The Colts have been trying to trade 2023 No. 4 overall pick Anthony Richardson throughout the offseason.
But with no deal materializing so far, Richardson has changed things up.
Per Stephen Holder of ESPN, Richardson reported to Indianapolis’ voluntary offseason program on Monday after staying away for the past two weeks.
While the Colts are apparently not any closer to trading Richardson, they also have not given any indication that he will be released. So, at least for now, Richardson is back with Indianapolis.
The Colts declined to pick up Richardson’s fifth-year option by last week’s deadline, as was widely expected.
Richardson getting back in the building sets up the Colts with another available quarterback, as Daniel Jones continues to recover from a torn Achilles. Riley Leonard and Seth Henigan are also on the roster at QB.
Richardson started 15 games combined in his first two seasons. But Jones beat Richardson out in last year’s training camp to take over as Indianapolis’ QB1. When Jones suffered a torn Achilles late in the season, Richardson was unavailable after a freak pregame accident left him with a fractured orbital bone in his eye.
In his 17 career appearances, Richardson has completed 50.6 percent of his passes for 2,400 yards with 11 touchdowns and 13 interceptions. He’s also rushed for 634 yards with 10 TDs.
The Colts will not exercise the fifth-year option on quarterback Anthony Richardson’s rookie contract, Mike Chappell of Fox 59 reports.
That was expected as the Colts seek to trade Richardson.
General Manager Chris Ballard said Saturday that he “hadn’t given too much thought” about the fifth-year option that would have paid Richardson $22.483 million for 2027. But the Colts faced a Friday deadline for a decision.
It didn’t take much consideration as Richardson, the fourth overall pick in 2023, has started only 15 games due to injuries and inconsistency. He is still recovering from an eye injury from last October.
Richardson has requested a trade, and if the Colts can’t find a trade partner, they will have to decide whether to release Richardson. The Colts have Richardson, Riley Leonard and Seth Henigan behind Daniel Jones on their depth chart.
The Colts have dropped four players from their roster.
They announced on Thursday that they have waived defensive end Villami Fehoko and linebacker Joseph Vaughn. They also released offensive lineman Bill Murray and waived offensive lineman Jack Wilson with an injury designation. Wilson will revert to injured reserve if he isn’t claimed.
Murray is the only member of the quartet who has appeared in a regular season game. He played in one game for the Patriots in 2022 and three games for the Bears during the 2024 season.
The Colts have not announced any undrafted free agent signings yet, but will likely have some to share ahead of next week’s rookie minicamp.
Quarterback Daniel Jones performed well in his first season with the Colts before suffering a torn Achilles late in December — so well that the club rewarded him with a two-year, $88 million deal despite the injury.
But Jones is, by all accounts, progressing well through his rehab and could be available to begin the regular season in September. With Jones’ new contract, the Colts have a clear belief in the QB to pick up where he left off whenever he’s healthy.
In a recent interview with the Rich Eisen Show, Colts G.M. Chris Ballard noted that there was one factor about Jones’ game he found surprising — comparing Jones to a former Pro Bowler.
“We had Alex Smith in Kansas City, and they’re a lot alike,” Ballard said. “How they prepare for the game, how steady they are day-to-day — there’s a lot of similarities. And then I probably underestimated his accuracy coming in the door. This dude is accurate, man. And when he’s in rhythm and really in a groove, he is excellent.
“Those are the things that — we had scouted Daniel, but until you live with somebody, you don’t know them. So, living with him every day, seeing his consistency, seeing him not get too high or too low, all those things bode well for the Colts and for his future. He’s really good, Rich. This guy’s talented and good.”
Jones, who turns 29 next month, completed 68.0 percent of his passes for 3,101 yards with 19 touchdowns and eight interceptions before suffering his injury. He started 13 games for Indianapolis last season after beating out Anthony Richardson to be the team’s QB1.
When Seth McGowan was a freshman running back at Oklahoma in 2020, he was arrested for stealing marijuana, jewelry and cash, pleaded guilty, served three months in jail, and was kicked off the team. McGowan wouldn’t play college football again until 2023, then played for three schools in three seasons before the Colts drafted him last week.
Colts General Manager Chris Ballard says he believes McGowan’s checkered past is behind him, and the team is confident in giving him a chance in the NFL.
“I’m a second chance guy,” Ballard said. “How long do you keep punishing him for it?”
After leaving Oklahoma, McGowan spent time at Texas College but never played a game there, then went to Butler Community College in 2023 and returned to the football field, then transferred to New Mexico State in 2024 and transferred again to Kentucky in 2025. Ballard said he knows all about McGowan’s history.
“Seth is a guy we’ve been watching for a while,” Ballard said. “He had the incident when he was at Oklahoma which we know and we vetted hard. His relationship with our running back coach, our relationship with coaches at Kentucky and at New Mexico State — I’ve known the head coach at New Mexico State for a lot of years — and they all they all speak very highly of the young man and who he is and how he works.”
Ballard said his friendship with New Mexico State head coach Tony Sanchez contributed to his confidence in McGowan.
“I don’t know if he really wanted to leave New Mexico State, but just financially it was so he didn’t have a choice,” Ballard said. “That’s kind of what Tony had said to me. He said, ‘Look, Chris, he needed to go just ‘cause financially it was the best thing for him.’ So, you know, he’s had a good track record. Feel good about who he is as you learn your lesson, you make a mistake, you pay the price for it, and then you move on.”
