AFC Notes: Anthony Richardson, C.J. Stroud, Colts, Jaguars, Texans

Colts

Colts TE Drew Ogletree said rookie QB Anthony Richardson brought a fierce mentality in Week 4 after going into halftime in a 20-0 deficit to the Rams. 

“We shot ourselves in the foot multiple times,” said Ogletree, via Stephen Holder of ESPN. “After halftime, you could really look into his eyes and see he’s got that fire in him. He was ready to go. You can tell he’s going to be something special in this league for sure.”

Richardson thinks their offense came out slowly in Week 4 

“We were definitely frustrated in the first half,” Richardson said. “The offense, we started off very slow. We weren’t executing the right way or doing the right things that we thought we were going to do. They showed us a little bit of different things. It took us a while to adjust.”

Richardson said they focused on executing each play in their 23-point second-half performance instead of overdoing things. 

“[In] the second half, we just came out and tried to play and focus on the next play instead of worrying about trying to dig ourselves out of the hole,” Richardson said.

Jaguars

Jaguars DC Mike Caldwell said DB Andre Cisco has come down with many of the interceptions that he missed last year and has elevated that aspect of his game to show up on the stat sheet.

“I think his understanding of the overall scheme is better, and he’s catching the ball,” Caldwell said, via Jags Wire. “He had opportunities last year and he didn’t come up with those catches, now he’s coming down with them. And he’s a talented player, he has all the skill and a bunch of range back there. You like the way he’s attacking the ball and he will continue to do that.”

Texans

Texans OC Bobby Slowik said rookie QB C.J. Stroud‘s ability to look off defenders and know when and where to throw the ball is a rare trait for a first-year player.

“As a rookie, I would say that he’s really good because he knows when and why, which I think is rare for a rookie,” Slowik said, via Texans Wire. “A lot of times — like in college, he definitely did it. Without a doubt, it showed up on his college tape. You could tell he had a good understanding in college of why he was trying to look somebody off, and then that’s only grown since he’s gotten to the NFL and growing within our scheme, where I think initially when we first got to camp, you go through this period where you get so used to doing it that it’s a little too much and then you bring it back to balance it out and then it starts growing again.”

Slowik added that Stroud has been calculated in his approach and his ability to read a defense is off the carts.

“This is why I may want to put this defender here and it just keeps building and building,” Slowik explained. “Obviously, you get in a game playing situation, and you attack specific coverages and specific defenders — he’s been awesome in that regard.”