Colts' Anthony Richardson in Company with Duo of NFL Busts

The Indianapolis Colts are reeling heading into Shane Steichen's third season, and it's not just due to the team finishing 9-8 and 8-9 to miss the playoffs both seasons, but also the massive question mark hanging over who will start at quarterback.

It's old to discuss at this point, and it's not even training camp; this position might decide where the franchise takes its next step toward the future.

Anthony Richardson is the focal point, not Daniel Jones. Yes, Jones has a lot riding on this year and is ahead in the starting QB race, but the core of this competition is if Richardson is a bust and if the Colts are still on the quarterback carousel.

The worst-case scenarios would be if Richardson repeats the results of his brutally bad 2024 campaign, which saw him complete only 47.7 percent of his 264 passes, toss 12 picks in 11 games, and cough up nine fumbles; or if he loses the starting spot.

It gets no easier to stomach after R.J. White of CBS Sports brought up two former QBs who ended up being major busts: Tim Tebow and Akili Smith.

"When Richardson has been on the field, the results have been uneven. He completed just 47.7% of his 264 pass attempts last year, and while you can chalk it up to being a young player still developing, just two QBs since 2000 have failed to complete 48% of at least 250 passes since 2000: Tim Tebow at age 24 and Akili Smith at age 25. The pair combined to throw 49 more passes over their next two seasons before crashing out of the NFL."

This is not a good company to be in the same discussion with if you're Richardson-Tebow and Smith were confused by NFL defenses, wildly inaccurate, and unable to run an offense properly.

Tebow concluded his career in the NFL with a 47.9 completion percentage, 17 TD passes to nine picks. Tebow was a factor as a runner, notching 989 career rushing yards and 12 scores on the ground. However, that's not enough to establish a serious offensive threat in the NFL when the signal-caller can't complete half of their passes.

As for Smith, Tebow looked like a superstar when compared to the former Cincinnati Bengals QB.

Smith threw five touchdowns to an astonishing 13 interceptions. He logged these numbers in 22 games (17 starts); the touchdowns equate to 29.4 percent when factoring passing scores per contest.

If Richardson is being compared to a player like Smith, that's alarming. Yes, Tebow was bad, but Smith is one of the NFL's all-time busts. Richardson has far more weapons to make him a threat, but Richardson has thrown 13 interceptions to 11 touchdowns through 15 career games, which is not going to work for the Colts.

Richardson still has time, but not much. Jones has the leg up, and Richardson must be better than he's ever been to win the starting job. If for no other reason, Richardson wants to greatly elevate his play to avoid being called one of the biggest letdowns in recent memory.

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