Indianapolis, IN
5 things to watch as Colts starters face Bengals backups in preseason finale
CINCINNATI — A chance to see the Colts starting lineup get extended action has finally arrived.
Indianapolis is planning to play its starters for roughly a quarter and a half in Thursday’s preseason finale in Cincinnati, an 8 p.m. kickoff against the Bengals that will be televised on WXIN-59 and Amazon Prime.
The matchup should be interesting.
The Colts and Bengals have already squared off, practicing against each other with Paycor Stadium looming in the background Tuesday, and both offenses left the practice field wanting more.
But the two teams are planning to treat the preseason finale differently, a development that must be kept in mind when the preseason game kicks off Thursday night.
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Indianapolis head coach Shane Steichen believes his starters need to see significant game action, considering there will be 17 days between Thursday night’s preseason game and the Sept. 8 season opener against the Texans.
“We’ve got to get the players ready to roll,” Steichen said. “Go out there and play, get that game-like experience before, obviously, Week 1 gets here.”
Cincinnati head coach Zac Taylor is taking a different approach.
Bengals starters will not play against Indianapolis, marking the second consecutive preseason game that Cincinnati holds its starting lineup out of action. Because of Taylor’s decision, the Indianapolis starters will get their work against Cincinnati’s second and third-teamers, a development that puts pressure on both Colts units to perform.
Anthony Richardson’s accuracy
Richardson’s performance in the passing game has been up and down since Indianapolis started playing other NFL teams.
The second-year starting quarterback struggled against Denver in the preseason opener and started slow in Tuesday’s joint practice against Cincinnati, sandwiching those performances around an efficient, big-play pair of joint practices with the Cardinals, the only blemish coming when rains in Westfield turned into a downpour.
Richardson will likely be playing with one hand tied behind his back on Thursday; the Colts likely do not want to call a bunch of quarterback runs, considering the potential for injury.
Colts news: Why Colts fans shouldn’t worry about Anthony Richardson’s play in the preseason
But even if Indianapolis isn’t running its full offense, the Colts would like to see an efficient, accurate Richardson attacking the Cincinnati secondary on Thursday night. Indianapolis might build its offense around his dual-threat skills in the regular season, but he’s still going to need to make throws on a consistent basis for the Colts to get where they want to go.
Secondary opportunities
Uncertainty remains in the Indianapolis defensive backfield, the only position group where a clear group of starters has not been solidified.
Presumably, former second-round pick JuJu Brents will start at cornerback next to Kenny Moore II and Jaylon Jones when the regular season begins, but Brents has seen limited preseason action due to injuries to his shoulder and nose. Brents did not practice against Cincinnati on Tuesday; Dallis Flowers has struggled at times in training camp, but it is fair to wonder if Brents’ lack of availability has left an opening for Flowers to earn early playing time in the regular season.
But cornerback is far more settled than the safety position.
After weeks of playing Nick Cross at free safety, the Colts moved Cross to strong safety and shifted Julian Blackmon to free safety in the joint practice against the Bengals, at least when Indianapolis wasn’t playing Blackmon at strong safety and Rodney Thomas II at free safety with the starters. Nearly a month into training camp, Steichen acknowledged the Colts are not set at safety.
“We’re looking at all that stuff right now,” Steichen said. “The guy that makes the most plays here (will start). … We’ll make that decision when it needs to be made.”
One complicating factor?
Cincinnati’s top two quarterbacks, Joe Burrow and Jake Browning, will not play on Thursday, leaving Logan Woodside to test the Indianapolis starters.
Running back race
Tyler Goodson and Evan Hull have a lot at stake Thursday.
The two young backs have been competing for the No. 3 running back role, a position that could be elevated to the primary backup spot early in the season, depending on the prognosis of Trey Sermon’s hamstring injury.
From the outside, the battle appears to be close.
Goodson has 13 carries for 50 yards and two touchdowns in the preseason; Hull has 12 carries for 42 yards and a score. Hull has two catches for 20 yards in the preseason; Goodson has 2 catches for a single yard. Goodson got the first snaps against the Cardinals last week, but Hull took plenty of first-team reps in the joint practice against Arizona.
And the battle might be for more than just the No. 3 running back spot.
If Sermon is expected to be healthy by the start of the regular season, Goodson and Hull might be competing for a spot on the 53-man roster, depending on the team’s needs at other spots.
Injury instability
No one likes to acknowledge the threat of injury.
The Colts would like to get through this game healthy, then make their roster decisions without too many meetings with the medical staff.
But the reality is that injuries in the preseason finale often make the team’s 53-man decisions for them. When third-year tight end Jelani Woods suffered a significant toe injury that will require surgery against Arizona last Saturday, a cloudy picture at tight end likely became much more clear. On the other side of the coin, Raekwon Davis’s return from high blood pressure issues this week puts the focus on a trio of defensive tackles — Adetomiwa Adebawore, Taven Bryan and Eric Johnson — competing for what might be just one spot.
Indianapolis, IN
Two men arrested in Lasalle Street homicide investigation
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Two men have been taken into custody for their roles in a fatal shooting that happened Friday on Indianapolis’ east side.
According to the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, officers were dispatched around 7 a.m. Friday to the 3600 block of North Dearborn Street to investigate shots fired.
They found evidence of shots being fired, but couldn’t find a victim. They later located two men shot just a few blocks away in the 3500 block of North Lasalle Street.
