The Detroit Lions only have meaningful football left to play in the forseeable future.
After three preseason contests (and going 2-1 over that stretch), the Lions are waiting to travel for their first regular season contest of the 2026 season against the New Orleans Saints. A lot is going to change about their roster between now and then, though, with cutdown day tomorrow and plenty of shedding about to take place.
Their final preseason game, against the Indianapolis Colts, offered a final audition for some players on the roster bubble to prove that they belonged on a contending roster. Here were some takeaways based on those performances from Saturday afternoon.
7 takeaways from Lions' final preseason win against Colts
1. Detroit should've brought in some competition for Jake Bates
Jake Bates has not shown any major regression in training camp, but he had two missed extra point attempts in the teams' final preseason game and a penalty on a kickoff. Bates is coming off a down year in 2025, so any signs of continued regression from Bates might be of concern for Detroit.
Of course, they don't really have any other options outside of him at place kicker, so they might just be keen to ride out this slump.
2. Josh Dobbs is the Lions' QB2 - for now
The competition at QB2 was a lot closer than you'd think when considering it was between a veteran like Josh Dobbs and UDFA Luke Altmyer. Dobbs had to have secured the job with his 15-19, 128 passing yard day along with two touchdowns in the air. But, again, the fact that it took this long for the separation to happen between the two signal callers is just a little concerning.
Detroit is likely riding into the year with Dobbs as their backup to Jared Goff, but it shouldn't preclude them from perusing the market for another backup via trade.
Also, here's hoping Altmyer can at least stick around with the practice squad.
3. Detroit's improved pass rush might be for real
Skyler Gill-Howard on 3rd down is just as money as Aidan Hutchinson reaching 10+ sacks at this point. The rookie defensive tackle, along with some other "new" additions like DJ Wonnum and Ahmed Hassanein, have the chance to really bolster the Lions' previously suffering pass rush unit. They had two sacks on the day, but plenty of pressures and nine quarterback hits.
They looked spry all afternoon, and are (thankfully) headed into 2026 quite healthy.
4. The Lions shouldn't need to sign Kareem Hunt
Detroit visited with Kareem Hunt this past week as the injury status of Isiah Pacheco is up in the air. Of course, there's nothing wrong with kicking the tires on available free agent running backs when your projected RB2 could be out to start the year, but they already have a lot of depth at the position.
Jacob Saylors and Trayveon Williams continued to shine for Detroit in Week 3 of the preseason, combining for 157 yards and with Williams contributing two rushing touchdowns. They have the in-house production necessary to replace Pacheco's production to begin the year, if necessary, although it'd come at the cost of cutting Sione Vaki.
READ MORE: Detroit Lions 53-man roster cut tracker 2026: Live updates and analysis
5. Offensive line backups look much improved from 2025
Detroit had really decent running lanes created throughout this game, and some great blocking that helped Dobbs get into a rhythm almost right away in his snaps. You have to credit the Lions' backup offensive line for that, and for the fact that the Lions were perfect on their fourth down conversions on the day. They were also 13-19 on third down.
Despite injury to Cade Mays and some question marks for the team at left guard, they've clearly got a lot more reliable versatility along the line than they did last year.
6. Greg Dortch should be Lions' main punt returner
Dortch took off for 20 yards on his only punt return on the day, but you could tell he was very close to breaking off an even longer run had he shed at least one more tackle on that return. He just looks like the fastest option for Detroit at that position, and they're in dire need of that explosiveness on special teams.
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