Colts' Anthony Richardson Injured, Hospitalized After Elastic Band Fractured Eye Bone

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson was inactive for Sunday's 31-27 win over the Arizona Cardinals after suffering an eye injury during pre-game warmups, the Colts confirmed to ESPN's Stephen Holder.

"Richardson was doing warmups with elastic bands when a mishap resulted in him being hit in the eye," the Colts announced.

Head coach Shane Steichen told reporters after the game that Richardson suffered an orbital fracture and spent the game at the hospital.

The injury caused Richardson to be demoted to QB3 behind Daniel Jones and Riley Leonard.

Richardson has been plagued by health issues since Indianapolis selected him with the No. 4 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, appearing in just 15 regular-season games across the first two years of his budding career.

He previously suffered a dislocated right pinky in the first quarter of the Colts' preseason matchup with the Baltimore Ravens on Aug. 7. Richardson went on to lose a position battle with Jones ahead of the 2025 season, entering the start of the year as a backup option.

He was limited to a mere four appearances as a rookie in 2023 due to a concussion as well as an AC joint sprain in his shoulder that ultimately required surgery.

Richardson was able to return for the start of his sophomore campaign in 2024, but ended up missing time with an oblique injury before he was later benched for Joe Flacco.

He struggled through the air last season, completing just 47.7 percent of his throws for 1,814 yards and eight touchdowns to go along with 12 interceptions. Richardson also rushed for 499 yards and six scores.