Anthony Richardson struggles again as Colts fall to Texans 23-20

HOUSTON (AP) — Another tough game by quarterback Anthony Richardson doomed the Indianapolis Colts in a 23-20 loss to the Houston Texans on Sunday.

Richardson completed just 10 of 32 passes for 175 yards with a touchdown and an interception to snap a two-game winning streak and put the Colts (4-4) further behind the first-place Texans (6-2) in the AFC South.

He also raised eyebrows with an explanation for why he left the game for a play before a field goal in the third quarter.

“I was tired, I ain’t gonna lie,” he said. “That was a lot of running right there. I didn’t think I’d be able to do that next play so I told them I needed a break right there.”

Indianapolis coach Shane Steichen said this week that they’re simply looking for growth from their young quarterback from game to game.

It was hard to see much of that Sunday as Richardson struggled to move the offense for most of the game amid heavy pressure. The fourth overall pick in the 2023 draft was sacked five times and hit another eight.

The performance came after he managed just 129 yards passing in his return from a hip injury last week, but the Colts made two fourth-quarter field goals to get a 16-10 win over Miami.

Steichen was quick to defend his quarterback Sunday, saying that everyone needs to do better.

“We’ve just got to keep working through it,” he said. “He’s got a good work effort. He grinds through these things, it’s a process, and we’ll do it together. This ain’t about one guy — it’s about the team. It’s always about the team.”

Richardson has completed just 44.4% of his passes this season. But the dual-threat QB brushed off criticism of his completion percentage.

“I feel like I’m a great passer,” he said. “I’ve been playing quarterback pretty much my whole life. I’m just a different quarterback from everybody else so people are going to try to point out that I’m not as efficient as everybody else. It’s cool to me.”

He later seemed to compare himself to Michael Vick when referencing his completion percentage.

“They say Vick didn’t have a great completion percentage his first couple of years, and he was probably one of the greatest quarterbacks to ever do it,” Richardson said. “So, I don’t necessarily look at numbers. I look at each play for itself because I don’t have the ability to control every single thing every play. I can only control what I can control. If my numbers are low, that just means I’ve got to pick them up and play better.”

Vick’s completion rate as a rookie was 44.2%, but he played just eight games with two starts that year. He completed at least 50% of his passes in each of the next five seasons.

Richardson completed just two of 15 passes in the first half as the Colts fell behind 17-10 by halftime.

One of those completions was a big one though. He found Josh Downs wide open for a 69-yard touchdown that put the Colts up 10-3 in the first quarter.

He couldn’t do much after that, but Jonathan Taylor helped move the offense with 20 carries for 105 yards and a score in his return after missing three games with an ankle injury.

Taylor said it’s important for the Colts to support Richardson as they try to get their offense going.

“We just have to let him know… we have your back,” Taylor said. “This is not just a one play, one-game thing. We’re in it for the long haul, we have a goal that we want to achieve, and it’s going to take all of us — every single one of us, every single day giving it their all.”

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