Former Florida Gators QB Anthony Richardson has had a bumpy road since getting drafted No. 4 overall in the 2023 NFL Draft. He had a shoulder injury that cut his rookie campaign short, and his 2024 season was marred by him getting benched after taking himself out for a play due to being "tired."
Entering a pivotal 2025 season, Richardson has been in a QB battle during Indianapolis Colts camp with Daniel Jones.
But after taking a huge sack and having to leave early during the preseason opener for the Colts, the NFL fate for Richardson may have just been sealed.
Anthony Richardson dislocates his pinky
The plan for the Colts this preseason was for Richardson to start the first game and Jones to start the second game, with former Notre Dame/Duke QB Riley Leonard waiting in the wings.
Richardson started alright, going 2/3 for 21 yards, but then he took a massive hit on a sack and had to leave the game with a dislocated pinky.
“Why can’t Anthony Richardson stay healthy?” pic.twitter.com/trC5GZvGCG
— Michael F. Florio (@MichaelFFlorio) August 7, 2025
He's considered "day-to-day," but the deeper problem for Richardson is that, given the way the NFL works, if you are in a position battle and give up your spot in line for any reason, it is really hard to get your spot back.
And if Richardson has to miss anytime next week during Colts camp and/or their next preseason game, the fate for Richardson may be sealed.
On the play he took the sack on, multiple former NFL players, including Kurt Warner and Geoff Schwartz, took to social media to make it seem like Richardson needed to identify the blitz and subsequently identify his hot route in order to avoid the sack.
This is day 1 empty protection install. Bummer Richardson didn’t see it https://t.co/QYNj2ftXNm pic.twitter.com/KeL7fHUEci
— Geoff Schwartz (@geoffschwartz) August 7, 2025
An early preseason example of having a “pressure plan”… OL sliding left, QB responsible for the LBer on the Right, he comes OT correctly squeezes to make furthest guy away the HOT guy… AR has to see this and dish to RB or TE to the right! https://t.co/OisxadNXjI
— Kurt Warner (@kurt13warner) August 8, 2025
If Richardson was the entrenched starter, this would all just be a footnote and Colts fans would breathe knowing he is just "day-to-day." But the problem for Richardson is that he has shown minimal signs of growth since being drafted.
Much like his time with the Gators, Richardson is capable of hitting some viral-worthy deep shots down the field, but his overall accuracy has been a massive liability.
We'll see how this plays out, given that Jones didn't come in and light things up himself (10/21 for 144 yards). But the writing is on the wall that Richardson's opportunity to be an NFL starting QB is hanging perilously in the balance.