INDIANAPOLIS — Anthony Richardson Sr. has been in a spot that feels a lot like this before.
Richardson is on the practice fields at West 56th, competing with another Colts quarterback for a job, trying to live up to the potential that convinced Indianapolis to draft him with the No. 4 pick in 2023.
But the situation Richardson is trying to navigate now is very different, and it arguably carries higher stakes than ever before. Richardson is competing for the backup job, rather than the starting spot now occupied by Daniel Jones, under the banner of a trade request that remains active as the NFL plunges headlong into the summer.
“I signed a contract, I was still on this team before the trade stuff,” Richardson said. “I’ve got an obligation to this team to come out and play, perform, be ready to play if they need me.”
Richardson finds himself competing with Riley Leonard, the 2025 sixth-round pick who surprised the Colts with his rapid development as a rookie and a better-than-expected performance starting the season finale against Houston.
Richardson’s camp tried to avoid a situation like this. When it became clear that the Colts expect Jones to be back for the season opener after tearing his Achilles tendon in December — Jones is taking part in organized team activities, throwing the ball in multiple drills and running sprints at the end of practice — Richardson’s agent, Deiric Jackson, requested a trade.
Indianapolis has spent three months looking for a trade partner.
None has materialized, leaving Richardson in an uncertain place as the league’s summer break looms in a couple of weeks. By now, nearly every team with a quarterback need has added enough arms for the practice field; the next opportunity to trade Richardson might not come until injuries strike elsewhere in the preseason.
If Richardson’s surprised that no team has been willing to pay up to take a chance on his potential, he didn’t want to show it on Wednesday.
“It’s a crazy league,” Richardson said. “A lot of crazy things happen. People get traded; Some people don’t.”
There are multiple factors complicating a potential trade of Richardson, though the $5.38 million an acquiring team would pay Richardson after trading for him is an affordable price in the backup quarterback market.
Richardson’s lengthy injury history plays a role, none looming larger than the eye injury he suffered in a freak accident with a resistance band before the team’s win over Arizona in October, the last time Richardson was active in 2026.
When he first returned to the practice field, Richardson was still experiencing issues with his vision, notably the field of vision closest to his body, and he evaded questions Wednesday about whether or not his vision has returned completely, saying only that he’s adjusted.
“I don’t know exactly when it changed, but I adjusted pretty well,” Richardson said.
The Colts tried to grant Richardson’s trade request this offseason.
Indianapolis decision-makers have spent the offseason praising Leonard’s development, saying that the Colts now believe Leonard can back up Jones in the No. 2 role. When a trade for Richardson did not materialize, the team shifted its priorities, setting up an open competition for the backup job.
“Right now, he’s here,” Indianapolis head coach Shane Steichen said. “Obviously, he hasn’t rescinded the trade (request) but he’s engaged, he’s in the meetings and he’s competing for a job.”
The Colts have split repetitions evenly so far.
With Jones still on the mend, there is an opportunity to play with the rest of the starters. Richardson took the first full-team snaps on Wednesday, but the Colts are rotating each quarterback’s chances, giving both Leonard and Richardson equal time.
“We’ll flip the reps every other day,” Steichen said.
The Colts could have told Richardson to stay away. When the team first returned to Indianapolis for the start of offseason workouts, Richardson was training elsewhere, but he reported to the Colts after no trade materialized during the draft at the end of April.
“Honestly, I just wanted to work,” Richardson said. “I was getting tired of waiting a little bit. I wanted to get back in the routine. Nothing really transpired, so my agent talked to (general manager Chris) Ballard and was like ‘We’re trying to get back to work.’”
As long as Richardson’s in the fold, the Colts plan to use him.
“There’s a potential that he could be (here this season),” Steichen said. “You never know. We’ll see how this thing plays out. I mean, we’re sitting here end of May – we’ve got June, July, August, training camp. But if you’re going to be here, everyone that’s here is going to compete.”
When a player wants a fresh start elsewhere in the NFL, there are ways to get there. A player can ask for his release; the Colts granted veteran cornerback Kenny Moore II’s request for a release earlier this summer.
Richardson did not want to take the same route.
And he has not been a distraction.
“We obviously had a great room last year, all working together, and I think we’ve picked up where we’ve left off,” Jones said. “Anthony has brought – has a great attitude, wants to help, as we all want to help each other, and I think we’ll continue to do that. He’s someone everyone enjoys being around, and he’s a great part of the room.”
Richardson is simply a player who still believes he can be a starter in the NFL, and an opportunity to be the franchise quarterback the Colts wanted ended up evaporating when Jones signed a two-year, $88 million deal this offseason.
For now, though, Richardson is competing for the No. 2 job.
“Riley’s going to push me, I’m going to push Riley,” Richardson said. “May the best man win.”
Unless an NFL team decides it wants to take a chance on a quarterback who still believes he can be a starter in this league.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Colts Anthony Richardson competing for backup QB as trade request remains active
Reporting by Joel A. Erickson, Indianapolis Star / Indianapolis Star
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
