The Indianapolis Colts will be making yet another change at the quarterback position this week. After the early-season struggles of Anthony Richardson, the team turned to veteran Joe Flacco to lead their offense over the past two weeks.
But Flacco failed to regain the magic that he showed during a playoff push in Cleveland last year. The Colts were defeated in his two most recent starts, which saw him throw a combined four interceptions to just two touchdowns, while getting sacked seven times and losing two fumbles to bring his turnover total to 6.
Colts Name Anthony Richardson The Starter Going Forward
And so it will be Anthony Richardson going forward. Colts head coach Shane Steichen made the announcement on Wednesday that the younger quarterback will be the one taking the snaps this Sunday when his team travels to New York to take on the Jets, and Indianapolis will be hoping for far better results this time around.
Per Coach Steichen, Anthony Richardson will start at QB in Week 11. pic.twitter.com/iwLCNxQ0M5
— Indianapolis Colts (@Colts) November 13, 2024
Richardson’s shortcomings were heavily discussed at the time of his benching. During a game against the Houston Texans back in October, the 22-year-old was seen asking to be pulled from the game due to fatigue, and was widely criticized for his apparent lack of conditioning.
Steichen touched on the thought process that led to the benching of the second year quarterback during his announcement:
“The classrooms, the walkthroughs, the practice, the weight room, all those little things just got to be at a higher standard. That’s what was talked about and that’s where we went with it. That was discussed with him two weeks ago. Those were the conversations that took place. Over the last two weeks he’s made strides in those areas. Big-time strides. Becoming a pro’s pro.”
It appears the Richardson has responded to the heavy criticism, at least according to his coach. Coming out of the University of Florida, it was known that Richardson would have some things to work on in order to be successful at the next level. He had the impressive physical skills, but struggled with things like accuracy and reading defenses.
But based on Steichen’s comments, it appears that the youngster wasn’t giving his improvement his full attention. It was all brought to a head when Richardson asked out of the Texans game, and he has apparently shown enough improvement behind the scenes in order to earn his job back.
Does Indy Have A Chance At The Postseason?
Heading into Week 11, the Colts are 4-6 and very much alive in the AFC playoff picture. They are currently in second place in the AFC South, but are a full two games back of Houston and have given up the rights to the tie-breaker thus far. According to ESPN’s projections, Indianapolis has a 27% chance of qualifying for the postseason.
The Colts will enter Sunday’s game in New York as the underdog, with the Jets being listed at -2.5 as of mid-week. Luckily for them, they have the second-softest remaining schedule in the entire NFL, with their final 7 opponents combining for a current winning percentage of 36.8%.
