Anthony Richardson just reminded Colts what he can do that Daniel Jones can't

The Indianapolis Colts selected Anthony Richardson with the No. 4 overall pick of the 2023 NFL Draft with hopes that he'd be their franchise quarterback. Unfortunately, things have gone so poorly after his first two NFL seasons that the Colts brought in Daniel Jones this offseason to compete with him for the starting spot. Competition isn't a bad thing, but Richardson having to compete with Daniel Jones of all quarterbacks shows where he is right now.

As flawed as Richardson is as a quarterback, he showed Colts fans some of the immense upside that Jones lacks in Saturday's preseason game against the Green Bay Packers.

Rather than simply trying to move the sticks on 3rd-and-2, Richardson launched a ball deep down field that landed perfectly in Anthony Gould's breadbasket for what would've been a 38-yard gain if not for a Colts offside penalty called. Richardson won't get credit for the completion or the yards, but the tape will stick around forever, and it shows Richardson making as good of a throw as he could've made in that spot.

Anthony Richardson shows upside Daniel Jones lacks

These two quarterbacks were both selected in the first round of their respective NFL Drafts, but it's evident that Richardson has far more upside than Jones. Again, the flaws are evident. He's inaccurate and his decision making is far from stellar. However, throws like these don't grow on trees. This is a throw Jones couldn't dream of making. Richardson, with tons of pressure headed his way, evaded a sack and fired a bomb across the field fading away right to Gould's hands.

Jones had some success throwing deep balls in the past, but went just 8-for-31 on passes that traveled 20 or more air yards. Richardson wasn't much better, going just 13-for-50 in those spots per PFF, but throws like these suggest he has it in him to take a massive step forward if he can be just a touch more accurate. After all, he did lead the NFL in yards per completion - his completion percentage just wasn't where the Colts need it to be.

Colts QB competition might come down to potential

Ultimately, we've seen what Jones can and can't do at the NFL level - he has six years of experience and 70 regular season games under his belt. Richardson, on the other hand, has just 15 games of experience across two seasons, some of which he's had to leave early due to injury. The injury concerns are real, as are the other issues mentioned above, but the untapped potential is too great to ignore. I mean, the ability to make this throw while also simultaneously being one of the most athletic quarterbacks in the sport is absurd. His dual threat potential is what made him so special coming out of Florida and what can make him a star quarterback in the NFL. Jones can run too, but he can't throw like this.

The Colts must give Richardson the starting nod. If he struggles, Jones wouldn't be much of an upgrade anyway. Throws like this one show that Richardson's upside is too great to toss aside.