Posted on August 10, 2018, by Travis Pulver
Fans of the Indianapolis Colts and Seattle Seahawks know that the preseason doesn’t mean anything. But fans of both teams were likely pretty eager to see their squads take the field Thursday night. Andrew Luck was slated to play for the first time since 2016 (and did). Seahawks fans were getting their first look at life after the Legion of Boom.
How would Luck look after such a long layoff? Would he be rusty? Could he take a hit? With the Legion of Boom no longer, what kind of defense would the Seahawks have?
Via @NFLonUNB
Part of the unappreciated beauty of the preseason is that both teams can walk away from a game happy. How? Well, because winning the game isn’t the most important thing. Seeing how well guys are going to play is.
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If coaches are able to learn something about their guys, they can feel good about the game.
So—what did Frank Reich and Pete Carroll learn?
- Andrew Luck is alive! It feels like an eternity since Colts fans last saw their quarterback play. All in all, he wasn’t bad at all. He was 6-9 on the night for 64 yards (most on the opening drive). His shoulder never appeared to be bothering him, and he was able to walk away.
“I really enjoyed it, and I didn’t quite know I’d have this much fun getting practice again. I didn’t know I’d have this much fun even playing football,” Luck said (via ESPN). “It’s a preseason game, I’m not going to blow anything out of proportion, but it’s still a game, a chance to go up against another color jersey. It was a fun step along the way.”
- Luck’s protection looked okay even with Anthony Castonzo out of the lineup. But beyond keeping Luck from getting clobbered, the offensive line wasn’t impressive. Space in the running game was certainly hard to come by (33 total carries for 76 yards).
- Adam Vinatieri is the man–and 45-years old. His career may have started before some of his teammates were born but he’s still doing it. He was three for three with a long of 51 yards.
- The Colts may want to do some ball protection drills. Four players put the ball on the ground a total of seven times. Luckily, they only lost one. But when you play with fire like that, you are going to get burned.
- Shaquem Griffin is as good as advertised. The rookie Seattle linebacker led the team in tackles with nine tackles including six solo and one for a loss. His athleticism was apparent and his ability undeniable.
- The Legion of Doom might be in for more of a reload than a rebuild. Not only did Griffin have a good outing, but fellow rookie Rasheem Green had seven tackles and 1.5 sacks. Former Colts linebacker Barkevious Mingo recorded a sack as well.
- Seattle’s run game is likely going to be by committee this year with Chris Carson, Mike Davis, and Rashaad Penny carrying the load. Penny didn’t look great, but since he’s a first-round pick, they’ll give him more of a chance.
- For those that keep score, the Colts won, 19-17.
It would have been better to see Luck lead the Colts on touchdown drives, but field goals are better than nothing. While Seattle’s defense looked pretty good overall, the Colts aren’t exactly one of the better offenses in the league.
Seattle will face the Chargers in Los Angeles next week on Saturday night. The Colts will face the Baltimore Ravens on Monday night (8/20).