Changing horses

 Well, this is interesting.

Three days past the eighth game of the season, 18 months after the Indianapolis Colts handed him their future (because what else does taking a quarterback with the fourth pick in the draft imply?), the Colts are moving on from Anthony Richardson.

I'm sorry, what?

Yeah, OK. "Moving on" is a bit much. For now, anyway.

For now, Richardson's just going to the sidelines, and the Colts will hand the keys to 85-year-old Joe Flacco, or at least 39-year-old Joe Flacco. This indicates a couple of things, both of which are admittedly bald-faced conjecture.

One, management has decided, at least for the present, to play for the present.

Two, Chris Ballard 'n' them are admitting Richardson -- who was just 21 years old and had a small college sample size when the Colts drafted him in '23 -- wasn't ready to for the deep end right off the jump.

Neither of those might not be true, of course. But if the latter is at least in the ballpark, imagine how hard it was for Ballard in particular to admit he screwed up in pushing the kid too fast. 

Not that he ever would admit it, Ballard being Ballard.

In any case, Richardson will sit, the geezer will play, and it's fair to wonder how much of what happened Sunday played into that. Was it just that Richardson was mostly atrocious again? Or was it because, late in a tight battle for first in the AFC South, he tapped out of the game on a crucial third down with the Colts driving?

Said he was gassed, and needed a breather. Wasn't the first time it's ever happened, but it's not what a franchise QB is supposed to do -- especially when it so clearly violates bedrock NFL protocol.

Maybe that was the tipping point. Maybe it wasn't. Again, bald-faced conjecture.

At the very least, though, benching Richardson after just 10 starts -- half of which he didn't finish -- suggests the Colts are starting to get a trifle queasy about their roll of the dice 18 months ago. They're still a long way from Omigod we blew the quarterback pick, but changing horses in mid-stream is never a confident look.

They can defend it by saying Flacco gives the 4-4 Colts their best shot at making the playoffs, and making the playoffs (even as a team that doesn't appear to have a deep run in it) is a big deal in the modern NFL. If nothing else, it gives you something to build on.

As for Richardson ...

Well, who knows? Maybe Richardson can sit and learn behind Flacco -- same as Aaron Rodgers sat and learned behind Brett Favre, and Jordan Love sat and learned behind Rodgers, and Patrick Mahomes sat and learned behind Alex Smith.

Could work. Might not. 

Out on West 56th Street in Indy, the fingers are crossed.