Indianapolis Colts head coach Shane Steichen's decision to bench No. 4 overall pick Anthony Richardson for Joe Flacco failed to yield wins in the short term. However, he may have woken a sleeping giant by getting the best individual game of Richardson's career out of the former top pick.
Richardson, who was benched after going 10-32 in a loss to the Texans, led the Colts to a comeback win against the New York Jets in which he completed over 60% of his passes, threw a touchdown pass, and ran for two more. Richardson still has his mighty strong arm, but he brought a new level of precision to the mix.
Richardson threw a catchable ball on 10 of his 11 throws beyond 10 yards against the Jets, making this the highest rate for any quarterback who had more than 10 attempts. Before his benching, Richardson may have thrown the ball into the next county. Against the Jets, he was cool and collected.
Anthony Richardson fixes downfield accuracy flaw in impressive win vs. Jets
The Colts didn't necessarily put training wheels on Richardson against the Jets. While they were a bit safe and stressed getting the ball out of his hands quickly, they did let him go down the field quite often. Richardson's arm is still too valuable to keep dunking it short on drag routes.
The Colts were playing a Jets team that is checked out, but they still have one of the best (if not the best) starting cornerback trio in the league. Richardson performing on the road, all while leading his team to a comeback, could be a sign of greater things for this Colts offense.
Richardson is not only a young player, but he is very raw mechanically. In a way, he's like a 3-point shooter in basketball. He can miss a ton of easy throws, but once he gets in a zone and keeps his lower body mechanics consistent, he can rip any throw in the book with relative ease.
The Colts need to keep riding the Richardson roller-coaster, as his high-end potential is worth suffering through some lean performances. When he's clicking, as the Jets found out, he has all the tools needed to be the quarterback for the next 10 years.