The men were taken to nearby hospitals for treatment. Police say one man was not shot and only had a laceration, but unfortunately, the other victim was pronounced shortly after arriving at the hospital.
IMPD identified the man on Monday as 25-year-old Jasper Dugan.
Officers continued their investigation and identified two suspects, Jesse Williams, 27, and Royeon Spells, 22. Both men were later arrested.
Police say the Marion Count Prosecutor’s Office will make the final charging decisions.
Anyone with information on the shooting was asked to contact Det. David Miller at the IMPD Homicide Office at 317-327-3475 or by email at David.Miller2@indy.gov.
Indianapolis, IN
What Colts’ Shane Steichen said when asked if Joe Flacco will remain QB: ‘Right now, yes’
MINNEAPOLIS — The Colts made a seismic, difficult decision to bench young, developmental quarterback Anthony Richardson and start 39-year-old Joe Flacco at the game’s most important position.
Indianapolis head coach Shane Steichen cited one reason above all else for the move.
The Colts coach believed Flacco gave his team the best chance to win now.
Flacco’s first game in the starting role did not necessarily provide evidence to reinforce that belief. Indianapolis took a 21-13 loss at the hands of the Vikings on NBC’S “Sunday Night Football,” largely because the offense turned in arguably its worst performance of the season.
Indianapolis picked up a season-low 227 yards, failed to score a touchdown and could not capitalize despite a defense that forced three turnovers. Kenny Moore II provided the Colts’ lone touchdown on a 38-yard scoop-and-score of a Grover Stewart strip-sack in the first half.
In light of the team’s struggles, Steichen was asked if Flacco will still be the Indianapolis starting quarterback.
“Right now, yes,” Steichen said.
The Colts head coach was also asked if he still believes Flacco gives the team the best chance to win.
“Right now, yes,” Steichen said.
Flacco struggled against Minnesota’s defense.
Indianapolis largely handled the Vikings blitz-happy scheme, refusing to allow a sack until the final, last-ditch drive. Even with time to throw, Flacco completed just 16 of 27 passes for 179 yards, and he threw a back-breaking interception in the second half on a key third down.
The Colts have also struggled with Richardson at the helm. Richardson has completed a league-worst 44.4% of his passes, thrown seven interceptions and posted a league-worst quarterback rating of 57.2, but he has a penchant for the explosive play.
The move to Flacco was supposed to stabilize the Indianapolis offense.
Instead, it ground to a halt, leading to some of the same problems that have been there all season. Indianapolis could not keep drives going, leading to Minnesota holding the ball for 36:54, a time of possession that allowed the Vikings to take advantage of a tired Colts defense in the end.
With that in mind, Steichen was asked if the shifts back and forth from Richardson to Flacco to Richardson to Flacco have hampered the offense’s ability to build an identity.
“I don’t think so,” Steichen said. “You just go, it’s like with any position. You’ve got to roll and get the next guy up. Obviously, Joe went in there tonight for us.”
Steichen did not place much blame at Flacco’s feet after the game.
In typical fashion, Steichen put most of the blame on himself.
“We’ll go back and look at it,” Steichen said. “There might have been a few completions here and there that he could have had, but again, he’s a calm guy that’s been playing at a high level for a long time. Obviously, a lot of faith in him.”
Indianapolis, IN
Caitlin Clark sits near Travis Kelce at Taylor Swift concert in Indianapolis
Caitlin Clark had essentially the same view as Travis Kelce during Taylor Swift’s second “Eras Tour” show in Indianapolis on Saturday.
Clark, who just won the WNBA’s Rookie of the Year award after the Fever selected her No. 1 overall in this year’s draft, sat in the same box as Kelce — Swift’s boyfriend — and was one row behind the Chiefs’ star tight end, according to Fieldhouse Files.
It marked the second consecutive night Clark attended Swift’s concert, as she posted “IM FIRED UP!!!!!!!” from her seat on Friday.
Clark’s mother also attended the Saturday performance, according to Yahoo! Sports.
Photos from Lucas Oil Stadium captured Clark exchanging friendship bracelets with fans, and before the second show, she posted, “So back” on her Instagram story.
It was a fitting overlap between Swift and Clark, as basketball Hall of Famer Nancy Lieberman said in September that Clark is the “Taylor Swift of women’s basketball right now” — as the sellouts and ratings records that helped define her collegiate career with Iowa carried over into her first WNBA season.
“Her fans are like ‘Swifties,’” Lieberman said during a SiriusXM appearance. “They’re extraordinarily loyal. And in every arena you go into, half the people there are her fans wearing her jerseys. She’s a media superstar, but damn, she’s backed it up every step of the way.”
Clark averaged 19.2 points, 8.4 assists and 5.7 rebounds per game to help the Fever overcome a slow start to the season and earn the No. 6 seed in the playoffs, but that didn’t stop Indiana from making a coaching change in the offseason — firing Christie Sides and hiring former Sun coach Stephanie White.
She coached the Fever in 2015 and 2016, and when White played for Indiana during her WNBA career, she wore the No. 22 that Clark wore at Iowa and also donned during a 2024 campaign where she rewrote the record books for plenty of rookie and league marks.
Kelce had a break in his Chiefs schedule to attend with Kansas City hosting the Buccaneers on Monday in Week 9, attempting to remain undefeated in their quest for a third consecutive Super Bowl win.
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