When Indianapolis foals head coach Shane Steichen was asked if the locker room was unanimous in the decision to bench quarterback Anthony Richardsonhe couldn’t answer.
“I can’t speak for our team,” Steichen said.
Fortunately, many of Richardson’s teammates were asked about their feelings about his benching and transition to veteran Joe Flacco as a starter. Here are the comments from several Colts players throughout the week and what the key takeaways should be.
What happens next for the Colts? Don’t miss news and analysis! Take a moment and Sign up for our free newsletter and get the latest Colts news delivered to your inbox every day!
Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. (11) passes his touchdown ball to quarterback Anthony Richardson (5) after scoring his first passing touchdown in the second half against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Lucas Oil Stadium. / Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn images
QB Joe Flacco – “I know when I was that young there was no way I would have had the perspective and just the right head on my shoulders to deal with it and handle it the right way. But now that this is my 17th , I do have that perspective. So if you can give him all that in terms of just, this doesn’t have to be negative. There’s a lot of positives that can come from this.
“Like I said, he’s very young with a bright future, and there are plenty of guys who come into this league and don’t play right away. Now I know this is a little bit different because it feels like you’re getting something that’s yours And like I said, if I was as young as he was, there’s no way I would have taken it the right way right away. But I do believe there are a lot of positives in Mean Look, there are some guys in the league who didn’t play well when they came into the league and have been given second or third chances because they’ve matured and grown a little bit.
“I think there’s a lot of benefits if you can kind of pull back and watch from a distance and learn and do those things. I think that’s probably – not to speak for the Colts and Shane, but you would think that that is part of the thought process, at least a little bit, is trying to help him.
RB Jonathan Taylor – “Of course I was surprised, but I have to understand now that this is a difficult matter, so there will be many setbacks. Everyone, every individual will face setbacks, but in the end… .. Just let him know: ” Listen, you’ve got to stay the course. You’ve got to be able to adjust your routine as needed, but you’ve got to keep coming in and be a professional every day, every day, every week.” That will take you far in this business.”
WR Michael Pittman Jr. – “It was obviously a bit shocking. It surprised me. And that’s the good and bad thing about football: there are opportunities for everyone and I don’t think this is over. I think he will come back better from this… The way he’s reacting to things, I think he’s going about it the right way. He showed up here early and he’s done everything he did before he heard this news and he’s going to continue to work through it, even though it is. it’s difficult.”
WR Josh Downs – “Yes, a bit surprised for sure. I don’t… I don’t know. They made that decision, so you just have to trust the coaches. But yeah, I just felt sorry for 5. …At the end of the day, Joe is about 40 years old. So he only has so many years left, I would say. AR is 22 or 23. He’s still the No. 4 overall pick and he’ll learn from this and he’ll get better. So I know he’s going to start over.
WR Alec Pierce – “He’s 22 years old. I think he’ll be in the league for a long time. He’ll have a long career. Just look at it as an opportunity to sit back and learn from some things, let alone it gets a little slower. It’s obviously frustrating, but I think he understands that it’s part of his journey and that it will ultimately make him greater.
G Quenton Nelson – “And I still do (go to work for Richardson). It’s like a crazy situation, and I still have a lot of confidence in AR and know that when he gets his next chance, he will do well. I still think there He did a lot of good things while playing. He did a great job escaping pressure and avoiding sacks. And he had some good throws too.
c Ryan Kelly – “I was a bit surprised. Shane gave me a heads up, so I respect him for doing that. That was a good courtesy call, I guess. But it is always difficult when you make a seasonal change in this way. think AR handled it the best he could.
D.T DeForest Buckner – “It’s obviously difficult when it comes to situations like this. Obviously there’s a lot of thinking and discussion involved. … I let AR know that despite the situation, the guys always had his back and we I just told him that you moment as a growth experience and you have to continue to develop as a quarterback and a leader. And I mean, don’t let this moment define him as a player, as a leader.”
L.B Zaire Franklin – “I mean, the reality of the situation is – unfortunately it’s part of his journey, part of his process. You know, I called him yesterday and talked to him when the news came out or whatever, and obviously I know he’s very upset about it, but he’s a professional and a great teammate. So I know he will still continue to do everything he can do to help his team win.
“I still believe he is the future of this team. I know that sounds crazy to everyone right now, but that is something I still believe in with all my heart, that he is the future of the Indianapolis Colts It’s hard. I wouldn’t say he lost the locker room completely. I mean, look, he’s a young player who made mistakes and we knew we had to grow from them – grow through them with him.
“So the things that he was struggling with or trying to work on at that point were things that we all understood, especially from the defensive side of the ball. So I would never say it was a loss of confidence because we understood there were problems.” There will be highs and lows as he grows into the role of the face of the franchise.
CB Kenny Moore II – “Stay resilient. I texted AR every time I heard everything through the media. I just told him I had his back. I fully support him. When he gets another chance, just make the best of it. ”
Indianapolis Colts guard Quenton Nelson (56) celebrates with Indianapolis Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson (5) after a touchdown on Sunday, September 17, 2023, during a game against the Houston Texans at NRG Stadium in Houston / Jenna Watson/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK
Takeaways
The universal reaction from the locker room when they heard the news was one of shock. It still seems strange that no announcement was made to the team about the change and most had to find out via social media. Regardless, it didn’t take long for the players to hear that Richardson was on the bench.
If Richardson has lost the Colts’ locker room, his teammates are doing a great job of covering it up. All of his teammates who spoke publicly about the issue vowed that they still support Richardson and believe this is not the end of the road. Franklin was especially confident that Richardson remains the future at the quarterback position for Indy.
The two players who seemed most disappointed were Downs and Nelson. Downs has become incredibly close with Richardson since the two were drafted in the spring of 2023. Nelson has repeatedly gone to bat for his quarterback and has been one of Richardson’s staunchest supporters. Both will continue to support Richardson as he takes on this new role.
While Flacco may be the quarterback leading this team right now, Richardson, who wants to be the franchise quarterback for the Colts for years to come, is still the ideal ending to this entire saga. His teammates certainly aren’t giving up on what the young quarterback can become. We’ll see if that belief becomes reality over time.
Want more Colts content? Watch the latest episode of the Horseshoe Huddle Podcast!
To follow Horseshoe Huddle on Facebook And Xand subscribe to YouTube for multiple Colts livestream podcasts per week.