Michael Strahan‘s had a long and fruitful career as a defensive lineman for the Giants, and an even longer one as a football analyst. So you’d think he’d have gotten pretty good at his job by now, no? Well, fans of the Indianapolis Colts are certainly of the opinion he’s got some learning to do, after he called Anthony Richardson an “innacurate” passer during the Lions game earlier today.
Anthony Richardson definitely had a rough patch towards the start of the season. That can’t be denied. As a matter of fact, he tanked his stats so bad he still ranks as the worst quarterback in the league for percentage of passes completed. At 48.5%, he is miles below even Jacoby Brissett’s 59.1%.
So maybe you can start to get an idea of where Shanahan was coming from. But again, that most recent Jets game—his first after being renamed starter—showed he can be better. 66.7% completion rate isn’t anything to write home about, but it’s solidly middle of the pack.
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You know things have gotten serious when even Pat McAfee admits he got caught with his foot in his mouth. We’re neck deep in the Anthony Richardson redemption arc. Why on earth wouldn’t we want to see it?
Fans have a go at Michael Strahan after he calls Anthony Richardson “inaccurate”
There’s no more poignant way to disprove that point than by showing him directly how wrong he is. With receipts, of course. One commenter showed off an excellent deep field pass from Richardson to wide receiver Alec Pierce, adding “Here’s a highlight for ya since you aren’t paying attention.” It certainly comes across as though Strahan bears an unfair bias against the young quarterback.
Hey @michaelstrahan, here’s a highlight for ya since you aren’t paying attention. How much money does Fox pay you to spew baseless nonsense. Watch the game or don’t speak on it, you look foolish. pic.twitter.com/uTSwAwzfZJ
— Colts Coverage (@Colts_Coverage) November 24, 2024
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It’s a lazer beam pass, and you can’t fault him for it in any way. Other fans were less articulate, of course. One of them had a simple remark to make, “Holy s—, I didn’t know Michael Strahan was that brain dead. Pointing out how “inaccurate” AR is.” It’s an understandable frustration to have, especially on occasions where it seems like Richardson couldn’t have really done anything.
Most notably, this happened when he managed to almost get off a pass while in the middle of being tackled. “How stupid do you have to be to blame a throw *barely* being off when he ‘was being HIT’ while throwing it,” one fan opined. While passes like that will impact completion percentage, how can you fault the guy? Especially when he’s risking injury for team glory by still going for it and not just getting rid of the ball?
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Leave aside the ad hominem attacks based on Michael Strahan’s appearance though. Stuff like that is never alright. The game did ultimately go the Lions’ way, but it was the result of their signature offensive brilliance. The emphasis on Richardson had one Colts fan say “Michael Strahan blaming this first half deficit on Richardson’s “accuracy” has me truly befuddled…” While the quarterback is the hammer on the anvil of offense, laying the blame squarely on him is hardly fair.
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Is Michael Strahan's criticism of Anthony Richardson justified, or is he just out of touch?
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Is Michael Strahan's criticism of Anthony Richardson justified, or is he just out of touch?
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