Packers @ Colts
Final Score: Packers 23, Colts 19
Writer: Geoff Ulrich @thefantasygrind (X.com)
The Packers are a team being held together by duct tape and crazy glue right now. The Colts had (on paper) the two best QBs in this game, but still lost. From the Green Bay side, it was nice to see the team respond to getting blown out in their first preseason game, but with so many injuries, there are few fantasy takeaways from this game (not zero, one player stood out). From the Colts’ side, the difference in styles between Daniel Jones and Anthony Richardson was on full display here and will affect the fantasy usefulness of several players.
Four Up
- Daniel Jones – Regardless of what you think of Jones, he did what he needed to do here, which is get the ball downfield to his playmakers. He’s likely in the lead to start Week 1 although I’m not sure that is the correct take.
- Marshawn Lloyd – Playmaking ability was on full display.
- Michael Pittman – Two nice grabs, both from Jones. I think it’s safe to say he could be the biggest benefactor from Jones starting.
- Matthew Golden – Didn’t play in this game, but when MeCole Hardman is the team’s best WR on the field, it’s a good day to be drafting Golden.
Two Down
- Anthony Richardson – I don’t think he played poorly at all. He led the Colts to a TD on his first drive. He just got outplayed by Jones, who had a nice stat line with the first team.
- Adonai Mitchell – Got targeted downfield, but with Downs and Pierce out, could only manage 1 catch despite playing with both starting QBs.
Green Bay Packers
Quarterback
Malik Willis: 6/14, 83 Yards
Willis is pretty clearly the QB2 in Green Bay, and it showed here today. Not only did he start, but the QBs behind him looked far and away much worse. He did have one nice downfield toss to Marshawn Lloyd, which displayed some touch, and his ability to get out of the pocket was on full display on that play. He’s a high-end backup from a real-world perspective, but given how limited Green Bay’s offense is right now with injuries, it’s hard to say exactly how much upside he’ll have if Jordan Love ever gets hurt.
Missed Opportunities
There was no rushing upside on display here, because #preseason. That said, Willis is the sort of QB who can get you 50+ yards and a TD on the ground, so just something to keep in mind.
Taylor Elgersma: 7/11, 109 Yards, 1 Rush, 4 Yards
Somewhat surprisingly, Elgersma was the second QB to enter this game. Sean Clifford was thought to be the frontrunner for the number three spot, so perhaps a bit of a shakeup on the depth chart. Elgersma looked bad at first, but did settle in and made some nice plays. He led the Packers on three scoring drives.
Look, we’re talking about an undrafted free agent here, so not much needs to be said because his path to relevancy is very narrow. However, his performance may lock him up a spot as the emergency number three QB.
Missed Opportunities
Led three scoring drives but didn’t score a TD. Clifford did run for a score late in the game, but had worse stats. I expect we’ll see these two duke it out in the last preseason game.
Running Back
Emmanuel Wilson: 5 Carries, 33 Yards | 1 Reception, 32 Yards
If Wilson were on a team with a worse depth chart, he’d likely be in the running for 12-15 touches every week. He’s very good, a nice blend of size and speed. Honestly, this sounds like very high praise, but he’s a little like Jonathan Taylor “light” from a metrics standpoint. He ripped off a beautiful 32-yard catch and run that showed his versatility and ended with him running over a smaller CB.
Unfortunately, he’s stuck behind two very good backs in Jacobs and Lloyd, and even has solid backs behind him on the depth chart like Israel Abanikanda to worry about, but if he ever got the chance to start would be a potential fantasy goldmine.
Missed Opportunities
None. He looked like the best back on Green Bay.
Marshawn Lloyd: 6 Rushes, 15 Yards | 1 Reception, 33 Yards
Lloyd didn’t do a whole lot on the ground, but showed off his explosiveness with a fantastic wheel route where he beat an LB cleanly downfield on a nice throw by Malik Willis. Lloyd is going to get touches this year, although he projects more as the change of pace back behind Green Bay’s early down and goal line thumper, Josh Jacobs. If all goes right, he could work his way into an even split.
Missed Opportunities
He didn’t look as polished running between the tackles as Wilson, who made his case to be involved in this game. Still, Lloyd is the most explosive back on Green Bay and will get touches due to his draft stock and high standing in the organization as well. He looked healthy, which was great to see.
Israel Abanikanda: 12 Carries, 43 Yards, TD
Green Bay has such a dearth of talent at RB. Abanikanda is a nice blend of speed and size, and ran hard in this game, carrying the ball a handful of times in a row, which eventually led to a Green Bay TD.
Missed Opportunities
He’s on the wrong team. Green Bay has three other backs that are all legitimately better. Needs to get a new agent because he has NFL ability, but won’t be able to get on the field in Green Bay without multiple injuries.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
MeCole Hardman: 4 Targets, 2 Receptions, 27 Yards
Hardman is battling for a roster spot. He may have done enough in this game to secure a spot, given his special-teams ability. He played with the firsts in this game and showcased that his downfield separation ability is still intact with a nice 20-yard grab from Willis.
He’s not going to play much when Reed, Golden, Watson, and Wicks are healthy, but he’s a good depth player.
Missed Opportunities
Only converted on two of his four targets, which showcased how inconsistent he can be as a receiver.
