NFL Exec Says Colts' Anthony Richardson Being a QB1 'is a Pipe Dream Right Now'

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson is locked in a battle with veteran Daniel Jones for the starting job, but some around the NFL feel he's far from being a reliable option at this stage in his career.

One NFL executive told The Athletic's Mike Sando that Richardson has a lot of work to do before he can be considered a starting-caliber quarterback.

"I think it is a pipe dream right now, based on what I have seen, to say he is a starter in the NFL," the exec said. "The accuracy is not there. If you want to do college football RPO-type stuff, that is your guy. But some of the stuff last year was not starter quality."

Richardson played 11 games during his sophomore season in the NFL, missing time with an oblique injury and being benched at one point after he voluntarily took himself out of the game because he was "tired" in a loss to the Houston Texans. He finished the year with 1,814 passing yards, eight touchdowns and 12 interceptions while adding 499 rushing yards and six scores on the ground.

Despite his athletic traits, Richardson's 50.6 percent career completion rate has left much to be desired.

"He's a freaky athlete for his size, but he's been hurt every year because of it," a defensive coordinator told Sando. "Unless he is rearing back and throwing the ball as far as he can and somebody runs underneath it, he's not accurate and can't make any of those throws."

Richardson dislocated his right pinky in Indianapolis' preseason opener, but head coach Shane Steichen announced that he will be active for Saturday's game against the Green Bay Packers. While Richardson will still have the chance to beat out Jones this year, it will take some time to convince the rest of the league that he can be successful.

As one source bluntly told Sando, "The Anthony Richardson experiment is over."