Colts benching Anthony Richardson signals a franchise-altering move at quarterback

It has been a tough season for Richardson. After playing only four games as a rookie before getting hurt, the fourth overall pick played six games and has been the worst quarterback in football in EPA+CPOE composite, which measures efficiency and accuracy at the position. Among quarterbacks with at least 20% of the snaps, Richardson is 36th of 39 in PFF passing grade.

Thirty-nine-year-old Joe Flacco takes over. The veteran is 5th in EPA+CPOE composite and 16th in PFF grade. Theoretically, Flacco is an immediate upgrade for now.

The big questions become what this move means for the future of the Colts organization. At first, it's an attempt to save Richardson's career, because playing hasn't helped his development. Accuracy is the biggest issue, as he completed only 44.4% of his passes this season.

The Colts hope that it's possible for the young player to get better at this without playing, and being on the field might just hinder his development and create bad habits.

Anthony Richardson is 22 and is under contract through 2026, with a team option for 2027. So there's a lot of time for him to get back on track.

He is the second top quarterback prospect of the 2023 draft to get benched, after first overall pick Bryce Young for the Carolina Panthers.

This won't happen now, though, and Steichen decided it was too much. The rest of the offense deserves better this season, and Joe Flacco has shown enough competency to be the starter moving forward.

Joe Flacco, a first-round pick by the Baltimore Ravens in 2008, has played for several teams since being traded by the Ravens in 2019 — Denver Broncos, New York Jets, Philadelphia Eagles, Jets again. Last year, he was out of the league for most of the season and had a career resurgence with the Cleveland Browns after Deshaun Watson got hurt, leading them to the playoffs and receiving the Comeback of the Year Award.

He signed a one-year contract with the Colts this offseason. In four appearances, including two starts, Joe Flacco completed 65.7% of his passes, with seven touchdowns, one interception, and a 102.2 passer rating.