"Ballard wishes he’d resisted the urge to hand Richardson the job right away, a move late owner Jim Irsay pushed for at the time. What the young quarterback needed was the chance to acclimate to the NFL, to learn the job, to watch a veteran’s daily habits and build his own,” Keefer writes.

The fallout -- Richardson's injuries, brief benching in 2024, and Jekyll-and-Hyde play on the field -- resulted in the Colts conjuring a quarterback competition this summer, as Richardson and free-agent addition Daniel Jones go toe to toe for the right to be the Colts' quarterback. It's got Ballard viewing in hindsight.

Indianapolis Colts’ quarterback Anthony Richardson has gotten off to a roughstart in his NFL career. After being drafted with the No. 4-overall pick in the2023 NFL Draft, he’s been either injured or incompetent.