Florida's Anthony Richardson defends lackluster 2022 record as starter

Quarterback Anthony Richardson has responded to critics who have pointed out that the Florida Gators finished his last college season with a lackluster overall record of 6-7.

"A lot of people see the record and say 'oh, Anthony Richardson can’t lead a team. He can’t even go .500 in the season.' To that, I just say they don’t know the ins and outs of the game, they don’t understand what they go through daily, understand how hard we work," Richardson explained during an appearance on "The Rich Eisen Show," per Griffin McVeigh of On3. "Sometimes, things don’t go your way and that comes with the game. I feel like when I step onto a team, I’m there to contribute, give it my all, and provide in any way I can. I feel like I did that every game." 

As noted by ESPN's Todd McShay and Vic Tafur of The Athletic, Richardson left last week's NFL combine as arguably the biggest winner among prospects. He measured 6-foot-4 and 244 pounds, posted position bests in the vertical and broad jumps, ran a 4.43 40-yard dash, and showed off his arm strength in drills. 

However, Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban recently appeared to throw some shade toward Richardson while defending Alabama signal-caller Bryce Young. Without directly saying so, Saban alluded to the fact that Richardson completed just 53.8% of his pass attempts last season. 

Richardson told Eisen he can only "control what I can control" moving forward. 

"It’s not little league football anymore where I can just bully ball anybody," Richardson continued about his 2022 experience. "I can’t just run around everybody. So, I learned how to manage the game. Especially as a quarterback — I can’t try to make every big play. I just got to take what the game gives me." 

In his latest mock draft, McShay predicted the Las Vegas Raiders will move up to choose Richardson with the fourth-overall pick this spring. In a mock draft updated on Wednesday, CBS Sports' Chris Trapasso forecasted that the Indianapolis Colts will trade up to No. 1 overall and use that asset to land Richardson over Young.