The Indianapolis Colts have a full quarterback room for the foreseeable future after Anthony Richardson Sr.’s time spent on the trade block failed to land any suitors during the 2026 NFL Draft.

While Richardson has since returned to the team and just wrapped up OTAs, his trade request has not yet been rescinded, so there’s technically a chance he could be traded for anytime before the mid-season trade deadline.

Richardson and second-year quarterback and 2025 sixth-round pick Riley Leonard will continue battling it out for the backup role under starter Daniel Jones, who is working back from his Achilles rehab.

With Jones out for the majority of team work (i.e., 11-on-11 periods) for the summer, with a fully healthy projection scheduled for training camp, valuable reps will be provided to Richardson and Leonard as they work on their respective professional trajectories.

Richardson is entering the final year of his rookie contract, a pricey $10.8M cap hit for a backup, whereas Leonard is entering the second year of his. While the two are in incredibly different situations entering 2026, both have reasons to earn the QB2 role directly under Daniel Jones.

Leonard is viewed as the better fit for this version of head coach Shane Steichen’s offense with Jones at the helm, and the subsequent backup of the future, whereas Richardson remains the unrefined, oft-injured project that could be fun to fix.

Ranking Anthony Richardson Sr. Among Backup QBs

Sports Illustrated’s Gilberto Manzano recently dropped his ranking of backup quarterbacks across the league, and ultimately put Richardson in his top 10 (at No. 10).

“Yes, Richardson has struggled throughout his career and has been unable to stay available. He had a golden opportunity last year when Daniel Jones ruptured his Achilles, but he wasn’t around due to a freak accident with an elastic exercise band,” Manzano wrote.

“Still, I can’t get over how dominant Richardson was in the first month of his rookie season in 2023. There were shades of Cam Newton and Josh Allen with his arm strength and massive 6’4″, 244-pound frame. In a spot start or in relief, Richardson’s game could give teams plenty of fits—that’s if he’s available. There’s also a possibility that the Colts trade or cut Richardson, who has 15 career starts, before the end of training camp.”

Anthony Richardson has 2,400 passing yards, 11 passing touchdowns, and 13 interceptions on an abysmal 50.6% completion rate through three years in the league so far. Couple that uninspired statline with his plethora of injuries sustained, major or minor, and it’s hard to see why someone would continue betting on him, but as Manzano mentions, the potential is hard to quit.

So yes, while Riley Leonard has the inside track to winning the QB2 role due to his fit, durability, and loyalty (i.e., not requesting a trade), Richardson still has enough on his resume to warrant keeping around.

Most have jumped off the Richardson train by this point, but there are still plenty of people, Colts general manager Chris Ballard included, who believe he can rebound from this brutal start to his career. Furthermore, the Colts would greatly benefit from having two viable backups in Richardson and Leonard, given that Daniel Jones is just as prone to injury at this point in his career.

The Colts may be taking on nearly $11M in cap to keep Richardson around, and there’s certainly a chance he reinjures himself whilst not playing a snap (circa 2025), but this regime is in a make or break year, so having as many viable options at the sport’s most important position seems like a fair tradeoff.

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