Anthony Richardson didn’t even make it past the second day of the Colts‘ OTAs before the team shut him down. The issue? Shoulder soreness—again. It’s the same shoulder he had surgery on during his rookie season in Indianapolis, and now he’s been sent to Dr. Neal ElAttrache (who did the original surgery) for further evaluation. That alone raised some red flags. Indy didn’t confirm much. Colts coach Shane Steichen called it “status quo” for now, but shutting down your QB in May? That’s not exactly nothing.

But Richardson’s camp shrugged it off.  They straight-up told Tom Pellisero that the third-year quarterback would be “1000% ready for training camp.” But let’s face it—it’s blind optimism. Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated added fuel to the fire, claiming that “It’s one of those when you’re talking about the soreness coming back in the shoulder, and no, he hasn’t had surgery yet, but he’s going to have more opinions on it. It just gets you worried.”

So, amidst this chaos, the Colts are stuck with Richardson’s uncertainty. Sure, they’ve brought Daniel Jones on a one-year, $14 million contract. But the way things are shaping up, Richardson’s future in Indy seems problematic, and that’s exactly what ESPN’s Adam Schefter believes. Schefter recently stopped by The Pat McAfee Show, where Ty Schmit, the co-host of the Adam Schefter Podcast, asked him, “What is the latest on Anthony Richardson?” Schefter’s response?

“I think when you consider his injury history and consider the fact that his shoulder had surgery, his rookie year, and now it’s an issue where they’re shutting him down until at least the start of training camp, I think it’s problematic,” Schefter explained. The third-year quarterback’s return for the 2025 season is in major doubt. His time with the Colts has been marked by a shoulder injury, having played just 15 games across two seasons.

To make it worse, the Colts announced last week that Richardson will miss out on the mandatory minicamp as well. Schefter later explained that the folks out there (especially Richardson’s camp) are buzzing that the 23-year-old quarterback is fit and might be ready to play during the week 1 showdown. “They keep saying, ‘No, that’s not true. That’s not right.'” Schefter noted. But he isn’t on board with that.

“I’ll just say that there’s a lot of smoke flying around there about the condition of his shoulder, about screws in his shoulder, about the soreness in his shoulder, about how long it might last, about when he might throw again, how long it might last, about when he might throw again,” he added. “And every time I go to somebody that would be in a position to know, they say, ‘No, he’s fine. He should be ready for training camp.'”

All in all, Richardson’s return for the Colts is still the toughest question to answer. With the OTAs already wrapped up, and so did the mandatory minicamp, it’s still not clear whether or not Richardson will be fit before the regular season kicks off. “I just think for right now, it’s just one of those lingering questions that’s out there. I have questions about whether or not he will be ready for the start of training camp. We don’t know when he’ll be back there,” Schefter explained.

That said, it’s safe to say that the chances of Daniel Jones becoming the starting quarterback of the Colts are almost certain ahead of the week 1 showdown.

There’s a reason why Daniel Jones picked the Colts

Daniel Jones gearing up to start for the Colts in 2025 sounds so straightforward, doesn’t it? Indeed. Anthony Richardson went down with a shoulder injury, Indiana picked Jones, or maybe Jones picked the Colts. It all just makes sense. And Adam Schefter believes that it’s the main reason why Daniel Jones is with Indianapolis for the 2025 season, literally.

During his appearance on The Pat McAfee Show, Ty Schmit asked him, “Is the expectation moving forward now that Danny Dimes (Jones) kind of has the fast track to be the starting quarterback here?” Schefter’s response?

He honestly made it clear that, “Well, there’s a few things going on here. First of all, I think there’s a reason that Daniel Jones picked Indianapolis. And I think there’s a reason that Indianapolis paid Daniel Jones more than the Pittsburgh Steelers are paying Aaron Rodgers, because they knew that at some point in time, they might have to rely on Danny Dimes.” Translation?

Both parties were aware of Richardson’s fate ahead of the 2025 season. The third-year quarterback’s time in Indy is stuck in limbo. He already missed out on the OTAs and the minicamp, and we’ve no clue if he’d be fit before the regular season, let alone the training camp. Enter Daniel Jones—a kind of messiah for the Colts’ quarterback room.

Indy wanted an experienced quarterback, Danny Dimes wanted a starting opportunity, and Voilà, here we are. The 28-year-old is coming after spending six years with the Giants with a not-so-good track record of 24-44-1. And yes, a brief stint with the Vikings. He’s yearning for that one breakout season. And Indy might give him one.

But with the dark clouds looming over Anthony Richardson’s return for the 2025 season, are the Colts going to look out for another quarterback to serve as a backup to Jones or maybe compete against him for the starting role? That’s a mystery that we can expect the Colts to solve very soon.