The Indianapolis Colts and Green Bay Packers played a game that might have been extremely exciting had it been played in the regular season. Indy lost the game 23-19 (though the team led for much of the game), but the enjoyment of such might have been hampered by two things we will get to in just a minute.
Would the outcome of the game likely have been changed had the Packers had Jordan Love? Probably. But then, in the preseason, teams do not scheme against one another so the whole premise is meaningless as to whether Love would have changed things.
What we learned is that the Colts' starters are going to put the team in a position to win a lot of games. Injuries, penalties, and poor quarterback play might limit the overall win total, though.
Winners and losers (and everything else) from the Indianapolis Colts' second preseason game
Winner: Kicker Spencer Shrader (and the Colts)
The kicker position always matters, of course, but for the Colts, it might matter more. To win a bunch of games, fans should probably not expect the quarterback play to be terrific, and therefore, a lot of close wins. Shrader is going to help the team win those tight contests.
He has been excellent throughout training camp and has already made two kicks beyond 50 yards through two preseason games. His 56-yarder versus the Packers would have been good from 60-plus. The team might as well cut Maddux Trujillo on Sunday.
Loser: Tight end Jelani Woods
Woods needed to prove he can stay healthy and productive in training camp and the preseason. The second-round pick in 2022 hasn't played in two years because of injury. He needed to be a star in the preseason.
Instead, in his first opportunity against Green Bay, he dropped a pass after an excellent rollout from quarterback Riley Leonard. Woods could have turned and run, too; instead, he literally dropped his chance to shine and quickly gave up reps to Will Mallory. He had a couple of catches later, but to drop such an easy pass was a bad look in a deep tight end roster battle.
Winner: Cornerback Chris Lammons
Lammons might be buried on the depth chart, but should he be? The Colts have been brutalized as far as injuries to the cornerback group, and Lammons is one of the few healthy bodies. Moreover, he was terrific against the Packers.
He was near the top of the team lead with tackles, but flashed that he could come with quarterback pressure, too. He had three passes defended, a tackle for loss, and a quarterback hit. He might be worth keeping on the team for a solid depth piece.
Loser: The Colts' roster
Maybe some of the multiple injuries that Indianapolis suffered during the game won't be as bad as they seemed, but an already depleted roster became even more so versus Green Bay. Two offensive tackles went down, Blake Freeland and Braden Smith, and the O-line is already in the process of being rebuilt after losing two starters in free agency.
Hunter Wohler, who has a tremendous camp, also had to leave the game with a foot injury. For a team that needs to win based on its overall roster instead of great quarterback play, Indy needs to hope for better health the rest of the preseason.
Winner: Quarterback Anthony Richardson
Richardson's quarterback rating won't look as good as Daniel Jones's did. But one cannot look at raw statistics when it comes to who did better in preseason Week 2. Jones missed an open receiver deep on the sidelines that could have led directly to a touchdown.
Meanwhile, Richardson was more methodical, but his drives led to a touchdown instead of a field goal. Should both quarterbacks play the same way in the regular season, Richardson would win games and Jones would lead Indy to close losses.
Loser: Football fans
What is easy to forget is that the preseason is good for the referees, too. Still, the NFL needs to stop the trend of having so many penalties called because, eventually, fans will begin to tune out. Too much stoppage of play causes the game to drag and be boring. Plus, some of the calls in the Indianapolis Colts and Green Bay Packers game were iffy.
Overall, a ridiculous 22 penalties were called (12 on the Packers and 10 on the Colts). The second half became a game of fans waiting to see if a flag would be thrown every down instead of just enjoying the play.