The Indianapolis Colts are stuck where no organization wants to be, in quarterback purgatory.
Their extremely talented, but massively flawed quarterback Anthony Richardson has been under fire pretty much since last season began.
He was viewed as a project coming out of college, but fans still expected to see at least a little progression.
Though he only played four games in his rookie season, he was magnificent in all of them when he wasn't battling injuries.
This gave the fanbase tremendous confidence that the Florida product would make a significant leap in his second year, but Richardson arguably regressed.
He struggled mightily with his short accuracy and was even benched in the middle of the season.
The second-year player eventually got his job back, but the Colts decided they had seen enough and committed to a quarterback competition to ratchet up the pressure and hopefully speed up his development process.
The team brought in former New York Giants signal caller Daniel Jones on a one-year $14 million contract to compete for the starting job.
The only problem is that no matter who gets named the starter, if they are successful next season, they will want to be paid handsomely.
Jones would likely want a sizable pay raise if he plays well this upcoming season, but if Richardson retains his starting spot and makes the leap that fans and the organization expected last year, he is in line for a massive rookie extension.
Obviously, this would be a great "problem" for Indianapolis to have, but precedent has been set in the NFL that it's incredibly difficult to win if your quarterback is making top dollar.
For this reason, the Colts could look to draft a cap-friendly replacement or insurance in case both players falter.
Anthony Richardson throwing a football. © Eric Canha-Imagn Images © Eric Canha-Imagn Images
Earlier this week, the team met with former Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers who was once viewed as one of the top prospects in his class.
Now slated to be a day two or three pick, he's clearly had a fall from grace since then, but he may be the Colts best option in the draft.
Kristopher Knox of Bleacher Report recently released his top five sleeper teams to draft a quarterback and the Indianapolis made an appearance.
He acknowledges that the team has more pressing issues to handle in the first couple of rounds, so a quarterback likely won't be taken there.
He also mentions the job security of head coach Shane Steichen and general manager Chris Ballard as a motive for the potential move.
While it's far less likely that Steichen gets fired because he's only entering his third season with the team, Ballard has been there for nine years now and overseen more coaches than most general managers get a chance to.
For him, another disappointing season likely means the end of his tenure with the Colts.
As backhanded of a compliment as it may seem, Ewers is truly a jack of all trades and a master of none.
He doesn't have any standout qualities, but he's simply dependable in all facets of the game.
It may not seem like much, but this is the exact type of player Indianapolis needs at the quarterback position.
Related: Anthony Richardson's Shocking Message to Colts Amid QB Controversy
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This story was originally published March 28, 2025 at 9:45 AM.