Trade Talks Slow for Anthony Richardson; Green Bay, Chiefs, Jaguars Among Possible Landing Spots

The Colts have granted former first-round pick Anthony Richardson permission to seek a trade, and thus far the interest has been very minimal, as expected. 

The market was flooded with other former first-round picks available for the veteran minimum, working against what was an already-limited market for Richardson, and some teams are also shying away for health issues. (Richardson’s agent, Deiric Jackson, did not respond to an email request regarding his client’s current health situation). 

Richardson has been injured for much of his career and plays an aggressive style that leaves him vulnerable to absorbing heavy hits. 

Furthermore, some teams that have explored the possibility of moving forward with Richardson are also concerned about his vision. 

League sources indicated that there is some concern about Richardson being able to see the field clearly and that, coupled with his difficulties developing at the NFL level and being able to run the entire scale of a voluminous offense have resulted in him being stuck with Indianapolis for now. Richardson came from a very rudimentary offense in college at Florida, he had a very limited body of work before reaching the NFL and he has missed so much valuable practice and playing time since being drafted due to injury.

Is there a possible landing spot?

Some evaluators whose teams considered Richardson but opted to go in a different direction were pointing to Andy Reid and the Chiefs as a potential landing spot; Kansas City opted instead to acquire another super-athletic former first round pick, Justin fields, instead although league sources indicated they considered Richardson but his health played a role in their ultimate decision to go in another direction. 

Green Bay, which did a tremendous job of developing Malik Willis after acquiring him from Tennessee for next to nothing, was the other team rival front offices pointed to the most as a landing spot for Richardson. 

Some believed Jacksonville made sense as well.

“Green Bay, I bet, brings him in,” said a general manager who has been active in the quarterback market. 

Richardson made just four starts his rookie season, 2023, before succumbing to injury, he flashed some high-end potential, with some significant warts, in 2024 when he made 11 starts, and then appeared in just two games last season. Richardson has attempted just 350 passes in his pro career and attempted just 393 passes in his entire college career. Still, forward-thinking offensive coordinators could create opportunities for him to get on the field in certain situations in short yardage, fourth-down, and red-zone rushing opportunities.