Will Anthony Richardson “Pull a Sam Darnold” and Become a Star Somewhere Else?
January 8, 2026
Will Anthony Richardson “Pull a Sam Darnold” and Become a Star Somewhere Else?
29 comments
I hope so.
Will Anthony Richardson have more passing yards than our punter next year? (He didn’t this year)
Needs more than a one year sample to find out. 2024 can’t be it for him
I want the kid to be successful. I really do. He just needs to get his head on straight somewhere else.
Unfortunately, the mental hurdle is only half the battle. He also has to stop being made of glass, which seems to be really hard to do for some reason.
Steichen has literally turned two historically bad to mediocre QBs into serviceable/good, with Minshew/Jones. AR couldn’t develop because he can’t stay healthy and doesn’t appear to want to do the work to be a pro. If he turns a corner on health and effort, sure he can be a stud. But he’s yet to turn that corner with us and I don’t think it’s a coaching issue.
He has to stay healthy for anything to work. That is his biggest downfall is he cannot gain experience if he is injured so frequently. His NFL comp was Newton, and he is nowhere near that tough.
As for his talent, there is evidence that he can make every NFL throw. There are plenty of throws that are tight window, on target throws. And there are plenty that are off target. If he can tighten that up and stay healthy, he has a shot.
No. He doesn’t have “it”.
He’s a young as QBs coming out in this draft. I’ll be rooting for him wherever he lands. Hopefully a situation without dysfunction.
Probably not but it’s not impossible. His issues same to be with reading the field and putting touch on the passes.
I do think new scenery would help. But I think the way more likely scenario is pull a Malik Willis where he is a backup who shows drastic improvement and probably gets a second chance as a starter more so than an NFL star
He’ll never stay healthy long enough. His body is made of kleenex and broken glass.
Bro can’t stay healthy while riding the bench. So no
No lmao easy ass question
With our luck, yes
If he learns to throw an accurate 5 yard out, sure.
He might be able to pull a Terrelle Pryor if he’s got hands, I have no faith he’ll ever be a good nfl starting qb
No
The only issue I see with this is that Sam Darnold always had the tools and traits of a good QB and Anthony Richardson fucking sucks and does not
Dude seems to have a heart of gold and be a good guy, but he definitely needs a reset somewhere else. Also as some other commenter said, he needs to be actually able to stay on the field. Shoulder injury ended his rookie season, then he was in and out in year 2 where he tapped out, and benched in year 3 where he still had a freak accident and ended in IR.
It feels like when guys have resurgences it is because a flaw gets fixed with either something physically/mechanically they have wrong or they regain confidence that they didn’t have at the last place. It feels like Sam just needed to get on a roll and rebuild confidence, he was never a truly bad QB.
The problem with AR is neither of those things. It’s a disconnect between processing and execution. It seems like a lot of times he actually makes the right read but he can’t make the accompanying throw. He sails it or throws it into the dirt. I don’t know how you fix that. You can only simplify the playbook so much.
He needs to go someplace where he can actually be developed. This team did nothing to help him. He had no business starting his rookie year,He wasn’t anywhere mentally ready for that role
No he can’t read a defense
I don’t think so, he doesn’t have enough experience and reps. He can’t read an NFL defense. He’s a physically gifted specimen, but is very green. Someone on this colts forum posted the ‘war room’s’ reaction when they drafted him. None of them looked too happy about it, I’m not sure we draft him if Irsay doesn’t force his hand
Not a chance
This is being written while he is still under contract with the Colts who may need him next season. I think that’s all you need to know.
No
I highly doubt it. He has shown that he is either unwilling or unable to learn basic QB skills involving footwork and progressions. He wants to just “wing it” but that doesn’t work against NFL caliber defenses. That’s the fundamental problem that doesn’t even speak to his inability to be available to play.
It would surprise me. Kid has a bazooka and some great physical traits.
Also now has a noted injury history, noted poor throwing mechanics, and shockingly poor accuracy for an NFL QB. He has A LOT to fix before he’s a starting caliber guy.
That one throw to pierce will live forever in my mind.
Unpopular opinion but I hope he stays and develops into a star for us. As long as he is okay being a backup and learning he’s young enough for us to keep and turn into a star. He has all the physical skills, now it’s about honing his mental skills and techniques.
