What to Watch For: New England Patriots vs. Indianapolis Colts Preseason Week 1

The New England Patriots will return to the game field at Gillette Stadium for the first time in the 2026 season on Thursday night, as they play host to the Indianapolis Colts to kick off the preseason.

While the stars were out for the teams’ joint practice session on Tuesday, a much heavier emphasis on youth and depth will be the headliner when the two square off again. For the first time this summer, New England’s upgrades through the NFL Draft and free agency will be pressure-tested against external competition in a full-contact environment. 

Early-season strengths and weaknesses will be on full display, and the expanding collection of promising young talent through the middle class and lower ranks on the roster will receive an extensive opportunity to earn more reps in the coming weeks.

Here’s what we’ll be on the lookout for when the New England takes on Indianapolis in the preseason opener Thursday night:

Lineup’s Out

Starters won’t typically suit up for the preseason opener, and fresh off of a high-intensity joint practice earlier in the week, that’s likely the route New England will take tomorrow. We’ll have to wait a bit longer to see the likes of Drake Maye and A.J. Brown sharing the field together, but for good reason. The Patriots’ offensive success early in camp has left little concern about their level of play come the regular season. Right now, the focus is — and should be — on keeping key contributors healthy and ready to go for Week 1.

The preseason opener will be an opportunity for those players getting snaps with multiple units to secure a more stable role — and that won’t be limited to the rookies. Key battleground positions at running back, cornerback, wide receiver, and edge rusher all feature returning players looking to carve out a spot in the rotation.

At running back, Terrell Jennings and Lan Larison will lead the charge in the competition for the third-back job. Jennings has recently taken the lion’s share of the reps behind Rhamondre Stevenson and TreVeyon Henderson since returning from the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list. It’s unclear if he’s surpassed Larison in the backfield pecking order, or if his additional workload has been a measure used to get him up-to-speed with the rest of the room. If Tuesday's joint practice was any indication, the latter may be a more suitable explanation for his additional playing time last week.

On the boundary, cornerback and wide receiver each feature veterans looking to make a lasting impression. Brandon Crossley, Marcellas Dial Jr., and Kobee Minor are all returning contributors that may be able to earn their place in the rotation with special teams contributions. They’ll be in direct competition with free agent addition Kindle Vildor and a host of rookies behind Christian Gonzalez, Carlton Davis III, and Marcus Jones.

Wide receiver will be a position worth monitoring how snaps are divided up in the preseason. It’s not likely that A.J. Brown, Romeo Doubs, or DeMario Douglas see meaningful action until the regular season is underway, but a logjam for reps surrounding them could lead to some interesting decisions. Kyle Williams and Efton Chism III will run with the offense early in the game, but how long those two stay on the field for is still highly questionable. If both have some stability on the roster, they’ll be pulled quickly; the more work they receive, the foggier their future outlooks become.

Also receiving extended run with the second-team offense through the most recent practice sessions was Kayshon Boutte, but he may be the exception to the rule on Thursday night. If the Patriots are looking to offload the receiver before the start of the 2026 campaign, it would be in their best interest to preserve the asset’s health. Even though his place in the rotation would suggest that he’d receive some playing time, the film he’s already put out against some of the NFL’s top corners is more than enough to create trade value. His presence isn’t needed to begin the preseason — especially if he’s not long for Foxboro.

Trench Warfare

Preseason action officially marks the return of trench warfare. Fully padded training camp practices give players and fans alike a small taste of physicality to begin the year, but that is taken to a new level on game day. Hits become bigger, tackles are taken all the way to the ground, and the battle at the line of scrimmage factors into the successes or failures of a team in a much more real sense.

The full-contact nature of the preseason will be the greatest examination of each lineman’s capabilities against NFL-level competition — and hopefully, reflective of the strides they’ve made developing through the team’s early summer program. New England’s first and second round picks, Caleb Lomu (No. 28 overall) and Gabe Jacas (No. 55 overall), will be under the spotlight on the line of scrimmage. 

Lomu has taken snaps at both tackle positions in training camp, but will likely stick at right tackle during games. He’s been the primary right tackle for the second-team offense in practice and has played a significant role with the starters at the same spot when Morgan Moses hasn’t been on the field, including Tuesday's joint practice. An impressive showing athletically turned heads through spring and early summer sessions, but his performance since the pads came on has left room for growth. It will be worth watching how he holds up against a live pass rush.

A delayed start to Jacas’ rookie campaign due to offseason surgery and lengthy contract negotiations hasn’t seemed to slow the edge rusher down much since he’s re-joined the team. His unique combination of first-step quickness and overwhelming power played a large part in the Patriots’ aggressive maneuvering of the draft board to trade up and select him in the second round this April, and has been evident through camp. Jacas has seen his most time with the second-team defense, but has already run with the starters on occasion. If preseason game one is anything like what he’s put on tape so far, he shouldn’t be difficult to find on Thursday night — and could keep rising up the pecking order on the edge.

Aside from Lomu and Jacas, the preseason will give New England a much clearer image of depth on both sides of the point of attack. Interior offensive line depth has been a key area of concern; the Patriots recently hosted free agent veteran guard Greg Van Roten, but haven’t made any additions since rookie minicamp. There has been one subtraction, however. Guard Caeden Wallace and a 2029 seventh-round draft pick were sent to the Miami Dolphins in exchange for a 2028 sixth-round pick on Monday.

Similarly, the Patriots have held firm with the rotational pieces they have alongside Dre’Mont Jones, Elijah Ponder, and Jacas at edge rusher. Bradyn Swinson, free agent addition Jesse Luketa, and rookies Quintayvious Hutchins (No. 247 overall), and Xavier Holmes (undrafted free agent) are all jockeying for position behind them.

