INDIANAPOLIS — Colts quarterback Daniel Jones is not going to play in Saturday’s preseason finale against the Lions.
But he’s apparently going to make the most of his practice time this week.
Jones completed 19 of 24 passes against the No. 1 Colts defense Wednesday, riddling the secondary in a pass-heavy session without three of his top four targets available. Veteran wide receiver Keenan Allen caught six passes, including a big win against Sauce Gardner to open practice, and a diving, full-out grab of a throw down the left sideline for chunk yardage.
Allen has been highly productive in his first two practices, repeatedly finding a way to get open even against the Indianapolis defense’s best cover men.
He wasn’t the only wide receiver who had a big day.
Veteran receiver Laquon Treadwell, who finds himself among a crowded group of receivers fighting for the last one or two spots on the 53-man roster, took a bunch of snaps with the starters in place of a rehabbing Alec Pierce. Treadwell turned in arguably his best day of training camp so far, beating Sauce Gardner for one key catch over the middle and racing deep for a long touchdown from Jones, latching onto the ball despite tight coverage from Gardner and free safety Camryn Bynum.
From the media’s vantage point, it looked like Jones had plenty of time to throw. Jones completed six throws to Allen, five to Treadwell, two to tight end Pharaoh Brown, two to slot receiver Anthony Gould, one apiece to tight end Mo Alie-Cox and wide receiver Ashton Dulin, plus two to rookie running back Seth McGowan, who got free on a wheel route behind linebackers Akeem Davis-Gaither and Jaylon Carlies for the score.
That protection also allowed the veteran to rip off big yardage down the field and to make precise, accurate throws in the red zone. Gardner batted away one Jones pass in the red zone, but the McGowan touchdown and a crosser to Gould for another score gave Jones two touchdowns in five plays.
Backup and forthSaturday’s preseason finale could be the final round of the competition for the backup quarterback job.
Riley Leonard and Anthony Richardson remain neck-and-neck for the No. 2 job, rotating roles every other day to give both quarterbacks a roughly equal chance to win the job.
Leonard was much better Wednesday. The former Notre Dame quarterback completed all six of his throws, including a big gain to running back DJ Giddens in the flat and a gorgeous deep ball to rookie wide receiver Deion Burks, who skied high above good coverage from Cam Taylor-Britt to pull down the offense’s biggest throw of the night.
Richardson, on the other hand, struggled. The No. 4 pick in the 2023 draft completed only 4 of 11 passes on an inaccurate day.
Richardson was under pressure from the start. Adetomiwa Adebawore, the quick defensive tackle who carved out a role as a pass rusher in DeForest Buckner’s absence last season, recorded “sacks” of Richardson twice in his first three plays, including one that would have nullified a completion to Pharaoh Brown if he’d been allowed to hit the quarterback.
From there, it didn’t get much better. Richardson completed back-to-back throws to Coleman Owen and Brown to start one late series, then fumbled a good snap to the middle of his body. Fumbled snaps have been an issue for Richardson intermittently throughout training camp, and it seemed to throw off Richardson’s rhythm. Defensive end Jaylahn Tuimoloau batted down Richardson’s next offering, followed by a throw to the corner of the end zone that landed hopelessly behind Nick Westbrook-Ikhine.
Offered an opportunity in the red zone to end practice, Richardson checked down to D.J. Giddens for a couple on first down, then tried to force a ball into Burks that got batted down by linebacker Bryce Boettcher. Veteran cornerback Jaylon Jones forced an incompletion on third down with good coverage, then broke up Richardson’s final throw, a late, wobbly offering to the corner of the end zone that hit Jones in the back as he tried to cover the receiver.
Roll callReceiver Josh Downs has missed two practices this week due to a calf injury. The Indianapolis slot receiver does not seem concerned about the calf. Downs told reporters that his practice absence is precautionary.
Rookie strong safety A.J. Haulcy has also been held out the first two days of this week, but Haulcy could be spotted running full-field sprints.
Tight end Tyler Warren (groin), rookie guard Jalen Farmer (knee), tight end Will Mallory (thumb), defensive end Micheal Clemons and cornerback Johnathan Edwards did not practice.
Gould returned for the first time since suffering a groin injury before the preseason opener in New England. Pierce remains on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list as he recovers from offseason ankle surgery. The Colts keep saying that Pierce is close to a return.
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Quick hittersThe Colts continue to rotate linebackers with the first team. Jaylon Carlies, CJ Allen and Akeem Davis-Gaither all got chances with the first team. … Easton Stick, the team’s fourth quarterback, completed 8 of 13 passes. … Tight end JJ Galbreath made a pair of nice catches on back-to-back throws from Stick. … Cornerback Mekhi Rodgers broke up one of Stick’s throws. … Veteran safety Trey Washington broke up another Stick pass, and Washington had a completion.
Joel A. Erickson and Nathan Brown cover the Colts all season. Get more coverage on IndyStarTV and with the Colts Insider newsletter.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Daniel Jones, Keenan Allen star in Colts practice, Anthony Richardson struggles
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