Todd McShay, Mel Kiper debate where Anthony Richardson should be drafted

Anthony Richardson enters the 2023 NFL Draft with an equal amount of star potential and questions. The Florida quarterback has been praised for his physical tools — size, speed and strength — but struggled with accuracy in 2022 as the Gators finished 6-7.

In his only season as a starter, Richardson completed just 53.8% of his passes (12th in the SEC) for 2,549 yards, 17 touchdowns and nine interceptions. He also rushed for 649 yards and nine touchdowns. ESPN’s Todd McShay has Richardson going ninth overall to the Carolina Panthers in his latest mock draft, prompting an interesting discussion between McShay and Mel Kiper Jr. earlier this week.

“This is a guy you talk about polarizing because of the inaccuracies and missing easy layup throws,” Kiper said. “A guy who looked dynamic and big-time against Utah. Next week he’s at 40% with a couple picks against Kentucky. So wildly inaccurate in some games with passes. (He was) 9-for-29 in one game. A lack of starts as well for Anthony Richardson, but the big-time talent.

“As an quarterbacks coach or offensive coordinator, you’re gonna say, ‘Give me Anthony Richardson. I can make him a quarterback in two or three years, and we can win big with him in the NFL.’ Todd, that to me is a big-time look ahead. It’s a leap of faith in talent. Anthony Richardson — I’ve said it before — he’s a guy who can either make your draft or break your heart.”

McShay agreed with Kiper that Richardson is a high-risk, high-reward type of prospect. He has three quarterbacks — Bryce Young, CJ Stroud and Will Levis — going ahead of him before predicting the Panthers to take a chance on him.

The Panthers have had a different starting quarterback every year since releasing Cam Newton in 2020. This past season they started three different QBs in Baker Mayfield, Sam Darnold and PJ Walker. Carolina also took a quarterback in last season’s draft in Matt Corral, but McShay believes the team could be willing to grab another.

“The hardest thing in the top five is to place Anthony Richardson,” he said. “He could go a late first. He could go second and I’d be fine with it. He could go at No. 9 and I would understand it. You have to have a quarterbacks coach, offensive coordinator and a head coach that are all in lock step about Anthony Richardson. It’s not gonna be Year 1. It’s gonna be Year 2 probably, and we have to have a plan. A real plan for developing him. We’ve gotta make sure that we can get everything out of him.

“Physically, he is the most talented quarterback in this class. But he’s not developed yet. He’s not ready. I struggled with Carolina because they need a quarterback. But why not take a shot? In order to have success in this league, you’ve got to have a quarterback. Rick Speilman and I talked about this one time. You’ve gotta keep taking your hacks. Rick was the longtime Vikings general manager. You’ve gotta take your hacks, and I agree with him. You have to have a quarterback to win in this league. Anthony Richardson has a chance to be a star or you could wind up drafting another quarterback in a year or two. That’s the most fascinating part about him.”

No matter whether he goes to the Panthers or elsewhere, Richardson’s development will be interesting to follow over the next couple of seasons. He might need some time, picking him could end up paying off in a big way.