Anthony Richardson vs. C.J. Stroud? Colts rookie isn't playing that game

[JAFF]

Anthony Richardson vs. C.J. Stroud? Colts rookie isn't playing that game

INDIANAPOLIS — The top billing for this week’s Colts-Texans showdown writes itself.

Anthony Richardson vs. C.J. Stroud. The No. 4 pick in the NFL Draft taking on No. 2.

The hopes and dreams of two rival AFC South franchises, pitted against each other in the first of many battles, each one serving as fodder for the inevitable debate about which team made the better choice.

But Richardson isn’t looking at this game that way, and it’s not mere lip service, boilerplate pablum designed to avoid making the wrong kind of headlines.

Colts mailbag:Why wasn't Shane Steichen more aggressive with Anthony Richardson?


Richardson knows there’s a danger to getting too pumped up to play against another star quarterback.

“The last time I tried to compete with somebody else, I didn’t play great,” Richardson said. “I’m just focused on myself, focused on my details and trying to help my teammates.”

The last time was a little more than a year ago.


Richardson was coming off an electric season-opening win over No. 7 Utah, the kind of win that caught the eyes of the NFL. For his encore, Richardson was taking his Florida team to Lexington to take on No. 20 Kentucky, the home of highly-touted draft prospect Will Levis.

“I was so excited, so pumped,” Richardson said. “Two highly-sought quarterbacks are getting ready to play in front of all these NFL scouts, and that’s when it hit me. … I told myself: ‘I have to play perfect.’”


Richardson struggled instead.

Facing off against Levis, Richardson completed just 14 of 35 passes for 143 yards, picked up just four rushing yards on six carries and tossed two interceptions in an ugly, disheartening performance.

“Trying to battle against him instead of battling against their team,” Richardson said.


The pressure started to weigh on Richardson. Ultimately, the load he was carrying inspired Richardson to start working with Brett Ledbetter, a mental coach who has helped Richardson put the game in perspective, figure out what motivates him best.

More:Chasing Tim Tebow, idolizing Tom Brady, fighting fires: Making of Colts QB Anthony Richardson

“I saw the difference in myself and in my play,” Richardson said. “I wasn’t focused on trying to please everybody. I was just living in the moment and having fun.”

Richardson is still excited to see Stroud this weekend, although not to prove his worth over one of the players drafted ahead of him.

The two quarterbacks have been friends going back to the passing camp circuit that ends up engulfing most of the nation’s best high school quarterbacks.

“That’s my guy,” Stroud told reporters in Houston on Wednesday. “Known him since we were in high school, competed against each other in (Nike’s Elite 11 quarterback competition), became real good friends there and kind of kept the relationship when he was at Florida and I was at Ohio State.”

Stroud, like Richardson, is excited he gets a chance to compete against Richardson again, the way they used to compete on the Elite 11 fields at Nike’s headquarters in Beaverton, Oregon.

Except that in Oregon, Richardson and Stroud were competing directly against each other.

When they meet Sunday, Stroud has to contend with the Colts defense, one week after completing 28 of 44 passes for 242 yards in a loss to Baltimore. The Texans rookie took five sacks in his debut; he’d better be more worried about DeForest Buckner, Kwity Paye and the rest of the Colts defensive line than matching his friend throw for throw.

By the same token, Richardson is coming off an encouraging debut, completing 24 of 37 passes for 223 yards, one touchdown and one interception, as well as rushing 10 times for 40 yards and a touchdown. He has his hands full this week, taking on a Houston defense that opened its season against one of the NFL’s best dual-threat quarterbacks and limited Ravens superstar Lamar Jackson to 169 passing yards, 38 rushing yards and an interception while sacking him four times.

Worrying about Stroud won’t help Richardson crack open the Houston defense.


