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Indianapolis Colts head coach Shane Steichen has confirmed Joe Flacco will replace Anthony Richardson as the starting quarterback, while also indicating this isn’t merely a temporary move for the team.
Steichen opened his Wednesday press conference announcing that Flacco will be the starter “going forward” because they believe that will give them the best chance to win, but they’re “not giving up on Anthony by any means.”
When asked directly if Richardson would start again for the Colts, Steichen was non-committal in his response.
Richardson caused a stir in the third quarter of Sunday’s loss to the Houston Texans when he subbed himself out for a play following a scramble that resulted in him being tackled at the line of scrimmage.
The second-year quarterback admitted after the game he checked himself out because he was tired.
That comment set off a firestorm of reactions from current and former players. Colts center and captain Ryan Kelly said he had a conversation with Richardson about the situation.
Former linebacker Luke Kuechly spoke about how Cam Newton used to play when they were teammates for the Carolina Panthers.
Another problem that the Colts had is they’ve seen what the offense looks like with Flacco compared to Richardson. The 39-year-old started back-to-back games in Weeks 5 and 6 when Richardson was out with an oblique injury.
The Colts went 1-1 in those Flacco starts, with the offense scoring a total of 54 points and putting up 716 yards. He completed 67 percent of his attempts with five touchdowns and one interception.
Richardson’s only game this season with a completion percentage over 50 percent was in Week 4 when he only attempted four passes before injury his oblique against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
It can certainly be argued that benching the 22-year-old Richardson, who has just 10 starts under his belt in the NFL, is not in the best long-term interest of the Colts. They invested the No. 4 overall pick in the 2023 draft on him based on his immense physical tools.
While Flacco isn’t going to be a permanent solution to the Colts, there is proof that he’s capable of running the offense at a higher level than they were getting from Richardson.
Being able to step away from the spotlight for however long this change lasts might end up being the best thing for Richardson.
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