The Indianapolis Colts ended the preseason with a 13-10 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals. That leaves the preseason with a 2-2 record. The Colts kick-off their season against the Detroit Lions this Sunday at 4:25 p.m. eastern time. Since they’re starting their season this week, let’s look at three Colts final pre-season takeaways.
Indianapolis Colts Final Preseason Takeaways
The Colts are Deep at Quarterback
Quarterback Andrew Luck did not play in the final game against the Bengals. Instead, Stephen Morris and Scott Tolzien took control of the offense. According to ESPN, the Colts will keep three quarterbacks on the roster for the first time since 2012. Morris was one of the best looking Colts players during the pre-season. He threw for 531 yards, four touchdowns and added another touchdown on the ground. Tolzien had a solid pre-season as well. He threw for 390 yards and two touchdowns. With all of the injury problems that Luck had last season, the Colts are being careful with the depth on the roster at quarterback.
Health is a Key Issue
The Colts have had a problem staying healthy through the entire preseason. They even had to sign former New York Jets cornerback Antonio Cromartie due to a large number of injuries to starting cornerbacks. Pro-Bowler Vontae Davis could miss up to a month of the regular season. Furthermore, Darius Butler left the Colts third preseason game against the Philadelphia Eagles. However, there is some good news concerning the Colts injured players. According to head coach Chuck Pagano, the Colts would be shocked if defensive lineman Kendall Langford does not play in week one.
There is still a lot of confusion about many of the injured players. Cornerback Patrick Robinson does not know if he will play in week one. Safety Clayton Geathers and defensive end Henry Anderson might not play week one either. The rash of injuries will give many of the Colts younger players a chance to make a name for themselves. With Geathers out, rookie safety T.J. Green will most likely start week one. Furthermore, rookie defensive lineman Hassan Ridgeway will take more snaps because of the injuries to Langford and Anderson. Hopefully, the Colts have a shorter list of injured players by week two of the regular season.
The Colts made some Puzzling Cuts
The Colts cut 17 players to get down to their official 53-man roster, on Saturday. Former Denver Broncos linebacker Nate Irving, who the Colts signed in 2015, was one of the players cut. Irving played with the first team of linebackers throughout most of the training camp and the pre-season. However, the potential of a rookie linebacker Antonio Morrison probably squeezed Irving off the roster. The Colts also cut running back Stevan Ridley, who was on the roster for less than a week. It seemed like the Colts were adding depth behind Frank Gore because of the stagnant play of Josh Ferguson. Yet Ferguson made the roster.
Other significant cuts included cornerback Tay Glover-Wright, wide receiver Tevaun Smith, and outside linebacker Earl Okine. Smith had a touchdown catch in the last preseason game against the Bengals. He looked like he had done enough to make the roster. Okine looked like he might have been able to add a spark to a weak pass rush.
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