Richardson, Leonard fight to back up Jones
With Indianapolis's roster due at 53 by tonight's deadline, Anthony Richardson and Riley Leonard are still fighting for the same job after both played in Saturday's preseason finale loss to the Lions.
Richardson and Leonard are still neck and neck as cuts hit
Every NFL roster comes down to 53 players by tonight's deadline, and Indianapolis still has not settled the question that followed it through camp: who backs up Daniel Jones. Anthony Richardson Sr. completed seven of 10 passes for 80 yards without a touchdown or an interception in Saturday's finale, and Riley Leonard went three of seven for 48 yards with an interception — thin enough of a gap that offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter has called the race 'neck and neck right now.' Reporting into today's deadline has both Richardson and Leonard trending toward the 53 anyway, an unusual three-quarterback plan alongside Jones that GM Chris Ballard has been building toward all camp.
The other new arm on this offense debuted Saturday, too. Keenan Allen caught his only target for 24 yards in the loss, and the catch came from Richardson — Adam Schefter posted the connection as it happened, the first look at a pairing built on history rather than depth-chart necessity. Steichen coached Allen in Los Angeles from 2014 to 2020 and has called him 'the most cerebral receiver I've ever been around,' someone who 'sees the game like a quarterback,' and Allen has pointed right back at Steichen as the reason he signed here.
None of it looked smooth in front of the crowd at Lucas Oil. Mike Chappell of Fox 59 News Indianapolis reported live that backup center Dalton Tucker 'has Anthony Richardson guessing where shotgun snap is going to be,' calling it a real concern with games about to count. That is the kind of detail cutdown day is supposed to help sort out — Indianapolis just does not know yet which quarterback room it's sorting it out for.
Last time out: a finale that got away in the first half
Saturday's finale slipped away early, and the box score says why: Lions journeyman Josh Dobbs went 12 of 14 for 110 yards and two touchdowns before halftime, a 139.0 rating that Colton Pouncy flagged in real time. Detroit built a lead Indianapolis never fully answered, and the Colts closed out their preseason with a 25-16 loss, leaving them at 0-2-1 — a preseason run that stayed winless at 0-3 without ever picking one up.
Lions16-25
Falcons6-34
Patriots13-13The evaluation part of the day went fine even in a loss. DJ Giddens carried twice for eight yards and a touchdown and caught a pass for eight more, Seth McGowan added four carries for 20 yards and a five-yard catch, and Allen's 24-yard grab was the only target he saw all afternoon. The one alarming moment came in the first quarter, when receiver Coleman Owen entered the concussion protocol — head coach Shane Steichen confirmed the injury after the game, per Mike Chappell of Fox 59 News Indianapolis.
Shrader answers Grupe with a 60-yarder, off a bad knee
The specialist race that opened after Atlanta got its answer Saturday. Blake Grupe, who missed his only try against the Falcons, drilled back-to-back field goals to open the scoring — the club's own account posted 'Grupe puts us on the board +3' and then 'Grupe does it again +3' within twenty minutes of each other. Spencer Shrader, who was clean against Atlanta too, topped both with a 60-yard field goal, the longest either kicker has hit all preseason.
Colts’ Spencer Shrader’s comeback from knee injury capped by 60-yarder in loss to Lions t.co/Ny5Tp0zltC
The number that matters more than the distance is the one behind it: Shrader hit that kick on a comeback from a knee injury, as Mike Chappell of Fox 59 News Indianapolis detailed after the game. Two clean days from two kickers is exactly the kind of problem a 53-man roster is built to force a decision on, and Indianapolis has to pick one before tonight's deadline the same way it has to pick between its backup quarterbacks.
The real opener is two Sundays away, against a perfect Baltimore team
Preseason business wraps up today; the games that count begin two weeks from now, when the Ravens visit for a Sunday afternoon vs. the Ravens on September 13. Baltimore comes in off a 41-3 win over Washington and a perfect 3-0 preseason, the kind of form that has made the Ravens 3.5-point favorites on Indianapolis's own field when the line opened.
The total opened at 48.5, a high-scoring number for a game two Sundays out, with Indianapolis still sorting out its quarterback room and Baltimore looking like the finished product it usually is by September. Whatever the roster looks like by tonight's deadline, that is the first real measuring stick.