After only one season at the helm as the Gators starting quarterback, redshirt sophomore Anthony Richardson announced on his Twitter account that he would be forgoing his team’s bowl game and the remainder of his college eligibility in order to enter the 2023 NFL Draft. With the announcement, Richardson officially kicks off what will surely be one of the biggest debates of the pre-draft process: will it be worth it? 
There are a ton of question marks surrounding Richardson following his lone season under center in Gainesville. In fact, many scouts have voiced their opinions that they wish he would stay in college for another year to continue his development. Unfortunately for them, 13 games as a starting quarterback is all they’re going to get to evaluate the 21-year-old.
In those 13 starts, Richardson went 6-7, completing 188 of 347 (54.18%) pass attempts for 2,631 passing yards, 17 touchdowns, and 11 interceptions. He also showed a dual-threat ability, rushing 115 times for 680 yards and nine touchdowns in those starts. For his whole career, Richardson totaled 3,105 passing yards with a 54.71-percent completion percentage for 24 touchdowns and 15 interceptions, adding 1,116 yards and 12 touchdowns on the ground.
Richardson only appeared in three games as a true freshman, attempting only two passes and running the ball seven times. After the redshirted season, Richardson appeared in seven games as a redshirt freshman and earned his first start against rival Georgia. Richardson waited his turn behind eventual Buccaneers quarterback Kyle Trask and Emory Jones, who would eventually transfer to Arizona State. Richardson finally became the team’s full-time starter as a redshirt sophomore.
Richardson led the Gators through a rocky season. After an opening win over the eventual Pac-12 champion Utes, Florida endured a challenging slate, beating teams it should but falling to the top teams in the SEC like Kentucky, Tennessee, LSU, and Georgia. After perhaps their worst loss of the season to the lowly Commodores, the team bounced back for a strong performance against in-state rival Florida State before eventually falling to the Seminoles in the season-finale.
Now, he faces the pre-draft gauntlet. As only a redshirt sophomore, Richardson won’t participate in any senior all-star games, so his only opportunities to show his stuff will be the Combine and Florida’s Pro Day. Scouts are in love with Richardson’s measurables and athleticism, at 6-foot-4 and 236 pounds. His physicality and running style have been compared to former No. 1 overall pick Cam Newton. The same scouts are highly critical of Richardson’s poor completion percentage and overall, in-game experience.
This brings his draft stock into question. Where will a prospect with so many questions marks and so many promising attributes fall in the NFL Draft? Michael Renner of Pro Football Focus (subscription required) recently released the site’s top-100 draft prospect rankings. Of the five quarterbacks who made the list, Richardson was not among them. Dane Brugler of The Athletic failed to put Richardson on his list, as well, even though his most recent version came in early-November. This could be a simple omission due to the fact that Richardson hadn’t announced his intentions at the time, but both lists included third-year Ohio State wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba who announced his intentions earlier this week.
On the other hand, three NFL scouts reportedly said this week that “they expect (Richardson) to be a top-10 draft pick come April,” according to Jason Cole of OutKick.com. These scouts see the teams that will fall in love with his talent and may be in the ideal situation to draft and stash the young quarterback, allowing him time to learn and adjust to the game at the NFL-level.
Cole points out that, of the teams who currently make up the top-eight projected picks of next year’s draft, only three will have an obvious need at quarterback: Houston, Indianapolis, and Carolina. With at least three quarterbacks, Alabama’s Bryce Young, Kentucky’s Will Levis, and Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud, expected to be selected before Richardson, this leads to a situation wherein Richardson may get drafted to a team who can sit the quarterback for a year or two before forcing him into a starting role. It may end up being a situation like Bears quarterback Justin Fields or Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett where he only sits a few games before winning the job. Or it may be a situation like Packers quarterback Jordan Love, who has sat patiently behind Aaron Rodgers, waiting for his turn at the helm for a couple of seasons.
Regardless of speculation, the road to the NFL starts now for Richardson. He will have an opportunity to show scouts not only his athleticism and accuracy but his coachability, as well, at events like the Combine and his Pro Day. If he can’t prove to NFL teams that he has the ability to improve their team as a starter next season, he’ll have to focus on showing NFL teams that he has the malleability to be molded into a star in the league.
Not an nfl qb
People said same thing about Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen.
How about we wait and see before writing the kid off.
He just needs the right offense much like Josh Allen did.
What round do you see him getting drafted in?
Me?
I’d put a 2nd round pick on him. Has a lot of work to do.
Where will he go? Probably 1st round. Teams fall in love with potential. Look at the Packers and Jordan Love.
But him going in the 2nd to Seahawks Colts Commanders Saints is a strong possibility esp if they miss out on Stroud Young Levis consensus 1st round picks.
But again a team could certainly fall in love and trade up into the 1st to get that 5th year option.
5-6th round. He’s extremely raw and needs a lot of work. This is a long term project. However he is worth a late round pick to the right team.
