The Baltimore Ravens may be in the market for a quarterback, depending on how the Lamar Jackson situation works out. If they do end up looking to this draft to replace Lamar Jackson many are going to link the team to Anthony Richardson. Should the Baltimore Ravens draft Anthony Richardson, and what is his best NFL comparison?
Where Anthony Richardson has strengths that project to the NFL
I saw it, you saw it, we all saw It. Anthony Richardson has a combination of size and athleticism that is rare. When a player with his physical capabilities hits, it is a rare site. As a passer on tape, you can see that he has a serious deep-ball ability. He is also not afraid to show off a fastball that pushes the football into tight windows.
Overall he is a bit better at getting through reads than you would think, and he scrambles to pass than more given credit for as well. He is raw, but there may be more to work with from a skill set perspective than he is being given credit for.
Where Anthony Richardson has weaknesses projecting to the NFL
People will confuse his poor accuracy for poor decision-making. The accuracy is legitimately bad. He throws from different arm slots, but does not have a tight release in the pocket. From there, there are serious questions about how consistently he can hit points from the pocket. This is the big difference between Richardson and Lamar Jackson.
Lamar Jackson can be accurate, especially over the middle of the field. Richardson is very rarely accurate in that area, but he does have a nice deep ball outside the numbers. Jackson struggles when the ball goes deep downfield and outside the numbers.
The question will be if Richardson can progress in the areas where Jackson already excelled. He has the physical upside to be more accurate, but it is not there yet.
NFL Comparison for Anthony Richardson
There are a lot of common comparisons, but it is hard not to watch Anthony Richardson and think of Josh Allen and his scouting process back at Wyoming. Below you can see how similar they are as athletic prospects thanks to RAS scores.
"View post on imgur.com"
Anthony Richardson is a bit bigger and more athletic than Josh Allen, so that is fun. The big difference from their college stats is that Josh Allen declared after four years, while Anthony Richardson declared after three.
After three seasons Anthony Richardson completed 53.8% of his passes, had 7.8 yards per attempt, and had 17 touchdowns to 9 interceptions. Josh Allen had a 56% completion rate, 8.3 yards per attempt, and 28 touchdowns to go with 15 interceptions.
Josh Allen had 142 rushing attempts for 523 yards and seven touchdowns while Richardson had 103 rushes for 654 yards and nine touchdowns.
As passers, you saw glimpses and moments of both of them putting it together. Neither was an awful decision-maker, but both had poor accuracy. For Josh Allen, his mechanics, and hard work turned him into a better passer. For Richardson, it is going to be the same questions, but for the most part, if he does answer those questions, the ceiling is as high, or higher.
Does Anthony Richardson fit the Baltimore Ravens?
It is fair to mention that the Baltimore Ravens can truly pivot away from all things Lamar Jackson this offseason. They have a new offensive coordinator, and if they lose Jackson, the cap space and picks they get back can cause a quick reload and rebuild.
With that said, an easy transition from Lamar Jackson would be Anthony Richardson. You already saw how to develop a player like that, and you already leaned into that type of offense more than any other team. Todd Monken at least had to think that Lamar Jackson staying, or running a scheme around a mobile quarterback was on the table when he took the job.
If the Baltimore Ravens do trade Lamar Jackson, the returns could get them right in line for a shot at Anthony Richardson. The best pivot from Jackson would be Anthony Richardson at four or five years getting much less salary-wise.