Anthony

Richardson

Colts GM Chris Ballard said the team is not concerned about Richardson’s shoulder, which flared up earlier this month. Richardson underwent season-ending shoulder surgery to repair an AC joint sprain suffered in Week 5 and has been working his way back to the field ever since. When he wasn’t injured, Richardson flashed top-five fantasy upside as a rookie, thanks in part to his abilities as a rusher. Playing in Shane Steichen’s run-heavy attack, we’d expect Richardson to flash similar upside if he can stay healthy this season. The fact he’s expected to be a full-go in camp is a good sign, but his shoulder will remain something to monitor throughout the summer.

This reinforces previous reports that downplayed the severity of the discomfort in the second-year quarterback’s throwing shoulder, the same shoulder he had surgery on after just five games in his rookie campaign. There isn’t enough to raise concern regarding his surgically repaired shoulder at this point, but it is something fantasy gamers will want to monitor as the summer progresses from organized team activities to camp and preseason. When healthy, Richardson proved to be one of the most dynamic play makers in the league after surging to five total touchdowns in just over eight quarters worth of play in 2023.

Richardson was spotted participating in team drills but was noticeably throwing with his left hand rather than his right. Steichen downplayed the severity of the soreness Richardson is dealing with, saying the second-year quarterback still feels well enough to play in a game if it were that time of year. Richardson’s shoulder will remain a hot topic of conversation throughout the offseason after he played in just four games last year. Richardson’s ceiling for this upcoming fantasy season is as high as that of any quarterback in the league after he averaged an impressive 27.4 fantasy points per game in the two games he appeared in start-to-finish.

Richardson has been participating in OTAs and was reported back in April to be throwing nearly 40 passes per day. The Colts franchise quarterback continues to work his way back from a shoulder surgery that ended his 2023 campaign just five weeks into the season and is going to be counted on in a big way for the Colts in 2024. Richardson threw for 577-3-1 in the four games he appeared in last season while adding another 25-136-4 on the ground. The 6-foot-4, 244-pound phenom has already gone on record saying he doesn’t plan on changing up his playing style and said on the Pat McAfee Show that “some of the stuff that happened [last year] just happened,” seemingly chalking last year’s misfortunes up to bad luck. While there could be an argument for that, Richardson’s physical style of play will likely continue to cause concern for football fans and fantasy managers alike. However, his sky-high ceiling was on display at various points last season, which has resulted in fantasy managers taking him in the fourth/fifth rounds of fantasy drafts for much of the offseason.

Richardson described his season-ending 2023 shoulder injury as unlucky. “I don’t think there’s any way I could’ve avoided what happened to me. Just a regular, routine tackle,” Richardson said. “I tried to brace myself for the fall and my shoulder just did what it did. … People see me, I’m a big quarterback, so they always think, ‘He wants to run the ball. He wants to be physical, and that is what’s going to get him hurt.’ That’s not the case.” Colts head coach Shane Steichen said Richardson has been “pretty smooth” during OTAs. Richardson has been seen throwing the ball more than 60 yards in Colts OTAs following a careful rehab of the surgically-repaired AC joint injury that sidelined him for most of his rookie campaign. He had 23 rushes over three full games before going down in Week 5 against Houston, scoring four times on the ground.

Worthy’s draft stock has steadily risen since he broke the 40 yard dash record at the 2024 NFL Scouting Combine with a time of 4.21 seconds. Worthy has also visited with the Bears. The Colts could stand to add more pass-catching firepower to their offense in 2024, and Worthy — who turns 21 in late April — would profile as an explosive complement to possession receiver Michael Pittman. The blazing fast Worthy had 981 yards and a dozen touchdown grabs on just 62 receptions in his final collegiate season.

Richardson continues to rehab his surgically repaired shoulder, but appears to be in a good spot as far as recovery is concerned. According to Holder, Richardson’s performance coach has asked him to “pump the brakes” on his pass volume, but said Richardson “didn’t want to hear it” when he was viewing a throwing session. Richardson ramping things up this early in the offseason is a good sign. Last year’s No. 4 overall pick looked like a fantasy stud in the four games he played in last season, but will need to do a better job of protecting his body and avoiding some of the hard hits he absorbed as a rookie.

Colts HC Shane Steichen said Richardson “should be” fully cleared for full activities and added that Richardson is “super fired up” to get back on the field. The No. 4 overall pick in last year’s draft played in parts of only four games last season before a severe AC joint sprain ended his season, but he resumed throwing more than a month ago and is trending toward being ready for spring practices and training camp. When he was healthy, Richardson looked like a fantasy stud, and has been taken high in drafts early this offseason. Assuming he’s in the clear come Week 1, Richardson could be in for an exciting 2024 campaign.

In a video posted to social media by Richardson’s agent, Deiric Jackson, Richardson can be seen lightly throwing in the direction of the camera. The No. 4 overall pick in last year’s draft threw only 84 passes across four games before undergoing season-ending shoulder surgery but appears to be progressing well in his recovery. While we don’t yet have a timeline for his return, Richardson said in December that he’s “progressing way faster than everyone thought” he would. It sounds like he’ll be good to go by training camp at the latest, although we’ll receive official word on his status throughout the offseason.

“I’m going to tell you one of the things that really surprised me with Anthony because I was concerned about it: This guy is a passer,” Ballard said. “Here’s this big, talented athlete. I mean, this guy is a legitimate passer, and I believe that. I think he’s going to continue to get better and improve the more he plays. But Anthony can play from the pocket and throw the ball accurately.” We would hope the Colts thought the quarterback they selected at No. 4 overall was a “legitimate passer,” but questions were merited after Richardson barely completed north of 50 percent of his throws in the SEC. Ballard is certainly correct that Richardson did not have the looks of a “project” before injuring his shoulder in Week 5. The critical question Richardson will have to answer in 2024 is if he has learned how to better protect his body after suffering a litany of injuries during his short time on the field as a rookie. His dual-threat skill-set remains tantalizing in fantasy.