Daniel Jones – after being cut by the New York Giants and taken in by the Minnesota Vikings at the back end of last season, made an intentional decision to leave Minneapolis and sign with the Indianpolis Colts this past March.
The reason being – of course; a clear possible route to a starting role, with or without an injury to the starting QB.
That starting quarterback being Anthony Richardson, who after a very rocky sophomore season, in which he was benched for Joe Flacco, then suffered an AC joint sprain in his throwing shoulder, which made the Colts’ job Jones’ to lose.
Last month, it seemed like the former Duke man was poised to win the role heading towards training camp and the start of the regular season, with some believing that the race wouldn’t even be close.
However, according to Dan Graziano of ESPN, that is not the case now that we are well and fully into the early days of training camp. Graziano believes that Richardson, not Jones, will be the starting QB heading into week 1.
Jones Predicted To Lose Out On Starting QB Role After Richardson’s Return
“I know Jones appears to have taken over the No. 1 spot on the depth chart after Richardson’s spring injury,” Graziano explained on Monday, “but training camp is where Richardson looks the best — if he’s healthy, he’s likely to outperform Jones on the practice field.
The Colts also have a lot more invested in Richardson, and if it’s a close competition, most people I talk to believe that will tilt things in his favor — at least to start the season. Whether he can stay healthy enough or play well enough to hold the job is another matter entirely.”
Stephen Holder – also of ESPN, pointed out last week that Richardson was taking most of the first team snaps for the Colts’ offense.
“Any concerns that Anthony Richardson Sr.’s offseason shoulder issue might impact the Indianapolis Colts’ quarterback battle were put to rest during Wednesday’s first practice of training camp,” Holder reported last Wednesday, “as Richardson took a majority of the full-team snaps with the starting offense with no limitations.”
Daniel Jones’ Poor Training Camp Start Costing Him Dearly
Although some of the re-balancing of the race has come Richardson’s return to health, the former Giant is not doing himself any favors. The Athletic’s James Boyd wrote on Monday that Jones’ sub-par work in camp has reduced his odds at becoming the team’s QB1 ahead of the impeding start to the regular season.
“Entering training camp, Jones owned a slight edge on Anthony Richardson in the Coltsâ QB competition since Richardson missed most of spring practice because of shoulder soreness.” Boyd wrote, “But early on in camp, Jones hasnât done anything to separate himself from Richardson. If anything, Jones seems to have lost ground with the QB battle about even.”
With the play at evens – as Graziano points out – the tie will almost certainly go to Richardson. Not only do the Colts have a keen vested interest in the strong-armed former Florida standout, but having entered the league just three years ago as an already raw prospect, there is a far, far higher ceiling to reach for Richardson than Jones.
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