The rise and fall of the American quarterback is fascinating — until you went to the College of Florida. For a faculty with so many NFL-caliber quarterbacks, who’s the final one which didn’t flame out professionally? Don’t you dare deliver up Tim Tebow or Rex Grossman. Each had been alright for a short while, however neither is best than Kirk Cousins, alma maters apart. We’re actually right here to say no matter system Steve Spurrier dropped at Gainesville and has tried to be mimicked by each coach since him hasn’t led to at least one Gator being nice within the NFL, particularly City Meyer’s former gamers. And that leads us to this week’s information of Anthony Richardson being shut down for the season due to a shoulder harm.
Richardson is the outlier from most of his predecessors from The Swamp. He wasn’t nice in faculty. Solely to stability the provision and demand of NFL quarterbacks vaulted him to No. 4 total on this 12 months’s NFL Draft. Title one wonderful factor Richardson did outdoors of that 360 fakeout cross in opposition to Utah. I’ll hold ready…
Richardson was all the time a school athlete who by no means actually tapped into his potential, but confirmed it higher as an Indianapolis Colt than as a Florida Gator, when his Gainesville forefathers had the alternative. Kyle Trask almost received the Heisman Trophy three years in the past and hasn’t finished a factor within the NFL. Probably the most profitable former Gators quarterback after faculty of the final 30 years might be Jesse Palmer, who’s extra well-known for internet hosting a courting present than his NFL exploits lately.
And as a fan of the crew in Washington, don’t even get me began on the Spurrier system. Did the “Head Ball Coach” play favorites? Was his type of teaching not suited to extra mature NFL defenses? Have been bringing most of this teaching employees from Florida and never retaining Marvin Lewis after one 12 months massive errors? Sure to the entire above. And he was working for Daniel Snyder to make issues worse. That set the development for the way loads of Gators have fared past the SEC. But, Richardson had the possibility to be totally different based mostly on his dual-threat potential. Until you’re Joe Burrow or Josh Allen, the age of the cell quarterback is right here, and doubtless has been prevalent so much longer than most have been in a position to spot. The age of the true pocket passer left the NFL with the final era of Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, and others discovering time to golf. Richardson higher match into the brand new NFL on paper higher than both of the quarterbacks taken earlier than him within the draft this season — Bryce Younger and CJ Stroud.
The pattern dimension is small for Richardson, however even together with his restricted passing experience, the Colts didn’t get blown out. And the way he functioned with Jonathan Taylor as an enormous safety blanket by no means got here to fruition. Within the weakest division within the NFL, discovering a option to bolster the crew’s document would’ve been a decrease bar to clear than most suppose. Indianapolis proprietor Jim Irsay remains to be betting on Richardson, which is an efficient factor, even when it is a powerful harm to come back again from, particularly together with his franchise’s sign caller’s ability set.
Richardson’s trajectory because the trend-bucker isn’t fully toast with this harm. It simply picks up a number of levels of turbulence he’d in any other case be immune from. Being thrown into the hearth and surviving, with uncommon exceptions, particularly Geno Smith in current reminiscence, is find out how to maintain an NFL beginning job. Richardson has to hope Gardner Minshew, the most effective backups within the league, doesn’t set the world on hearth and provides Irsay a call. All Richardson needed to do was keep wholesome in a sport the place cell quarterbacks are extra prone to harm. He’ll adapt or find yourself like his Gator brethren.
