Colts Won't See Bills QB Josh Allen in Preseason Opener

Wins and losses don't matter in preseason football, but the Indianapolis Colts at least won't have one major headache to worry about on the other side of the field on Saturday.

The Colts travel to New York to take on the Buffalo Bills at 4:00pm ET this weekend, and according to Bills head coach Sean McDermott, All-Pro quarterback Josh Allen will not be playing.

Coach McDermott: “Josh Allen will not play in our preseason game on Saturday.” #INDvsBUF pic.twitter.com/3RjEmMpIYC
— Buffalo Bills (@BuffaloBills) August 11, 2022

"Josh is not going to play," McDermott said per Alec White of the team's website. "And we'll take it on an individual basis from there."

Allen's absence means the Colts' defense under new coordinator Gus Bradley will have to wait for their first big quarterback test.

It shouldn't come as a shock that someone of Allen's stature wouldn't play in the preseason, or at least not in the first game. NFL teams have been moving toward holding more and more starting players back during the preseason so as to not risk injury.

The Colts, however, do plan to play some starters up to a quarter, including quarterback Matt Ryan.

In 17 starts last regular season, the Bills were 11-6 and Allen went 409-of-646 passing (63.3%) for 4,407 yards (6.8 YPA), 36 touchdowns, and 15 interceptions with a passer rating of 92.2 as well as 122 carries for 763 yards (6.3 avg.) and another 6 scores.

In two career games against the Colts (including playoffs), Allen is 1-1 and has gone 47-of-70 passing (67.1%) for 533 yards (7.6 YPA), a passer rating of 96.9, with 13 carries for 72 yards, 5 total touchdowns, and 2 total turnovers.

Case Keenum and Matt Barkley are Buffalo's two other quarterbacks.

How much should the Colts' starters play on Saturday? Drop your thoughts below in the comment section!

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