Stephen Holder, ESPN
HOUSTON — Indianapolis Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson wasn’t on the sector for a late-third-quarter play in a sport wherein his crew trailed by two scores and later misplaced.
Curiously, Richardson was on the sideline not as a result of he was harm however, relatively, as a result of he was exhausted.
The second-year quarterback exited the sport after scrambling round furiously on the earlier two performs in opposition to the Houston Texans’ protection. On a second-and-goal play from the Houston 23-yard line, Richardson shook off a would-be sack from defensive deal with Folorunso Fatukasi earlier than turning up the sector and in search of a goal. Richardson ended up conserving the ball and was finally tackled by linebacker Jake Hansen for no acquire.
Richardson bought up slowly and headed to the close by Colts sideline, tapping his helmet whereas in route. On the sideline, he instantly took a knee.
“I used to be drained,” he mentioned. “I ain’t gonna lie. That was numerous working proper there. I did not assume I used to be going to have the ability to go that subsequent play, so I simply informed [Colts coach] Shane [Steichen] I simply wanted a break proper there.”
Richardson’s departure from the sport initially raised questions on whether or not he had sustained an damage. Earlier within the sport, he took successful that impacted his left hand and was seen flexing it on the sideline. However athletic trainers who checked on him didn’t seem like treating an damage and appeared glad that he was effective.
“He wanted a breather,” Steichen mentioned. “He ran thrice in a row and it was third and lengthy, so we had been going at hand the ball off.”
Backup quarterback Joe Flacco entered the sport and did, the truth is, hand off to working again Jonathan Taylor on a third-and-goal from the 23. Taylor gained 5 yards, and the Colts settled for a 37-yard area aim, trimming Houston’s result in 20-13. The Texans finally gained 23-20.
The unusual string of occasions is barely going to accentuate the discourse round Richardson, whose season-long struggles have been a weekly problem for the Colts to navigate. The fourth decide within the 2023 draft, Richardson has accomplished 44.4% of his go makes an attempt on the season after Sunday’s 10-for-32, 175-yard effort.
Sunday’s pivotal AFC South matchup — a win would have given the Colts a share of the division lead with Houston — as an alternative grew to become one other referendum on Richardson’s future with Indianapolis.
Richardson’s ability gamers let him down repeatedly within the sport, with working again Tyler Goodson dropping an ideal landing go and a Michael Pittman Jr. penalty negating one other would-be Richardson landing throw. Richardson was pressured on 17 of his 32 dropbacks within the sport, which suggests some safety points.
However the dialog is prone to heart on the efficiency of Richardson, regardless of his career-long 69-yard landing go to receiver Josh Downs.
After displaying flashes of his vital expertise within the 4 video games he performed in 2023 earlier than struggling a season-ending shoulder damage, Richardson has arguably skilled regression in 2024. For his half, Richardson rejected that narrative.
“I really feel like I am an excellent passer,” he mentioned. “I have been enjoying quarterback just about my entire life. I am only a totally different quarterback from everyone else, so individuals are going to attempt to level out that I am not as environment friendly as everyone else. But it surely’s cool to me. I run the ball means higher than each different quarterback. In all probability not Lamar [Jackson], however [better] than most quarterbacks. So, I make the most of my alternatives.”
Richardson did have 45 speeding yards on six carries Sunday, however solely two of his rushes had been designed runs. That paled compared to the seven he had in a win over the Miami Dolphins final week.
So, what’s subsequent for Richardson? The Colts have resisted the concept of beginning Flacco since Richardson returned from a two-game absence due to an indirect damage. However questions on Richardson usually are not prone to subside.
“We preserve working by the method,” Steichen mentioned. “It is a course of. We preserve grinding by it. We do it collectively. It is a crew sport. We grind by these issues and we get it found out.”
