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The Indianapolis Colts' quarterback battle during training camp has come to an end, with new addition Daniel Jones surprisingly winning the starting job over Anthony Richardson. That came as a surprise to many, but the former top five pick seems to be on the outs in Indianapolis.
Richardson is entering his third season and has played in just 15 games over his first two years. while the production has been up-and-down at best and downright terrible at worst, the Florida product came into the league as a project quarterback with a high ceiling that was going to need some time to develop and get over those growing pains.
Now, the Colts are taking that opportunity away from Richardson at the start of this season and going with Jones instead, who is looking to revive his career after parting ways with the New York Giants during the 2024 season. The Duke product hasn't lived up to his billing as a former top 10 pick so far in his career, but he has clearly made a strong impression on Shane Steichen and the rest of his staff at training camp and during the preseason.
This current regime of Chris Ballard and Steichen made a big bet on Richardson, and for now it seems like they are folding their cards on the young quarterback.
Even if Jones is able to produce something close to his best football, that feels like it would be middling quarterback play at best. That won't be enough to get a Colts roster that has a lot of holes to where it wants to go, so Richardson could get called back into action at some point.
Let's look at the Colts' schedule and see when the youngster could finally get back on the field as the starter in Indianapolis.
Look for Anthony Richardson to take over in Week 8
With Jones playing in Steichen's system for the first time this season, he will likely get a bit of a longer leash to start the season while he gets comfortable and gains familiarity with the ins and outs of the system.
However, that doesn't mean that he will make it through the entire season. Jones has shown time and time again that the lows in his inconsistent game are far too low to justify the patches of steady play, especially when the highs are not very high. The Giants didn't give him a great ecosystem to succeed, but he is hardly playing with an All-Star cast in Indianapolis either.
The biggest thing that has haunted Jones over the course of his career are the turnovers. He has thrown 47 interceptions and fumbled the ball 50 times in just six seasons while playing in only 70 games, so it's clear that opposing defenses can take advantage of that when he is in the game.
Jones will make his first start for Indianapolis at home against the Miami Dolphins before getting thrown to the Wolves in Week 2 against the Denver Broncos. Jones and the Indianapolis offense will likely have a very difficult time with a Denver defense that could be the best in football this fall, but Steichen certainly wouldn't pull the rip cord after just two games.
Fast forward a few weeks, and the Colts have to take on a frisky Arizona Cardinals squad in Week 6. A loss in that game would likely have them below .500 heading into a road clash in Week 7 against the Los Angeles Chargers.
The Chargers don't have one of the most talented defenses in the NFL, but they still had one of the most efficient units in football last season thanks in part to new defensive coordinator Jesse Minter. Los Angeles will mix it up even more in year two playing in Minter's complicated scheme and could cause problems for Jones.
Let's say Jones has a couple of turnovers against a very good defense in Los Angeles and the Colts fall to 2-5 through seven games. In that case, Steichen could choose to go back to Richardson before a Week 8 clash with the Tennessee Titans.
Richardson would get to come in and play against a divisional opponent that he is familiar with in his first start of the season against an opponent that the Colts will have already game-planned for back in Week 3. He would then have to make a start against the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Atlanta Falcons before getting a bye week to rest and reset.
Ultimately, Jones is probably the safer option for this Colts squad at this point. However, Richardson is still the player that gives them the highest ceiling, and this roster isn't going to win a Super Bowl as constructed anyway. At some point, this regime needs a final answer on whether Richardson can be the guy to lead them to those heights, and they need it before next summer hits.
Putting the third-year quarterback out there in Week 8 would allow them to get that answer one way or another.
