Indianapolis Colts’ two-time All-Pro left guard Quenton Nelson joined the “Bussin’ with the Boys” podcast and had some high praise for his quarterback Anthony Richardson.
“He’s an absolute freak,” Nelson said of Richardson. “Like he’s weighing in after practice at like 250 pounds. He’s ginormous.
“He can launch the ball and be accurate with it, too. The plays that he can make, some of the ones you’ve seen, the flashes of it. It’s like, oh my goodness, this guy is special.”
Richardson’s rookie season was cut short after only four games due to a season-ending shoulder injury.
He would finish the year completing 60 percent of his 84 passes at 6.9 yards per attempt with three touchdowns to one interception. Richardson would also rush for 136 yards and four more scores.
Although it was a small sample size, Richardson flashed his big play potential, both on the ground and through the air, and from week-to-week you could see progress being made as he adjusted to the NFL game.
“More polish than he gets credit for,” said Yahoo! Sports NFL analyst Nate Tice. “He’s not just a big freaky athlete, which is he is like. He’s a rare, rare athlete. He’s more of a true quarterback, and this is what he showed a little bit at Florida, and that’s why I was pretty high on him in the draft process.
“But I think he showed that those just those 4 games that he has a lot of calmness in the pocket. Sack mitigation. He doesn’t take a lot of negative plays.”
Rehabbing from his shoulder injury, Richardson was a full participant during OTAs, but would sit out the final minicamp practice for precautionary reasons. He will be a “full-go,” however, for training camp, according to GM Chris Ballard.
Ultimately, just how good the Colts are this season will be determined by Richardson’s level of play. With only 98 career dropbacks, there very well is still a learning curve that has to be navigated, but it’s not as if Richardson has to do it all on his own either.
Richardson will be playing behind a top offensive line unit, sharing the backfield with Jonathan Taylor, and he’ll have Michael Pittman, Josh Downs, and AD Mitchell at receiver.
In addition to that, the continuity of being in Shane Steichen’s quarterback-friendly offense for a second season will provide Richardson with a strong foundation and a jumping-off point.
“Also,” added Nelson, “how he goes about his business. He’s not very vocal, I’d say, but he goes about his business in a way that he’s handling it, and he’s ready at all times. Yeah, he’s a special dude.”