Colts Quarterback Anthony Richardson Unlikely To Play vs. Browns

The Cleveland Browns have long since turned the page on Sunday's 19-17 upset victory over the San Francisco 49ers. As they prepare for Indianapolis, it seems the Colts are pretty unlikely to have rookie starting quarterback Anthony Richardson.

While the team has not officially announced it, ESPN's Stephen Holder is reporting that Colts owner Jim Irsay believes it is "likely" that Richardson will have to undergo surgery to repair his injured throwing shoulder.

Colts rookie QB Anthony Richardson is “probably” out for the rest of the season, Colts Owner Jim Irsay told @HolderStephen pic.twitter.com/H90pcHvvvX
— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) October 17, 2023

This is obviously very disappointing for Richardson and the Colts. Early on this season, he was showing so much promise and it had Colts' fans believing in their future. Then, in Week 5 vs. the Tennessee Titans, he took a big hit to his throwing shoulder that shook up his season.

The No. 4 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft suffered a Grade 3 AC Sprain. There are a couple of different options in having to deal with an injury like this. If the pain is tolerable, therapy is sometimes enough to deal with the injury.

If it is a more severe injury, the player must turn to surgery to solve the issues.

While Irsay shared that with ESPN, it is also important to note that Richardson is seeking a second, third, fourth and even a fifth opinion to find a solution for his shoulder.

For the Browns, this means that they will be squaring off against Gardner Minshew on Sunday afternoon. By no means is a matchup with Minshew a pushover, especially as he is coming off of one of his worst professional performances last Sunday in Jacksonville. He's due for a bounce-back performance.

Over his career, Minshew has a 9-17 record, completes 63.1 percent of his passes, has 47 touchdowns and 18 interceptions. The best season of his career came in 2019 when he threw for 3,271 yards, 21 touchdowns and six interceptions.

No offense should scare this version of the Cleveland Browns defense. They are the best unit in football and have a chance to be one of the best in history. In the meantime, Minshew and the Colts are their next assignment.