INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Indianapolis Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson said he was in such severe pain last week he struggled to walk.
The 22-year-old appears to be feeling much better this week — possibly even well enough to start Sunday's season finale against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
After missing last weekend's playoff-eliminating loss to the New York Giants, Richardson stood tall Wednesday, fielding questions for about six minutes while explaining he hopes to return this week.
“Definitely feeling a lot better," Richardson said. “Just lower back stuff. Last week was tough. I couldn't even stand up on Tuesday, was kind of crawling around the house. But you know I'm standing up.”
And yet coach Shane Steichen was still saying late last week that Richardson had been dealing with back soreness and still might play.
Richardson explained he's been dealing with back spasms since eighth grade and MRIs have shown he has disk issues, causing the pain intermittently.
The former Florida star also has struggled with injuries through his first two NFL seasons. A concussion and season-ending injury to his throwing shoulder limited him to just four starts as a rookie. He missed two games in October with an injured hip, was benched for two games in November after taking himself out of a game for one play because he was tired and then sat out last weekend, leaving him 8-7 as the starter.
The Colts opted to hold a walkthrough Wednesday and Steichen would not project whether Richardson would have participated in a full workout — had the Colts (7-9) held a regular practice.
Still, Colts players and Steichen remain hopeful Richardson will play this week even though their postseason fate has been sealed.
“We're hopeful," Steichen said. "He's working through his rehab and his treatment right now. So we'll see how this week progresses."
Richardson also wants to play and not just to prove those who have questioned both his consistency — he has a league-low completion rate of 47.7% with 12 interceptions and eight touchdowns — or his ability to stay healthy.
Instead, Richardson wants to show he can beat the Jags (4-12) and close the season with another victory.
“It's tough you know, especially watching us lose the way we did with everything that was on the line, on the table for us,” Richardson said. “It just matters how you fight back and how you respond to certain things.”
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Indianapolis Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson (5) celebrates his touchdown during the first half of an NFL football game against the Tennessee Titans, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)
Indianapolis Colts head coach Shane Steichen, left, congratulates quarterback Anthony Richardson (5) after a touchdown during the first half of an NFL football game against the Tennessee Titans, Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)
Indianapolis Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson (5) stiff arms Tennessee Titans safety Amani Hooker (37) as he runs the ball during the first half of an NFL football game Sunday, Dec. 22, 2024, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israeli airstrikes killed at least 10 people including a child early Saturday in southern Gaza, hospital staff said, while a new effort at ceasefire talks was said to be underway in Qatar.
A small boy cried over his father, and a woman draped herself over one of the bodies wrapped in white plastic. The three airstrikes hit a car, a house and people on the street in the city of Khan Younis, according to staff at Nasser Hospital.
There was no immediate comment from Israel's military.
Gaza’s Health Ministry said at least 59 people had been killed and more than 270 injured by strikes in the past 24 hours.
There were no immediate statements on the indirect negotiations in Qatar’s capital, Doha, toward a ceasefire after nearly 15 months of war. The Hamas militant group on Friday said talks had resumed and added that it was committed to reaching an agreement. It warned against misinformation, which it said can undermine public confidence.
The talks mediated by the United States, Qatar and Egypt have repeatedly stalled as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vows to press on in Gaza until Hamas is destroyed. Fighters with Hamas, which wants Israeli forces out of Gaza completely, continue to regroup in areas where Israeli forces withdraw.
The war is by far the deadliest round of fighting between Israel and Hamas. It began when Hamas and other militants attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting around 250. Around 100 hostages are still in Gaza, at least a third believed to be dead.
Families of hostages and others have rallied weekly for months to press Netanyahu to reach a ceasefire deal that would bring loved ones home.
In a video released by Hamas on Saturday ahead of the latest weekly rally, Israeli soldier and hostage Liri Elbag, speaking under duress, expressed anguish over her situation and mentioned being held 450 days.
“Today is the beginning of a new year; the whole world is celebrating. Only we are entering a dark year, a year of loneliness,” she said. She also said a fellow captive had been injured by the fighting in Gaza, adding, “We are living in an extremely terrifying nightmare.” She did not name the person injured.
Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed at least 45,717 Palestinians in Gaza, according to the territory’s Health Ministry, which says women and children make up more than half the dead. The ministry doesn’t distinguish between civilians and combatants in its tally. It says uncounted bodies remain beneath rubble or in areas where emergency responders cannot reach.
Israel’s military says it only targets militants and blames Hamas for civilian deaths because its fighters operate in dense residential areas. The army says it has killed 17,000 militants, without providing evidence.
The war has caused widespread destruction and displaced about 90% of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million, many of them multiple times. Winter has now arrived, and hundreds of thousands are sheltering in tents near the sea. A small number of children have died from exposure to the cold.
Meanwhile, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, relatives mourned an 18-year-old Palestinian who the Palestinian Health Ministry said was killed Friday during clashes with Israel’s army in the Balata refugee camp in Nablus. The ministry said nine other people were injured.
Palestinian health officials have said Israeli raids throughout the West Bank since Oct. 7, 2023, have killed more than 800 Palestinians. Israel says most of these are militants, but youths throwing stones and people not involved in confrontations have also been killed.
A fragile ceasefire between Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah has held up for over a month, although its terms seem unlikely to be met by the agreed-upon 60-day deadline. Israel and Hezbollah had exchanged fire almost daily since the war in Gaza began.
Follow AP’s war coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war
Relatives mourn during the funeral of Palestinian Muhammad Abu Amer, 18, who was killed at night in an Israeli army raid, in the West Bank refugee camp of Balata, Nablus, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed)
Relatives mourn over the body of Palestinian Muhammad Abu Amer, 18, who was killed at night during an Israeli army raid at his funeral in the West Bank refugee camp of Balata, Nablus, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed)
Mourners carry the body of Palestinian Muhammad Abu Amer, 18, who was killed at night in an Israeli army raid during his funeral in the West Bank refugee camp of Balata, Nablus, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed)
Palestinians carry white sacks containing the bodies of those killed in overnight Israeli airstrikes on the Khan Younis refugee camp, southern Gaza Strip, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
Palestinians attend funeral prayers for two of the ten people killed in overnight Israeli airstrikes on the Khan Younis refugee camp, southern Gaza Strip, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
Mourners carry the body of a Palestinian killed in overnight Israeli airstrikes, during his funeral in the Khan Younis refugee camp, southern Gaza Strip, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
Palestinians inspect a car targeted in an overnight Israeli airstrike that killed its occupants in the town of Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
Relatives of a Palestinian killed in overnight Israeli strikes, mourn over his body outside the morgue of Nasser hospital in the Khan Younis refugee camp, southern Gaza Strip, Saturday, Jan. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana)
