The Indianapolis Colts kicked off its OTAs this week, the first day being Tuesday, May 26. OTA stands for organized team activities and are optional spring training where tackling and contact is prohibited. The Colts players and coaches can attend and these sessions are useful to go over plays and run conditioning drills. The Colts were one of eleven NFL teams who started OTAs this week.

These practices serve as a first-look into the new additions and give teams an idea of the depth chart. For the Colts, these practices are especially vital given the amount of new people on the team. With rookies and free agents combined, the Colts brought in over 20 players who now have to be integrated into the system. In addition, the Colts have multiple players coming back from injury, including quarterback Daniel Jones.

Jones was taken out of last season with a torn achilles and had surgery in December. The Colts, expecting him to make a full recovery, signed Jones to a two-year, $88 million contract during the off season. A torn achilles is a serious injury and can take up to a year or even two to fully recover from. However, Jones has expressed multiple times that he intends to be ready for the start of the season.

Things are looking promising for Colts fans as Jones was already back to running sprints during Wednesday’s OTAs. This is the first the public has seen Jones run since he ruptured the tendon. Jones participated in positional drills but did not compete in team sets. When asked on Wednesday if Jones thinks he will truly be ready for the start of the season, he confirmed his previous statements and again said he “absolutely” believes he will be ready.

What does this mean for Anthony Richardson?

As the 2023 No.4 overall pick, there were high hopes for Richardson. Since his career in the NFL began, he has been plagued by injuries and never truly stepped into the role people expected him to play. Since then, Richardson has taken a backseat to Jones and with this uncertainty, he requested a trade in February. However, nothing came of this request and according to Adam Schefter, “The market for Anthony Richardson was soft…” because the Colts would have traded him if they had the option.

Since then, he has not rescinded his request but has shown up to OTAs. On Wednesday he told the media he has an obligation to the team regardless of his status off the field. When asked about a trade, Richardson says he is just focused on the present and not concerned about that at the moment. He wanted to come to practice for the opportunity to work instead of just waiting for a trade.

It is possible teams are waiting till after Aug.1 because any team to trade for him before that would have to pay over $5 million as opposed to after Aug.1 when his roster bonus will be paid and the amount he’s owed will drop to over $1 million, according to Stephen Holder.

Currently Richardson and Riley Leonard will battle it out for the back-up spot. With no trade in the foreseeable future, it will be interesting to see how and if Richardson is integrated into this offense.