The Indianapolis Colts have run into a poor situation after losing their rookie quarterback Anthony Richardson due to a shoulder injury. Richardson was hyped to be the future of the Colts, but now, there are questions regarding his health, and he has already suffered a shoulder injury that has Colts fans thinking of Andrew Luck.
Richardson will be undergoing shoulder surgery, and should be fine heading in to next season, but as for this year it will be Gardner Minshew for the foreseeable future. Teams always need backups though, and now, this team will need to find a backup, for their backup. Sam Ehlinger, who has been in this organization for a few years now, is currently the backup, but Indy may now want to bring in another veteran presence, or a player who has come through the organization already.
These potential new backups will need to show they have the ability to quickly be able to pick up a playbook and learn it, so your journeyman type will be a likely outcome. No new quarterback will likely replace Minshew immediately, but if anything happens to him, then they will need someone besides Ehlinger to potentially take over the mantle.
Indianapolis does not want to be stuck in a position where you are forced to scramble for a quarterback, this team should look into some talent just to get in the room. So who should those guys be? What do they bring to the table and what sort of options does this team have?
3. Carson Wentz
I know what you’re thinking, we’ve seen this before, and it clearly just did not work out, ending in an absolute disaster. So why should the Colts think about trying again with their old flame here? Shane Steichen, that’s why. This offense is completely different, and it fits a strong mobile quarterback like a Carson Wentz and what he can provide. He is no Richardson, in terms of his ability to execute his style of offense, but he may be a solid substitute.
While Steichen and Wentz did not collide as Philadelphia Eagles, they fit well nontheless, and having Wentz there in case of a bad situation will give this team that much more security going forward. One issue could be the fact that bringing in Wentz is more of competition for Minshew rather than just being a reliable backup, but when it comes to Wentz at this point in his career, a backup role is where he has to go.
The idea of a Wentz resurgence in Indianapolis is not what is happening here, but bringing in a guy that knows the organization, has been through this place before and could be comfortable would be an easy transition for the Colts to make. Wentz is a player that lacks opportunity, so even if they ended off on the wrong foot, if he was offered a chance with this team he would probably sign up.
The question is whether he would even be able to compete with Ehlinger at this point in his career, but he still has a high ceiling for a backup so this may be a worthwhile move to make