Anthony Richardson is still an Indianapolis Colt. Whether he still has a future there is another question entirely.
The former fourth overall pick has been at the center of trade speculation for most of the 2026 offseason after the Colts locked up quarterback Daniel Jones as the presumed starter heading into training camp. That decision, more than any single trade rumor, is what has changed Richardson’s outlook.
Then Indianapolis added another wrinkle by keeping Riley Leonard, the second-year quarterback out of Notre Dame, in the mix as the primary backup. Suddenly Richardson is not competing for a starting job. He is competing for the QB2 spot with a player five years younger.
Richardson requested a trade earlier this offseason, according to multiple reports. The Colts, to their credit, listened but never seriously engaged. The market simply is not there. Richardson is 24 years old with elite physical tools and a career completion percentage under 55 percent. That is a bad combination for a trade negotiation.
What Indianapolis wants and what the market will bear are two different things. General manager Chris Ballard reportedly asked for at least a mid-round pick as a starting point. No team was willing to give even that much for a quarterback who has yet to show he can process an NFL defense at speed.
Head coach Shane Steichen has publicly said Richardson will get a real chance in training camp. That is the coach-speak version of managing a former top-five pick. Behind the scenes, everyone knows Jones is starting Week 1. Everyone knows Richardson’s most likely path forward is a change of scenery.
The complicated part is timing. Trading Richardson in July or August would return next to nothing. Waiting until a starter goes down elsewhere in October could return a real pick. The Colts are betting on patience.
For Richardson himself, this is a difficult moment. He was the highest-drafted player in Colts history at the time of his selection. He was supposed to be the franchise. Now he is fighting for a roster spot. The physical tools are still there. The athleticism, the arm strength, the football IQ. All of it remains impressive.
What he needs is time in a new system. Steichen’s offense was built around his running ability first and his passing ability second. That framework served short-term needs but did not develop him as a pocket passer. A team like the Jets, Browns, or Raiders could theoretically build a slower, more traditional system around him.
The likely outcome is that Richardson stays in Indianapolis through the summer, holds a clipboard through Week 6, and gets traded midseason if a starter elsewhere goes down. It is not the storyline anyone wanted. But it is the one the market is dictating.
Talent alone will keep his career alive. Circumstances will decide whether he ever plays like the top-five pick he was supposed to be.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
