Chris Ballard’s expectations for Anthony Richardson
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Anthony Richardson is heading into his second year in the NFL, but he still lacks a lot of experience.
Due to his season-ending shoulder injury last year, he only played in four games.
With that youth, some inconsistencies are expected.
“There’s going to be some rollercoaster moments,” Colts general manager Chris Ballard said. “I won’t say all, but most quarterbacks, when they’re young, go through those moments. There’s going to be. But learn from them, grow and keep moving forward.”
Ballard added that he has a lot of confidence in Colts head coach Shane Steichen and offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter and what they can do to put Richardson in situations that play to his strengths and make sure he’s comfortable.
Richardson played in two preseason games, leading one touchdown drive. He also threw a pick six in the possession following the touchdown.
Overall, he played in seven drives, with five of them being punts.
Ballard on Colts roster cuts
Tuesday was cut day for the NFL, where each team had to get their roster down to 53 players. Some position groups stood out more than others.
Defensive Line
Ballard said that the defensive line was the toughest position group to make cuts for. The Colts ended up keeping 10 players on the defensive line. Two of the players that they cut have already been claimed by other teams off waivers, thus making a 53-man roster.
Jonah Laulu, the Colts seventh round pick in the 2024 NFL Draft, was claimed by the Raiders. Eric Johnson II was claimed by the Patriots.
Johnson II played two seasons in Indianapolis, playing in 28 games and tallied 18 tackles.
Defensive backs
The defensive backs have been the biggest position group in question throughout the offseason. Despite having a lot of young players at the position, the Colts did not make any major additions to the position in the offseason.
“We do think we have good, young talent back there, and we have a lot of belief in our front,” Ballard said. “So, we’ll continue to let these guys grow and come on. They don’t become players without playing.”
The Colts claimed cornerback Samuel Womack III off waivers on Wednesday from the San Francisco 49ers to add depth to the position. Ballard said they liked him in the draft in 2022 when he was picked in the fifth round. They waved cornerback Darrell Baker Jr. in the corresponding move.
Both of the cornerbacks the Colts drafted in 2024 did not make the 53-man roster. Jaylin Simpson was signed to the practice squad, while Micah Abraham has yet to be signed or claimed off waivers.
Running backs
The Colts decided to keep three running backs on their roster, with Trey Sermon and Tyler Goodson backing up Jonathan Taylor.
That means that Evan Hull got cut. He was, however, signed to their practice squad on Wednesday.
“It was a really tough decision between – especially with (Trey) Sermon getting hurt, but we really liked what Sermon was doing last year and in the offseason,” Ballard said. “We like some of the things (Tyler) Goodson did. We still like (Evan) Hull. At the end of the day, Goodson just did a little bit more, little more rounded right now, but look, Hull is still going to be definitely in the mix with us”
The Colts open their regular season against the Houston Texans at Lucas Oil Stadium on September 8.