INDIANAPOLIS — Anthony Richardson looked the part Saturday night, but he didn’t play it. The Indianapolis Colts’ QB1 wore his helmet, pads and white jersey during warmups ahead of Indy’s second preseason game, though that was as close as he came to the action.
Following joint practices, Indianapolis head coach Shane Steichen opted to rest his starters, as well as backup quarterback Joe Flacco, against the Arizona Cardinals. While the top guys had the night off in Indianapolis’ 21-13 victory, there were still a few things to take away from the Colts’ last outing at Lucas Oil Stadium before the Week 1 opener.
Here’s what stood out:
Jim Irsay with big expectations
The Colts owner put on a headset and made his yearly preseason appearance on the TV broadcast. He fielded a few questions from Colts analyst and former NFL coach Rick Venturi, including those about Richardson, GM Chris Ballard and Steichen.
#Colts Week 2 preseason recap:
• Matt Gay goes 0/2 (reason to be worried?)
• JuJu Brents’ nose
• Ground game looks good
• Zavier Scott scores his first NFL TD (while wearing a guardian cap)
• Adetomiwa Adebawore and Isaiah Land stand out
• Nick Cross gets plenty of snaps pic.twitter.com/ZwkH5tjJPN— James Boyd (@RomeovilleKid) August 18, 2024
In his usual hyperbolic fashion, Irsay called Ballard a “blue-chip general manager” and compared Steichen to Pro Football Hall of Fame coach Don Shula. Here’s your reminder that while Ballard has proven to be a solid scout and drafter, his resume is subpar when it comes to on-field success. Ballard is 54-60-1 through his first seven years in Indianapolis and has just two playoff appearances and one playoff win. Steichen, meanwhile, is entering his second year as a head coach, so mentioning him in the same breath as a Shula is just a tad premature.
“I really think we really hit the jackpot with him,” Irsay said of Steichen. “He’s just an outstanding football mind who demands excellence.”
Irsay also expressed his excitement about seeing Richardson and running back Jonathan Taylor together in the Colts’ backfield. He added that it’s “critical” for the Colts to win big while Richardson is playing on his rookie deal. However, it’s fair to question Irsay’s willingness to seize the moment when Indianapolis is sitting on $26 million in cap space, yet didn’t sign a proven veteran safety in free agency and still doesn’t know who will start alongside Julian Blackmon on the back end.
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Cross could very well be Indy’s answer at the other safety spot, and it appears to be trending in that direction, but the Colts haven’t publicly named him the starter. They still want to see more from the 2022 third-round pick who played the first four defensive series Saturday. Cross finished with five tackles, highlighted by a big hit on Cardinals running back Trey Benson that resulted in a 2-yard loss.
Asked directly if Cross will start with Blackmon, Steichen said after the game the team will continue to evaluate. Indianapolis will head to Cincinnati for a joint practice Tuesday and its final preseason game Thursday.
“I just want to see him keep making plays,” Steichen said of Cross. “That position, you’ve got to make plays on the back end. And the guy who makes the most plays and knows what to do all the time, that’s the guy who’s going to be in there.”
Cross’ extended playing time Saturday was expected given how fluid the other safety job is at this point. But it was a bit shocking to see defensive end Dayo Odeyingbo, who tallied eight sacks last year and played 53 percent of the team’s defensive snaps, still out there in the third quarter. Steichen didn’t offer much of an explanation other than saying it was due to “numbers,” and Odeyingbo wasn’t very revealing either. Asked directly if he expected to play that long, Odeyingbo simply said “I don’t know. I didn’t really ask.”
The 2021 second-round pick totaled two tackles, including a sack.
“It was straight,” Odeyingbo said of his performance. “It was work. Practice and getting better.”
Should Colts be worried about Matt Gay?
After missing a 54-yard field goal wide left in the Colts’ preseason opener, Gay missed two more field goals wide left Saturday. Both missed field goal attempts, a 53-yarder and a 44-yarder, came in the fourth quarter. Gay is 1-of-4 on field goal attempts in the preseason.
Steichen said he wasn’t worried about Gay after the game, and the former Pro Bowl kicker explained that a contributing factor to his inaccuracy was that he didn’t have his usual holder, punter Rigoberto Sanchez, who missed Saturday’s game due to the birth of his daughter. Rookie kicker Spencer Shrader replaced Sanchez, though Gay said that couldn’t be used as a blanket excuse for his poor outing.
“I feel really good. I feel like the ball’s coming off my foot really well,” Gay said. “All pregame, halftime kicks were really good. I take that with some confidence, but again, (when) the ball’s down, I gotta make the kick regardless of who’s the holder or what’s happening.”
Mo Alie-Cox and Kylen Granson had the night off Saturday, revealing that they’re presumably the Colts’ top two tight ends. Their absence opened the door for Woods to start, but his night ended prematurely when he left the game in the second quarter due to a toe injury. Woods didn’t record a catch.
After the game, Woods said he doesn’t think his toe injury is serious and hopes to suit back up against the Bengals. He’s well aware of what’s at stake every time he misses a snap: a spot (or not) on Indianapolis’ 53-man roster.
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“Of course, you want to be a part of the team, so you always think about things like that,” Woods said. “But at the same time, if you’re for the team, you’re just gonna do whatever you gotta do to help out the team in any way possible.”
The Colts’ tight end room is crowded with Will Mallory and Drew Ogletree also fighting for roster spots. Indianapolis could keep five tight ends, but that seems unlikely. Woods said the coaching staff is challenging him to be more reliable, and if he can take steps in that direction, he’s confident he will not only make the team but be an impactful player.
The clock is ticking for the 2022 third-round pick to make his case.
“Some days, I’m doing a lot of good things,” Woods said. “Some days, I’m on and off. I’m just trying to build those consistent days.”
JuJu Brents exits with nose injury
Brents didn’t play in the Colts’ preseason opener against the Broncos due to a minor shoulder injury, so Steichen opted to let the likely starting cornerback play Saturday. Brents’ day was short-lived, beginning with a defensive pass interference penalty on the first offensive play of the game and ending with a nose injury that forced him to exit the game in the second quarter.
Brents, who needed stitches to close a cut across the bridge of his nose, said afterward he wasn’t sure of the full extent of his injury, which clouds his status for Tuesday’s joint practice and Thursday’s preseason game against the Bengals.
Brents emphasized that if Saturday’s game was a regular-season contest, he would’ve continued playing.
“It don’t look right to me, so we gonna see,” Brents said of his nose. “… I can breathe, so that’s all that matters.”
The Colts won on the ground Saturday, racking up 166 rushing yards and three touchdowns. Reserve running backs Tyler Goodson and Scott, as well as rookie quarterback Jason Bean, all found the end zone.
Zavier Scott takes it in for a Colts TD!
📱: Stream #AZvsIND on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/er6DDN0qKJ
— NFL (@NFL) August 18, 2024
Scott, donning a Guardian Cap on his helmet for enhanced head protection, scored on a 6-yard run in the third quarter that marked the second-year pro’s first NFL touchdown.
“Those guys up front made my job easy,” Scott said with a big smile. “I just had to run straight.”
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(Photo of Nick Cross: Darron Cummings / Associated Press)
