Anthony Richardson's benching goes far beyond his game: 'A fascinating management dilemma'

The Indianapolis Colts' decision to replace young franchise quarterback Anthony Richardson with 39-year-old Joe Flacco offers a glimpse into a poorly understood NFL world.

On the face of it, the decision makes no sense as Richardson has only started 10 games, including six this season, and the fluctuations in his play were predictable. When Richardson was drafted at No. 4 in 2023, the organization at every level knew he would alternate between sensational plays and confusing plays and hopefully figure out how to play the position after starting just 13 games in college.

The team has a 5-5 record in Richardson's starts, better than the 4-6 average of the last 130 quarterbacks who made their first 10 starts, according to TruMedia. Richardson's 10-game stats mirror those of Buffalo Bills star Josh Allen to the same point in Allen's career.

These seemingly logical touchstones distract from the reality facing the Colts. They are not important parts of the equation Indianapolis is trying to solve.

“What a fascinating management dilemma it is,” said a former manager of one of the Colts’ division rivals.

After Richardson withdrew from the team's Week 8 game against the Houston Texans, casually stating afterward that he was tired and needed a breather, the organization was faced with an agonizing decision: bench Richardson or add even more credibility Losing to a locker room that already knows With Flacco in the lineup, the offense runs more efficiently.

Seemingly every former NFL coach and player with a platform has commented on how deeply unbelievable it was for an NFL quarterback, as the face of the franchise, to casually take a break in the middle of a highly competitive divisional game.

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“I can't imagine at all that you want to come out of a game,” said Damien Woody, a former offensive lineman with 12 years of experience, in his role as an ESPN analyst.

Woody's reaction, and many others like it, reflect long-established NFL sensibilities that Richardson may only now be beginning to understand.

“That position, rightly or wrongly, defines your entire team,” said a former NFL general manager with extensive playing experience. “And if he’s defined as the guy who puts his hand up and comes out when things get tough, that can’t be right.”

Those unfamiliar with NFL team and locker room dynamics will point to comparisons like the Bills' 10-start contests for Richardson and Allen as suggesting Indianapolis is sacrificing the future for short-term gains. They see no benefit in helping Flacco to what is at best a short-lived playoff run.

Anyone inside sees it differently. For them, the Colts decided that the price of keeping Richardson in the lineup under these circumstances was greater than the price of replacing him. They chose to save the locker room now in hopes of saving Richardson later because they understand the delicate dynamics at work here.

“If you activate him now, you'll lose everything,” the former GM said, “because you've sent the wrong message to your team and to him that his behavior is acceptable. “He'll never recover from it.”

Can Richardson recover now?

“It's really hard to develop a quarterback who is so far behind in learning the position that he's in a hectic state all the time,” one personnel evaluator said. “This kid is really more of a project than a developmental player.”

Those who believed Richardson was taken in the draft believe it even more now. But if there was a good chance Richardson could develop, that could still be the case.

“Maybe I'm naive,” the former GM said, “but I think it can be done, and if you do it, you'll be better than ever.”

In other words, if Richardson has the qualities necessary to become a consistent performer and true professional in what may be the most demanding position in professional team sports, those qualities will prevail in the end. But none of that will matter if he learns early that it's OK to do what he did as the face of the Colts franchise.

“The players are the smartest in the building,” said a coach from another team. “You know how hard he trains. You know how many extra movies he watches. They know how much he cares. They know it's weird when a quarterback pulls out of a game, and they know it's weird to say, “I had to take a little break” and not act like something was wrong. They know he’s probably not ready to play.”

Richardson isn't the first quality young quarterback to be benched early in his career, but he is likely the first to lose his job under these unique circumstances. The Colts have denied that Richardson's opt-out against the Texans played any role in the decision to bench him, which is understandable to them but not credible.

“If you cover him, you can do more damage,” said an executive from another team. “These players know it. The fact that they saw it on TV: If you tried to cover him, you risk splitting your team.”

And so the Colts' quarterback adventures continue after the surprising retirement of Andrew Luck in 2019. What happened this week is the latest in a chain reaction of unplanned events:

• Luck retires, shocking the organization.

• Confident that the squad was poised to win, the Colts overhauled veteran stopgaps Philip Rivers, Carson Wentz and Matt Ryan, but lost ground.

• As frustration mounted, owner Jim Irsay responded by replacing coach Frank Reich with former player Jeff Saturday before eventually hiring current coach Shane Steichen.

• General manager Chris Ballard, hired in 2017 and under increasing pressure to solve the post-Luck QB conundrum, made a risky move on Richardson despite the QB's poor resume.

• Steichen's job was to maximize Richardson, but that kept the quarterback injured last season. Indy tried to find the right balance of usage this season, but Richardson still got injured, opening the door for Flacco, who beamed with relief and added to the excitement.

Then came the Houston exit, and here we are again: The Colts are in turmoil at a position where stability is everything, and Richardson's career is somehow at a crossroads after just ten starts.

It's a difficult situation. While Richardson has a better understanding of his job responsibilities, he still needs to prove he can stay healthy and pass accurately enough to win consistently.

“If you save him, you’ve made it,” the former GM said. “You brought him back out of nowhere. Then he'll be better than ever. He’s seen how bad it can be and that makes him appreciate everything about being the guy.”

(Photo: Tim Warner/Getty Images)

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