The Indianapolis Colts decided to bench Anthony Richardson in favor of Joe Flacco earlier this week. He still does not know why he was relegated to the backup quarterback because head coach Shane Steichen apparently kept him in the dark.
His first comments about the demotion did not reflect well on him or the organization.
Richardson, the No. 4 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, quite literally took himself out of the game on Sunday. It was truly bizarre. He looked over to the sideline after an exhausting run, tapped the top of his helmet and requested demanded a substitution. Flacco took over at quarterback.
To make matters worse, Richardson did not suffer an injury. The 22-year-old quarterback foolishly admitted that he was just “tired” and probably should’ve worked with the PR team to create a better story or simply kept his mouth shut.
Indianapolis lost the game to Houston. Richardson finished 10-of-32 for only 175 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Not only did he take himself out of the game, he didn’t play well.
As a result of the cumulative poor performance, Steichen decided to bench Richardson for Flacco because the veteran journeyman gives the Colts the best reason to win right now.
The younger of the two signal-callers did not accept that answer. He completely bungled his first opportunity to speak on the matter during a press conference on Wednesday.
According to James Boyd of The Athletic, Richardson said that Steichen “did not necessarily explain” the sudden change at quarterback. His comments reflect a clear lack of awareness.
I asked #Colts QB Anthony Richardson how/why HC Shane Steichen explained him being benched:
— James Boyd (@RomeovilleKid) October 30, 2024
“He just told me they were gonna go with Joe (Flacco) and that was that. And I just had to take in the information and just grow.”
So, did Steichen explain why?
“Nah, not necessarily.” pic.twitter.com/RNrKSFVzx0
It is pretty obvious why Anthony Richardson was benched and he should be willing to own up to his faults. Flacco got the nod for two reasons:
- Joe Flacco is playing better than Anthony Richardson this season.
- Joe Flacco did not take himself out of the game because he was tired like Anthony Richardson.
The PR team in Indianapolis should’ve prepared the relegated quarterback for these kinds of questions. His answer was terrible.