Colts quarterback competition may be done after three days of training camp

The battle for quarterback with the Indianapolis Colts has been the biggest story of the offseason, but it only fully kicked in once training camp started this week. From day one, all eyes have been on Anthony Richardson and Daniel Jones, who are duking it out to win the QB1 spot. Richardson, two years into his rookie contract, has struggled mightily; despite being arguably the most athletic and talented quarterback in the league, he has not been able to tap into his potential, and his NFL career thus far has been riddled with inaccuracy and injuries. It's no surprise that the word "bust" is already starting to be associated with him, and this season is largely seen as a make-or-break year for him to remain in Indianapolis.

It seemed that Jones was the frontrunner in this fight, as Richardson was injured during OTAs, leaving Jones to get all the offseason practice reps to himself. He had all been named the winner, with most saying Richardson would have to pull off one epic performance to get his spot back... and, incredibly, it seems he may have done just that.

During Day 1 of training camp, both had their struggles, but Jones fell behind early with an interception. While Richardson still had some struggles, a good portion of his incompletions weren't on him - the offense, evidently, is still dropping passes left and right. Thursday seemed to be more of the same, but today? Richardson came out swinging, ready to prove all the doubters wrong. By virtually all reports, he rocketed past Jones in this contest, with Richardson not only performing well, but showing particularly good chemistry with rookie tight end Tyler Warren.

One interesting note from the IndyStar's Nate Atkins was that Richardson was thriving in short-range throws -- something that is notable precisely because this is an area where he has, until now, struggled. Richardson has been famous for his rocket arm and his ability to run, but his accuracy with shorter passes has been a problem. It is encouraging to see improvement in this area, and ultimately, he finished 8-of-11 with his full-team reps. Jones had his worst day yet, according to Atkins.

SI's Jake Arthur similarly said Jones had some issues:

"Daniel Jones was up to bat first with the first-team offense, going 7-of-10 passing (70.0%) during 11-on-11s, which is efficient, but there is more to the story. Without there being a heavy focus on RPOs on Friday, it forced the quarterbacks to scan the field for longer, which shined a light on Jones being consistently late with the ball. On numerous instances, Jones held onto the ball and threw to a comeback route roughly 10 yards downfield, but because they were late, the defender was able to get there immediately to break up the pass. Jones also often stared down receivers and didn't set his feet upon throwing. "

Jake Arthur

Arthur similar noted that Richardson was doing well with shorter throws, though he also pointed out that Warren is bailing out both quarterbacks through his skill, able to catch even poorly-thrown balls.

Of course, there is still a lot of time before training camp ends and the official starting quarterback is named. But all the hype surrounding Daniel Jones before now clearly is dissipating, and Richardson is slowly but surely bringing some optimism back to those still hoping to see him succeed.

Related: