Poor Anthony Richardson. The quarterback cannot seemingly stop getting injured, even when he isn't playing. During pregame warmups for Week 6, Richardson was struck in the eye by an exercise band and suffered an orbital fracture. He was taken to the hospital and released.
That isn't the quarterback doing something stupid (we don't think), but simply bad luck. Unfortunately for Richardson, the NFL is a tough business, and Indy cannot wait around for him to recover from his new injury to find a true QB2.
Rookie Riley Leonard cannot be that. While starter Daniel Jones is playing fantastic football, and potentially at an MVP level, should something happen to him, and Leonard has to enter the game, Indy is sunk. Possibly long-term.
Indianapolis Colts have an obvious trade target to replace Anthony Richardson as QB2
No free agent quarterbacks are still on the market worth signing, so if Indianapolis general manager Chris Ballard wants to make a move for a backup, he will likely need to trade for one. Two potential targets are with Daniel Jones' former team, the New York Giants. Only one makes sense for the Colts.
And that isn't Russell Wilson. He's washed. It says a lot about an older quarterback when he goes winless, is replaced by a rookie, and then their team begins to win.
Instead, the Colts should make an offer for Jameis Winston. Is Winston perfect? No, he is far from that, but he isn't afraid to take chances and that is what Indianapolis would need if a backup has to replace Jones for a stretch of games. Indianapolis also has a bunch of good receivers that Winston would use.
The Giants' asking price for Winston cannot be overly high. He signed a two-year deal for a maximum of $8 million, so any team that acquires him would have him through 2026 if they wanted to. The Colts could offer the Giants a fifth-round pick in 2026 for Winston, and maybe that would be good enough.
Having Richardson be a part of the trade could be an option (not necessarily a good one, though), but that should be a straight-up trade for Jameis Winston at worst. Still, depending on how long Richardson is out, a move needs to be made.
Plus, while Winston has certainly had some off-field issues before, wherever he goes, his teammates seem to like him quite a bit. He wouldn't disrupt the Colts' locker room and might even be a positive presence.
Or, hopefully, Daniel Jones will continue to stay healthy and great. He appears to have proven he can be very good in the right system. The Indianapolis Colts have the perfect scheme for him, too.