Typically, when a team gives a young quarterback a break, it’s the first step in a divorce. For the Colts, the decision to bench second-year quarterback Anthony Richardson feels like a move designed to give the Colts a chance to make the playoffs.

Indy is 4-4. The rest of the season can fail in one way or another. Veteran Joe Flacco, who is 1-1 as a starter and won the Steelers game after coming off the bench following an injury to Richardson, is now helping them win.

The price, of course, is the delayed development of Richardson. He came into the league desperately needing reps, and as a rookie he missed 13 games due to injury. He still needs those reps, now more than ever.

But the Colts have to win. People like coach Shane Steichen and GM Chris Ballard may not be there if they miss the playoffs because of the losses, while the game slows down for Richardson.

In such situations, do not forget about the role of the dressing room. Experienced players aren’t interested in playing their best as part of a glorified apprenticeship – especially if the apprentice is willing to quit mid-game because they were tired.

Everyone is tired, especially the people blocking for the quarterback.

Between the desire to win and the fact that Richardson isn’t opting out of Sunday’s game, it’s going to be easy for his teammates to get behind Flacco.

Will it hurt Richardson’s development? Yes. But it will also preserve his chance to continue to develop in Indy, as both Steichen and Ballard remain employed by the team. If they leave, the new regime could ensure that Richardson never gets the chance to figure out how to play NFL football as a member of the Colts.

I hope he finds out though. As Peter King always said PFT Livesaid Bill Walsh, if he sees a man do something once, he can teach him to do it all the time. Richardson can do spectacular things for once.

The only problem is that all too often it happens literally once per game. In connection with checking out a game once, Richardson will be asked to take a seat.

It’s now up to him to make sure this only happens once.