The Colts’ preseason meeting with the Falcons won’t mean much in the standings, but for a few players on the roster bubble, it could mean everything. With Shane Steichen already saying Indianapolis starters won’t play, the spotlight shifts to the guys trying to win jobs, hold jobs, or climb one more rung on the depth chart.
That’s where preseason football gets interesting. The score is background noise. The real story is who makes the most of the snaps in front of them.
For Riley Leonard, Week 2 is another chance to change the conversation at quarterback. Indianapolis has been rotating the starting duties between Leonard and Anthony Richardson in the first two preseason games.
Richardson got the nod in preseason Week 1 and looked fairly solid, even with a fumble and an interception that wasn’t his fault. Leonard, who played in the second half, didn’t look quite as sharp.
Protection mattered there. Richardson was working behind mostly the immediate backups on the offensive line, while Leonard was taking hits behind the backups of backups.
That kind of difference can tilt everything. Against Atlanta, Leonard has a shot to make his case behind the next wave of protection.
If he looks better and Richardson follows up well later in the game, the QB2 question can stay open. If Leonard struggles again and Richardson keeps stacking solid work, Leonard’s path to the top of the backup conversation could close fast.
Blake Grupe is in a different kind of fight. On paper, the kicker job should be his.
He’s had the stronger and more steady camp compared to Spencer Shrader. But preseason Week 1 gave Shrader a real opening.
Grupe missed his lone field goal try, a 61-yard attempt, while Shrader converted his, including one from beyond 60 yards.
Shrader’s résumé matters here too. He opened last season as the Colts’ kicker before getting hurt in Week 5.
He was reliable from inside 50 yards, but he didn’t exactly build a reputation for a huge leg. That’s why his make against New England stood out.
If Grupe comes up empty again against the Falcons and Shrader keeps drilling kicks, camp performance could stop mattering and the competition could swing the other way.
Then there’s Coleman Owen, who may be the most interesting of the group because his path isn’t just about offense. The Colts’ receiver room changed quickly this week when Keenan Allen signed, and that pushed the remaining WR3 hopefuls into a different kind of battle. Laquon Treadwell, Anthony Gould, rookie Deion Burks, and Owen are all fighting to stay relevant.
Owen’s edge is versatility. He may not be the flashiest receiver in the group, but he can help on kick and punt returns, which gives him another route to making the roster.
Gould has also missed recent practices because of a groin injury, which only adds to the opportunity in front of Owen. If he turns in a strong special teams showing against Atlanta, he gives himself the best possible argument to stick around.
In Other News...
Colts Left Preseason Week 2 With 3 Big Roster Questions
The Colts left their Week 2 preseason game with a better sense of some things and a lot less clarity on others, especially at linebacker. Akeem Davis-Gaither appears lined up to start, but who will work alongside him is still up in the air, and that uncertainty sits right next to another area that looked thin again: the pass rush. Indianapolis managed only one sack and one quarterback hit, leaving the front seven with more questions than answers as the roster picture starts to sharpen.
There is also a real decision coming at backup quarterback, where Riley Leonard and Anthony Richardson are both trying to separate themselves for different reasons. Both had their share of passing struggles, but their styles are not the same and that matters as the Colts keep sorting out how they want the position behind the starter to look. With one preseason game down and another layer of evaluation still to come, the race on the depth chart feels far from settled. [Read more 🡒]
Anthony Richardson Keeps Colts Backup Debate Alive For One Big Reason
Anthony Richardson got another look in the second half of the Colts Week 2 preseason game against the Falcons, and the final line was uneven enough to keep the conversation around Indianapolis quarterback room going. He completed 3 of 9 passes for 24 yards while dealing with pressure from offensive line issues and limited separation from his receivers, but he also flashed the kind of movement and improvisation that has long been part of his appeal, extending plays and leaning on zone reads when the pocket broke down.
For Shane Steichen, the bigger question is still unresolved. The Colts coach has not set a timetable for naming the backup quarterback, and Richardsons overall preseason has been stronger than Riley Leonards, which keeps the competition from feeling settled just yet. Even with the rough patches, Richardsons ability to survive adverse situations and create something out of them is giving him a real case to stay in the mix a little longer. [Read more 🡒]
Colts Suddenly Have A Real Jaylahn Tuimoloau Problem
Jaylahn Tuimoloau arrived with real draft capital behind him, the kind of investment that usually buys a young edge rusher a longer runway in Indianapolis. Instead, the second-year pass rusher has spent the preseason and his rookie season trying to find his footing, and the latest reminder came against the Falcons, where he finished without registering a statistic.
For a Colts team that has already had plenty of trouble hitting on quarterbacks and edge rushers in recent years, Tuimoloaus slow start is more than just a depth-chart nuisance. The organization can afford patience to a point, but if the production does not come in 2026, the conversation could shift from development to whether a benching or even a release becomes part of the equation. [Read more 🡒]