The Indianapolis Colts have had a busy week because one of the primary topics of conversation among NFL fans has been their quarterback dilemma.
For those who are not familiar, quarterback Anthony Richardson pulled himself out of the game on a play on a goal-to-go situation in the Colts’ Week 8 game against the Houston Texans. Richardson would later say that he was “tired.”
In addition to Richardson’s inconsistent play, head coach Shane Steichen made the decision to bench him indefinitely in favor of veteran Joe Flacco moving forward. A week of reactions, feelings, and, to be honest, a general chaos in the locker room would follow.
The move was well received by some fans. Others didn’t. However, what we saw on Sunday Night Football may have been the actual, authentic story. The Colts may not have a quarterback issue above all else. In fact, it might be a Shane Steichen issue.
The Colts would lose a game in which the offense failed to score a touchdown because Flacco did nothing to establish himself as the winner against the Minnesota Vikings.
Steichen hasn’t abandoned Flacco as his starter in the day and a half since the defeat, either. Richardson is still ranked second on the depth chart, and Flacco is still the starting quarterback. But is this the proper course of action?
Colts fans want Anthony Richardson back, and it’s abundantly clear
The day after the loss, Nate Atkins of the Indy Star turned to social media to run a poll of whom supporters believe should be the Colts’ starter against the Buffalo Bills in Week 10.
For Colts supporters, this is not the end-all-be-all. Naturally, not all Colts supporters responded to this survey. However, Atkins has a strong sense of team spirit, and his followers are mostly Colts supporters. In any case, the poll’s results are startling and biased
Richardson takes Flacco’s place after just one start, with 90 percent of voters saying he should be the starting. Additionally, this follows the recent explosion of the “Free Anthony Richardson” movement on social media.
That ought to say a lot. The survey won’t be given to the Colts coaching staff or anything like that because there’s probably little chance that Atkins will tell Steichen about it. However, this ought to be a fairly accurate depiction of the sentiments of fans.
Should Steichen pay attention to what the fans have to say?
However, this sentiment isn’t unique to fans either. Many members of the media and former athletes would probably concur that Richardson ought to be playing. Steichen has his job cut out for him because this is not an easy issue to handle right now.