As Colts turn back to Anthony Richardson, young QB must remember 'superpowers' aren't enough

Anthony Richardson was looking for something.

Minutes after Indianapolis Colts head coach Shane Steichen announced that Joe Flacco was being benched and Richardson would once again be the team’s starting quarterback, Richardson rummaged through his locker Wednesday. The item he was looking for? The red practice shirt that all QBs wear to signify they can’t be touched until game day. As Richardson finally slipped the red shirt on over the blue one he was already wearing. The symbolism was enticing, even if it was unrealistic.

Richardson’s red shirt was not a red cape, and he is not Superman — far from it. We don’t even know if he can become a good or even great QB. But when a player who possesses seemingly every physical gift imaginable wears anything red, he certainly looks the part.

Invincible. Unstoppable. Indomitable.

But even Superman’s weakness is kryptonite, and for Richardson — who again is far from honing the “superpowers” he’s often acknowledged he was born with — his weaknesses came to a head 16 days ago when Steichen benched him. The 2023 No. 4 pick wasn’t upholding his end of the bargain, so the Colts sat him down until they felt he was ready to fully embrace his role as the face of the franchise again.

That time came Tuesday when Steichen told Richardson he would be reinserted as QB1, and it was solidified Wednesday as Richardson publicly reflected on what he learned during his demotion.

“Man, there’s a lot of appreciation, but it’s more so more understanding now,” Richardson said. “You understand the magnitude of everything. You understand the magnitude of the position. You understand the magnitude of the work that you have to put in just to make sure you’re right for the team.”

Steichen’s messaging over the last two weeks regarding Richardson’s demotion was vague. It put Steichen, Richardson and the franchise in a tough spot. All Steichen would say is that Richardson is going through “the process.” On Wednesday, Steichen finally revealed what that means and where Richardson had fallen short.

“It’s the attention to detail in everything he does,” Steichen said. “From the classrooms to the walk-throughs to practice to the weight room, all those little things — it’s just gotta be at a higher standard. … Over the last two weeks, he’s made strides in those areas, big-time strides becoming a pro’s pro.”

In other words, it takes more than athletic ability — even perhaps the greatest collection of physical tools we’ve ever seen in a quarterback — to defy the odds. To become the best. And, ultimately, to join the likes of Peyton Manning and Andrew Luck as QBs who elevated the entire Colts franchise.

“Is it a finished product?” Steichen asked rhetorically. “No, but we’ve got a lot of faith that he’s going to be our franchise quarterback because of (his) abilities and the person that he is.”

History, however, still isn’t on Richardson’s side. His 13 starts and career 54.7 completion percentage at Florida made his top-five selection by the Colts an unprecedented gamble. Even the player Richardson is most compared to, Bills superstar Josh Allen, started 25 games at Wyoming before the Bills selected him with the No. 7 pick in the 2018 draft. Allen’s first season in Buffalo was rocky as he worked through his early struggles, but the one thing that was never questioned was his dedication. Allen’s unrelenting commitment to his craft is a huge reason the Bills have become a perennial playoff team.

If Richardson hopes to chart a similar path, he needs to undergo a mental metamorphosis that likely still isn’t complete. He can’t overlook the details like better “note-taking,” as Steichen alluded to. He can’t only be dialed in on game days. And he most certainly can’t tap out like he did during his last start at Houston in Week 8.

The bigger picture must become the everyday lens in which Richardson views football, and as he put it, his life.

“I’m a father, so just being consistent in fatherhood and just being consistent throughout life is going to help me be a better player anyways,” said Richardson, whose son Anthony Richardson Jr. was born in March. “So, I just try to find a way to be consistent throughout life and I appreciate Shane for helping me find that.”

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Richardson credited his veteran teammates as well for holding him to a higher standard than he held himself, even when he thought he was “doing lot of things right.” Players like defensive tackle DeForest Buckner and linebacker Zaire Franklin who, despite being on the other side of the ball, showed Richardson what it means to be all in.

They also never gave up on him.

At the time of Richardson’s benching, Franklin said he still believed that Richardson was the “future of the Indianapolis Colts.” That future was put on hold, with Richardson admitting that he didn’t know when exactly he would get another shot, but Franklin’s conviction in the young signal caller didn’t waver.

“The whole world turned their back on him. Everybody was kicking him while he was down,” Franklin said. “But I think it was the guys in this locker room that even when it was at its darkest point, we kept telling him, ‘Look, we still believe in you. We still got your back. And we gonna be with you when you come out on the other side of that.

“Now, we’re on the other side.”

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The elephant in the room is whether a two-week benching was truly enough time for Richardson to have learned his lesson or if this timeline was expedited by Flacco’s poor play recently. Three days ago, Steichen said Flacco would start against the Jets. However, it would’ve been extremely difficult for Steichen, who said he spent the last 24 hours reevaluating, to continue claiming that Flacco gives the Colts “the best chance to win” after Flacco committed six combined turnovers in back-to-back losses the last two weeks.

A dejected and candid Flacco acknowledged that everyone in the NFL is always under evaluation. He is no exception.

“I really do feel disappointed in the way the last couple weeks went because when you walk into this locker room, you want to be able to really hold your head high and feel like you’ve done the best for the team,” Flacco said. “And I didn’t necessarily feel like I did that.”

As the Colts turn from Flacco to Richardson, it’s important to remember the player we last saw. Richardson’s league-worst 44.4 completion percentage won’t get fixed overnight, and there will be growing pains. But at 4-6, and with a date with the Jets on Sunday’s docket, the Colts remain in the thick of the AFC wild-card race. Quenton Nelson said Richardson “boosted everything” during his benching, and the Colts star left guard is excited for the challenge that lies ahead with Richardson at the helm. Franklin added that “with (No.) 5 out there, we got a chance.”

Still, none of them are asking Richardson to be perfect. None of them are asking him to put the team on his back. None of them are asking him to be Superman.

They’re simply asking the 22-year-old to do his part.

“(Steichen) told me I was going to be the starter from here on out, but it’s up to me to keep my job,” Richardson said. “I just have to showcase the work and just keep showing them that I’m willing to be the quarterback for this franchise.”

(Photo: David Berding / Getty Images)