“I think he’ll be fine,” Colts coach Shane Steichen said. “A lot of the times it’s quarterback vs. quarterback, to me, it’s team vs. team. … It’s not quarterback vs. quarterback, it’s the Houston Texans vs. the Colts. That's what we've got to focus on and treat it that way.”

Richardson’s already learned that lesson for himself.

[Oldcolt]

It is a small thing but it is huge. He learns from mistakes. This all is looking way to good for me to believe. AR seems to be the real deal. Pumped to root for the guy.

[Colts And Orioles]

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I hope that both Richardson and Stroud play well, and I think that they will ...... of course, I hope that Stroud throws 5 INT's and gets sacked 11 times every time that the Texans play the Colts.

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[Indystu2]

Not a bad article. I hope AR truly learns from those mistakes and his teammates are on the same page. If he is surrounded by a supportive O-Line/Coach in his ear, that has his back, even in the mental game, he will be fine. I want to be optimistic and I know part of that it is the homer in me. So far AR seems to be learning quickly. I want to see improvement game to game, situation to situation. Cautiously optimistic.

[Colts And Orioles]

Originally Posted by Colts And Orioles

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I hope that both Richardson and Stroud play well, and I think that they will ...... of course, I hope that Stroud throws 5 INT's and gets sacked 11 times every time that the Texans play the Colts.

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Originally Posted by Colts And Orioles

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There's 1 sack.

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o


There's 2 sacks.

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[Colts And Orioles]

o


Stroud will miss this week's upcoming game, as he is still in concussion protocol ...... but Case Keenum got it done against the Titans on Sunday, and he will try his hand again when his team takes on the Cleveland Browns this week.


http://www.coltfreaks.com/forum/show...452#post287452

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[Colts And Orioles]

o


The Colts' Road to the Playoffs Must Go Through C.J. Stroud, Their Draft Temptation

(By Nate Atkins)

https://www.indystar.com/story/sport...d/72074168007/



The Hail Mary pass hung in the air at Lucas Oil Stadium for what felt like a lifetime. Rodney Thomas II couldn't wait any longer and left his feet, up into the air where the ball was headed. But gravity won, and down he came, and the ball flew over his head and into the arms of a Houston tight end.

Texans 32, Colts 31.

This was the play in Week 18 last season that changed two franchises and created two landing spots for talented rookie quarterbacks.

One of those, Anthony Richardson, will be on the sidelines during Saturday's 8:15 p.m. primetime showcase between the Colts and Texans at Lucas Oil Stadium that serves as a de facto playoff game with both teams at 9-7. The other, C.J. Stroud, will be the primary focus of the Colts as they look to punch their ticket to the playoffs for the first time since 2020.

Richardson landed in Indianapolis after the Colts stayed at fourth in the draft order, keeping them above the Seahawks, whom those close to Richardson believe would have been his landing spot had he been available for their pick. Richardson's rookie season has been over for months due to a sprained AC joint. He will instead watch on as the Colts look to reach the playoffs with Gardner Minshew.

Stroud arrived in Houston on the backs of this victory, as the Texans slid from a projected No. 1 overall pick to the No. 2 spot. Bryce Young, whom many expected Demeco Ryans and the Texans to seek given their Alabama connection, went No. 1 after the Panthers traded up with the Bears. The Texans took Stroud at No. 2 off of a dazzling career at Ohio State.

Richardson and Stroud have offered hope to their franchises in different ways. Richardson's came in flashes of rushing, escapability and deep passes in his four games.

Stroud's are like a weekly highlight reel of throws. In 14 starts, he has 21 touchdowns to five interceptions and a 99.0 quarterback rating. His 8.1 yards per attempt rank third in the NFL behind Brock Purdy and Tua Tagovailoa among high-volume passers. His 8.4 yards of average throw depth are the most in the NFL, per Sports Info Solutions.

“He’s a pure passer. He throws it effortlessly," Colts coach Shane Steichen said. "... He’s played really like a veteran all year. I know he got dinged up with the concussion but shoot, he was playing at an MVP level there."