Everything I read about him is accuracy issues and bad footwork. Sounds like a 5th rounder to me as well.
he will go in Rd one or Rd two. I think he goes top 15 or atleast in Rd one . I’ve seen a ton of worse qbs go in to ten plenty of times
We’ve all seen it, but it doesn’t mean it was a good draft decision.
Yeah. He’s not going round 5 to 6.
Someone will grab him well before then.
Strong arm QB who can also run at 6’4″ 235? Yeah someone’s grabbing him in the 2nd. Probably 1st at worst 3rd.
Never heard that said about Allen. Nor Jackson. Questions about them being efficient starters, but there’s backup roles.
After Josh Allen’s 1st two years there were certainly doubts especially since he was profiled as a strong arm passer coming out of Wyoming..Completed well under 60% of his passes in college and 1st 2 years of his professional career.
Here’s a nice roundup around that time back in 2019
link to theringer.com
Profootball network did a similar analysis of Lamar Jackson commenting on him running more than passing and his inability to pass his rookie season.
In his collegiate career Lamar completed 54, 56, 59 percent of his passes and in his rookie season he only completed 58% while passing it 170 times and running it 147 times.
There were certainly concerns regarding jacksons ability to play QB and not just be a runner who sometimes passes.
There were concerns about Allen being a qb as well.
Like Allen Lamar also struggled early on
link to profootballtalk.nbcsports.com
No offense Jung, but you come off as someone who hasn’t really watched him play and is just looking at his size or what other people write about him. Richardson is not a starter at the NFL level.
Anyone at this point who thinks he is, is either infatuated with his raw physical talent or hasn’t watched Florida this year. A lot of this year he had a 1:1 touchdown to interception ratio and at times more interceptions than touchdowns. He threw for over 200 yards only 5 times this season.
He isn’t even the best QB in the SEC East. Give me Levis and Hooker over him and maybe even Bennett and Daniels. He is nowhere near the running QB Lamar was and unlike Lamar has never even come close to being a Heisman QB. Richardson is dumb for coming out now and I actually wonder if he is doing it because Billy Napier is going with someone else next year.
Agree on Richardson. He’s a serious work in progress. He can throw, but his accuracy is nowhere near consistent and his decision making ability is questionable at best. If there’s a team willing to have him sit as a third stringer or practice squad QB and work on him for a couple of years, he could turn out to be a Geno Smith type story. But he’s be better served staying in college, unless he feels he has hit his ceiling and is hoping for a quick payday before sunsetting.
This has to be a 3rd or 4th round pick. I can’t see someone spending a high pick on him when he has so little development. He would have done better to stay another year.
Not sure why he’s coming out this year.. Clearly not a 1st rounder so what’s the point? Stay another year or two and then he might be
Perhaps he’s worried that if he doesn’t come out now, he’ll never be able to erase the legacies left by Tim Tebow and Rex Grossman.
My guess is Billy told him it was this or enter the portal because he is going with someone else to start next year. That or it got to his head all those bad preseason mock draft articles calling him a first round pick. I mean even in this article they reference an Outkick article that quotes scouts who simultaneously believe he is a top 10 pick (in a draft he is the 4th best QB at best) and that he needs to be put on the sideline and given a year or 2 to develop.
After Josh Allen’s 1st two years there were certainly doubts especially since he was profiled as a strong arm passer coming out of Wyoming..Completed well under 60% of his passes in college and 1st 2 years of his professional career.
Here’s a nice roundup around that time back in 2019
link to theringer.com
He will be in Canada in four years after stops in the XFL and USFL.
Likely overdrafted in the 3rd or 4th.
I wish Richardson well, and hope he proves me wrong (as Lamar Jackson has), but I don’t see this guy as valued as anything higher than a sixth-round pick. A 54% completion percentage doesn’t bode well. Most importantly, only 13 starts…similar in starting experience to Akili Smith, Mark Sanchez, Dwayne Haskins, and Mitch Trubisky, among others. This young man should have stayed in school and developed more. I understand the lure of the big bucks of the NFL, but sometimes it’s best to wait, especially if you’re a quarterback with talent.
Having a Great QB buys most teams a 12 plus year window of Super Bowl possibilities. His raw natural ability will make him a top 20 pick because of that itself
Personally, I’d rather have a HOF kicker for those 12 years. Few QBs can stay healthy and in all pro form that long and even some of those that could (Marino & Rivers) never got a ring.
I hope for his sake he’s taken in the 3rd round by a team that already has a good veteran QB, someone maybe like the Raiders. He is going to need a couple of season to develop, if he develops at all. He will probably show up to the draft in some wacky suit covered in bling and then be embarrassed as he falls to the third. History is littered with failed prospects like this.
All the college ranks produce nowadays are QBs like this – sort of like all those botox-lipped Kardashian look-alikes walking around. I am not saying there isn’t a place for him – but it takes a coach and system that is highly adaptable, and not everyone is willing to take the risk. Maybe Baltimore will choose not to sign Jackson and he can go there…
future UDFA