Anthony Richardson Finds No Trade Market as Colts QB Set to Stay Put

Colts former top-five pick Anthony Richardson received almost no interest on the trade market, we reported weeks ago that interest was scant, with concerns about his vision following an orbital bone injury, but the sides have done well to put that drama behind them early in the offseason.

Richardson has struggled to execute as a starting quarterback and stay healthy and while his natural talent remains intriguing.

Multiple executives from teams who added quarterbacks and who evaluated Richardson said his health and his latest injury in particular, played more of a role in them pivoting to other options than did Richardson’s struggles to cement the starting job.

“Even if he was healthy I don’t think he was going to have much of a market,” one GM told SportsBoom. 

Richardson, as a high first-round pick, carries a base salary of $5.4M and a $10M salary cap hit. At a time when former first-overall QBs Kyler Murray and Tua Tagovailoa were signing for veteran minimum contracts of $1.3M, that was a factor. 

“Those contracts didn’t help him,” the GM said. 

There’s No Place Like Home?

At this point, league sources indicated that Richardson has accepted that it is almost certain that he plays out this season with the Colts, and then takes his chances in free agency next year after fulfilling his rookie contracts. 

Richardson requested a trade and very much wanted to move on early in the offseason after losing his job to Daniel Jones a year ago and with the Colts then re-signing Jones.

Richardson has not been a distraction of any sort since reporting to Indianapolis and the reality is, with Jones a high risk for injury throughout his career, and with the Colts adding quality pieces to their offensive roster in recent years, Richardson is actually in about as good a position as he could hope for, all things considered.

There is always the possibility that Richardson shows well in the preseason and a playoff team loses a quarterback to injury and he gets an opportunity to start elsewhere.  

The 23-year-old is desperate for more playing experience, after only playing one year of big-time college football and he has just 15 starts in his NFL career.