Stroud will be a runaway winner of the AFC Offensive Rookie of the Year award after a season that has dwarfed what Young has done for the Panthers, where he has 11 touchdowns, 10 interceptions and a 2-13 record. It makes that Week 18 victory a potential blessing in disguise.

The Texans have gone from a 11-34-1 record over the past three seasons to now sitting at 9-7 like the Colts with a chance to secure either a wildcard spot or an AFC South title with a win.

Steichen and the Colts scouted Stroud heavily in the months leading up to the draft, including in a private workout in Los Angeles and on a visit to the facility. He was one of four potential options along with Young, Richardson and Will Levis, who fell to the Titans in the second round.

The Colts fell in love with Richardson's upside as a runner, passer, teammate and leader, and they claim they would have taken him at No. 1.

But they also had fans in the building of Stroud's game, especially following his performance against Georgia in the College Football Playoff.

"Writing him up and getting to know him with all the interviews and the travel and all that stuff that goes on in that process he was really, really mentally into the game of football. He would love talking ball with us," offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter said. "... Shoot, before we even got everybody in the meeting and that informal time, C.J. was asking us questions about things and really prides himself on his knowledge of the game.

"That’s obviously showing with the success that he’s having this year."

The Colts got to see the breakout start in Week 2. After Richardson ran for two touchdowns to give the Colts a comfortable lead, they had to hang on as Stroud completed 30 of 47 passes for 384 yards and two touchdowns in a 31-20 Indianapolis win.

Stroud won eight of his next 12 starts and showed he's more than a distributor to elite receivers like some pegged him as at Ohio State. Throwing to unestablished targets such as Nico Collins, Tank Dell and Noah Brown this season, Stroud has produced the mix of the ball placement, accuracy and functional mobility that led some to call him the best pure passer in this year's draft.

He's only run 36 times for 147 yards, though he does have three touchdowns. The lack of aggressiveness and comfort on designed runs dropped him compared to Richardson in the Colts' eyes, but the rest of his tools have combined into a player who has hit the ground running as a rookie.

"Man, it's just his poise. He was baptized early, and once he got on that rhythm and roll... you can tell how he's able to work through his reads," Colts linebacker Zaire Franklin said. "He's not afraid to use his legs to be mobile and extend plays or just to go and pick up quick first downs. The arm talent is definitely there."

Stroud's ability and willingness to attack all parts of the field will be the focus of the Colts' game plan after weeks of playing backup or struggling quarterbacks such as Young, Mac Jones, Jake Browning, Mitch Trubisky, Taylor Heinicke and Aidan O'Connell.

It's a battle of youth, as the rookie Stroud will go up against rookie cornerbacks JuJu Brents and Jaylon Jones on the perimeter, as well as second-year free safety Nick Cross in his fourth career start. Indianapolis is hoping to return Kenny Moore II at nickel cornerback after he missed with a back injury, and Ronnie Harrison Jr. has converted back to his old position at strong safety in order to provide communication and leadership to the group.

Stroud will have to live without Dell, who helped fuel his breakout with 709 yards and seven touchdowns in 11 games before breaking his fibula. He will continue to live through Collins, who has 1,102 yards and eight touchdowns with the ability to play inside or outside. He'll also lean on veteran tight end Dalton Schultz, who has 593 yards and five touchdowns.

He'll throw to them often on roll-outs and play-action in offensive coordinator Bobby Slowik's system that he learned from working under Kyle Shanahan and the 49ers. It'll test the discipline of the Colts' coverage as well as a pass rush that has set the Indianapolis record with 49 sacks and ranks fifth in the NFL.

Saturday is just the next of many showdowns with Stroud. It's also the first step to keeping an improbable season alive by topping the quarterbacks who are cooking at this time of the season.

"It's great to see a young quarterback grow and progress," Franklin said, "but it's our job to make him have a bad day."

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