Colts-Lions preseason finale preview: Keenan Allen and DeForest Buckner among starters targeted for limited snaps

The Indianapolis Colts are treating their Week 3 preseason finale against the Detroit Lions as a practical dress rehearsal, with head coach Shane Steichen outlining a specific workload for the players most responsible for setting the tempo on both sides of the ball.

According to the Colts, Steichen intends to play starters between eight and 12 snaps in Saturday’s game. The snap cap is a deliberate choice, reflecting how teams aim to balance evaluation with the regular season goal of avoiding unnecessary wear and tear late in the preseason.

The team also pointed to specific veterans as being in line to see action. Wide receiver Keenan Allen and defensive lineman DeForest Buckner are among the starters targeted to play, giving Indianapolis at least a partial look at how its core pieces operate against live opponents in game conditions rather than practice settings.

The Colts said they used the past several days to simulate a regular season game week. Their midweek practice and meeting schedule, as described by the team, mirrored the rhythm the franchise expects to follow in mid-September, when the same preparation tempo shifts from preseason emphasis to game-week routine.

That planning matters for more than just snap counts. When starters are limited to a controlled number of reps, coaches generally place additional weight on execution details, timing, and communication, since there is less time to correct issues on the fly during the game. The Colts’ approach suggests they are prioritizing efficiency and decision-making over extended running time for the first group.

For Detroit, the matchup carries its own selection pressure, as preseason finales are often when coaching staffs tighten rotation decisions and finalize how the depth chart will be handled once the regular season begins. For Indianapolis, the Lions game is expected to serve as the last meaningful checkpoint before that transition.

What to watch next is how the Colts distribute their remaining snaps among the rest of the roster once the starters reach the eight-to-12 threshold. Even without assuming anything beyond what Indianapolis has publicly described, the structure of the playing time will likely reveal which units coaches trust most for late-game situations and which matchups the staff is still evaluating.