The Colts’ frustrations with the quarterback position continued when starter Anthony Richardson exited Sunday’s game with a hip injury. The second-year passer out of Florida hopes not to miss much time, if any, per Cameron Wolfe of NFL Network, and he will be evaluated throughout the week.
Richardson actually left the game twice Sunday. Early in the team’s second drive of the game, Richardson walked off the field after hurting his hip. Veteran backup quarterback Joe Flacco stepped in for two plays before Richardson returned to the game.
Inexplicably, Richardson’s first play back on the field was a read-option keeper that immediately saw the young quarterback take another shot and, once again, exit with injury.
Luckily for the Colts, Flacco showed up in much the same manner as he did as an emergency starter for the Browns last season, throwing two touchdowns en route to a victory over his old division-rival Steelers.
Flacco was signed to a one-year, $4.5M deal to come to Indianapolis over the offseason due to injuries Richardson suffered in 2023.
Richardson started four of five games to open his rookie season before undergoing season-ending shoulder surgery. For the remainder of the year, the team relied on Gardner Minshew, who performed admirably enough to earn a Pro Bowl bid but wasn’t able to get the Colts to the playoffs.
Keeping in mind the injury history and lack of starting experience of Richardson, it made sense for Indianapolis to bring in an experienced, veteran option like Flacco.
Moving forward, it sounds like Richardson will be looking to continue in his starting role without missing any time. In fact, he told reporters Sunday that he attempted to return to the game again, but head coach Shane Steichen overruled him since he wasn’t 100%, per ESPN’s Stephen Holder.
While the Colts will hope to see him return soon, the team knows now that Flacco has the ability to step up and win games off the bench, if necessary.
