He did not opt for any possibility.
Steichen kept the ball in his quarterback’s hands and ordered an impact run to the right for Anthony Richardson. Some well-timed blocks and Richardson’s quickness and precise work allowed him to drive through an 8-yard gap and catch first off-guard. Later, when tackled, Richardson surrendered and made a dramatic first down signal, much to the delight of the local community.
“I’m just trying to get energy in the stadium,” he said.
Less than two minutes away, the Colts added a rushing feature that helped ice a 16-10 victory over the Miami Dolphins.
“It was huge,” Steichen said.
In total, Richardson, the Colts’ second-year quarterback, ran the ball a career-high 14 times. At least seven of them were designed races versus fights. And to the Colts’ happiness, Richardson appeared to emerge unscathed. That’s very difficult because the Colts, winners of four of their last five, continue to play the Houston Texans on Sunday (1 p.m. ET, CBS).
That can’t be considered a walk in the park given Richardson’s shocking story throughout his scissors career. He returned to the lineup the following Sunday with two games remaining in a vicarious upset that was the result of a collision that took him a while to climb through visible terrain in a win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. That comes after the shoulder hit Richardson suffered late in the season on a quarterback rush, one that sidelined him for 12 games.
All of this has made the topic of Richardson working in football a fancy topic for the Colts.
But one thing became more obvious Sunday: Richardson’s work ability was a big factor in the Colts’ decision to select him. Avoiding it, especially on a date when the passing sport was suffering enormously, would have been negative.
Rather, Steichen leaned on his quarterback’s distinctive ability. And adopted effects.
“I’m here because I’m me,” Richardson said. “I think I’m one of them, honestly. Not many people can do what I do.”
Bernhard Raimann learned of Richardson’s impact and the lingering impact of his strong racing.
“This excites everyone,” he said. “We’ve known it since he arrived here, something that appears on the field again and again. He cares a lot about this team, about winning football games.
“Anthony is going to make the most of it, even if he has a little gap to get through. He’s going to make it and give it his all.”
Yardage was ready to join the Colts on Sunday. The Colts’ 284 yards had been the second fewest of the season. Richardson, dealing with a flurry of blitzes, had steady momentum and completed just 10 of 24 passes for 129 yards.
Richardson faced the drive on 60% of his returns. But notably, he wasn’t sacked despite looking like an excessive runner on 16 of his 29 dropbacks. That’s a daunting season for the burdens the Colts faced, but Richardson deftly overcame it with his ability to retreat and, when necessary, fight back.
“I think it’s his strength and his size to be able to get out of those tough situations and like I said, it was huge,” Steichen said of his 6-4, 244-pound quarterback. “You have some of them [Sunday] to avoid some very bad plays. “So you have to give credit to him and his ability to get out of those things and avoid those situations.”
Richardson had a team-high 56 yards on 14 carries for an average of 4.0 yards per gain. But his presence had a notable overall impact on the offense that arguably would have been less clear. It was a twist of fate that the Colts managed a season-high 155 rushing yards against Miami, despite playing an instant third game without standout running back Jonathan Taylor. The ultimatum Richardson poses as a running back affects defenses differently than an extra desk-bound quarterback.
After all, an NFL quarterback can’t make a living by basically being a running back. Richardson had no effective date as a quarterback and he admitted it. However, Steichen emphasized that much of the blame must lie with his decisions and game planning.
Steichen also said the Dolphins’ defense gave Richardson problems.
“The truth is that there were not many things open,” said the teacher. “So, that’s up to me.”
Richardson said, “Whatever they did, they did a great job. They were raising the bar. We were trying to adjust, but they kept doing it.”
But if the Dolphins did it, the Colts had a solution: Richardson. The Colts cannot and will not avoid using his job ability, as it is too important for his good luck.
“My arm and my legs,” he said, “are a big part of this offense.”
