INDIANAPOLIS – There was a reason for the “soreness’’ and back spasms that forced Anthony Richardson to miss yet another game in his brief, injury-interrupted career.
The Indianapolis Colts’ starting quarterback revealed Wednesday he’s dealt with back spasms since “about eighth grade,’’ but a magnetic resonance imaging test (MRI) last Friday revealed something more concerning.
“They checked it out,’’ Richardson said of the team’s medical staff. “They said it’s a disc thing that’s been there for a while, but I guess it got triggered the wrong way last week.’’
The spasms/disc forced Richardson to miss last Sunday’s crippling loss to the New York Giants. Even though coach Shane Steichen kept the door ajar for him to play against the Giants, Richardson insisted “last week was tough.’’
“I couldn’t even stand up on Tuesday,’’ he said. “Could barely even walk. Was crawling around the house.’’
The spasms must have flared up later in the day last Tuesday. As is normally the case, Richardson met with the media.
Now, perhaps the worst is behind him even though his status for Sunday’s finale against Jacksonville at Lucas Oil Stadium won’t be determined until later in the week.
“Feeling way better than last week definitely,’’ Richardson said. “Last week was a little rough, but we made it through. All glory to God.
“I’m standing now. If I can do everything in my power to get on the field, I’m going to do so. That was my mindset last week as well, but I could barely move.’’
Any mention of a “disc thing’’ with any player, let alone the starting QB, has to conjure up memories of linebacker Shaq Leonard. His Colts’ career was on a Hall of Fame trajectory until he underwent two operations to address disc issues in his lower back. The second came in November 2022.
Leonard appeared in 12 games with the Colts in ’23 but never approached his previous All-Pro level. The team released him in late November.
A source with knowledge of the situation insisted Richardson’s disc issue isn’t close to the severity of Leonard’s.
There has been no talk of Richardson needing surgery to address his disc problem.
“They said it’s not that severe,’’ he said. “But God willing, I hope it never gets that severe. I just hope I can just keep playing throughout the rest of my career with no problems.
“It might be chronic, but there’s plenty of ways to prevent it going on in the future. Now that I know what it is, I can find certain ways to stay out of certain positions (and) just make sure I’m healthy, 100%.”
Until recently, Richardson never viewed the back spasms as a problem. He believed any soreness or muscle tightness was a result of working out or running a lot.
“I’ve been dealing with stuff like this since about eighth grade,’’ he said, “but it’s never been this severe. It was definitely a little scary last week not being able to move.
“But like I said, I’m standing up now and I’m looking forward to playing this week if I can.’’
Steichen was unable to offer a projection on Richardson’s availability for Sunday.
“We’re hopeful,’’ he said. “He’s working through his rehab and his treatment right now.
“We’ll see how the week progresses.’’
The Colts held a walkthrough Wednesday and released an estimation regarding players’ participation status had there been a regular practice. Richardson was listed as a non-participant.
And that remains an issue.
Richardson has missed 16 of a possible 33 regular-season games because of injury since the Colts selected him with the No. 4 overall pick in the 2023 draft. He missed one game with a concussion and the final 12 with a sprained right shoulder that required surgery as a rookie, and two this season with an oblique injury and one – so far – with the spasms/disc.
That only reinforces the perception he’s injury-prone.
“Man, everybody’s got their own opinion. I’m not mad at it,’’ he said. “I have missed games due to injury, so there is enough information for them to go out there and say stuff like that.
“But it is what it is, man. It’s a tough league. You’ve got to be tough to go out there and play through injuries and fight through certain things. I try my best to do so when I can, and when I can’t, that’s just what it is.’’
Richardson believes he’ll use a season chockful of adversity as a learning experience. Remember, he’s 22 and has started 15 NFL games.
“Some people look at it as a bad thing,’’ he said, “but I feel like adversity, it allows you to grow, change as a person and just get better.’’
His biggest takeaway from year 2?
“Just keep fighting,’’ Richardson said. “Control what you can control. Everything’s not going to go in your favor, but it’s life. That’s how life is.
“It’s just a matter of how you fight back and how you respond to certain things.’’
While the Colts deal with another wait-and-see situation with Richardson, backup Joe Flacco will approach the rest of the week as if he’s the starter. He’s started five games, including the loss to the Giants when he passed for 330 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions.
“I think that’s what you always do,’’ Flacco said. “I think even when you’re not (starting) and you know you’re not, you still try to put yourself in that mindset and do those things anyway.’’