JJ Watt just responded to the Joe Flacco-Anthony Richardson controversy

One of the greatest defensive linemen of all time has weighed in on the Indianapolis Colts' decision to bench Anthony Richardson in favor of Joe Flacco, and like many other analysts, he isn't a fan.

JJ Watt - a three-time NFL Defensive Player of the Year, five-time Pro Bowler, Sports Illustrated Sportsman of the Year, Walter Peyton Man of the Year, and more accolades that can be counted - appeared on ESPN where he talked about the Colts controversy.

Not only did Watt say the Colts made a mistake benching Richardson, but he said it's a problem with the overall mindset in the NFL today

No Super Bowl for the Colts

Watt said that the reasoning given by head coach Shane Steichen - that Flacco gives the Colts the best chance of winning - is not realistic. "I do think Flacco gives them the better chance to win games right now," he acknowledged, but then continued, "I don't think they're a Super Bowl winning team this year. And for me, if you were going to go that route, then you have to move to Flacco earlier than this. That's my opinion. Because right now, I think the only way you go to Flacco today is if you truly believe you can win the Super Bowl this year. Because otherwise, you have to figure out what you have with Anthony Richardson long-term."

In his official announcement, Steichen seemed to indicate that they believe a few wins now are more important than Richardson's long-term development. "I'm just looking where we're at as a football team, sitting at .500 with a lot of football left, and feel that Joe gives us the best chance going forward," he said.

But as Watt pointed out, the Colts realistically are not Super Bowl contenders this year. After the 2024 season is over, Flacco will be gone, and the Colts will very likely end up with yet another quarterback problem on their hands. And this, Watt said, is the bigger problem in the league.

Instant gratification vs. long-term success

Richardson has notoriously not played well this season, for numerous reasons. But the argument from the Colts has always been that Richardson has raw talent, and they are willing to put in the time and effort to develop him into the star quarterback he can be. Suddenly, that mindset has changed. And according to Watt, it's a problem that's much bigger than just the Colts.

"You have to let him grow. You have to let him develop," Watt argued. "There is such an epidemic in the NFL right now of ownership and coaches trying to get a young guy to play at such a high level so early, which yes, we all want to. We would love if everybody came in and played like CJ Stroud or Jaden Daniels. It would be incredible. But we're churning through these young guys so fast. If you are in a situation where you are rebuilding an organization or you're drafting a young quarterback to build around, you better understand what situation you're in. You better understand that that might not be Super Bowl in year one or year two, but that guy could develop longer term. You look at Josh Allen's beginning of his career. He didn't exactly start out great, but you develop over time and you grow. Some of these guys need a little bit of time to step in and grow and learn and have growing pains."

Furthermore, Watt said if the Texans had given up on him as quickly as the Colts have seemingly given up on Richardson, he never would have had his illustrious career.

"We expect instant gratification today. And that's just not the fact. You judge me off my first 10, 11 games in the NFL, I should have been benched. I should have. I should not be in the league," he admitted. "If I was a quarterback playing the way I played, I never would have made it to where I am because somebody would have benched me because I wasn't playing enough. But I could get through those growing pains. I could learn. I could understand what it's like at the NFL level, how you have to play these offenses, everything that they do. So it's so hard with everything we're asking these young quarterbacks to do. And then when they don't do it within their first four or five, six weeks, we're like, nah, move on next one. And then you look at Bryce Young's situation, you take him out and then Andy Dalton gets hurt. Now he's got to go back in and try and figure it out. It's really, really hard with how much pressure we put on these guys so early."

Finally, Watt came in with perhaps the hottest take that's been circulating around the league with this situation: it's the Colts who have failed Richardson, not Richardson who has failed them.

"[W]hat happened to growth? What happened to development? What happened to a little bit of accountability as a coaching staff to help this guy grow and become the best version of himself?" Watt asked. "That's what a coach does. It's not just automatic every time. You're supposed to develop him. That's your job."

Shots fired, Steichen.