WESTFIELD, Ind. – Anthony Richardson flicked an arcing deep ball during a full-team period on Friday, with his pass zipping at least 40 yards over the green turf of Grand Park's indoor practice facility.
Richardson was testing a certain throw against a certain coverage with Michael Pittman Jr. running a certain route. And a certain defensive back who's made a ton of plays during training camp came down with the ball.
"I'm feeling good, I'm having fun out there," Richardson said. "Sometimes it's frustrating when you got Julian Blackmon back there intercepting the ball."
Blackmon, the fifth-year safety, added another standout play to his long ledger of camp highlights so far. A good play for the defense, maybe, could be construed as a bad play for the offense. But for Richardson, training camp is about testing certain things out – the next time he gets that defensive look with that playcall, he can take whatever he learned from Friday's practice and apply it.
"(I learn) a lot more on an incompletion," Richardson said. "… Whenever we miss on certain things, whether that's me taking too many steps in my drop or my angle or their (pass-catchers') angle coming out of the route. It's fine tuning a few things."
This is a good reminder, by the way, of not reading too much into one single play from training camp. Richardson had some highlights himself on Friday, like an off-platform strike to tight end Kylen Granson, a deep completion down the sideline to wide receiver Adonai Mitchell and a couple of in-rhythm completions during a two-minute drill period.
And zooming out with a full week's worth of practices – including two in full pads – Richardson and head coach Shane Steichen both are encouraged with how things have gone for the second-year quarterback.
"I think he's been really good," Steichen said. "The communication piece is huge with all the guys in and out of the huddle, just checks, alerts at the line of scrimmage and just taking what's there."
Richardson's Year 1 to Year 2 growth in communication matters in a few different places of his game.
"It's definitely easier to manage our offense now," Richardson said. "I'm a lot more comfortable with the calls when Shane's calling them. And looking at the defense, I'm able to scan the defense a lot longer and check out what I'm going to have on a certain play."
Armed with more time to digest what's in front of him, Richardson and Steichen can work on talking through on-the-fly adjustments that may fall out of the drawn-up structure of the play.
"The communication has definitely advanced for us," Richardson said. "Last year it was more so follow the read, do this. But now it's okay, if the defense does this now I want you to think about this right here. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. But it's just trying to find ways to tweak our offense and get comfortable with each other. I definitely feel like there's been a huge jump from last year to this year."
Still, there are going to be times when the Colts' defense wins a play, giving Richardson and the offense a chance to learn with still over a month before the regular season kicks off. A few of those times on Friday came courtesy of rookie defensive end Laiatu Latu, who ended a two-minute drive with a "sack" of Richardson (who, like every other quarterback in the NFL at this time of year, is in a red non-contact jersey).
And earlier in practice, Richardson rolled to his right off play-action only to find himself in space one-on-one with Latu – whose flexibility and body control jumped out on the play. Latu blew up the play, forcing Richardson to quickly get rid of the ball. Again, there was a learning opportunity there.
"It keeps you honest," Richardson said. "You can't just pull the ball expecting to get outside as easy as it should be. But he's a great player, great young player, and it keeps me honest when I'm on a zone read. It lets me know I gotta be a lot smarter when he's out there.
"... Getting around the edge, it's like, man, I'm trying to get there, hit the receivers in stride but he's there in my face trying to make a play. I'm glad we got him in practice just so I can get used to stuff like that."
News & Notes
- Cornerbacks Jaylon Jones and Kenny Moore II broke up passes in one-on-one drills, while rookie cornerback Jaylin Simpson had an interception.
- One general impression watching the one-on-one offensive line vs. defensive line drills: The Colts are awfully strong up front. Both groups had wins – left tackle Bernhard Raimann smothered a pass rush on one and guard Will Fries held serve against defensive tackle Grover Stewart, while defensive tackle DeForest Buckner quickly crashed into the backfield on another rep.
- Richardson showed good touch on a deep completion to wide receiver Josh Downs during seven-on-seven.
- Wide receiver Ashton Dulin made a couple of standout plays on Friday: A physical, contested catch for a touchdown during an 11-on-11 red zone period, and a tough snag down the sideline in a full-team two-minute drill.
- Quarterback Joe Flacco connected with Mitchell for a touchdown in 11-on-11 red zone work.
