Most Colts, Lions Starters Won't Play Friday, Eason to Start
The Indianapolis Colts are on the eve of their final preseason matchup in 2021 but you shouldn't expect to see much from their starters on Friday against the Detroit Lions.
"I talked to Coach (Dan) Campbell, they’re not playing their starters so we kind of reevaluated," Colts head coach Frank Reich told reporters on Wednesday. "We’re not going to end up playing our starters, most of our starters aren’t going to play.
“Yeah, I was on the fence anyways," Reich continued. "I was prepared to play the guys a little bit, not much, but just a little final tune-up. When I found out they (Detroit) weren’t playing theirs, that kind of made the decision easy.”
The NFL reorganized the yearly schedule starting in 2021 to cut out one preseason game — from four games to three — and add one to the regular season — from 16 games to 17.
Previously, the third preseason game would've been a dress rehearsal of sorts for the regular season where many starters would play about a half before hitting the sideline for the second half, and then sitting out all of the fourth game. Teams are now having to adjust how they approach the preseason, which is likely to turn the third game into a contest full of depth players like the fourth game used to be.
With that being the case, Reich announced that current backup quarterback Jacob Eason will start Friday's finale against the Lions. Starting quarterback Carson Wentz recently returned to the practice field after a procedure on his foot caused him to miss most of training camp. He put in three consecutive days of heavy 7-on-7 work this week but is not yet ready to play in a game.
“Yeah, Jacob’s going to start on Friday," Reich said. "So, Jacob will start and we’ll just kind of rotate the quarterbacks kind of like we’ve been doing but we’ll just go with the flow of the game.”
In Wentz's absence, Eason and rookie Sam Ehlinger have split first-team reps at quarterback, with Eason getting the majority of the work overall. He started the Colts' first preseason game against the Carolina Panthers and played a whole half before giving way to Ehlinger in the second half. The roles were then reversed in the second preseason game against the Minnesota Vikings.
Reich would like to get fourth quarterback Brett Hundley some snaps as well.
So, without giving some of the starters that final tune-up he was initially hoping for, does Reich feel comfortable with where the team is at between now and the Sept. 12 regular-season opener against the Seattle Seahawks?
“I feel good where we’re at," Reich said. "I feel like we’ve gotten a lot of good physical work. Been here for four weeks, worked really hard. Did get some quality time, got practice, got two days of practice against the Panthers as well. So, I feel like physically we’re in good shape.”
What are you looking forward to during Friday's game? Drop your thoughts below in the comment section!
Miss Anything During Training Camp? We've Got You Covered!
- Day 1: First Look at Wentz, More
- Day 2: Wentz, Eason Make Strong Impression
- Day 3: Eason Gets First-Team Reps, Young Pass Rushers Shine
- Day 4: Eason Starts Slow but Rebounds, Okereke Stars
- Day 5: Eason/Wentz Update, Defense Thrives While O-Line Flounders
- Day 6: Defense Continues Domination
- Day 7: Eason Bounces Back, Banogu On Fire
- Day 8: Young Pass-Catchers Stacking Good Days
- Day 9: Eason, Ehlinger Let Loose
- Day 10: Defense Piles Sacks, Ehlinger Shines
- Day 11: Eason/Ehlinger Split with 1s, Leonard Returns
- Day 12: Light Work, Short Day as Colts Prepare to Host Panthers
- Day 13: Eason/Ehlinger Impress vs. Panthers, Defense Sets Tone
- Day 14: Tempers Flare, Ehlinger Excels Under Pressure
- Day 15: Eason Builds On Sharp Preseason Performance
- Day 16: Eason Flips Script, Paye Dominates
- Day 17: Day 17: Colts Gear Up for Vikings, Heavy On 11-on-11s
- Day 18: Wentz, Nelson, Kelly Return
- Day 19: Wentz's Performance Giving Optimism for Week 1
- Day 20: Camp is Officially in the Books