When Daniel Jones beat out Anthony Richardson for the Indianapolis Colts’ starting quarterback job, many thought it would be a temporary move. However, the Colts are now 2-0 with Jones, and it’s hard to see Richardson getting his job back, barring injury.
And even if Jones goes down, the steady veteran presence running Shane Steichen’s offense to a tee highlights the fact that Richardson may never be the right signal-caller for this team and head coach.
Best Anthony Richardson Trade Destinations
So, trading Richardson, who is still only 23 years old, may be Indy’s best move. If they decide to pursue this deal ahead of the 2025 NFL trade deadline (which happens Nov. 5, between Weeks 9 and 10), here are the four landing spots for Richardson that make the most sense.
Pittsburgh Steelers
The Pittsburgh Steelers currently have the oldest quarterback in the league with 41-year-old Aaron Rodgers at the helm, so that’s obviously not a long-term solution. Mike Tomlin and his team have struggled to find a young QB prospect to develop, having failed to develop Kenny Pickett after drafting him in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft.
Pittsburgh does have national championship-winning Will Howard in the fold, but as a sixth-round pick, he doesn’t have the upside that Richardson has after the 2023 No. 4 overall selection.
And while Richardson has shown a myriad of red flags, such as inaccuracies, injury, and taking himself out of the game when he is tired, he is still incredibly young, so that upside is still there.
In fact, turning 23 last May, Richardson is actually eight months younger than Howard. He is also significantly younger than several QBs drafted in 2025 and 2025. Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, Michael Penix Jr., Bo Nix, and even Shedeur Sanders are older, while Cam Ward is only three days younger.
For the Steelers, getting a high first-round pick at just 23 for significantly less draft capital makes a lot of sense, especially when he can sit behind Rodgers and learn for at least one season.
Las Vegas Raiders
Richardson to the Las Vegas Raiders makes a lot of sense for the same reasons that the Steelers would want to make this trade. Geno Smith (35 on October 10) will not be around forever, and we’ve seen what Pickett and Aidan O’Connell are as NFL QBs.
In fact, Richardson donning the Silver and Black may actually make more sense than going to Pittsburgh for two reasons.
First, if Richardson does become the QB of the future at either of these franchises, it may take more than a half-season to get there. Sitting for the rest of 2025 and 2026 would make him still only 25 when he takes over the reins, meaning there is still a ton of value.
Smith is more likely to return for another season in Las Vegas than Rogers to come back for Year 2 in Pittsburgh, given his age and injury history. Remember, after starting his first two seasons with the New York Jets, he didn’t become an every-week starter again for eight seasons, so his body is fresher than most 35-year-old signal-callers.
The second reason that Richardson makes so much sense as a Raider is the franchise’s history. Some of the Raiders’ all-time best QBs were castoffs from other places. Daryle Lamonica, Jim Plunkett, Rich Gannon, and even now, Smith were players who other franchises gave up on before LA/Oakland/Vegas gave them a second (or third or fourth or fifth) chance.
Plus, come on. What is more Raiders than taking on the most physically impressive quarterback to possibly ever come into the league and trying to make him work? Al Davis would absolutely approve.
New Orleans Saints
The first two Richardson landing spots are places with a veteran in place where he could sit for a while and eventually take over the starting job. The next two are places where the QB is already a pretty big mess, and he would be able to compete right away with a lot of other talented, but ultimately flawed, young QBs.
With the New Orleans Saints, Richardson would join 2024 fifth-round pick Spencer Rattler and 2025 second-round selection Tyler Shough and still be the youngest quarterback in the room.
New head coach Kellen Moore had his most success as an offensive coordinator with Dak Prescott and the Dallas Cowboys and Jalen Hurts and the Philadelphia Eagles. Both these QBs have size, arm strength, and athleticism, which are (by far) the three best traits of the 6’4”, 244-pound, 4.43-second-40-running Richardson.
Since they have no real NFL starting-caliber quarterbacks now, the Saints should be willing to take a chance on Richardson.
Cleveland Browns
Finally, the Cleveland Browns are one more team that could take a chance on Richardson because, why not at this point?
Since the start of training camp, the Browns roster has included Deshaun Watson, Joe Flacco, Kenny Pickett, Dillon Gabriel, Shedeur Sanders, and Tyler Huntley. Now, Watson has likely thrown his last pass for the team, Flacco is 40, Pickett and Huntley are gone, and neither Gabriel nor Sanders is as young or the same level of prospect that Richardson is.
The Browns don’t need another quarterback on the roster right now, but there’s also a good chance that they don’t have a franchise one in the building despite the sheer number of players at the position. At this point, why not give Richardson a try if the price is right?
