Sunday brought another rollercoaster of a start for second-year quarterback Anthony Richardson with the Indianapolis Colts.
Playing against the Houston Texans in a battle for the lead in the AFC South, Richardson was wildly inaccurate even by his standards and at one point was 2-of-15 passing. One of those completions was a long touchdown pass to Josh Downs, further giving credence to Richardson's developing reputation as one of the most extreme boom-or-bust players to ever take the field.
In the second half, Richardson had the Colts' offense in scoring position while down by 10 points. On second-and-goal he was taken down at the line of scrimmage and appeared to get hurt, subbing himself out for third-and-goal from the Texans' 23-yard line. The former Florida Gators star has dealt with numerous injuries already in his young career so the audience was left to assume he'd gotten banged up again. Richardson has missed two games this season already due to an oblique injury.
That was not the case. As Richardson knelt and watched his team attempt to score a touchdown, the CBS broadcast revealed the Colts said Richardson had subbed himself out because he was "out of breath" and for no other reason. This did not sit well with many fans, especially former Colt Pat McAfee, who called out the second-year quarterback on X.
"I had never seen an NFL QB tap out while still being healthy until watching Anthony Richardson," McAfee wrote. "The QB is your franchise. The message it sends is loud and influential."
I had never seen an NFL QB tap out while still being healthy until watching Anthony Richardson.. The QB is your franchise. The message it sends is loud and influential.
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) October 27, 2024
After Richardson returned to the field and later led the Colts on a touchdown drive, McAfee followed up.
UPDATE: Team official said he was “out of breath” (it’s week 8 of the season)
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) October 27, 2024
He would return the next series and lead the Colts to a touchdown..
🗣🗣 THAT’S AR FOOTBALL BABY pic.twitter.com/PYRd4yy9nI
He's not wrong. We see many types of players, like defensive linemen and wide receivers, sub out to catch their breath all the time. We never see it happen with quarterbacks. They are just too important and usually aren't running dozens of yards at a time, to sub out for the mere reason of catching their breath. Not Richardson, apparently.
A very strange sequence for the young quarterback.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Pat McAfee Calls Out Anthony Richardson Over Leaving Colts Game for Being 'Out of Breath'.
