Anthony Richardson presents himself in captivating form at the NFL Scouting Combine. The comparatively inexperienced Florida Gators quarterback stirs with his personal story.

“A lot of people say I’m immature because I’m only 21 years old – but I had to grow up early.”

At the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis these days, a young playmaker is drawing attention that most may not have had on their radar. Anthony Richardson is his name, after only one year as the starting quarterback of the Florida Gators he has registered for the draft at the end of April.

The fact that he considers himself mature enough despite comparatively little playing experience is mainly due to his personal situation. For a long time, he, his mother and his younger brother lived with relatives in Miami. In 2013, the trio finally moved to Gainesville because their mother hoped for better housing opportunities there.

Rookie playmaker helped raise his brother

Anthony Richardson did everything he could to take as much pressure off his mum’s shoulders as possible. Most of all, he helped raise his brother

“I had to raise my younger brother while my mother worked two to three jobs every year. A lot of people don’t know my situation, they don’t know my story. And that’s why I’m here. To tell my story and let people know how I’m doing,” he said during a media briefing at the Combine.

“If you ask people in Gainesville, I had a little black mountain bike, and whenever you saw me on it, you’d see my little brother on the handlebars. I had to take him to school. I had to get him food. I had to dress him for school,” the talented quarterback says: “He’s my brother, but I love him like he’s my son. I’m just glad he’s a part of my life and I love him and I can’t wait for both of us to achieve our dreams. “

Same as two quarterback records at the Combine

For Anthony Richardson, the road to realising his big dream is not far away. In less than two months, the 32 NFL teams in Kansas City will draft their best players in seven rounds.

And what seemed impossible until recently no longer seems out of the question: The young signal caller could go off the board as the No. 1 pick. The 21-year-old caused a stir at the Combine in two respects.

He set a quarterback record in two disciplines. In the vertical jump, a jump from a standing position into the air, he reached 40.5 inches (102.87 centimetres). In the standing long jump, he landed at 3.28 metres – both never before achieved in this position group.

His time of 4.44 seconds in the 40-yard dash was also impressive. Since 2000, only seven playmakers have done it in less than 4.5 seconds. Richardson is the first to do so at more than 230 pounds of body weight (104.3 kilograms).

Anthony Richardson can convince in interviews

In addition, he was already able to convince during the all-important interviews behind closed doors. According to “ESPN”, for example, there were several scouts who were most impressed by the top quarterbacks in the room and by Richardson during the interviews

According to the report, some scouts even noted that the 21-year-old gave the best interview – even compared to last year.

Even the betting companies have caught on to the hype surrounding the rookie, giving him increasing odds to be the No. 1 pick. But how should the 21-year-old be assessed athletically?

That he is an absolute top performer in terms of athleticism has been clear at least since his performances at the Combine. The 1.96 metre tall, 111 kilogram signal caller is a picture-perfect athlete – and above all, he’s quick on his feet.

Mix of Cam Newton and Lamar Jackson

In his high school days, he gave himself the nickname “Cam Jackson” – a mix of his two favourite playmakers Cam Newton and Lamar Jackson. In other words, quarterbacks who help their teams enormously with their skills in the running game.

Which also shows in the numbers of the junior player. Last season, in 13 games for the Florida Gators, he produced 654 rushing yards and nine rushing touchdowns.

In the passing game, meanwhile, his numbers don’t look quite as convincing. He put 2,549 passing yards on the scoreboard last season, resulting in 17 touchdowns and nine interceptions. Overall, he only completed 53.8 per cent of his throws to a teammate.

This is his biggest shortcoming: accuracy in the passing game, plus the issue of decision-making in the pocket. Richardson needs to work on these weaknesses above all. With only one season as a starter, he also has significantly less experience compared to the other top prospects in the draft.

Mahomes and Brady as role models

It’s already clear whichever team picks up the youngster will get a strong rusher who needs to become more accurate in his passing. But the 21-year-old is fully aware of that.

“I can definitely get better when it comes to distributing the ball and helping my guys. Some would say that the percentage of my passes coming in is not great. I don’t think that percentage is great either, but I’m just growing as a quarterback. Not every year is going to be your best year, and I definitely learned a lot from last season,” Richardson points out.

And so “Cam Jackson” has not chosen Cam Newton or Lamar Jackson as his role model for his NFL career.

“I want to be a legend. I want to be like Patrick Mahomes. I want to be like Tom Brady, one of the greats. I’m going to be one of the greats because I’m willing to work so hard to get to that point,” the youngster expressed his confidence.

Before he can start a successful career in the best football league in the world, however, Richardson first has to be drafted. He already knows exactly what he will do with his first paycheck: “I will definitely take care of my mother. Whatever she wants, she can have it. “