• Tyler Warren shines in his NFL debut: In the last two seasons, Sam LaPorta and Brock Bowers played significant first-team snaps in their first preseason games. This year, Warren played 20 of the Indianapolis Colts‘ first 20 snaps.
• Samaje Perine regains the third-down role: Perine was reunited with the Cincinnati Bengals this offseason. He took third downs and other clear passing plays with the Bengals’ first-team offense from Chase Brown. 
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PFF’s fantasy football recap focuses on player usage and stats, breaking down all the vital information you need to achieve fantasy success in 2025.

Tyler Warren makes his Indianapolis Colts debut: Warren was the Colts’ top target when he was on the field.

The Colts have utilized a ridiculous rotation at tight end in recent seasons. Last season, Mo Alie-Cox, Andrew Ogletree and Kylen Granson all played between 430-475 offensive snaps, but none of the three exceeded 200 receiving yards on the season. The tight end room will look very different this season after the Colts used the 14th overall pick in the draft on Warren, a well-rounded tight end who should be capable of playing in any situation.

Warren played all 20 snaps on the Colts’ first three drives. This was a clear difference from their tight end usage last season. In the three snaps Indianapolis used two-tight-end sets, Ogletree was also on the field. Warren caught three passes for 40 yards and had a fourth reception called back due to an ineligible man downfield. It’s not surprising he received so many targets considering the Colts’ top three wide receivers didn’t play in this game. Once he left the game, Ogletree started playing more frequently, while Will Mallory became the second tight end. Warren played 16 snaps from a traditional tight end alignment in addition to two snaps in the slot and two out wide.

While we can’t take much away from his stats in this game, we can be more confident that Warren will see play significantly more snaps than past Colts’ tight ends this season. We can also expect him to align as a traditional tight end more often than most fantasy-relevant tight ends. This isn’t surprising given his strong run blocking. If anything, this game was more positive than negative, but it mostly confirms what we already expected out of Warren this season.

The Colts’ backup running back battle intensifies: The Colts rotated between Tyler Goodson and D.J. Giddens at running back throughout the first half.

The Colts have gone through several backup running backs over the years behind Jonathan Taylor, including Nyheim Miller-Hines, Zack Moss, Trey Sermon, Deon Jackson and Jordan Wilkins. None of those players is currently on the roster. The Colts retained Goodson, signed veteran Khalil Herbert from the Cincinnati Bengals in free agency and drafted Giddens in the fifth round in an open competition. Taylor has missed three-to-seven games in each of the last three seasons, so there is a chance whoever wins the backup job will hold fantasy value this season.

With Taylor sitting this game out, Goodson started. Goodson played the first drive and most of the fifth drive, while Giddens played the rest of the first-half snaps. The fact that Giddens is near even with Goodson is a good sign that he could become the primary backup this season. Typically, Day 3 running backs are buried on the depth chart this early in the preseason. It’s also good to see him playing every down rather than focusing on passing situations. Herbert was listed fourth on the team’s first unofficial depth chart. While we typically can’t take much stock in the unofficial depth charts, Herbert didn’t play a single snap with the offense in the first half, but he was spotted on the sideline in full uniform with his helmet on. The fact that the Colts rotated running backs, and Herbert wasn’t part of that rotation, is not a great sign for Herbert’s chances of being the primary backup this season. Typically, we see veterans ahead of rookies at this point in the season, so Giddens playing ahead of Herbert is pretty significant. There is at least a chance Herbert doesn’t play in this game, in which case this article will be updated.

Keaton Mitchell was the focal point of the Ravens’ offense: Mitchell performed very similarly to his rookie season.

Mitchell was excellent over a six-game stretch in 2023 as a rookie, averaging 8.4 yards per carry over 47 carries. He suffered a gruesome knee injury, including an ACL tear, near the end of 2023 and returned less than 11 months later, but he wasn’t the same player. There has been a constant positive buzz around Mitchell this offseason, as his speed is back.

Mitchell started the game for Baltimore due to Derrick Henry and Justice Hill sitting out. Mitchell played 100% of the first- and second-down snaps on the first two drives, while Rasheen Ali took the third-down role. He ran five times for 53 yards and a touchdown on those drives. Mitchell continued to work in throughout the first half because Baltimore only had three active running backs who had been on the roster for at least a week. He continued to rotate out on third downs. Ali wasn’t nearly as effective despite his significant carry total. While the level of talent he’s facing wasn’t as good as an NFL regular-season game, this helped reinforce Mitchell as the clear third running back on the depth chart, as he displayed what he can do when he has space to run.

It will be near-impossible for Mitchell to have fantasy value this season as long as Henry is healthy. Still, if Henry were to suffer an injury, Mitchell could be a must-start, as Hill would likely remain the receiving back while Mitchell receives most of the carries.

Miscellaneous Notes

• Colts’ head coach Shane Steichen announced earlier in the week that Anthony Richardson would start at quarterback and play a quarter and a half, while Daniel Jones played the rest of the half. Next week, the plan is for the roles to be reversed.
• Richardson was injured on an unblocked sack on the second drive, leading to Jones taking over at quarterback sooner. He appeared to suffer a hand injury.
• The Colts rested a few key starters, including running back Jonathan Taylor and wide receivers Michael Pittman Jr., Alec Pierce and Josh Downs.
• Colts backup running back Salvon Ahmed didn’t play after suffering a serious leg injury earlier in the week during practice. He was unlikely to make the roster before the injury.
• The Ravens rested running backs Derrick Henry, Justice Hill and Patrick Ricard, wide receivers Zay Flowers, Rashod Bateman and DeAndre Hopkins, and tight ends Mark Andrews and Isaiah Likely. The Ravens similarly rested their starters and key rotational players throughout the preseason last season, so we shouldn’t expect them to play this preseason.
• Likely is dealing with a foot fracture, and it is questionable if he will be ready for Week 1.
• Ravens tight end Charlie Kolar typically only plays in blocking situations, but he was an every-down tight end in this game.
• Baltimore sixth-round rookie wide receiver LaJohntay Wester achieved an 87-yard punt return for a touchdown. That could help him earn the punt return job in the regular season. Deonte Harty, Tylan Wallace, Steven Sims and Desmond King II all returned punts for Baltimore last season, but none of them had 87 punt return yards total last season.

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Table Notes

• Snaps include plays called back due to penalties, including offensive holding or defensive pass interference. The other three stats have these plays removed.
• Targets may differ from official NFL sources. The most likely discrepancy would be from a clear thrown-away pass, where the NFL may give the target to the nearest receiver, while this data will not.
• Carries are only on designed plays. Quarterback scrambles won’t count for the total number of carries in the game.