Seein' ... things

 The eye of the beholder never got a better workout than it did in Buffalo yesterday.

It was your Indianapolis Colts vs. the Buffalo Bills in the first preseason game, and the Colts newest No. 1 draft pick -- a roll-of-the-dice named Anthony Richardson, out of Florida -- got the start at QB1. 

He played all of 29 snaps across three offensive series. Generated nine first downs. Threw the football 12 times and completed eight, one of which was to Bills defensive back Dane Jackson. Ran through a first-team Bills defensive end and blasted a Bills defensive back on a scramble. Made one eye-opening throw across space and time to Alex Pierce, who dropped it in the end zone.

From that we can conclude ... well, what?

You there, Mr. Jeopardy Contestant.

I'll go with "What is 'nothing'?", Alex.

Ding-ding-ding-ding!

Look. It's beyond obvious that you can't really tell anything from 29 snaps in a no-count game, but because the Colts took Richardson with the fourth overall pick based on potential and not available evidence, people saw what they wanted to see. Some saw the athletic freakiness in the Pierce throw and the scramble in which he ran through a DE two inches taller and 20 pounds heavier. Some said he "struggled".

Who was right, Mr. Jeopardy Contestant?

I'll say "What is 'both'?", Alex.

Ding-ding-ding-ding!

Truth is, it was in the eye of the beholder, and the eye of the beholder saw pretty much the same thing: That Richardson is indeed a project, and thus a work in progress. He showed flashes. He showed non-flashes. He was exactly what you might expect from a kid who started just 13 games at Florida and, again, showed flashes and non-flashes. He is an athletic freak, no question about that, but he was still learning the college game when the Colts drafted him. Now he has to learn the pro game. 

It's gonna take time, as Richardson, an eager pupil, has acknowledged. In the meantime ...

People will see what they want to see. Or what they need to see.