Cornelius Johnson: 4 Targets, 3 Receptions, 41 Yards
Johnson led all Green Bay receivers with 41 yards. It’s unlikely to matter, but Johnson does stick out a little as he’s over 6’3, and given how small all of Green Bay’s receivers are, it’s at least plausible he carves out a niche role. A name to remember in case all these injuries in Green Bay don’t improve soon.
Indianapolis Colts
Quarterback
Daniel Jones: 7/11, 101 Yards
Jones looked OK in this start, although that may not necessarily be a good thing for Colts fans going forward. He pushed the ball downfield a couple of times against a Green Bay team that has looked disinterested all preseason. Jones got nice completions to Pittman (20 yards) and Warren (25 yards) that were mostly through the air. Some of his yards also came on a catch and run by Mo Alie-Cox. However, bad Jones was also on display. He missed a wide open Warren for a huge gain on a very inaccurate throw and a couple other misses. If that connects he may have very well been named starter after the game.
If Jones starts it’s probably a good thing for Pittman. He’s an inaccurate downfield thrower so the bigger bodies of Pittman and potentially Warren should be attractive.
Missed Opportunities
Missed a huge gain to Warren downfield. The good news for Warren backers is that he did target the rookie twice downfield and did connect with him once. I worry about guys like Pierce and Downs with Jones but Pittman and Warren showed decent rapport with Jones.
Anthony Richardson: 6/11, 73 Yards | 1 Carry, 9 Yards
Richardson’s stat line doesn’t look all that great but he led the Colts on a solid 90 yard TD drive. Richardson also had a beautiful deep pass to Anthony Gould that was overturned and would have made his stats look a lot nicer. The difference between Jones and Richardson was pretty evident as Jones was more efficient throwing but had limitations with converting while Richardson showed off big play ability and was efficient in the red zone.
I personally see Richardson as the better choice for the Colts and the better player but I’m not sure if the Colts will see it that way. If he does start it’s likely better for downfield speedsters like Alec Pierce who sat out this game. Possession receivers like Pittman likely suffer the most.
Missed Opportunities
Made a fantastic play to escape the rush and get a ball downfield to Gould that was called back due to penalty. Other than that, he moved the ball well.
Running Back
Jonathan Taylor: 1 Carry, 9 Yards
Took one carry and bolted for 9 yards and then was put in bubble wrap. Honestly, this game showcased how firmly entrenched Taylor is in the bellcow role. The backups were fine but in a completely lower tier. Taylor might be undervalued at his current ADP which has him going deep into the second round of most drafts.
Tyler Goodson: 2 Carries, 10 Yards, TD
Goodson likely solidified his role to work in tandem with DJ Giddens or Herbert behind Taylor. He ran hard on a goal line carry and was in with Richardson, and took limited work, signifying how secure his role is. Goodson has some receiving upside too, but with Giddens in the mix, his uside as a handcuff is limited for the time being.
Missed Opportunities
Only took two carries, but converted his red zone work. It was significant he got the goal line work over Giddens.
DJ Giddens: 6 Carries, 28 Yards | 1 Reception, 9 Yards
With Khalil Herbert out, Giddens was the second back in and made the most of his work. He returned kicks and also caught a pass for 9 yards. It’s possible he makes the Colts rethink their plans with Herbert, who seems redundant with Giddens and Goodson in the mix.
Missed Opportunities
Didn’t get the red zone work but looked solid returning kicks and had a nice 27 yard return.
Wide Receiver/Tight End
Michael Pittman: 3 Targets, 2 Receptions, 31 Yards
Pittman was the clear first read with Downs and Pierce out for Daniel Jones. They converted on a couple of decent plays including a 22-yard catch downfield. I think this game exemplified perfectly the difference between these QBs and what they mean for players like Pittman. Pittman should thrive if Jones plays more and if the Colts announce Jones as starter I would personally bump him up quite a bit.
It’s still a crowded receiving core but Jones isn’t going to be creating plays with his feet or bombing it downfield a ton. He wants safe mid-field throws and Pittman is one of the better possession receivers in the league.
Tyler Warren: 3 Targets, 1 Reception, 25 yards
Warren had a highlight reel worthy catch in this game, a 25-yarder downfield on the sideline. Honestly, it was nice play but in a real game the ball might have been intercepted or Warren gets blown up, because the ball didn’t have a ton of pace on it. I think it’s going to create some Warren hype and Daniel Jones hype that is unwarranted to be honest.
Warren looks great but Jones almost got him blown up on their catch and completely overthrew him on another wide open target. You also have to be concerned that Mo Allie Cox was involved with the team offense and took a short catch and run for a big gain.
Adonai Mitchell: 1 Target, 1 Reception, 8 yards
Mitchell could only garner one target despite Pierce and Downs being out. It’s troubling and unless you get multiple injuries, I don’t see him as a player to consider, even in deep drafts.
Jelani Woods: 6 Targets, 2 Receptions, 22 yards
I’m just making a note here about Woods, who was considered a deep sleeper breakout candidate last seaosn before he got hurt and missed the season. He actually led the Colts in targets in this game (6) which is significant and it almost looks like the Colts are trying to convert him into a WR.
He came down with a great grab at the end of the fourth quarter at the goal line from Jason Bean that looked like a catch, but was eventually overturned (wasn’t Woods’ fault, the defender smartly pushed him out before his feet got down).
Woods would be someone I’d look to stash in dynasty because he has all kinds of upside, but is buried on a deep depth chart at the moment.