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Things have not gone according to plan over the last few seasons for the Indianapolis Colts, and now they enter a pivotal year for a lot of important figures in the franchise in 2025. General manager Chris Ballard, head coach Shane Steichen and quarterback Anthony Richardson all have a lot at stake heading into this fall and the tension is palpable at training camp.
Of course, all eyes are on Richardson coming into the season after a relatively disappointing first two NFL seasons since he was drafted No. 4 back in the 2023 draft. Those struggles have been partly caused by injury, but issues with consistency and accuracy have also plagued him throughout his first two years.
This offseason, the Colts brought in longtime New York Giants starter Daniel Jones to compete with Richardson in camp. Richardson will get the start for Indianapolis in its first preseason game, while Jones will start the second as the battle rages.
While Jones is a good fit with Steichen's system on paper, the possibility of him starting is the biggest reason for Colts fans to be freaking out before the preseason gets underway.
Why Colts fans should be rooting for Anthony Richardson in QB battle
All Colts fans should be fully on board with Anthony Richardson winning the quarterback competition in training camp and starting the year as the starter, and there are a few reasons for that.
The first, and move obvious reason for that, is the ceiling. Jones has shown what he is during his career with the Giants, and his ceiling is realistically an average starter at the moment if he was put in a perfect situation (which the Indianapolis offense is not). He has never made a Pro Bowl and even his best season, in 2022, saw him throw for just 3,205 yards and 15 touchdowns with five interceptions while Saquon Barkley did the heavy lifting for the Giants offense on the ground.
For all of his inconsistencies, Richardson is the opposite of Jones in that way. If things click for the Florida product, you can see how the Colts' offense may explode with him running the show. His ability to run the football, especially as a power runner in short-yardage situations, would make Indianapolis very difficult to stop on late downs and near the end zone. He also has the ability to be a game-breaking scrambler with great speed and escapability due to his size and strength.
Richardson also has incredible arm talent and can make any throw on the field, which would help the Colts stretch defenses vertically and open up more opportunities in the run game. His processing took a step back in year two, but it was one of his most promising traits as a rookie.
More importantly, Colts fans should be rooting for Richardson to be the starter because of what it means if he isn't. This regime in Indianapolis invested a lot in him and has banked its future on him becoming the franchise guy.
Making the decision to start Jones would be an admission that the Colts were wrong about Richardson, which is about the worst thing that the Colts could do. Punting on a top-five pick at quarterback in year three in favor of a stopgap veteran would be a catastrophic admission that almost certainly would signify the end of this regime's time in charge.
Not only do the Colts want Richardson to succeed and be the starter, they need him to work out and become that guy for them, preferably this season. Jones should be on the team as a backup in case Richardson's persistent injury issues continue to pop up and the Duke product is needed to make some spot starts.
If not, the Colts are looking at another full-scale rebuild and another quest to find their quarterback of the future. Richardson would likely be off the team by next season if he is beaten out by Jones in camp, which is not good for anyone involved in Indianapolis.
