order for Ballard and Steichen to stay on the team, they need wins and a playoff berth. Which is why Steichen kept repeating that consistency was a big check for the quarterback competition. And with Richardson, you get the flashier plays, but consistent doesn’t really fit the player he currently is.
Richardson might be very bad. And I tend to agree he’s probably never going to be good. However …
he’s attempted 348 passes in his career.
Aiden O’Connell (same draft class) has 586
Will Levis has 500+It’s more about the process for me. The Colts failed at the process here https://t.co/otyxnvTXf6
— Geoff Schwartz (@geoffschwartz) August 19, 2025
Another reason why the Colts bailed on the long-term development plan of Richardson is the 2023 season. Again, they talked a lot in his rookie year about the future and helping him be more accurate. But once Richardson went down for the year with that shoulder injury against the Titans, that all changed. The back half of that year, Steichen did wonders with Gardner Minshew, who *almost* led the Colts to a playoff spot. In my opinion, this started a chain reaction where the staff felt they could be in the running for the AFC South the next season with Richardson back and healthy, and him taking the step to be the franchise quarterback. And as we know, that didn’t happen. Instead of keeping that patience they preached to the fans, after the tap out in the Texans game, they benched him for 39-year-old Joe Flacco, because he gave the team the “best chance to win right now.” And they are now doing the same with Daniel Jones, because they think it’s the best chance to win right now. They went away from looking to the future, and granted, every team in the NFL wants to win games right now, because that is the most profitable thing for them. But continuing to bench the young Richardson(who would have been the 3rd youngest QB starting week 1), who really needed reps, they keep hurting his development.
When the #Colts drafted Richardson 4th overall, Ballard preached we need to be patient with him. But then what happened after told a different story.
After the injury in 23, they benched him in 24 because Flacco would give a “better chance to win.” And now the same with Jones.
— 𝙇𝙪𝙠𝙚 𝙑𝙚𝙧𝙠𝙖𝙢𝙥 📸 (@LukeVerkamp) August 19, 2025
Steichen and Ballard really have to hope the Colts, especially the offense, come out hot to start the NFL season. They have already likely lost a lot of the fan base by making this decision, and possibly some of the veterans in that locker room who keep having to ride this quarterback carousel. Week 1 they play the Dolphins, who like the Colts, have a lot of injuries in the defensive back rooms. If the Colts lose, and Jones struggles against a weaker secondary, it will be a long week in Indianapolis. While I doubt the first year under Carlie Irsay-Gordon will result in any mid-season firings, it seems more and more likely to be a clean house after the season is over if the team doesn’t win the division or make the playoffs.
