FOXBOROUGH, Mass. (AP) — Daniel Jones and Drake Maye both had highlights during Tuesday’s joint practice between the Indianapolis Colts and New England Patriots.
But for now, practice is all the quarterbacks will be doing as the teams prepare to meet in their preseason opener.
Maye, coming off a second-place finish in MVP voting last season, and Jones, who is looking to build on a promising start to 2025 before he suffered a torn Achilles tendon in December, are expected to both be watching from the sideline for Thursday’s game.
“It’s pretty obvious I don’t want to take any chances out there with Daniel in the preseason,” Indianapolis coach Shane Steichen said of Jones’ status.
As for Maye, New England coach Mike Vrabel said the expectation is that he will also get the night off, though he left room for the plan to change.
“That’s where my mindset is right now, standing here today,” Vrabel said. “It’s important that we get the work in and get things accomplished that we are looking to get accomplished. That can always change, but I wouldn’t anticipate that happening right now.”
Steichen said Anthony Richardson would start the first half for Indy on Thursday, with Riley Leonard taking over in the third quarter. That will then flip for the Colts’ next exhibition game on Aug. 22 at home against Atlanta. Tommy DeVito is expected to start for New England, followed by Behren Morton.
Game or no game, Maye was pleased with the work his offense got in Tuesday.
“I think you just learn about who’s stepping up to the occasion,” Maye said. “A lot of different guys made plays. A lot of guys in the red zone were making plays, and I think you just see time and time again of when we can use everybody, how hard it is on the defense.”
It’ll be an opportunity for Richardson to solidify the backup role that he was relegated to after he was beaten out for the starting job by Jones last season following a 2024 season that had him post the lowest completion rate (47.7%) of any regular starter in the league.
Christian Gonzalez absent from practice
While the Patriots offense got to test itself opposite a Colts defense that included star cornerback Sauce Gardner, Indy didn’t get to play opposite Christian Gonzalez.
The top member of New England’s secondary wasn’t on the field, nor was fellow cornerback Carlton Davis III.
In Gonzalez’s case, it’s the latest wrinkle in a preseason that has been dominated by his ongoing discussions with the team on a contract extension.
Even as the negotiations have continued, Gonzalez had remained a full participant on the field, even as workouts shifted to full pads.
“He’s a hell of a player. When he’s not out there, we’ve got to step up and carry that weight for him,” Patriots defensive lineman Milton Williams said of Gonzalez.
Indianapolis receiver Josh Downs said he missed not having Gonzalez out there.
“You want to compete against the best,” Downs said.
Colts’ Nchami walked off after sideline skirmish
A kickoff drill ended with a brief shoving match between several players.
Indy defensive end Durell Nchami appeared to stay locked up with a Patriots player after the whistle was blown near the sideline. Multiple players intervened but it was quickly broken up by the coaching staffs.
It ended with Nchami being escorted off the field by a Colts assistant.
Trash talk
There was also plenty of fiery one-on-one matchups at times.
The most notable occurred after a touchdown pass that Jones tossed to Downs that ended with the receiver in the face of cornerback Marcus Jones.
Downs received a taunting penalty from the referee, but said later it was simply harmless jawing that escalated a little too much.
“That’s my bad ... friendly trash talk going on in practice,” Downs said. “That’s what that was about. It was nothing major. We dapped it up after. It was all love.”
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