Colts' Anthony Richardson Places Dead Last in NFL QB Rankings

The Indianapolis Colts are entering a new quarterback era, but do not rank highly in a recent list of all 32 NFL starting quarterbacks.

In a recent ranking for every starting quarterback in the league, Sam Monson of Pro Football Focus was not afraid to place the “unknown” of Indianapolis Colts QB Anthony Richardson in play for his “PFF Quarterback Rankings.” 

In his ranking, Richardson places last behind signal-callers like the Washington Commanders’ Sam Howell (27th), the Houston Texans' C.J. Stroud (30th), and the Atlanta Falcons’ Desmond Ridder (31st). Let’s look at Monson’s explanation for the rank of Richardson:

Richardson wasn’t even a particularly good college quarterback last season in the SEC. His overall PFF grade came in at 80.3, which ranked 38th in the nation and was being propped up by his rushing ability — something that will need to continue in the NFL. The good news for him is that he landed with a head coach who just executed this development arc with Jalen Hurts. Richardson will need to rely on the limitless athleticism that saw him average 7.4 yards per carry last season while he develops as a passer

While it might sound harsh, Monson isn’t wrong here. In college, Richardson wasn’t the most impressive as far as his passing numbers in 2022. Through 12 total games, he put together 176-of-327 (53%) for 2,549 yards, 17 touchdowns, and nine interceptions. Richardson did a lot of the offensive damage he supplied on the ground, rushing 103 times for 654 yards and nine touchdowns, totaling 26 on the year.

Richardson ranking last is a fair assessment. Even Ridder and Stroud have fewer question marks than Richardson, despite being a sophomore NFL QB who has limited experience and a rookie, respectively. This is something that the Colts knew going in, picking him up with the No.4 pick in the NFL draft. General manager Chris Ballard even stated at his press conference when asked about the pick that “we drafted him for what he can become.”

Richardson doesn’t have a lot of playing experience, and if this is his biggest issue, repetition is the answer for it. Getting him acclimated to NFL speed and coverages sooner, rather than later, will get him the precious reps he needs at the toughest position to play in the game.

As Monson also mentions, Richardson is with the QB guru Shane Steichen. As has been exhausted, Steichen molded Jalen Hurts into an MVP candidate with a great running attack and multiple downfield shots. Steichen also assembled a true fit coaching staff for Richardson’s skills and development. Offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter and QB coach Cam Turner will help smooth out the rough edges in his passing mechanics. This makes a great fit and scenario for Richardson to succeed and potentially jump up the ranking either mid-season or in 2024.

It’s too early to tell how Richardson can rank. With such a limited sample size and other, more experienced rookie/sophomore QBs it’s understandable why he won’t edge them out in a pre-season ranking contest for the position.

But, if Steichen can implement a rushing attack that allows Richardson to thrive with his feet while getting him better at the fundamentals of being an NFL passer, it could be a surprising eruption of offense in Indianapolis in 2023 that nobody is expecting.

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