This is the most insane take on Anthony Richardson you'll see today

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson has had a mixed few weeks this NFL season. Despite this being his second season, Richardson spent most of his rookie season injured, so for all intents and purposes, he's still a rookie. Despite that, he's still shown serious promise so far.

Yet while most NFL analysts seem to believe that Richardson has a bright future ahead of him, others seem intent on serving as naysayers, diminishing Richardson's raw talent and potential. Another analyst has come forward with another of these absolutely insane takes, and it might be the craziest of them all.

Greg Cossell said what now?

NFL Films producer and analyst Greg Cosell recently appeared on the Ross Tucker podcast, where he discussed Richardson's performance over the past two weeks. And, according to Cosell, Richardson could be bested by... high school quarterbacks.

"What's the balance, Ross, between playing with efficiency from the pocket, versus the ability to make special, outside-of-structure plays?" Cosell said. "You know, 15, 20 years ago, maybe even going further back, we all look at the Troy Aikmans, the Carson Palmers, as the prototype: guys who were big, had really good arms, and played really efficiently from the pocket. So now, what the college game is giving the NFL, are great, great athletes. Guys who can make plays outside of structure, but are really not overly efficient from the pocket. So let's say on a 1 to 10 scale, Ross, 10 being the best, that you have a quarterback that's a five from the pocket, but he can make special plays at any given time in a game. By the way, Kyler Murray falls into this category as well. How do we deal with that? Is that OK? Do we accept that that's just who they are?"

He continued (emphasis added),

"I mean, Anthony Richardson has missed a ton of basic easy throws through two weeks. Just stuff that high school quarterbacks could make. And then of course, we saw him, Week 1, make some special throws that maybe only Anthony Richardson can make. Caleb Williams, at this point in his career, is kind of the same way, although he's a better thrower from the pocket than Richardson at this point in time. So what's the balance there? And what are we trying to accomplish as a coach?"

Anthony Richardson's talent can't be doubted

It is true that Richardson has not been entirely consistent over these first two weeks. He particularly struggled in Week 2, throwing three interceptions and making bad passes to receivers who were under heavy coverage. However, that disastrous Week 2 performance against the Packers was hardly his fault alone; for every bad pass he made, there were great passes right to open receivers who dropped it, over and over again. The Colts, as a team, have been struggling so far, and Richardson can hardly be single-handedly blamed for that.

Furthermore, you can't discuss Richardson's fumbles without also pointing out where he's excelled. In Week 1, he made multiple 50+ yard throws, including that now-famous 60-yard pass to Alec Pierce. Overall, he's only played six games total, but has already racked up a whopping 993 yards and six touchdowns. He's widely been described as possibly the best athlete in the NFL right now, and with the right coaching and development, he could become a legendary quarterback.

Lastly, it has to be pointed out that Richardson is still a very new, very young quarterback. He's only 21 years old, and is only going to have his seventh start ever this Sunday. He's still learning and growing. Saying high school quarterbacks could do better than he has is the most out-of-touch-with-reality analysis about Anthony Richardson yet.