Our long football nightmare is finally over. The Pittsburgh Steelers have their starting quarterback for 2025 locked up. The team announced they signed QB Aaron Rodgers to a one-year deal on Thursday. But who will be the quarterback after Rodgers turns 42 and his contract is up? Could Indianapolis Colts QB Anthony Richardson be a dark-horse candidate to join the Steelers in 2026?
That’s the idea analyst Kevin Clark floated on Friday’s episode of NFL Live on ESPN. Yes, Richardson was the Colts’ fourth-overall pick in 2023. But he’s only attempted 348 passes over the course of 15 games in his first two NFL seasons. Per Clark, that’s the second-fewest passing attempts in the first two seasons of a top-10 quarterback’s career in the last 20 years. Only Los Angeles Chargers QB Trey Lance has thrown fewer (102). And Lance is on his third team since the San Francisco 49ers drafted him third-overall in 2021.
But isn’t it quite early for a team to give up on a top-five pick in Richardson’s case? Yes, but the Colts brought in former New York Giants QB Daniel Jones this offseason as competition. Clark thinks that, along with the coaching staff needing to avoid a bad season, could lead to Anthony Richardson being on the outs in Indianapolis. According to Clark, Pittsburgh is Richardson’s logical destination.
“I’ve never seen anyone more destined to be in the 2026 Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback competition than Anthony Richardson,” said Clark. “Because I’m looking at this and I’m seeing a training camp where Daniel Jones will probably start with the ones. There’s job preservation now going in Indianapolis… They’re not going to want to take a flyer on Anthony Richardson and say, ‘Hey, let’s hope he develops. Let’s hope he finally shows the athleticism he showed at the Combine when he was literally the best athlete the quarterback position has ever seen there.’ I just don’t think it’s going to happen. He’s going to get a good start somewhere else.”
“I’ve never seen anyone more destined to be in the 2026 Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback competition than Anthony Richardson.”@bykevinclark believes Richardson needs a fresh start somewhere besides the Colts 😯 pic.twitter.com/9Sd6BCWgsy
— NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) June 6, 2025
If Anthony Richardson were to become available after the 2025 season at a reasonable price, would the Steelers pursue him? I think there are reasons for both yes and no. On the positive side, the Steelers traded for QB Justin Fields during the 2024 offseason. He was reportedly their top priority at the quarterback position, not Rodgers. And Fields wasn’t exactly lighting the NFL on fire with the Chicago Bears, showing some potential but struggling to not turn the ball over.
The Steelers still traded for him (albeit quite cheaply). But they were willing to acquire a young, physically gifted quarterback who hadn’t delivered on his potential yet. As Clark said, Richardson certainly has physical gifts. He ran the 40-yard dash in 4.43 seconds at 244 pounds. He also had a vertical jump of 40.5″ and a broad jump of 10′ 9″. That combination of athleticism and size certainly makes Richardson an appealing option.
Unfortunately, Anthony Richardson has struggled to stay healthy in the NFL. He only played in four games as a rookie before suffering a season-ending injury. Then he hurt his hip against the Steelers in 2024, leaving the game on the second drive before briefly returning and then exiting the game for good. Now, Richardson is dealing with irritation in the same shoulder that he needed season-ending surgery on in 2023.
Does that guarantee that Anthony Richardson is done in Indianapolis? Absolutely not. But if he is, the Steelers could try to swoop in and add another super-gifted athlete at the quarterback position. Richardson has averaged 5.7 yards per carry and scored 10 rushing touchdowns so far in his career. He would likely be competing with QB Will Howard, who Tom Pelissero praised for how well he fared in voluntary OTAs and speculated he could be part of the succession plan in Pittsburgh.
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