He's always seemed immature to me, but I hesitate to label things 'immature' because I recognize there may be some cultural/generational differences that hinder my ability to effectively 'frame' my perspective within that context.
Some thoughts -
* This thing coming out about him apparently audibling to that throw before the close of the half is dumbfounding.
* From the start, I have seen what appears to be a good kid trying to say all the right things, for an organization that is desperately trying to empower him by rolling out the carpet and giving him the keys to the franchise. They made him a captain before he even played. Did they do that with Luck? (If they did, it made sense. He was good from the very start; Maybe he should have tapped out once or twice - he might still be playing)
* They throw the ball with him more than I ever expected. I really thought Richardson was going to essentially be a RB that could throw. I have tried to make sense of this but am having trouble.
- Does he have a conditioning (discipline) issue. We know he's an athletic freak but is he in actual peak condition? Does he need to weigh 244 lbs? Is conditioning potentially affecting his throws, his footwork, etc? Is it affecting his mental?
- Somebody asked Steichen at a press conference about Richardson in the run game and Steichen's answer appeared to indicate that the reads for Richardson to keep the ball vs give to Taylor, are calling for him to give to Taylor.
I don't have the all-22 anymore so I can't pull it up to watch the tape, but I wonder how accurate this is vs. it being a political/tactful response. Is that what's actually happening? Are the reads there but Richardson doesn't see them? Are the reads there but Richardson is opting out of them because of bad decision making, or perhaps lack of confidence?
A few more things and then I'm done.
He likes talking shit. He likes taunting opposing fans. He doesn't care what the scoreboard says. I don't see enough "Act like you've been there" moments from him to warrant seeing that, personally. The national media is ripping his ass for the tap-out, and admittedly I do not think they're wrong. I can't understand that either, to be honest. I didn't play at his level, or even close, but I never wanted to come out of the game. Never.
When I played as a kid I found that type of behavior disgusting. I had less respect for teammates that were like that, and wanted to crush opponents even more if they displayed that type of behavior. Nothing is better than pointing to that fucking scoreboard, and saying "scoreboard". That's all that matters.
We've had some shit luck y'all. I think our organization has been challenged and we've tried our best. We tried to transition from Manning, I think most of us understood why, and it didn't work. We tried with Luck, things got a little better, and it fell apart. I do not believe the organization failed Luck, it just is what it is.
We had to take a chance on this kid. I still think it was the right choice. I think benching him is the right choice too. He needs accountability like most if not all of us do.