The Los Angeles Rams will not see Anthony Richardson this season, as the Colts quarterback was passed over for Daniel Jones. That is old news, of course, yet Colts general manager Chris Ballard has stressed this week that Indy will not trade him, and remains in the team’s future plans. This is a textbook example of how not to develop a QB, and the Rams’ front office had better be taking notes.
NFL analysts and draft experts repeatedly said that Richardson would be a project, albeit a high-risk, high-reward
one. Indianapolis was unfazed and made AR the fourth overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft. After 15 starts as a pro, Richardson will be riding the bench and watching Jones try to play football. Talk about torture.
It’s no secret that the league has a QB development issue. That much was evident in 2023 when high-quality passers were seemingly in short supply.
I’ve probably said this many times on this site, but NFL front offices and coaching staffs are too impatient with young signal callers. They expect them to be great right out of the gate, and that rarely happens. Jayden Daniels last season was the exception, not the rule.
One example I always enjoy sharing when this topic comes up involves John Elway, one of the greatest quarterbacks ever to play the game, and you cannot convince me otherwise. Fans always remember Elway for his elite and comeback abilities. However, in interviews, he mentioned that he wasn’t great as a rookie, and one old tape of his had shown him lining up behind the wrong player.
Now, imagine that happening today. That poor soul would be crucified in the media and verbally maimed on ESPN by Stephen A. Smith, like he knows anything about playing quarterback in the NFL.
Point is, somewhere down the line, teams got impatient and expect Elway-level greatness right out the gate, and that’s too much to put on the shoulders of a young player. They already have to carry the weight of their respective franchise on their backs. There’s only so much they can handle before it all becomes too much.
Players, much like anyone you encounter in this life, learn at their own pace. Yeah, you don’t want players taking a decade learning the position, but sitting two to three seasons behind an established starter could work wonders.
The Packers are a rare case, as Aaron Rodgers and Jordan Love both had ample time to develop as they sat behind future Hall of Famers. Obviously, not every team has that luxury, yet the smart organizations know how to handle these situations. Kansas City had Patrick Mahomes on the bench while Alex Smith played the season. Buffalo was patient with Josh Allen as his completion percentage and play gradually improved, becoming an MVP finalist by his third season.
Indy was just plain stupid and reckless with Richardson, giving him the starting nod in Week 1 of his rookie campaign without giving him better competition in training camp. Once the Colts did—if you could call Jones that—it was ahead of his third season, and by then, much of the developmental damage had been done.
If you draft a QB who started a handful of games in college, it doesn’t matter how physically gifted or “ready” they appear; they must ride the bench. Even the 49ers tried to do this with Trey Lance, since he was named the starter before his sophomore season after Jimmy Garoppolo got the boot. Despite that, it was clear that Lance still had plenty of growing to do and would have benefited from sitting another year, and that is why he’s a journeyman quarterback at this stage of his career.
Assuming this is Matthew Stafford’s last dance in L.A., the Rams have to be smart and sign a reasonably priced starter next offseason. Retaining Garoppolo would be key, but I doubt he wants to relive the Lance situation if the Rams select a quarterback in next year’s draft. For most of the fanbase, that is the expectation, considering the team has two first-round picks to work with.
Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it. Many NFL teams will make the same foolish mistakes as the Colts did when selecting a rookie passer. That is inevitable. The Rams simply cannot be one of them when the time comes.
