Some NFL folks might view Jonathan Taylor as the Indianapolis Colts player under the most pressure for the 2024 season. Michael Pittman Jr. possibly resides in that conversation as well. However, the correct answer to this question is quarterback Anthony Richardson.
Wait. Slow your roll. Let’s fact-check this assessment. Richardson enters only his second season in the NFL. He’s a young quarterback full of promise, drafted in the first round and No. 4 overall.
Plus, in four games last year he delivered the goods. He showed flashes of stardom while throwing for 577 yards and three touchdowns in four games before getting hurt. So where on this side of Mars does that put Richardson in the “most pressure” debate?
Colts QB Anthony Richardson must prove himself
First, let’s look at the ranking by indystar.com of the most essential players for the Colts in 2024. Pittman is No. 3, Taylor is No. 2, and … there he is … Richardson stands in the top spot.
OK, yes, the obvious thing is the quarterback is the most essential player on most NFL teams. But that’s mainly true only if you have an elite guy. This means Patrick Mahomes, Joe Burrow, Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson, Jalen Hurts, and Justin Herbert. If you want to squeeze C.J. Stroud and Dak Prescott in there, I get it. What about Tua Tagovailoa? Maybe.
The reason the quarterback isn't automatically the most essential player for other NFL teams is because the bar is lower. With each of those players above, it’s Super Bowl or failure. That’s the price paid for having an elite signal-caller. For the remaining two-thirds of the league, replacing a quarterback is a matter of staying competitive. It means staying in the playoff hunt instead of winning at that stage.
Since the Colts aren't legitimate Super Bowl contenders, Richardson resides in the top spot for a different reason. And it has much more to do with Richardson the player as opposed to the Colts as a team.
NFL quarterbacks get a short string to “prove it”
In the NFL, it’s a tight window for any player. Fail early and the second chance doesn’t always come around. Also, fail early and that stays with a player even when success comes.
For example, let’s say Richardson has a ho-hum season in 2024, He throws too many interceptions, or comes up lacking in the fourth quarter, or shows inconsistencies. But in this scenario, let’s say the Colts still believe in him. They draft a few weapons and everybody’s excited.
The 2025 season rolls around and the Colts win their first five games. Richardson plays well and NFL “insiders” — who are always bandwagon guys (I digress, but those guys seem to desire to be first so badly that they elevate guys before they’ve earned it) — say he’s the next Lamar Jackson. But the minute Richardson hits a slow spot, and the team loses a few games, those 2024 questions will pile out like clowns from a Volkswagen.
That’s the beauty of C.J. Stroud’s 2023 rookie season. Stroud played so well, he’s free from being questioned the first couple of times he hits a dip.
What about the injury history?
Another thing applying mental pressure to Richardson is injury. It has been said NFL stands for Not For Long, but it also stands for No Fair League. A player doesn’t have to be injury prone to get a serious setback. Last year’s shoulder injury in the first half of a Week 5 win over Tennessee put red-flag injury question marks on Richardson’s resume.
Of course, Richardson already had history with college injuries of hamstring (2021), knee (2021), and concussion (2021). And in the NFL, a Week 1 concussion against the Texans cost him two-plus games.
But here’s the really unfair thing. If Richardson gets hurt again this year, the injury tag will take years and years of healthy seasons to disappear. “Yeah, he’s good, but can he stay healthy?” would be the NFL experts’ remarks. The good news is he’s been listed as “full go” for the 2024 training camp.
Still, Richardson won’t get a lot of time to prove he belongs. The Colts stayed competitive last season and, it’s a proud franchise. There’s enough offensive talent in place to move the football. In other words, Richardson doesn’t have the excuses in place like rookie Jayden Daniels in Washington.
And remember, Richardson is still basically a rookie. He’s played four games and will have to get three-fourths of the way through this season to reach a full year’s worth.
But if the genetics rise to the surface, Richardson may erase the pressure before the season gets too far toward the middle. He’s 6-foot-4 and 244 pounds, a beast of a quarterback with a 4.43 time in the 40 and a 40.5 vertical leap at his disposal. Questions remain about his accuracy, and that will have to get better than last year’s 59.5% if he wants to be a star. Because in the NFL, no matter the athlete it often comes down to threading that tight window with the game on the line.
The pressure clock starts ticking for Richardson on Sept. 8 against those same Texans.
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