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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How do Colts starters handle Bengals backups?

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.

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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.