The Colts have started seven quarterbacks since 2019 when Andrew Luck unexpectedly retired before the start of the season. Most were bridge quarterbacks. None was a young prospect, highly drafted by the Colts.
Anthony Richardson is.
He is the third quarterback the Colts have drafted in the top five since 1998, following Peyton Manning (No. 1 overall in 1998) and Luck (No. 1 overall in 2012).
The Colts already have named Richardson the starter, and he will become the seventh rookie to start the season opener in team history. No Indianapolis rookie quarterback has won an opener since George Shaw in 1955.
“I know they invested a lot in me,’’ Richardson said Monday, via Mike Chappell of Fox59, “but I’m not the only person on this team. They invested a lot into the other players. They invested a lot into this staff.
“I know they’re going to ride with me, and I’m going to ride with them. I don’t really see it as I’m the main guy because, without the other pieces on the team, it’s not going to work.’’
Manning went 3-13 in his first season, 13-3 in his second season and won a Super Bowl in his eighth season. Luck went 11-5 his first season and reached the AFC Championship Game in 2014 but got no further.
Richardson made only 13 starts in college, so he is inexperienced, and the Colts have missed the playoffs six of the past eight seasons. Thus, this season could be difficult, though Richardson knows what everyone in Indianapolis is hoping and expecting.
“Everybody wants me to come here and win a Super Bowl my first year,’’ Richardson said. “I wish I could, and I hope I can.
“But sometimes, you’ve got to understand it’s not all about me. [I’m] making sure everybody on this team is involved and everybody is doing their job, because I’m not the only one here.’’