INDIANAPOLIS — Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson was ruled out of Sunday’s season finale against the Jacksonville Jaguars, ending his season with two straight missed games due to ongoing issues with back spasms.
Richardson said this week that he experienced intense pain from spasms that began the night of Christmas Eve and caused him to have difficulty even getting out of bed. Rehabilitation and muscle relaxants did not have the desired effect and Richardson remained on the sidelines.
This week, Richardson made significant progress, he said, but he was still experiencing issues that kept him from training.
“I just didn’t make enough progress this week,” coach Shane Steichen said.
Asked if the injury would require surgery, Steichen said, “I don’t think it’s that serious.”
Richardson missed 13 games last season after season-ending shoulder surgery. Sunday’s game will be his fourth game missed due to injury this season (he also missed two games while briefly benched).
It’s a suboptimal way to end Richardson’s sophomore season.
“I think you’re going to go through tough times in this league and it’s a tough league, but you have to fight to get through those things,” Steichen said of Richardson. “You have to deal with adversity in this league, and I think when you go through these kinds of situations that we went through this year, it’s going to make sure that [him] stronger.”
