Following offseason programs, where does the Indianapolis Colts’ quarterback competition between Daniel Jones and Anthony Richardson now stand?
Following offseason programs, where does the Indianapolis Colts’ quarterback competition between Daniel Jones and Anthony Richardson now stand?
James Boyd, who covers the Colts for The Athletic, recently weighed in, saying that Jones has taken a “significant lead.”
“Daniel Jones is QB1 (for now),” wrote Boyd. “The Colts signed the ex-Giants/Vikings quarterback in free agency to challenge Anthony Richardson for the QB1 title in Indy, and Jones has already taken a significant lead in what was supposed to be a wide-open quarterback competition.”
Richardson would aggravate the same shoulder that he had surgically repaired during his rookie season. This forced him to miss most of OTAs and all of minicamp, which led to Jones taking just about all of the first-team reps during that span. And as head coach Shane Steichen put it, he was “very pleased” with what he saw from Jones.
Given that Jones took all of those first-team reps while Richardson was sidelined, it’s certainly not unreasonable to think that he has established a lead in this competition.
However, the competition is far from over. The Colts want this battle to take place, and what happens in late May and early June won’t dictate who starts in Week 1. With that said, with Richardson simply having fewer opportunities upon his return, he will have to hit the ground running.
Richardson recently spoke about his injury and mentioned that he will be ready to go for training camp. What remains to be seen is whether or not he will be a full-go on Day 1, with Steichen saying that when Richardson does return, the team will “ease him back into the throwing” after the time off.
As Steichen said earlier this offseason, the most consistent quarterback will be the one who wins the job. Steichen hasn’t put a timeline on making this decision either.