On the roster
- No. 4 Sam Ehlinger (third season with Colts)
- No. 5 Anthony Richardson (rookie)
- No. 10 Gardner Minshew (first season with Colts, fifth season in NFL)
Where things stand
Head coach Shane Steichen said he was pleased with Richardson's progress during the offseason program, which for the No. 4 overall pick stretched from rookie minicamp in early May through veteran minicamp in mid-June. Don't read too much into how the Colts divided up snaps between Richardson and Minshew during OTAs – only a handful of those practices were open to the media anyway – since the last few weeks were more about laying a foundation than having a competition.
With that in mind, we did hear some encouraging things during the offseason program. Minshew's veteran mindset and knowledge of Steichen's offense (the pair spent the last two years with the Philadelphia Eagles) seems like a real positive whether he starts or not; Richardson's maturity, work ethic and coachability all were consistently praised by coaches and teammates, too.
Again, OTAs and minicamp were about foundation – and the Colts appear to have a good one set in their quarterback room heading into training camp.
Training camp sneak peek
All eyes will be on how the Colts split up practice snaps between Minshew and Richardson as training camp progresses. Steichen said he and his coaching staff will formulate a plan in the coming weeks, one that'll allow for competition while preparing the entire team for the start of the regular season.
But whether Richardson is exclusively with the first-team offense, second-team offense or bouncing between the two, his day-to-day progress will be closely watched in Westfield. How Richardson grasps offensive concepts, responds to mistakes, handles situational drills, etc. will inform the Colts' evaluation of his readiness to make his NFL debut.
One other note here: Something fans will notice up at Grand Park is the tight-knit nature of the Colts' quarterback room – and those good vibes will go a long way toward producing a healthy competition to decide who the team's Week 1 starter will be.
"Anytime somebody has a big play, the other quarterbacks behind him are going crazy," Minshew said. "I think it's been a lot of good energy, a lot of good camaraderie being built, a lot of high-fives and smiles. I think those are all things that when times get tough, you've got to be able to rely on those strong relationships. It's good to see those getting built.
"... You've got one guy who is going to be out there and at the end of the day, whoever is out there you have to support them and that's how we are going to win – through whoever is out there. So trying to help in any way you can whether you're out there or not."
