Indianapolis Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson only played in four games as a rookie last year and usually left with an injury.
One of those game was in week two against at the Houston Texans, where he ran for a pair of touchdowns in the early minutes before being knocked out of the game with a concussion.
DeMeco Ryans isn't overlooking the second-year quarterback, despite the narrative of Richardson being inaccurate or injury prone.
"It'll be a really great matchup for us to start off the year," Ryans said Monday. "Anthony Richardson, as he showed with the limited amount of snaps that he's had, he's shown that he could be a dynamic playmaker and running the ball, also throwing the football. So, he's a playmaker. You have to account for him every single snap. It's because of his dynamic ability to run the football.
"So, he poses a really good challenge for us, defensively. And we definitely have our hands full."
Another challenge, perhaps an even greater one, is Colts running back Jonathan Taylor. He's widely considered one of the best in league. Taylor missed the week two game against the Texans last year, but was dominant in their last against Houston to end the season.
The Texans defense gave up 188 rushing yards on 30 catches to Taylor in week 17 last year. They were fortunate to win on an unsuccessful play by Indy, inexplicably designed for a different running back not named Taylor.
"Jonathan, I think he's a successful running back just because he runs with such great contact balance," Ryans said. "It takes more than one guy to get him down. He does a really good job breaking tackles, He plays physical, he plays downhill. He runs the ball, plays the game the right way. I think that's what makes him a really good running back."
