Anthony Richardson shocked the entire football world during a pivotal moment in the Indianapolis Colts vs. Houston Texans game — the QB tapped out to be brought off the field.
Two-time Super Bowl winner Damien Woody took offense at this gesture from a quarterback. The former New England Patriots lineman did not let it slide and took shots at Richardson.
Damien Woody Calls Out Anthony Richardson for Asking Out of the Game
Late in the third quarter with the Colts behind 20-10 and facing a third-and-goal, Richardson walked up to the sideline. The 22-year-old kept tapping his helmet and took a knee — he was promptly replaced by Joe Flacco.
However, on Monday during ESPN’s Get Up, Woody wanted to highlight his issues with the entire ordeal, and the 46-year-old did not hold back. “I’m a former offensive lineman,” said Woody. “We don’t get breaks. We’re sitting, blocking for you, every single play to protect you. And you’re gonna sit there and ask out of the game? You need to get your conditioning up.”
The “Get Up” panel was not kind to Anthony Richardson this morning. pic.twitter.com/34iGI78jlT
— Stephen Holder (@HolderStephen) October 28, 2024
“I can’t even wrap my mind around the fact that you’re asking out of a game,” added Woody. “You must be grossly out of shape or something else must be going. But I didn’t have the luxury as an offensive lineman to tap my helmet to get out of the game. What the hell was that?”
The former OL received a lot of support from the entire ESPN desk, with each co-host sharing their bewilderment at this Sunday’s events.
Anthony Richardson Opens Up on the Decision To Tap Out Against the Texans
After the 23-20 Colts loss, the overall fourth pick of the 2023 NFL Draft was asked by the media about his decision.
“I was tired,” Richardson said to the media. “I ain’t gonna lie. That was a lot of running right there. I didn’t think I was going to be able to go that next play, so I just told Shane I just needed a break right there.”
Richardson finished the game with 175 yards and a touchdown. The quarterback was intercepted once and registered six carries for 45 yards.
Steichen commented on the situation after the game as well. “He needed a breather,” Steichen said. “He ran three times in a row and it was third and long, so we were going to hand the ball off.”
Despite all of the criticism around stepping out of the game, Richardson has continued to stress his skillset over his current weaknesses.
“I feel like I’m a great passer,” Richardson said. “I’ve been playing quarterback pretty much my whole life. I’m just a different quarterback from everybody else, so people are going to try to point out that I’m not as efficient as everybody else. But it’s cool to me. I run the ball way better than every other quarterback. Probably not Lamar [Jackson], but [better] than most quarterbacks. So, I take advantage of my opportunities.”
How Bad was Anthony Richardson’s Performance?
Richardson finished the game with 10 completions on 32 attempts for 175 yards with one TD and one Int. Pro Football Network’s QB+ metric, which takes into account many different passing metrics to compile a rating and a grade, scored Richardson’s performance a D- (33.9 rating), his worst outing of the season and last among all qualified QBs in Week 8. His season number is 27.0, currently and F grade, below Tennessee’s Will Levis and only ahead of Cleveland’s Deshaun Watson and Carolina’s Bryce Young.
