Colts' Anthony Richardson Reportedly Undergoes Eye Surgery, Latest on Possible Return

While Daniel Jones is the surefire starting quarterback for the Indianapolis Colts, the AFC South team reportedly may get backup Anthony Richardson back at some point this season.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported Sunday that Richardson underwent surgery for an orbital fracture Monday and has "a chance" to return before the end of the 2025 campaign.

The Colts placed Richarson on injured reserve on Oct. 13, which meant he was required to miss at least four weeks. He suffered the injury during warmups ahead of the Week 6 game against the Arizona Cardinals.

Head coach Shane Steichen did not provide a definitive timeline for his return at the time of the move.

Steichen also told reporters Friday that rookie quarterback Riley Leonard will remain as Jones' backup for Sunday's contest against the Tennessee Titans even though the team signed Brett Rypien to the practice squad following Richardson's setback.

"He's been preparing, like I've said, since he got here," Steichen said of Leonard. "I like the way he works, the way he goes about his business. Last week he had a great week of preparation and did it again this week. So he'll be our backup this week."

Leonard, who was a sixth-round pick in this year's draft, is yet to appear in a regular-season game for the Colts. He helped lead Notre Dame to the College Football Playoff national title game last season.

There was a time when Indianapolis saw Richardson as its franchise quarterback of the future when it selected him with the No. 4 overall pick of the 2023 NFL draft. However, he is yet to live up to expectations at this point and has 11 touchdown passes to 13 interceptions in his career.

While he can make plays with his legs, passing consistency has been an issue. He has a career completion percentage of 50.6 and was 27th in the league in QBR in 2024.

The Colts responded by signing Jones this offseason, and he won the starting job and is off to a 6-1 start this season.

Indianapolis has been one of the biggest surprises in the league to this point in large part because of Jones' individual play and will look to continue building momentum with a divisional game Sunday against a 1-6 Titans team.