The Indianapolis Colts believe they found their next franchise quarterback with Anthony Richardson. If Richardson can stay healthy, he will be able to tap into the promise that has been evident whenever he’s on the field, and will have a chance to be Indy’s next great quarterback. If that happens, he’ll officially put a stop to an exhausting quarterback carousel for the Colts.
Following Andrew Luck’s surprise retirement, the Colts had a different QB1 in each season. In 2019, Jacoby Brissett was the starter, followed by Philip Rivers in 2020, Carson Wentz in 2021, Matt Ryan in 2022, and now Anthony Richardson. While fans and media members had polarizing feelings about each quarterback, players on the team had their own thoughts as well.
In a recent episode of Zaire Franklin’s podcast, The Trenches Show, Franklin, EJ Speed, and Jonathan Taylor discussed which QB was their favorite. All three players showered Richardson with praise, but as the team’s current quarterback, he wasn’t considered— it was about the past guys.
Right after asking the question, Franklin immediately said that he likes Wentz. Jonathan Taylor quickly jumped in, passionately responding, “Uncle Phil!” Taylor explained that he loved playing with Philip Rivers, and he and Franklin both shared stories about the one year that Rivers spent in Indy.
Jonathan Taylor’s favorite NFL quarterback has been Philip Rivers
Taylor started it off by saying that Rivers was wheeling and dealing, and reminding his teammates how much they won in 2020 when Rivers was under center. The Colts went 11-5 that season, making a playoff appearance. Philip Rivers, in the last season of his career, completed 68% of his passes for 4,169 yards, 24 touchdowns, and just 11 interceptions.
It was Rivers’ personality, though, that the guys really loved. Zaire Franklin explained that Rivers entered the locker room on day one without an ego and jumped right on the cornhole boards, dominating and talking trash. That’s when Taylor shared stories about Rivers’ famous on-field trash talk.
Philip Rivers is literally always talking smack 😂 @Colts pic.twitter.com/coMncgFFgS
— The Checkdown (@thecheckdown) October 4, 2020
Taylor went to the Colts game against the Chicago Bears, recalling how Rivers encouraged Taylor to run star linebacker Roquan Smith over. Taylor also brought up the famous viral clip where Rivers mocked Smith for getting out ran by Taylor. It was very clear that all the guys loved Philip Rivers, especially Jonathan Taylor.
Now, it’s all about Anthony Richardson, and Gardner Minshew until Richardson is healthy. Hopefully, with those two in the quarterback room, the Colts will find themselves back in the postseason.