Jets may consider trading for another bust QB as rumors keep swirling

The New York Jets are in such a brutal position as it pertains to finding a starting quarterback that there's no option out there that can really be decried as wholly ineffective or ridiculous. Even after the Justin Fields debacle, another top pick with upside could be coming to town in the near future if Darren Mougey makes a trade.

The Indianapolis Colts, who recently parted ways with multiple first-round picks to acquire Sauce Gardner, could give the Jets such an opportunity. Oddly enough, it won't be related to veteran Daniel Jones, who went from a major bust to Indianapolis' likely starting quarterback for 2026.

Instead, the Colts may be willing to trade away former No. 4 pick Anthony Richardson, who has suffered injury after injury and underperformed in the same offense that made Jones look like one of the best in the league. Stephen Holder is reporting that it appears to be a matter of when, not if, Richardson requests a trade.

The Jets will likely at least check in on his availability and see if it makes sense. Some team is inevitably going to roll the dice on him due to physical talents that no one else in the sport has, and the Jets might be that team after a similar mindset with Fields.

Jets may add former No. 4 pick Anthony Richardson amid Colts trade buzz

Richardson has three huge problems. On top of the fact that he is a substantial injury risk who underachieved in an offense, the former No. 4 overall pick is completing just a few percentage points over half of his passes in an age where 70% completion from quarterbacks is not seen as that abnormal.

However, every quarterback coach in the world would love to work with Richardson's traits. With a 4.4 40-yard dash that makes him one of the fastest quarterbacks of all time at 240 pounds, he has a ballistic missile of a right arm that is as good as anyone in the league. Richardson's path to stardom is all about refinement.

However, the Colts tried for three years with an offensive-minded coach to get him to even average NFL-level, and nothing seemed to work.

The Fields experiment might turn some fans off the idea of trying to resurrect the career of a highly-touted young quarterback, but in terms of searching for a ceiling, no young passer on the market will give the Jets a chance to turnt hings around quite like Richardson if he does.