Colts OTAs Notes: Daniel Jones, Anthony Richardson Sr. Both Participate

INDIANAPOLIS — The Indianapolis Colts convened for OTAs on Wednesday, giving the media a chance to view practice, which featured the team in 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 drills for the first time this offseason.

Here's how the hour-long practice went, as well as some key quotes from afterward.

— Several veterans either did not practice or were not in attendance, which is common this time of year. Those include defensive tackle DeForest Buckner (neck), cornerback Sauce Gardner, tight end Sean McKeon, wide receiver Alec Pierce (ankle), running back Jonathan Taylor, cornerback Cam Taylor-Britt, offensive tackle Jalen Travis (back), and cornerback Charvarius Ward Sr.

— There were several players who spent much of the time last season injured, who were on the field on Wednesday and participated in varying degrees: linebacker Jaylon Carlies (ankle), offensive tackle Blake Freeland (ankle), quarterback Daniel Jones (Achilles), quarterback Anthony Richardson Sr. (eye), cornerback Justin Walley (knee), safety Hunter Wohler (foot)

— Jones participated in individual/position work, but not the 7-on-7s and 11-on-11s. He looked smooth and natural during drills without any obvious signs of his Achilles injury. Jones and head coach Shane Steichen discussed what might come next in Jones' recovery after practice (scroll to the bottom section).

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— Richardson took the field first with the first-team offense during 7s and 11s in Jones' absence. Richardson and second-year pro Riley Leonard then alternated, as they will continue to do throughout the summer to determine the Colts' backup quarterback. Richardson did not show any issues with his vision after suffering a season-ending eye injury last year. He had a few terrific throws that displayed touch, both over the middle and on the boundary. It was not a large enough sample size, however, to declare "he's back."

— With Taylor not in attendance, there was a heavy dose of DJ Giddens and Seth McGowan. Both players broke off a long run up the middle. The rookie McGowan displayed burst and decisiveness. There is very little wasted time in his running style.

— Tight end Drew Ogletree was a frequent recipient of Richardson and Leonard passes, making a few catches during team drills. His highlight came during the first portion of 11s, when Leonard found him up the right seam for a gain of 20-plus yards.

— After practice, rookies McGowan and offensive lineman Jalen Farmer were both seen getting in plenty of extra work. Farmer worked with Quenton Nelson on blocking technique, while McGowan ran routes by himself.

— The Colts' first draft pick, second-round linebacker CJ Allen, appeared to make an interception off of Leonard during team drills. The media's view of the play was spotty, but his teammates' reaction was on par with the play being an interception.

— Second-year cornerback Johnathan Edwards had a pair of pass breakups against both Richardson and Leonard. It was a standout day for him. Last year, he struggled with locating the ball in coverage, so this may be a big step forward in his game.

— Steichen announced two sets of joint practices for training camp: "For this training camp, we’ll do a joint practice against New England. We’ll go there. Do one day against those guys. Then Atlanta will come here week two, and we’ll get two days of work against them as well."

— Steichen on whether Jones will continue to only do positional work: "We’ll see. Maybe next week I might get him into some seven-on-seven. We’ll look into that, and see how this week goes. But he’s doing really good."

— Steichen on Richardson and Leonard battling for the backup quarterback spot: "Correct. Yeah, those guys will compete. Him and Riley will compete. We’ll flip the reps every other day. I mean, they get the same reps with the ones and the twos every day through OTAs... Yeah, they will be competing for the backup... Yeah, no, it’s 50/50. I mean, they’re competing just like everyone’s competing. We’ve got certain guys competing at certain spots, and that’s one of the positions they are competing at."

READ MORE: Colts' Charvarius Ward Sr. 'In A Much Better Space' Than Last Year

— Jones on whether being available for Week 1 has ever been in doubt for him: "No. No, it hadn’t. Yeah, I mean, I understand the process. I think you’ve got to hit all your marks, and I understand that. I think I have a lot of trust and faith in doctors and the trainers we have here, our PT staff. And a lot of trust in myself to do the work and put myself in the position to play. And that’s certainly been my goal all along."

—  Richardson on whether he's still having vision limitations: "It’s good. I’m out there throwing the football nice. They cleared me last year, so everything is smooth."

— Richardson on whether it's 'awkward' to be in attendance after his trade request: "I don’t think so. I signed a contract, so I’m still on this team regardless of the trade stuff. I’ve got an obligation to this team to come out here and play and perform and be ready to play if they need me. I don’t think it’s weird or awkward."

— Richardson on whether he still would like to be traded: "I’m not really focused on that right now. I’m here right now. I’m just trying to make sure I’m staying healthy and keeping everything up there in the mind sharp."

— Richardson on why he returned to the team after taking the first couple of weeks of the offseason program to himself: "Honestly, man, I just wanted to work. I was just getting tired of waiting a little bit, and I just wanted to get back right into the routine. Nothing really transpired with that, so my agent talked to (Chris) Ballard and was like, ‘We’re trying to get back to work.’"