Colts Insider: Anthony Richardson 'Rarely Had the Best Day Overall' at OTAs, Camp

The Indianapolis Colts have not been shy about the fact they want Anthony Richardson to play early and often in his NFL career.

It appears that may come with some hiccups.

James Boyd of The Athletic reported Richardson "rarely had the best day overall" during mandatory minicamp but regularly had the best throw of the day.

The Colts selected Richardson with the No. 4 overall pick in April's draft knowing he would be a project. The Florida product spent only one season as a starter in college, throwing for 2,549 yards and 17 touchdowns against nine interceptions while adding 654 yards and nine scores on the ground.

From a physical perspective, there is no better quarterback in this class and difficult to think of one better in NFL history. Richardson comes in at 6'4" and 244 pounds while possessing elite zip and throwing power down the field, all while running a 4.43-second time in the 40-yard dash. If you were to build a quarterback from scratch, Richardson would be as close to a modern prototype as you can get.

That said, consistency of performance was a major issue last season. Richardson closed his college career with a ghastly 9-of-27 outing against Florida State and consistently struggled against top-flight competition.

While many projected Richardson to need a full year to get himself acclimated to the NFL game, Colts owner Jim Irsay has been adamant about wanting his quarterback on the field early.

"His development is so key to the franchise's future … he gets better by playing," Irsay said, per Zak Keefer of The Athletic.

The Colts added Gardner Minshew this offseason as a potential veteran stopgap next to Richardson. If his consistency continues to wane, we may wind up seeing Irsay having to be more patient than desired come Week 1.