Colts QB Anthony Richardson Sr. is Focused on Making the Most of His Situation

The Indianapolis Colts are entering their second consecutive summer with a quarterback battle that'll feature Anthony Richardson Sr.

This time, however, he'll be competing for the backup role instead of the starting spot.

Last summer, no doubt, showcased a new and improved Anthony Richardson, but it still wasn't enough to convince head coach Shane Steichen that he was the right guy for the job. As evidenced by his decision to name Daniel Jones the starter for Week 1 last season, the Colts' coaching staff ultimately chose to put all of their eggs in Jones's basket.

This resulted in a historic start to the season, with Steichen and Co.'s offense posting record-level efficiency rates. Still, even before Jones went down for the year with his Achilles tear in Week 14, it was Richardson who sustained a season-ending injury without even playing a snap.

Richardson fractured his orbital bone in Week 6 of last season after a freak situation involving an elastic band went wrong in pre-game warm-ups. He would require surgery and soon thereafter was placed on injured reserve, though he did come back briefly at the end of last season to get some practice reps in.

Second-year quarterback Riley Leonard is viewed as the de facto QB2 under Daniel Jones moving forward based on his late-season experience as a rookie in 2025, which saw Leonard fill in nicely as a reliable relief pitcher out of the bullpen.

This development resulted in Anthony Richardson's days in Indianapolis feeling numbered. He'd quickly gone from competing for the starting job to being penciled in as the team's QB3 entering the final year of his rookie deal, resulting in a trade request earlier this offseason from him and his camp.

After nothing materialized for the next couple of months, Richardson decided it was best to play out his contract with the team that originally took a shot on him -- with the fourth overall pick no less -- as he focuses on bettering himself in the meantime.

Even though the backup role feels like Riley Leonard's to lose, Richardson is not going down without a fight. More than anything, he's just glad to be back in the mix, physically and mentally.

“Excited to be back playing football so I’m feeling good," Richardson said after the second practice of OTAs.

Despite being physically cleared almost six months ago, concerns with limitations in Richardson's vision persisted throughout the offseason. After seeing what he's been able to do in limited reps thus far in OTAs, it appears his vision is the closest to normal it's been since the injury occurred.

“Yeah, everything is smooth," Richardson said of how his eye's feeling and his vision overall. “It’s good. I’m out there throwing the football nice. They cleared me last year, so everything is smooth.”

Even though the Colts welcomed him back with open arms after trade talks fell through, Anthony Richardson expressed that he didn't coming back was awkward and furthermore, felt obligated to make the best out of his situation.

“I don’t think so. I signed a contract so I’m still on this team regardless before the trade stuff," Richardson explained.

"I’ve got an obligation to this team to come out here and play and perform and be ready to play if they need me. I don’t think it’s weird or awkward."

Even though Richardson has rejoined the team, he has not officially rescinded the trade request, so he still can technically be traded anytime before the 2026 regular-season trade deadline arrives.

But instead of hoping to impress potential suitors throughout the summer, Richardson is focused on making the most of his situation.

“I’m not really focused on that right now," Richardson said on whether he'd still like a trade. "I’m here right now. I’m just trying to make sure I’m staying healthy and keeping everything up there in the mind sharp.”

Richardson was asked to peel the curtain back a touch and further explain what led him to rejoining the team after publicly wanting out. Is essence, he's not only healthy now but he's hungry to work and continue his development.

“Honestly, man I just wanted to work," Richardson explained.

"I was just getting tired of waiting a little bit and I just wanted to get back right into the routine. Nothing really transpired with that, so my agent talked to (Chris) Ballard and was like, ‘We’re trying to get back to work.’”

The Anthony Richardson experiment in Indianapolis may have been a rollercoaster, to say the least, but at least for the player, he's still got everything in front of him.

It's undeniably been a rocky, uninspiring start to his career, but Richardson just turned 24 years old last week and has now seen plenty of dos and don'ts to make himself the next installment of successful reclamation projects wave that NFL has cultivated in recent years.

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