Tuesday was a bad day at the office for Anthony Richardson. And if he wasn’t already aware of that fact, he was reminded of it several times by Bengals defenders who clearly took delight in the Colts quarterback’s plight.
Richardson, a former first-round pick who is entering his second year as the Colts’ starting quarterback, spent more time running than throwing during Indianapolis’ joint practice with Cincinnati. Bengals defenders took glee in the fact that Richardson had to run after he was unable to find an open receiver.
“Throw the ball, bro!” yelled Bengals defensive tackle B.J. Hill, via The Athletic.
“Is that all he does is run?” added cornerback Cam Taylor-Britt, who yelled his barb at the direction of Colts fans who were in attendance.
Richardson eventually did throw, but the results weren’t pretty. On his next 11-on-11 snap, Richardson and wideout Michael Pittman Jr. were not on the same page on a comeback route, which led to a deflection and an interception by linebacker Logan Wilson.
“He’s just throwing to spots,” veteran Bengals safety Geno Stone yelled at a different point in practice. “He doesn’t see his receivers.”
All told, Richardson went 10 of 20 passing with one touchdown in addition to Wilson’s pick. But while it was mostly a rough day, it wasn’t all red ink for Richardson and his teammates.
Richardson’s touchdown pass, for example, was an impressive completion to rookie Adonai Mitchell that was pulled down between a pair of Bengals defenders. Richardson also fared well during a two-minute drill near the end of practice. Overall, though, there appears to be several things that Richardson and Co. need to shore up before Week 1.
Richardson and his teammates will get another shot at Cincinnati’s defense on Thursday night, as Colts coach Shane Steichen has announced that his starting offense will play in the second quarter of its preseason finale.
“I think it’ll be really good for (Richardson),” Steichen said. “Any time you can get out there in those game-like situations, it’s good. Obviously, you want to be smart with these guys in the preseason because we’ve got a long season ahead of us, but we’re excited to get those guys out there.”
