There is no surprise about what’s happening with Anthony Richardson right now; it was bound to happen. How? In one of the early games of the 2024-25 season, he seemed ‘tired’ of playing and took himself out of the game. That led to a lack of trust—not only from fans but also from the front office of the Indianapolis Colts. However, things are starting to change as the new season approaches. Before the start of the 2025-26 season, GM Chris Ballard made it clear that he strongly believes in Richardson’s potential.

When Mike Florio of NBC was in conversation with the Colts GM, they discussed the QB position. As the starting lineup was discussed, Florio asked Ballard what expectations he had for young quarterback Anthony Richardson. Chris Ballard responded, “It’s just the consistency. I think it’s like with any young player—just game after game, day after day, the consistency of playing the position, which is hard on any young quarterback in this league. You’re seeing it.” To elaborate, he gave an example of Baker Mayfield.

The Colts GM continued, “I mean, you see what Baker went through. From Cleveland to Carolina to the Rams to Tampa.” Ballard also explained what he wanted to see with the example of Sam Darnold. He further said, “Darnold. From there, he went to the Jets, to Carolina, to the 49ers, to Minnesota, and now to Seattle. It’s when the light comes on in terms of consistency.” Anthony Richardson played only 11 games this season. And how did he perform? Not happily, but certainly below expectations.

With 14 sacks and 12 interceptions thrown, 22-year-old Richardson landed only eight touchdowns while completing 176 of 348 passes for a 47.7% completion rate. That’s not good enough. His QB rating also dropped to 47.4, where he ranks 27th among QBs in the entire league. That’s why it’s important for young QBs to focus on what the GM further said. Ballard added, “The sooner, the better. But every player’s journey is different, everybody’s developmental timeline is different. It’s the scrutiny and what the position means to a team. So, the faster it can happen, the better it is for everybody. But we don’t have a crystal ball with that.” Period.

But as the Colts GM was busy giving an interview to NBC, HC Shane Steichen dropped a crazy update for Anthony Richardson and Daniel Jones. Let’s check it out quickly.

Shane Steichen’s bold move on the QB position

Per James Boyd of The Athletic, “Head coach Shane Steichen told reporters Monday morning from the NFL’s Annual League Meeting that Richardson and Jones will split reps this offseason, starting with organized team activities.” Well, this only ends Anthony Richardson’s competition with the former Minnesota Vikings quarterback, Daniel Jones. The HC also added in the annual meeting that the franchise has not yet decided who will be the week-one starter.

One month ago, the Colts GM broke the silence and told reporters that the induction of Daniel Jones would be good for Richardson while talking up competition for the starting spot. It was expected that there would be fierce competition between the QBs, resulting in one of them locking down the starter spot. But now it looks like they may potentially have game day duties split between them.

Daniel Jones has signed a one-year contract with the Colts for $14 million. If we look at his stats from last season, his QB rating is also not far from Anthony Richardson’s. It is 47.8, and he ranks 26th in the league. In the 2024-25 season, Anthony Richardson’s competitor scored eight touchdowns and threw 7 interceptions while completing passes at a 64.1% rate.

Now, as the HC has decided to split QB reps between Anthony Richardson, Daniel Jones, and any other QB involved, they will all get enough opportunities to impress. Let’s see how this strategy works out.