INDIANAPOLIS – Anthony Richardson has to be tired of answering the same questions each week in front of his locker at the Indiana Farm Bureau Football Center.

But the Indianapolis Colts are stuck in something of a Groundhog Day scenario with their starting quarterback.

The 22-year-old has missed the past two weeks while healing from an oblique injury suffered near the end of the first quarter against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sept. 29.

There is optimism the story will finally move forward this week, with Richardson expected to start Sunday against the Miami Dolphins (2-3).

Richardson was close to playing last week against the Tennessee Titans, serving as the emergency third-string quarterback, and he was a full participant in Wednesday’s practice.

But he admitted the rehab process has been frustrating at times.

“It is a little tough because everybody wants to play football,” Richardson said. “We love playing football. So that’s kind of sad when that’s taken away from us. But it’s all part of the journey. I’m trusting the staff, trusting the team, and hopefully this week I’m out there.”

Richardson has missed 15 of 23 games since being selected with the fourth overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, and he’s only been able to finish four of the eight games he’s started.

It’s complicated the development process for a quarterback with just 21 starts since his senior year of high school in Gainesville, Florida.

But head coach Shane Steichen has repeatedly expressed confidence in Richardson as his starter both in the long and short term.

That status, in fact, played a role in the decision not to start Richardson against the Titans.

“You want to have a long career in this league,” Steichen said. “You look around this league, obviously, there are some guys that are – I’ve been around a guy that’s started 225 games at quarterback, 230 games in (Philip) Rivers that was a warrior. But that’s rare.

“I mean, that doesn’t happen a lot of times. You look at all these quarterbacks that have played for a long time that went through something at some point in their career, and the longevity of staying healthy is a big part of it.”

Veteran Joe Flacco has played well in Richardson’s absence, going 1-1 as a starter and completing 65.7% of his passes for 716 yards with seven touchdowns and one interception.

But the Colts have been steadfast in their belief Richardson still gives the team the best chance to win.

The greatest evidence in favor of that stance comes from the quarterbacks’ average yards per pass attempt.

Despite completing just 50.6% of his throws and tossing six interceptions, Richardson averages nearly 2 yards more per attempt (8.5-6.6).

If the second-year quarterback can slightly tick up his completion rate and significantly cut down on his turnovers, Indianapolis’ offense could become a real threat.

Richardson showed signs of improvement in his last outing, completing three of four passes for 71 yards and rushing three times for 24 yards against the Steelers’ top-10 defense.

He led the Colts (3-3) to a touchdown on the opening drive and had Indianapolis at Pittsburgh’s 29-yard line when he was injured during a collision with safety Minkah Fitzpatrick.

That has revived concerns about Richardson’s ability to stay on the field and cement himself as the franchise quarterback.

But he insists he doesn’t feel additional pressure.

“Of course, I’m going to make sure I’m out there – the best I can,” Richardson said. “If I am taking hits, hopefully I’ll limit that, but I don’t think much is going to be different.”

PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Punter Rigoberto Sanchez was named the AFC Special Teams Player of the Week on Wednesday.

He averaged 48.4 yards on five punts at Tennessee, with three landing inside the Titans’ 20-yard line. He pinned Tennessee at its own 3-yard line on his final attempt to help seal the 20-17 victory.

This is the third time Sanchez has won the player of the week honor in his career, the most for a punter in franchise history.

INJURY REPORT

Nine Colts did not participate in Wednesday’s practice.

Wide receiver Josh Downs (toe), center Ryan Kelly (calf), cornerback Chris Lammons (ankle), defensive end Dayo Odeyingbo (hamstring), wide receiver Michael Pittman Jr. (back), running back Trey Sermon (knee), right tackle Braden Smith (knee), linebacker E.J. Speed (knee) and running back Jonathan Taylor (ankle) sat out the session.

Kelly and Odeyingbo left the game against Tennessee with their ailments. Downs, Pittman and Smith played against the Titans despite appearing on the injury report last week.

Offensive tackle Terron Armstead (rest) and defensive tackle Calais Campbell (rest) were the only players not to practice for the Dolphins.

Safety Jevon Holland (hand), linebacker Mohamed Kamara (ankle), linebacker David Long (knee), defensive end Emmanuel Ogbah (biceps), safety Jordan Poyer (shin) were limited.

Running back Devon Achane (concussion), cornerback Cam Smith (hamstring) and quarterback Skylar Thompson (ribs) were full participants.