The Trent Richardson experiment has officially come to a conclusion in Indianapolis. The Colts have released the former top pick after less than two seasons with the team.
Originally drafted by the Cleveland Browns with the third pick of the 2012 NFL draft, Richardson put up a solid rookie campaign. He tallied 1,317 total yards and 12 touchdowns that season.
It’s been downhill ever since.
After just two games with Cleveland in 2013, the Browns traded Richardson to Indianapolis for a first-round pick in the 2014 draft. In 29 games (20 starts) with Indianapolis, Richardson put up a total of 977 rushing yards and averaged a substandard 3.1 yards per attempt.
As the 2014 season was coming to an end, it became apparent that Richardson’s career in Indianapolis was as well. He was suspended for the team’s playoff run and fell completely out of the running back rotation as the season progressed.
Slated to count $3.2 million against the cap in 2015, there simply wasn’t a reason for the Colts to keep Richardson around. That was only magnified by the fact that the team signed Frank Gore earlier this week.
It remains to be seen what type of interest Richardson might draw on the open market, but he’s unlikely to be highly coveted.
Photo: USA Today