If New England’s performance at those positions on Thursday leaves more questions than answers, those could be areas where new blood is added in short order.

DeVito Dimes

Get ready to see Tommy in the North End (zone).

Backup quarterback Tommy DeVito has put together quite a training camp performance, culminating in a 13-of-17 showing during last week’s intrasquad scrimmage. On his 28th birthday, DeVito shined alongside many of the Patriots’ starting wide receivers, notably hitting DeMario Douglas on a 50-plus yard pass downfield for a score and connecting with him in the red zone for another trip to pay dirt. He followed that up with another good outing during Tuesday's joint practice, finishing the day 11-of-16 in full team drills.

DeVito’s had one of the better camps from a backup quarterback in recent memory for the Foxboro faithful, and he’ll be tasked with distributing the ball to a competitive receiver group to open the preseason. We’ll see if his trend of great efficiency continues into live action tomorrow night, or if the Colts’ secondary is able to find his Achilles heel.

When DeVito subs out, rookie Behren Morton (No. 234 overall) of Texas Tech will take over the reins under center. After battling through several injuries during his collegiate career, Morton impressed at his pre-draft visit with the Patriots and was picked up in the seventh round. He’s also turned heads with a strong spring and pro-caliber velocity on his underneath and intermediate throws this summer. 

Morton’s grasp of the offense through training camp has been an encouraging sign. Last year, New England’s third quarterback — Ben Wooldridge — wasn’t able to make it past cutdown day and was eventually replaced by DeVito. This fall, it appears that the Patriots have already found their emergency third quarterback… if Morton’s play translates to game day.

Rookies on the Rise

Without many of the key starters in action, rookies filling New England’s middle class and lower ranks will be at the forefront on Thursday.

The tight ends will be high on the list of rookies to watch against Indianapolis. Supplementing the room aside the newly-minted Hunter Henry has been a pair of rookies: Notre Dame’s Eli Raridon (No. 95 overall) and Illinois’ Tanner Arkin (undrafted free agent). Raridon has been a dependable target downfield and on underneath throws for both Maye and DeVito throughout training camp, while Arkin’s physicality at the line of scrimmage has led to a steady increase in snaps with the first-team offense. Raridon’s place on the 53-man roster is secure, while Arkin has continued to make his case to be considered in the same vein. 

In the backfield, a pair of rookies — Alabama’s Jam Miller (No. 245 overall) and UCF’s Myles Montgomery (undrafted free agent) — will see significant playing time later in the game. Both still have a path to sticking around past cutdown day, but will need to show out during preseason contests to supplant Jennings and Larison ahead of them.

Out wide, the Patriots have been the beneficiaries of noteworthy contributions from a stable of undrafted free agents, with James Madison’s Nick DeGennaro and North Texas’ Cameron Dorner leading the pack through camp. Dorner’s availability is questionable after having just returned to practice for the first time since August 4, but there will more than likely be a hefty helping of DeGennaro in the preseason. It will be difficult for either to crack the final roster in an already deep room, but both could be candidates for the practice squad.

In an equally crowded group, cornerback presents more opportunity for younger players to steal a roster spot. Wake Forest’s Karon Prunty (No. 171 overall) has ascended higher in the rotation with interceptions on Maye and DeVito this summer and eye-catching coverage against New England’s top wideouts in team periods. On the undrafted free agent front, TCU’s Channing Canada and Oklahoma State’s Kenneth Harris have also shown promise. Thursday will be their best chance to keep that momentum going and overtake some of the veterans that are currently ahead of them on the depth chart.

Finally, this section would not be complete without a mention of former Missouri Tiger Khalil Jacobs, who has cemented himself as the fourth off-ball linebacker behind Robert Spillane, Christian Elliss, and Chad Muma. Earning reps over free agent addition K.J. Britt and sixth-round pick Namdi Obiazor (No. 212 overall), the undrafted free agent has garnered praise as a blitzer, run defender, and coverage ace. His involvement in the Patriots’ defense may be an unexpected surprise to some, but the brass in Foxboro were looking at Jacobs as a possible fit even before draft night. He took a Top 30 Visit to New England earlier in the spring, and has seen his snap share grow with each passing day. 

Jacobs and Arkin are the two most probable undrafted free agent roster candidates for the Patriots, and will be worth keeping an eye out for when preseason festivities are underway.

Looking Ahead

For the first time in 2026, we’ll get a legitimate look at New England’s depth and developmental prospects in live action. Fresh off of consecutive weeks of intrasquad training camp practices that were focused on learning, the new faces that have taken those coaching points and applied them have worked their way into a position to be contributors on Thursday night.

When the preseason kicks off, those same players vying for a spot on the 53-man roster will be out to re-assure the coaching staff that they’re worthy of a more extensive look. We’ll soon see how they stack up when live bullets are flying.

What will you be on the lookout for when the Patriots’ kick off the 2026 preseason against the Indianapolis Colts? Drop your thoughts in the comments below and join the conversation on Patriots Roundtable.

–

Follow Eddie on Patriots Roundtable

Related Articles:

- Observations From the New England Patriots Joint Practice with the Indianapolis Colts

- Key Matchups to Watch For at New England Patriots-Indianapolis Colts Joint Practice

- New England Patriots Dark Horses: 5 Players Who Could Make the 53-Man Roster

Check out the Patriots Roundtable Podcast!

YouTube

Spotify

Apple Podcasts