The Colts projected Anthony Richardson on their 53-man roster after the first two weeks of training camp, even with his trade request still active and the market showing little urgency to move him. If Indianapolis cannot find a trade partner, it could carry three quarterbacks with starting experience into the 2026 season.
That matters now because the preseason starts Thursday at 7:30 p.m. against the Patriots in Gillette Stadium, and the Colts likely will not play most of their starters. For Richardson, the timing keeps his status in plain view: he is still listed with Daniel Jones and Riley Leonard, but he is also still the former Colts starter with an unresolved request to be dealt.
The projection itself points to how Indianapolis is thinking about the room. Jones, Riley Leonard, and Richardson were grouped together at quarterback, while Jonathan Taylor, Seth McGowan, Ulysses Bentley IV, and DJ Giddens were listed at running back. Alec Pierce, Josh Downs, Ashton Dulin, Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, Anthony Gould, and Deion Burks were projected at receiver, with Tyler Warren, Mo Alie-Cox, Drew Ogletree, and Will Mallory at tight end.
Up front, Bernhard Raimann, Quenton Nelson, Tanor Bortolini, Matt Goncalves, Jalen Travis, Jalen Farmer, Dalton Tucker, and Blake Freeland were all included on the offensive line projection, and the Colts typically keep at least nine offensive linemen on the 53-man roster. That helps explain why the roster math is tight elsewhere, because every spot matters when a team is trying to protect itself before the games begin to count.
The friction is that Richardson still wants out, but he has not drawn much interest. That leaves Indianapolis weighing whether to hold a quarterback it may not want, keep a roster spot warm for a trade that has not materialized, or move into the preseason with a depth chart that could be reshaped again if injuries hit, as they often do in these games.
For now, the clearest answer is that Richardson remains in the Colts' plans on paper even as the trade request hangs over camp. Thursday's preseason opener will not settle that on its own, but it will give Indianapolis its next chance to see whether the market changes before roster decisions harden.
