When the Indianapolis Colts drafted Anthony Richardson, they knew he would be a project. Yet, he was thrown into the fire immediately, and the results have more bad than good. Now likely opening the season backing up Daniel Jones, Richardson is a tough sell for fantasy football managers. Even if you don’t draft him, to what extent is Richardson on the fantasy radar this season?
Should You Draft Anthony Richardson in Fantasy?
It’s entirely possible that by the time you’re reading this, Daniel Jones has already been named the Colts’ starting quarterback. It’s certainly interesting how some quarterbacks get incredibly long audition periods despite sustained average to poor play, like Trevor Lawrence.
Meanwhile, Richardson got benched in his sophomore season and isn’t good enough to start over Jones in his third year, despite being a former No. 4 overall pick. But that’s neither here nor there.
Richardson has certainly earned this. In 11 games last season, he completed 47.7% of his passes. What is an NFL team supposed to do with that?
Amazingly, Richardson somehow managed to lead the league with 12.2 air yards per attempt, while finishing 25th in yards per attempt. He loves to launch the ball downfield, but doesn’t complete passes. It’s a bad combination.
Every Anthony Richardson throw of 20+ air yards from a clean pocket in 2024: pic.twitter.com/gtETkE9anp
— Jacob Gibbs (@jagibbs_23) May 14, 2025
Notwithstanding all of this, Richardson has been a fantasy QB1 whenever he’s started, which makes this situation incredibly challenging for fantasy managers. As a reminder, just one year ago, Richardson was a consensus top-six fantasy quarterback. So, what do we do with a guy who needs to be on rosters and starting if he’s starting for the Colts, but who might not be good enough to play in the NFL at all?
Last season, Richardson posted 21+ fantasy points in four of his 10 full games. Averaging 45.3 rushing yards per game, Richardson doesn’t need to do much through the air to reach QB1 numbers. But how can you draft a real-life backup? The answer is you can’t, not in a single QB league.
Richardson’s ADP isn’t even worth discussing. Drafts have been going on throughout the Summer. His average includes games before Jones became the favorite for the starting job, as well as from after the tide switched again to Richardson being the likely Week 1 starter. The QB position is much too deep to justify drafting a backup.
MORE: Free Fantasy Football Mock Draft Simulator
With that said, it’s hard to envision either making 17 starts. Whoever wins the job in Week 1 is going to get benched at some point. Whoever takes over will probably get benched as well.
The best comparison is 2024 Justin Fields. Although Fields wound up starting in Week 1, that wasn’t the plan or known until late in August. Every week Fields started, he was worth starting in fantasy. The same will be true for Richardson.
If and when we find out Richardson is starting a game, pick him up. If he ends up winning the starting job, he’s worth a late-round dart throw. However, you can’t make him your only QB because there is an almost 100% chance you will need to replace him at some point in the season, whether due to injury, benching, or both.
Cameron Sheath’s Anthony Richardson Fantasy Projection
This time last year, Anthony Richardson was still being talked about as a potential addition to the elite tier of fantasy quarterbacks. The former Florida quarterback is just three days older than Tennessee Titans rookie Cam Ward, but the two players may already be at opposite ends of their respective careers. If Richardson’s erratic throwing wasn’t enough to concern the Colts, his continued shoulder issues and lack of leadership will already have the team looking ahead to next year’s draft.
Daniel Jones was signed in free agency, replacing Joe Flacco, who saw far more action than the Colts would have liked last year. If Richardson doesn’t step up in 2025, he may never get near a starting job again.
Now being drafted as the QB28 in fantasy, though, Richardson is a free hit with significantly more upside than anybody being drafted anywhere near him. The quarterback played 10 full games in 2024, including the game against Houston, which he exited briefly for being “tired.” In those 10 games, Richardson tallied five top-15 finishes at the position, including three inside the top 10.
Richardson only dropped out of QB2 range in two of those 10 games, suggesting his floor is safer than he gets credit for.