Wasn’t Sam Darnold an elite thrower of the ball in college?
29 comments
I hope so.
Will Anthony Richardson have more passing yards than our punter next year? (He didn’t this year)
Needs more than a one year sample to find out. 2024 can’t be it for him
I want the kid to be successful. I really do. He just needs to get his head on straight somewhere else.
Unfortunately, the mental hurdle is only half the battle. He also has to stop being made of glass, which seems to be really hard to do for some reason.
Steichen has literally turned two historically bad to mediocre QBs into serviceable/good, with Minshew/Jones. AR couldn’t develop because he can’t stay healthy and doesn’t appear to want to do the work to be a pro. If he turns a corner on health and effort, sure he can be a stud. But he’s yet to turn that corner with us and I don’t think it’s a coaching issue.
He has to stay healthy for anything to work. That is his biggest downfall is he cannot gain experience if he is injured so frequently. His NFL comp was Newton, and he is nowhere near that tough.
As for his talent, there is evidence that he can make every NFL throw. There are plenty of throws that are tight window, on target throws. And there are plenty that are off target. If he can tighten that up and stay healthy, he has a shot.
No. He doesn’t have “it”.
He’s a young as QBs coming out in this draft. I’ll be rooting for him wherever he lands. Hopefully a situation without dysfunction.
Probably not but it’s not impossible. His issues same to be with reading the field and putting touch on the passes.
I do think new scenery would help. But I think the way more likely scenario is pull a Malik Willis where he is a backup who shows drastic improvement and probably gets a second chance as a starter more so than an NFL star
He’ll never stay healthy long enough. His body is made of kleenex and broken glass.
Bro can’t stay healthy while riding the bench. So no
No lmao easy ass question
With our luck, yes
If he learns to throw an accurate 5 yard out, sure.
He might be able to pull a Terrelle Pryor if he’s got hands, I have no faith he’ll ever be a good nfl starting qb
No
The only issue I see with this is that Sam Darnold always had the tools and traits of a good QB and Anthony Richardson fucking sucks and does not
Dude seems to have a heart of gold and be a good guy, but he definitely needs a reset somewhere else. Also as some other commenter said, he needs to be actually able to stay on the field. Shoulder injury ended his rookie season, then he was in and out in year 2 where he tapped out, and benched in year 3 where he still had a freak accident and ended in IR.
It feels like when guys have resurgences it is because a flaw gets fixed with either something physically/mechanically they have wrong or they regain confidence that they didn’t have at the last place. It feels like Sam just needed to get on a roll and rebuild confidence, he was never a truly bad QB.
The problem with AR is neither of those things. It’s a disconnect between processing and execution. It seems like a lot of times he actually makes the right read but he can’t make the accompanying throw. He sails it or throws it into the dirt. I don’t know how you fix that. You can only simplify the playbook so much.
He needs to go someplace where he can actually be developed. This team did nothing to help him. He had no business starting his rookie year,He wasn’t anywhere mentally ready for that role
No he can’t read a defense
I don’t think so, he doesn’t have enough experience and reps. He can’t read an NFL defense. He’s a physically gifted specimen, but is very green. Someone on this colts forum posted the ‘war room’s’ reaction when they drafted him. None of them looked too happy about it, I’m not sure we draft him if Irsay doesn’t force his hand
Not a chance
This is being written while he is still under contract with the Colts who may need him next season. I think that’s all you need to know.
No
I highly doubt it. He has shown that he is either unwilling or unable to learn basic QB skills involving footwork and progressions. He wants to just “wing it” but that doesn’t work against NFL caliber defenses. That’s the fundamental problem that doesn’t even speak to his inability to be available to play.
It would surprise me. Kid has a bazooka and some great physical traits.
Also now has a noted injury history, noted poor throwing mechanics, and shockingly poor accuracy for an NFL QB. He has A LOT to fix before he’s a starting caliber guy.
That one throw to pierce will live forever in my mind.
Unpopular opinion but I hope he stays and develops into a star for us. As long as he is okay being a backup and learning he’s young enough for us to keep and turn into a star. He has all the physical skills, now it’s about honing his mental skills and techniques.
Wasn’t Sam Darnold an elite thrower of the ball in college?