Høl should trade QB Anthony Richardson after benching

Another quarterback drafted in the top five of the 2023 NFL draft was benched Tuesday.

Indianapolis Colts addressed veteran Joe Flacco after being benched Anthony Richardson, the No. 4 pick in last year’s draft. Last month, the Carolina Panthers benched Bryce Young, the No. 1 pick in the 2023 draft.

Young returned to the field last week while filling in for the injured Andy Dalton, but he did little to regain his starting job in the loss to the Denver Broncos. It’s probably best for the Panthers to trade Young sooner November 5 deadline because they don’t have the guard to develop a green signal caller.

The Colts have the roster to win games with Richardson, one of many reasons why they shouldn’t completely give up on him. NFL teams expect quarterbacks to produce immediately and are even quicker to toss them aside if they don’t get positive results.

CJ Stroud, the No. 2 pick last year, showed up quickly against the Houston Texans, but he hasn’t played as well as he did last season, when he won Offensive Rookie of the Year. His performance could continue to decline if the Texans don’t trade for a wide receiver to replace Stefon Diggs, who suffered a season-ending knee injury.

Let’s start this week’s fact or fiction with the Colts’ QB dilemma before assessing what the Texans need to do before the Nov. 5 trade deadline.

The Colts should trade Anthony Richardson after being benched

Manzano’s View: Fiction

It probably became too difficult for Colts coach Shane Steichen to continue to vouch for Richardson as the starter after another terrible performance and the controversial tap-out for a break during last week’s loss to the Texans.

The Colts gave up Richardson for 2024, but they shouldn’t completely move on from him. In a year with Jared Goff, Sam Darnold and Baker Mayfield playing well, the Colts should be patient with Richardson’s development because you can probably only name four or five other quarterbacks with his elite physicality.

It’s hard to develop from the sidelines, but it was a good time for Richardson to get a reset anyway. And he really didn’t give himself a choice after retiring a few plays against the Texans. The bad decision left a negative lasting impact and probably cost him his job.

Now, Richardson must regain the respect of his teammates, starting with supporting Flacco and finding ways to help the team while in the midst of a playoff run. Richardson may see his backup contributions as small, but he needs to learn to have a less-is-more mentality. He often tries to do too much to create plays, which I’m sure his teammates appreciate. It doesn’t take long for Richardson to regain respect inside the Colts’ locker roombut hopefully he uses the extra time to make sure he’s ready for his next opportunity. Richardson needs to improve in many areas, including accuracy after completing just 44.4% of his passes this season.

Dolphins must be sellers at the trade deadline

Manzano’s point of view: The facts

The Miami Dolphins (2-5) had to be sellers at the Nov. 5 trade deadline to improve the roster for next season and gain some salary cap flexibility.

They had an opportunity to right the ship with Tua Tagovailoa back on the field in Week 8, but the Dolphins lost at home last week to the Arizona Cardinals. Now is the time to accept reality and welcome the changes.

The Dolphins are already committed to the offensive core of Tagovailoa and wide receivers Jaylen Waddle and Tyreek Hill after agreeing to lucrative contract extensions with the trio in the offseason. Miami can’t afford to rebuild, but the team desperately needs a new vision. The Dolphins should seriously ask themselves why they can’t beat playoff contenders and why this fast-paced offensive scheme hasn’t produced much when the temperatures drop in December and January.

Perhaps the Dolphins can get a second- or third-round pick by trading standout safety Jevon Holland, a pending free agent. The team has already let defensive tackle Christian Wilkins and offensive guard Robert Hunt walk into free agency for nothing because they didn’t have cap space to re-sign. They should not make the same mistake with Holland.

The Dolphins need to repair the offensive line, which would be much easier with higher draft picks. Waive the white flag, Miami. It’s not your season.

A team not named the 49ers will win the NFC West

Manzano’s View: Fiction

The NFC West pack caught up with the San Francisco 49ers due to injuries to skill players and subpar defensive performances. It’s anyone’s race with three teams tied for first place with 4-4 records and the Los Angeles Rams just a half game behind.

But I’m not ready to say the Seattle Seahawks, Cardinals and Rams will take the NFC West title from the 49ers, who have proven they can shake off slow starts. San Francisco started 3–5 in 2021 and 3–4 in ’22, and had a three-game losing streak to fall to 5–3 last season. The 49ers reached the NFC Championship Game in all three of those campaigns and won the division the past two seasons.

It wouldn’t be wise to say the 49ers are back to being a Super Bowl contender because they haven’t played that way and may have a hard time beating the NFC North teams if they find a way into the postseason. The Cardinals, Rams and Seahawks are not the Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers and Minnesota Vikings.

The 49ers have enough depth at wide receiver with rookie Ricky Pearsall showing impressive flashes in last week’s win against the Dallas Cowboys. But they will need Deebo Samuel and Jauan Jennings to remain available after dealing with injuries this season. San Francisco also has depth at running back with Jordan Mason and Isaac Guerendo, and Christian McCaffrey is scheduled to return to practice after the bye week. Let’s not overlook the season tight end George Kittle is having – the front-runner for first-team All-Pro at the position.

The real problems lie on the defensive side. The 49ers nearly blew it last week when they allowed CeeDee Lamb to record two rushing touchdowns in the second half. But maybe San Francisco can make a trade to help the defense and keep pesky teams in the NFC West at bay. Last year, the 49ers landed edge rusher Chase Young at the deadline.

The NFC West race is far from over, but it’s a safe bet to line up on the team with star power, depth and experience.

Jakobi Meyers is a logical trade target for Houston to replace Stefon Diggs

Manzano’s point of view: The facts

The Texans should go all in for Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Jakobi Meyers. They should act now after all the wide receiver trades that has fallen in the past week.

Of course, the Texans could also go after New York Giants receiver Darius Slayton, New York Jets wideout Mike Williams or the many other available wide receivers. But Meyer’s ability to make plays closer to the line would benefit Stroud and sophomore wideout Tank Dell, who struggled to find his role next to Diggs and Nico Collins.

Dell made an impact as a rookie because he assumed the role of a downfield threat. But there weren’t many opportunities for him in the first eight games this season because Collins and Diggs got most of the targets downfield.

With Diggs out, the Texans should evaluate why the passing game hasn’t created many explosive plays despite having three downfield playmakers. They need a receiver who can get open quickly and make plays in the middle of the field to punish teams for playing them deep. Meyers has 31 catches for 325 yards and two touchdowns this season.

The Raiders already traded Davante Adams, but they shouldn’t be concerned about losing another veteran playmaker as they need to do everything they can to land a top-10 pick to draft a quarterback in April.