Getty Image
An up and down season for the Indianapolis Colts came crashing down last Sunday with an embarrassing 45-33 loss at the hands of the Drew Lock-led New York Giants. The result was a fourth consecutive season without a playoff appearance and the aftermath has led to an ugly peak behind the curtains into the Colts’ locker room.
Many of the issues surrounded second-year quarterback Anthony Richardson, whom Indianapolis drafted with the No. 4 pick in the 2023 NFL Draft. Richardson struggled mightily in the first half of the season before being benched for veteran Joe Flacco after he pulled himself out a game due to fatigue. Richardson eventually regained the starting job, but things were never the same between he and his teammates.
Indianapolis Colts Players Are Unhappy With Second-Year QB Anthony Richardson
“They were trying to hold (Richardson) accountable, which is understandable, but then the guy they put in wasn’t the guy either,” a Colts veteran told The Athletic. “So when they went back to A.R., at that point it’s like, ‘OK, but what are we doing?’ That really affected the team.”
In particular, star defensive tackle DeForest Buckner, a three-time Pro Bowler, took serious issue with Richardson’s lack of commitment to the team.
“I signed an extension here because I believed in you,’ Buckner told Richardson, according to The Athletic’s Jim Trotter. “But you’ve got to do your part.”
Meanwhile, things have not been easy for Richardson. Not only has he failed to perform on the field, but he’s also dealt with several significant injuries. The most recent of which, a back injury, left him crawling around his home.
Prior to last week’s loss to the Giants, team captain Zaire Franklin also went on his podcast and talked smack.
“I wanna play a team I know we gonna spank, like the Giants or some sh—,” Franklin said in October. “I wanna play a team that ain’t good with a big market. I’m trying to get my rank up … Gimme the 4-11 Giants.”
Well, they did play the Giants. They did not spank them. And now it appears the Colts are one of the league’s most dysfunctional organizations, again.