Indianapolis Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson got off to a strong start to his rookie season, completing 30 of his first 47 passes for 279 yards, one touchdown and an interception, while adding 75 yards and three additional scores on the ground. But a concussion forced him to miss about a game and a half before he returned in Week 4.
He then lasted just another game and a half before suffering what ended up being a season-ending shoulder injury. Richardson has been rehabbing the shoulder ever since, and according to Colts coach Shane Steichen, he is progressing well in that process.
“He’s in a really good spot,” Steichen said Tuesday. “Had really good discussions that I’ll obviously keep private, but he’s in a really good spot. His shoulder is feeling good. He should be good to go for practices like we talked about earlier. He will be out there throwing, but we’ll limit — we’ll obviously monitor it, make sure we’re smart with that but he’s in a really good place.”
Richardson has outrageous athleticism and showed the ability to make plays with both his arm and his legs during his short time on the field as a rookie, but obviously injuries were a significant factor in his first year. He has to get himself healthy and back on the field, but from the Colts’ perspective, the good news is he doesn’t have to do any catching up when it comes to the offensive system he’ll be in during his sophomore season, because Steichen and his staff are the ones who brought him in.
“It’s not new for him,” Steichen said. “He’s heard the terminology. Going through those meetings right now, going through it, quizzing and he’s all over it. We’ve got a good foundation going into this offseason and going into the season. So, it’s been good.”
Richardson finished his shortened rookie season with 577 passing yards, three touchdowns and one interception. He also racked up 136 rushing yards and four touchdowns on 25 carries (5.4 per attempt) across parts of four games.
The Colts brought back Richardson’s No. 1 target in Michael Pittman, and still have Alec Pierce, Josh Downs and a cadre of tight ends available to him as well. They’re expected to potentially add help along the offensive line and in the pass-catching corps in the draft, and that could potentially help take Richardson’s game to the next level.
