When the Indianapolis Colts made quarterback Anthony Richardson the fourth pick of the 2023 NFL Draft, expectations were off the charts that, with Richardson’s skill set, he could almost immediately be Version 2.0 of Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson or former NFL star Cam Newton. Blessed with a rare combination of elite foot speed and arm strength, it was clear that Richardson was going to be the starter on Day 1 and the atmosphere was going to change for the Colts.
Indianapolis had witnessed a quarterback turnstile since the abrupt retirement of franchise cornerstone Andrew Luck after the 2018 season. After five years of change, the belief was the ugly ride was coming to a stop with the arrival of Richardson.
Unfortunately, his rookie season lasted just two full games and parts of two others. Richardson was knocked out of his first two divisional tilts – Week 2 against the Houston and Week 4 vs. Tennessee, when he sustained a season-ending shoulder injury that required surgery, putting his dynamic rookie campaign on hold.
