Earlier this week, NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah mocked Florida quarterback Anthony Richardson to the Detroit Lions. A few days later, armed with more information via his connections within the league, Jeremiah has altered his opinion on that projection.
But, it’s not because he thinks Richardson would be a bad fit for the Lions; rather, it’s the belief the ultra-talented prospect isn’t going to linger long enough for the Lions to snag him with the team’s second first-round pick, at No. 18.
“I guess I can answer it this way; he’s not going to be there when it’s all said and done and the Lions pick with their second pick,” Jeremiah responded when asked to explain the reasoning for slotting Richardson to the Lions. “So, it’s not going to be a problem. Making calls just around the league, the best way to do the quarterback conversation is to talk to the teams who don’t need one and you’ll get kind of an accurate feel, just how they evaluate them and what they think. Anthony Richardson is the second quarterback (on the board) for several teams that I talked to.”
On the surface, Richardson has the look of one of the draft’s more polarizing prospects. There’s no denying the immense physical gifts, starting with his 6-foot-4, 235-pound frame with a cannon attached to his right shoulder. But, that’s contrasted against a lack of experience — only 13 starts — and glaring accuracy issues after he completed just 53.8% of his throws in 12 games last season.
But Jeremiah largely dismissed those concerns, calling Richardson the ultimate lottery ticket.
“We can look at the numbers and it doesn’t look great on paper,” Jeremiah said. “You look at the accuracy, this, that and the other, (but) he’s got elite, elite arm strength. He’s a rare athlete. You don’t see quarterbacks running away from LSU with 80-yard touchdown runs. He’s got a big-time, big-time ceiling, big-time ability.
“You can find the games,” Jeremiah continued. “If you want to fall in love with Anthony Richardson, you pop on Utah and you think he’s the first pick in the draft. Even Missouri, he makes some big-time plays in that game. I know it’s a little bit of a rollercoaster; I know he hasn’t played a ton, but teams are starting to look at some of these quarterbacks as lottery tickets and this one has the biggest payout. That’s why I think you’ll see Richardson go pretty high.”
Of course, the other part of the equation for the Lions, specifically, is whether they truly need a quarterback. The team won eight of its final 10 games last season with former No. 1 overall pick Jared Goff playing arguably the best football of his career, including a franchise-record streak of 324 consecutive passes without an interception.
Goff, who has long been a favorite of general manager Brad Holmes after he helped steer the Los Angeles Rams to select him with the top pick in the 2016 draft, also remains under contract for the next two seasons with relatively reasonable cap hits of $30.975 million and $31.65 million.
Still, if given the opportunity, Jeremiah feels the addition of Richardson could be easily justified for Detroit, especially with the team having the luxury of picking twice in the opening round. Coincidentally, that second pick came to the Lions from the Rams, along with Goff, in a 2021 deal that sent quarterback Matthew Stafford to Los Angeles.
“When you look at the landscape of the NFL right now and you look at the high, high-end quarterback play, this gives you an opportunity to take a shot on one of those guys who could be that,” Jeremiah said. “He’s not at that level right now, but ceiling-wise, with him and Jared Goff, his ceiling is immensely higher. Jared is a solid, steady player right now, he’s playing winning football, but I think there is a ceiling on him. With Anthony Richardson, you don’t have a ceiling. That’s why I think you’ll see him go (early), but I don’t think, in just making calls the last couple of days, I don’t think he’ll even get there.”
In his personal ranking of prospects published at the end of January, Jeremiah, a former NFL scout with the Ravens, Browns and Eagles, listed Richardson as his No. 13 prospect.
jdrogers@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @Justin_Rogers