Is Daniel Jones new favorite to win Colts' starting QB job after latest Anthony Richardson injury?

Third-year pro Anthony Richardson entered the Indianapolis Colts' preseason opener at the Baltimore Ravens on Thursday night as the betting favorite to win the Indianapolis starting quarterback job over free-agency signing Daniel Jones. 

While Richardson started Thursday's contest, he played just seven snaps before he suffered a dislocated right pinkie finger after he failed to read an oncoming blitz and took a whopping hit. 

Jones replaced Richardson, and the former New York Giants starter connected on 10-of-21 passes for 144 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions in the 24-16 defeat. For a piece published Friday morning, Colts reporter James Boyd of The Athletic suggested Jones and Richardson are now heading in different directions regarding the battle for the QB1 gig. 

"Jones had some good moments and some not-so-good moments while filling in for Richardson on Thursday night," Boyd wrote. "...It’s unclear how long Richardson will be sidelined, if at all, due to his dislocated finger, but Jones is still the biggest beneficiary of Richardson’s injury. Poor health continues to limit Richardson’s availability, validating the Colts’ decision to sign Jones to a one-year, $14M deal this offseason."

Back in January, Colts general manager Chris Ballard confirmed that a big reason he would bring in competition for Richardson during the offseason was because the fourth overall pick of the 2023 NFL Draft has "not proven he can stay healthy for 17 games." 

Multiple injury setbacks limited Richardson to just four starts as a rookie. He then missed time last season with reported oblique and abdominal strains before severe back spasms sidelined him for the final two contests of the campaign. 

In total, Richardson started 11 of a possible 15 games during a sophomore season that included a two-week benching that occurred after he took himself out of a contest because he was "tired."

More recently, Richardson was shut down from throwing after he experienced pain in his surgically-repaired shoulder on May 29. While he returned to practice during training camp, it's now unknown if he'll be able to play when the Colts host the Green Bay Packers on Aug. 16. 

Coaches often like to have a quarterback competition wrapped up before a club's final preseason game. Unless Jones essentially falls on his face against Green Bay, he theoretically could cement himself as Indianapolis' Week 1 starter with a decent showing at Lucas Oil Stadium on the third Saturday of the month.